Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 218 / Thursday, November 9, 2000 / Rules and Regulations 67305

Wildlife Management Assistance and

Habitat Restoration, U.S. Fish and

Wildlife Service, Telephone 703–358–

1718, or on the Internet at

Jeffrey_Horwath@fws.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On

December 15, 1998, our regulations at

50 CFR Part 18, Subpart J expired. These

regulations were effective beginning on

December 16, 1993 (58 FR 60402,

November 16, 1993), and authorized the

incidental, unintentional take of small

numbers of polar bears and Pacific

walrus during year-round oil and gas

industry exploration, development, and

production operations in the Beaufort

Sea and adjacent coast of Alaska. We

subsequently issued final regulations on

January 29, 1999 (64 FR 4328)

‘‘revising’’ these expired regulations.

Later regulations appear on February 3,

2000 (65 FR 5275), and March 30, 2000

(65 FR 16828). Rather than ‘‘revising’’

our regulations, we should have stated

that we were ‘‘adding’’ these regulations

at 50 CFR Part 18. Therefore, this action

corrects this technical error by changing

the amendatory instructions in our

March 30, 2000, final rule to state that

we are ‘‘adding’’ those regulations to 50

CFR Part 18, Subpart J. Letters of

Authorization issued under the

regulations are not affected by this

action.

Accordingly, make the following

correction to FR Doc. 00–7912

published at 65 FR 16828 on March 30,

2000:

PART 18—[CORRECTED]

On page 16842, in column one,

correct amendatory instruction 2. to

read as follows:

2. Add Subpart J to Part 18 to read as

follows:

Dated: November 6, 2000.

Cathleen Short,

Assistant Director, Fisheries and Habitat

Conservation, Fish and Wildlife Service.

[FR Doc. 00–28778 Filed 11–8–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–55–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

50 CFR Parts 300 and 679

[Docket No. 000616184-0290-02; I.D.

050500A]

RIN 0648-AK74

Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic

Zone Off Alaska; Sitka Pinnacles

Marine Reserve

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: NMFS issues regulations to

implement Amendment 59 to the

Fishery Management Plan for

Groundfish of the Gulf of Alaska (FMP)

and to make changes to the regulations

governing the Individual Fishing Quota

(IFQ) commercial fishery and halibut

sport fishery. This action designates an

unusually productive and fragile 2.5

square nautical mile (nm) area of habitat

as the Sitka Pinnacles Marine Reserve

(Reserve) and closes this area to

groundfish fishing and anchoring by

commercial groundfish vessels, to

halibut fishing and anchoring by IFQ

halibut fishing vessels, to sport fishing

for halibut, and to anchoring by any

vessel if halibut is on board. The intent

of this action is to protect an area

containing important fish habitat from

the effects of fishing and anchoring and

to create a groundfish reserve.

DATES: Effective December 11, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the

Environmental Assessment/Regulatory

Impact Review/Initial Regulatory Impact

Review (EA/RIR/IRFA) and the Final

Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (FRFA)

prepared for this action may be obtained

from the Alaska Region, NMFS, P.O.

Box 21668, Juneau, AK 99802-1668,

Attn: Lori Gravel, or by calling the

Alaska Region, NMFS, at 907-586-7228.

Send comments on any ambiguity or

unnecessary complexity arising from the

language used in this final rule to the

Regional Administrator, Alaska Region,

NMFS, 709 West Ninth Street, Federal

Office Building, Suite 453, Juneau, AK

99801.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Nina Mollett, 907-586-7228; fax 907-

586-7465.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

domestic groundfish fisheries of the

Gulf of Alaska (GOA) are managed by

NMFS under the FMP. The FMP was

prepared by the North Pacific Fishery

Management Council (Council) under

the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery

Conservation and Management Act

(Magnuson-Stevens Act). Regulations

governing the domestic groundfish

fisheries in the exclusive economic zone

of the GOA appear at 50 CFR parts 600

and 679. Regulations governing the IFQ

halibut fisheries in the exclusive

economic zone of the GOA appear at 50

CFR part 679. Regulations governing the

domestic halibut fisheries appear at 50

CFR 300.60 to 300.65, which

supplements the annual fishery

management measures adopted by the

International Pacific Halibut

Commission (IPHC) under the

Convention between the United States

and Canada for the Preservation of the

Halibut Fishery of the Northern Pacific

Ocean and Bering Sea.

