84302 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 204 / Tuesday, October 22, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 

[FR Doc. 2024–24400 Filed 10–21–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–C 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 660 

[RTID 0648–XE360] 

Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; 

Fisheries Off West Coast States; 

Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery; 2024 

Tribal Fishery Allocations for Pacific 

Whiting; Reapportionment Between 

Tribal and Non-Tribal Sectors 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Inseason reapportionment of 

tribal Pacific whiting allocation. 

SUMMARY: This document announces the 

reapportionment of 45,000 metric tons 

of Pacific whiting from the tribal 

allocation to the non-tribal commercial 

fishery sectors via automatic action on 

September 26, 2024. This 

reapportionment is to allow full 

utilization of the Pacific whiting 

resource. 

DATES: The reapportionment of Pacific 

whiting went into effect at 4:30 p.m. 

(16:30) local time, September 26, 2024, 

and is effective through December 31, 

2024. Comments will be accepted 

through November 6, 2024. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, 

identified by NOAA–NMFS–2024–0120 

by the following method: 

Electronic Submission: Submit all 

electronic public comments via the 

Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to 

https://www.regulations.gov and enter 

NOAA–NMFS–2024–0120 in the Search 

box. Click on the ‘‘Comment’’ icon, 

complete the required fields, and enter 

or attach your comments. 

Instructions: Comments sent by any 

other method to any other address or 

individual, or received after the end of 

the comment period, may not be 

considered by NMFS. All comments 

received are a part of the public record. 

All personal identifying information 

(e.g., name, address, etc.), confidential 

business information, or otherwise 

sensitive information submitted 

voluntarily by the sender will be 

publicly accessible. NMFS will accept 

anonymous comments (enter ‘‘N/A’’ in 

the required fields if you wish to remain 

anonymous). Attachments to electronic 

comments will be accepted in Microsoft 

Word, Excel, or Adobe PDF file formats 

only. 

Electronic Access 

This notice is accessible online at the 

Office of the Federal Register’s website 

at https://www.federalregister.gov. 

Background information and documents 


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Table J (Soul/I} Continued 

other timils and reauirements annlv Read &<RM 10 throuoh 660 399 before usioo this table tt/112024 

JAN-FEB I MAR-APR I MAY UN I JUL-AUG I SEP-OCT I NOV-DEC 

Rocldlsh Conservation Area (RCA}fl: 

1 40°10' N lat - 36°00' N lat. Shoreward EEZ11 - 75 fm line 11 

2 36°00' N lat. - 34°27' N lat. 50 fm tine11 - 75 fin line11 

3 South of 34°27' N lat 1flfl frn jjn,:,i,11 - 1~ fin finP-11 tak,n. <>nnli~ amunrl ;c,1.,n,4., Rnrl h.,:,,nl,-ce'\ 

See §§660.60 and &60.230 for additional gear, trip limit and conservation area requirements and restrictions. See §§660.70-660.74 and §§660.76-660.79 for 

conservation area descriptions and coordinates (including RCAs, YRCAs, Fandlon Islands, Cordell Bank, and EFHCAs}. 

59 SALMON 1ROLL .. (~IJject to RCAs when "!.!~!!'!!!!!J-~!(~~'!!:~ .. '!.(.fl!!!.'!!!~!!t~,.-~~-~--'E.~.X~Jlowta,J rockfish, as elf!.~-~!~~} ...................................................................................................... 

Salmon !rollers may retain and land up to 1 lb of yellowlail rocklish for every 2 lb of Chinook salmon landed, wtth a 

cumulatilielimtt of 200 lb/month, bolh within and outside of the RCA This timtt is within the 4,000 lb per 2 month timtt for 

60 South of 40°11Y N lat. minor shelf rockftsh between 40"10" and 34°27" N lat., and not in addition to that limit. All groundf!Sh species are 

subject to the open access limits, seasons, size limits and RCA restrictions listed in the table above, unless otherwise 

stated here. 

01 RIDGEBACK PRAWN AND, SOUTH OF 38°57.50' N lat., CA HALIBUT AND SEA CUCUMBER NON--GROUNDASH TRAWL .. " _____ 

62 NON--GROUNDASH TRAWL Rocldlsh Conservation Area (RCA} for CA Halibut, Sea Cucumber & Ridgebacl[ Prawn: 

100 fm line 11 -

I 100 fm line 11 - 150 fm fine 11 I 

100 fmline v - 63 40°10' N lat. - 38°00' N lat. 200fmline 11 200fmfine 11 

64 38°00' N lat. - 34°27' N lat. 100 fm line 11 - 150 fm line 11 

65 South of 34°27' N lat. 100 fm line 11 - 150 fm line 11 

Groundfish: 300 lb/trip. Species-specific limits described in the table above also apply and are counted toward the 300 

I> groundfish per trip limit. The amount of grnundf1Sh landed may not exceed the amount of the target species landed, 

except tllal the amount of spiny dogfish landed may exceed the amount of target species landed. Spiny dogfish are 

fimited by the 300 lb/trip overaU groundfish timit. The daily trip limits for sablelish coastwide and thomyheads south of 

66 pt Conception and the overall groundfish 0 pertrip" limrt may not be multiplied by the number of days of the trip. 