Amendment 59 was submitted to

NMFS for review and a notice of

availability of the FMP amendment was

published on May 12, 2000 (65 FR

30559), with comments on the FMP

amendment invited through July 11,

2000. Amendment 59 was approved by

NMFS on August 9, 2000. The proposed

rule to implement Amendment 59 was

published on June 26, 2000 (64 FR

39342). The public comment period

ended on August 10, 2000. One letter of

comments was received on Amendment

59 and its implementing regulations. A

summary of this letter and NMFS’

response is provided in the ‘‘Response

to Comments’’ section.

Background

The Sitka Pinnacles area, in the

Southeast Outside District of the GOA

near Cape Edgecumbe, provides highly

productive habitat for many species at

different stages of their life cycles.

Information collected during manned

submersible surveys of groundfish

habitat by the Alaska Department of

Fish & Game (ADF&G) indicates that the

diversity and density of fish around the

Sitka Pinnacles are much greater than

the typical eastern continental shelf of

the GOA. The pinnacles habitat is

fragile, and the concentration of fishes

in a relatively small, compact space can

lend itself to overfishing of certain

species, particularly lingcod, at

sensitive life stages.

The Sitka Pinnacles (also called the

Cape Edgecumbe Pinnacles) consist of

two large volcanic cones that rise

abruptly off the seafloor. The top of one

is within 70 meters (229.6 feet) of the

sea surface, and the other within 40

meters (131.2 feet). The area from sea

surface to seafloor provides a variety of

rich habitat suitable for different

species. The field of boulders on the

bottom provides a spawning bed for

67306 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 218 / Thursday, November 9, 2000 / Rules and Regulations

lingcod and refuge for large numbers of

such commercially valuable species as

yelloweye and tiger rockfish, and of

such non-commercial species as

prowfish. The flat, irregular tops of the

pinnacles are used as a feeding platform

by juvenile and adult rockfish and by

huge concentrations of lingcod. The

walls of the pinnacles, covered with

algae, anemones, and other organisms,

provide shelter to large numbers of

juvenile and adult bottom-dwelling

rockfish. Finally, schooling species,

such as yellowtail and widow rockfish,

feed along the pinnacle walls and in the

water column between the top of the

pinnacles and the surface.

Since 1997, when the State of Alaska

(State) initially proposed this action to

the Council, NMFS, ADF&G, and the

IPHC have cooperated on creating the

Reserve, as different species are

managed under different jurisdictions

(see Table 1).

THE SITKA PINNACLES TABLE 1—AGENCY ACTIONS TO CLOSE FISHERIES OFF CAPE EDGECUMBE

Species Agency Law

Commercial and recreational fishing for

lingcod and black rockfish

ADF&G ........................ These fisheries are closed under 5 AAC 28.150.

Groundfish NMFS .......................... Closed by Amd. 59 and regulatory amendments at 50 CFR 679.2 and § 679.22.

Halibut NMFS and IPHC ......... Closed by regulatory amendments at 50 CFR 300.63 and § 679.22.

Scallops ADF&G ........................ Under Amd. 3 to the Fishery Management Plan for Scallop Fisheries off Alaska, NMFS

delegates responsibility to the State for managing the scallop fishery. Scallop dredging

has been closed under 5 AAC 38.120 in the ‘‘Central Southeast Outside’’ area, including the Sitka Pinnacles, since July, 1994.

Commercial and Recreational SalmonNMFS and ADF&G ..... The Alaska State Board of Fish considered closure to salmon fishing at its February

2000 meeting and rejected the proposal.

The area has been used for fishing,

especially with hook-and-line gear, for

decades. In the late 1980s, a directed

fishery for lingcod developed on the

pinnacles. The high density and

aggressive feeding behavior of lingcod

made them extremely susceptible to

capture; hourly catch rates of lingcod at

the site exceeded catch rates in the

surrounding area by threefold. In 1991,

the State of Alaska (State) began

attempting to preserve lingcod

populations in nearby State waters (the

Sitka Pinnacles are in Federal waters)

through closures during winter when

male lingcod are nest guarding and, in

1994, through spring/summer in-season

closures of State-regulated fishing in

areas that included the pinnacles. In

1995, the pinnacles area was included

in the winter closure as well. In 1997,

ADF&G issued an emergency order

closing the area to all State-regulated

groundfish fishing for the entire season.

However, the sport fishery was not

affected by any of the State’s

management actions and continued to

take lingcod and Pacific halibut. In May

1998, the commercial and sportfish

divisions of ADF&G submitted joint

proposals to the State’s Board of Fish

and the Council to close the Sitka

Pinnacles area. The Board of Fish closed

the area to fishing for lingcod and black

rockfish, which are species under its

jurisdiction. It took up the question of

closing the area to commercial and

recreational salmon fishing in February

2000 but rejected the proposal.

This action has two parts:

1. Implementation of Amendment 59;

Designation of Sitka Pinnacles Marine

Reserve and Closure to Groundfish

Fishing and Anchoring

This action complements State

regulations by designating a 2.5 square

nm area of the GOA as the Sitka

Pinnacles Marine Reserve and closing

this area to groundfish fishing or

anchoring by vessels required to have a

Federal fisheries permit under

§ 679.4(b).

2. Regulatory amendment for halibut

The Pacific halibut fishery is managed

by the IPHC, under the Northern Pacific

Halibut Act. The Act states that the

Regional Fishery Management Council

with authority for a geographic area may

develop regulations governing U.S.

waters ‘‘which are in addition to, and

not in conflict with, regulations adopted

by the Commission’’ (16 U.S.C. 773c(c)).

Pursuant to this authority, this action

closes the Reserve to fishing for halibut

or anchoring by vessels required to have

on board an Individual Fishing Quota

(IFQ) halibut permit under § 679.4(d).

Also pursuant to this authority, this

action closes the area to sport fishing for

halibut as defined at § 300.61, or

anchoring by any vessel having halibut

on board.

The combined effect of State and

Federal regulations will allow the Sitka

Pinnacles ecosystem to maintain its

natural level of production by

eliminating the harvest or bycatch of

fish during critical portions of their life

history. The prohibition on anchoring

will prevent degradation of the area’s

fragile habitat.

Response to Comments

One letter was received during the

public comment period. It was from the

Center for Marine Conservation (CMC).

CMC’s comments are summarized and

responded to as follows:

Comment: CMC supported the closure

generally with certain reservations: (1) It

would have preferred an ‘‘ecosystembased management strategy’’ including

designation of the reserve as a Habitat

Area of Particular Concern (HAPC) to

the ‘‘species-specific strategy’’ adopted

by NMFS; (2) it supports a ban on all

anchoring in the pinnacles area; (3) it

supports closing a larger area to fishing

that would include a buffer zone around

Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 218 / Thursday, November 9, 2000 / Rules and Regulations 67307

the pinnacles, noting that initial Stateregulated closures designated a 3.1

square nm area.

Response: (1) The Reserve is being

considered by the Council for HAPC

designation as part of a broader HAPC

amendment, which is undergoing a

public planning process. (2) NMFS

agrees that the anchoring prohibition is

selective, not comprehensive. However,

NMFS’ authority under the MagnusonStevens Act is limited to the regulation

of fishing vessels. Thus, NMFS does not

have authority to prohibit anchoring by

non fishing vessels. NMFS has

delegated the management of

commercial and sport salmon fishing to

the State. NMFS has corresponded with

the State over the possibility of

prohibiting anchoring by salmon fishing

vessels. (3) Initial state-regulated

closures designated a 3.1 square nm area

around the pinnacles. The discrepancy

is due to an initial miscalculation of the

area, which has been corrected. The area

is actually 2.5 square nm. The area

delineated has remained the same

dimension and includes the entire area

around the pinnacles recommended by

the State in its initial presentation to the

Council, as described in the final rule.

A larger closed area would lead to

greater impacts on fishermen and would

have less community support. The 2.5

square nm closure adequately protects

the discrete habitat area surrounding the

Sitka Pinnacles.

Classification

This action has been determined to be

not significant under Executive

Order12866. No new reporting,

recordkeeping, or compliance

requirements are imposed by this final

rule.

NMFS has prepared an FRFA that

describes the impact this final rule is

expected to have on small entities. A

copy of this analysis is available from

NMFS (see ADDRESSES). At the upper

limit, the total number of entities that

could be affected by this action is

estimated at 2,618, which includes

1,048 fixed gear groundfish vessels and

1,570 halibut vessels, based on 1998

data for vessels that fished in the GOA.

This figure does not include trawl

vessels, which are already prohibited

from fishing in this area under

Amendment 41 (63 FR 8356, February

19, 1998). Of the non-trawl vessels, the

great majority (90 percent) are catcher

vessels under 60 feet in length overall

(as opposed to larger catcher vessels and

catcher-processors). The necessary data

on ownership, affiliation, contractual

relationships, and the rest from which

to conclusively determine which of

these operations are ‘‘small entities’’ for

Regulatory Flexibility Act purposes are

not available, and some of these 2,618

vessels might not qualify under Small

Business Administration criteria.

However, for the purposes of the FRFA

analysis, all of these groundfish and

commercial halibut vessels are assumed

to be small entities, given the nature of

the fisheries they participate in and the

unlikelihood that many of them have

annual gross revenues in excess of $3

million. This simplifying assumption

avoids the risk of understating the

potential impact on small entities.

Realistically, the assumption that all

vessels fishing in the GOA could be

affected greatly inflates the estimate of

vessels whose opportunity to fish could

potentially be affected by this final rule.

The closure is in Statistical Area (S.A.)

355631. Information from the State’s

Commercial Fisheries Entry

Commission fish ticket data shows that,

in 1998, 97 vessels fished for groundfish

in S. A. 355631. The NMFS IFQ

landings database shows that 67 vessels

caught IFQ halibut in 1998 in S. A.

355631 (4.2 percent of halibut vessels).

Therefore, 157 is a more realistic

estimate of the universe of commercial

groundfish and halibut vessels that fish

in the vicinity and whose opportunity to

fish could potentially be affected by the

final rule.

The total landings of State and

federally managed species in 1998 in S.

A. 355631, based on fish ticket data,

were 748,378 lb (or about 0.14 percent

of the total landings in the GOA that

year). The total amount of halibut

landed in S. A. 355631 was 409,000 lb,

or 0.9 percent of the total landed in the

GOA, a percentage which remained

consistent from 1995 to 1998. The

closure area itself is less than 1 percent

of S. A. 355631 (2.5 sq nm out of a total

of 466 sq nm). The historical poundage

of groundfish and halibut taken in the

closure area cannot be ascertained with

any further accuracy, however, because

the data built from fish tickets give only

statistical areas and not exact catch

locations.

In addition to the commercial fishing

vessels, 588 charter vessels, owned by

397 unique businesses, fished for

halibut in 1988 in IPHC Area 2C, in

which the Sitka Pinnacles are located.

Of the charter vessels, 364 were

homeported in Sitka, and 191 of the

Sitka vessels targeted bottomfish,

including Pacific halibut. Opportunities

of charter boat operators, as well as

individual anglers, to fish for Pacific

halibut could be affected by this action.

But few, if any, of these charter boats

have been fishing on the pinnacles since

the State closed the area to fishing for

lingcod and State-managed rockfish

species in the summer of 1998. The

aggregations of lingcod present on the

pinnacles were an incentive to travel to

this site. Although halibut may be found

near the Sitka Pinnacles, they do not

aggregate there in any greater numbers

than elsewhere in S. A. 355631.

The actual number of vessels affected

by the rule will be even smaller than the

number outlined. Few fishing vessels

currently use the area. Most, if not all,

groundfish and halibut fishermen have

voluntarily avoided the pinnacles area

for the past 2 years, since ADF&G

regulations prohibiting the take of

groundfish species under its jurisdiction

took effect. Local fishermen have been

supportive of protecting the Sitka

Pinnacles.

If any vessels continue to fish in the

reserve, they are not likely to be

adversely affected by the closure to any

significant extent, as the area constitutes

less than 1 percent of the grounds in S.

A. 355631 and less than .001 percent of

the total available fishing grounds in the

GOA (about 340,000 sq nm). Some longterm advantage may accrue to fishermen

in terms of fishing opportunity in

nearby areas because leaving an area of

notably high biological importance and

productivity (e.g., unique breeding,

spawning, rearing habitat) undisturbed

has the potential of increasing

production through a spillover effect in

adjacent areas that remain open to

fishing. Any such benefits from

increased production, however, could

be offset in an open-access situation

because increased catch per unit effort

in adjacent areas could lead to crowding

externalities. The preferred alternative

selected, under which salmon fishing

would continue to be allowed, was

chosen in order to reduce the potential

impact on small entities. The State

Board of Fish considered and rejected

closing the area to salmon fishing at its

February 2000 meeting in order to

minimize unwarranted adverse impacts

on numerous salmon vessels that fish in

the GOA.

In summary, the cost to small entities

of implementing the final rule is

expected to be quite low, as the area

being proposed for closure constitutes

an extremely small percentage of

available fishing grounds, and few, if

any, vessels have been fishing in the

area since ADF&G promulgated

regulations prohibiting fishing for

groundfish species under its jurisdiction

in 1998. No total allowable catch quotas

will be changed by the rule, and NMFS

does not anticipate a reduction in catch

for any species as a result of this

rulemaking.

The Environmental Assessment

concluded that implementing the

67308 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 218 / Thursday, November 9, 2000 / Rules and Regulations

amendment is not likely to affect the

quality of the human environment.

The President has directed Federal

agencies to use plain language in their

communication with the public,

including regulations. To comply with

this directive, we seek public comment

on any ambiguity or unnecessary

complexity arising from the language

used in this final rule. Such comments

should be sent to the Alaska Regional

Administrator (see ADDRESSES).

List of Subjects

50 CFR Part 300

Administrative practice and

procedure, Exports, Fish, Fisheries,

Marine resources.

50 CFR Part 679

Alaska, Fisheries, Recordkeeping and

reporting requirements.

Dated: November 1, 2000.

William T. Hogarth,

Deputy Assistant Administrator for Fisheries,

National Marine Fisheries Service.

For the reasons discussed in the

preamble, 50 CFR parts 300 and 679 are

amended as follows:

PART 300—INTERNATIONAL

FISHERIES REGULATIONS

1. The authority citation for 50 CFR

part 300, subpart E, continues to read as

follows:

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 773 - 773k.

2. In subpart E, Pacific Halibut

Fisheries, § 300.63, paragraph (e) is

added to read as follows:

§ 300.63 Catch sharing plans, local area

management plans, and domestic

management measures.

* * * * *

(e) Prohibition on halibut fishing and

anchoring in the Sitka Pinnacles Marine

Reserve. (1) For purposes of this

paragraph (e), the Sitka Pinnacles

Marine Reserve means an area totaling

2.5 square nm off Cape Edgecumbe,

defined by straight lines connecting the

following points in a counterclockwise

manner:

56°55.0’N lat., 135°54.0’W long;

56°57.0’N lat., 135°54.0’W long;

56°57.0’N lat., 135°57.0’W long;

56°55.5’N lat., 135°57.0’W long.

(2) No person shall engage in sport

fishing, as defined in § 300.61, for

halibut within the Sitka Pinnacles

Marine Reserve.

(3) No person shall anchor a vessel

within the Sitka Pinnacles Marine

Reserve if halibut is on board.

PART 679—FISHERIES OF THE

EXCLUSIVE ECONOMIC ZONE OFF

ALASKA

3. The authority citation for 50 CFR

part 679 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 773 et seq., 1801 et

seq., and 3631 et seq.

4. In § 679.2, a new definition for the

‘‘Sitka Pinnacles Marine Reserve’’ is

added in alphabetical order, to read as

follows:

§ 679.2 Definitions.

* * * * *

Sitka Pinnacles Marine Reserve means

an area totaling 2.5 square nm in the

GOA, off Cape Edgecumbe, in Statistical

Area 650. See Figure 18 to this part.

* * * * *

5. In § 679.22, paragraph (b)(5) is

added to read as follows:

§ 679.22 Closures.

* * * * *

(b)* * *

(5) Sitka Pinnacles Marine Reserve. (i)

No vessel required to have a Federal

fisheries permit under § 679.4(b) may

fish for groundfish or anchor in the

Sitka Pinnacles Marine Reserve, as

described in Figure 18 to this part.

(ii) No vessel required to have on

board an IFQ halibut permit under

§ 679.4(d) may fish for halibut or anchor

in the Sitka Pinnacles Marine Reserve,

as described in Figure 18 to this part.

* * * * *

6. In part 679, Figure 18 is added to

read as follows:

Figure 18 to Part 679–Sitka Pinnacles

Marine Reserve

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S

Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 218 / Thursday, November 9, 2000 / Rules and Regulations 67309

b. Coordinates

An area totaling 2.5 square nm off

Cape Edgecumbe, defined by straight

lines connecting the following points in

a counterclockwise manner:

56°55.5’N lat., 135°54.0’W long;

56°57.0’N lat., 135°54.0’W long;

56°57.0’N lat., 135°57.0’W long;

56°55.5’N lat., 135°57.0’W long.

[FR Doc. 00–28676 Filed 11–09–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–C