Vessels participating in the Galifomia hatibut f1Shery south of 38°57.50' N lat. are - lo (I) land up to 100 lb/day of 

groundfish without the ratio requirement, provided that at least one Galilomia hafibut is landed and (2) land up to 3,000 

lb/month of flattish, no more than 300 lb of which may be species other than Pacific sanddabs, sand sole, starry 

flounder, rock sole, curtfin sole, or California scorpionfish (California scorpionfish is also subiect to the trip limits and 

closures in 1ine 29). 

67 PINK SHRIMP NON--GROUNDASH TRAWL GEAR (not subject lo RCAsJ 

Effective April 1 - October 31: Groundfish: 500 lb/day, multiplied by the number of days of the trip, no1 to exceed 1,500 

lb/trip. 1he folowing subfimits 8'so apply and are counted toward the rnieral 500 lb/ day and 1,500 lb/ trip groundfish 

timils: lingcod 300 lb/ month (minimum 24 inch size limtt); sablefish 2,000 lb/ month; canary rockflSh, thomyheads and 

69 South yeloweye rockfish are PROHIBITED. AR other groundfish species taken am managed under the overall 500 lb/day and 

1,500 lb/ trip groundf,sh limits. Landings of al groundflSh species count toward the per day, per trip or other speciesspecific subtimils described here and the species-specific timits described in the table above do not apply. The amount 

of groundf,sh landed may not exceed the amount of pink shrimp landed. 

1/ Tile Rockffsh Conservation Area iS an area closed to f1Shlng by particular-gear types, bounded by Hnes specffically defined by latitude 

and longitude coordinates set out at§§ 660.71-660.74. This RCA is not defined by depth contoms (with the exception of the 20-fm 

depth contour boundary south of 42° N fat}., arid the boundary lines tllat define the RCA may close areas tllat are deeper or shallower 

than the depth contour. Vessels that are subject to RCA restrictions may not fish in the RCA, or operate in tfle RCA for any purpose 

othertllan transiting. Open access vessels may be allowed to fish inside groundflSh conservation areas using hook and Hne only. 

See§ 660.330 (d) of the regulations for more infonnatlon. 

2/ Minar Shelf and Slope Rotknsh complexes are defined at§ 660.11. Pacific ocean perch is included in the trip limits tor minor s!Ope rockfiSll. Blackgut rockffSll have 

a species spec me trip sUb-limlt Wittlin the mmorslOpe rockf!Sh c1m1u1attve llmlts. Yelk>Wtall r-ockfiStl IS inCIUde<f In tire trtp Hmlts tor mlnOrstlelf rockflSh. Bronzespotte<I rockfiSfl 

have a species specmc trip llmlL 

3/""0ttlerflaffish" are define<! at§ 660.11 aoo lnelll<fe butter SOie, curmn sole. flatheact SOie, Pacific sancklab. rex SOie, rock sole. and saoo sore 

41 "Shallow Nea1Sl1ore" are defined at§ 660.11 under "GroundftSh" (7)(l)(B)(f )-

51 "Deeper Nearshore" are defined at§ 660.11 under "Groundfish" (7)(i)(B)(2 ). 

61 The commercial mimimum size Hrnit for lingcod is 22 inches (fiS cm) South of 42" N lat. 

7/ "0ttlerfrsh" are defiiled at§ 660.11 and includes kelp greenling off califomia and leopaftl shart. 

81 Open access vessels may be allowed to ftsh inside groundfish conservation areas using hook and line only. See§ 660.330 (d} of the regulations for more .informatton. 

To convert pounds to kilograms, divide by 2.20482, the number of pounds in one kilogram. 

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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 204 / Tuesday, October 22, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 84303 

are available at the NMFS West Coast 

Region website at https://www.

fisheries.noaa.gov/region/west-coast. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Colin Sayre, West Coast Region, NMFS, 

(206) 526–4656, Colin.Sayre@noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

Pacific Whiting 

Pacific whiting (Merluccius 

productus) is a very productive species 

with highly variable recruitment (the 

biomass of fish that mature and enter 

the fishery each year) and a relatively 

short life span compared to other 

groundfish species. Pacific whiting has 

the largest annual allowable harvest 

levels (by volume) of the more than 90 

groundfish species managed under the 

Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery 

Management Plan (FMP), which governs 

the groundfish fishery off Washington, 

Oregon, and California. The coastwide 

Pacific whiting stock is managed jointly 

by the United States and Canada, and 

mature Pacific whiting are commonly 

available to vessels operating in U.S. 

waters from April through December. 

Background on the stock assessment, 

and the establishment of the 2024 Total 

Allowable Catch (TAC), for Pacific 

whiting was provided in the final rule 

for the 2024 Pacific whiting harvest 

specifications, published June 24, 2024 

(89 FR 52398). Pacific whiting is 

allocated to the Pacific Coast treaty 

tribes (tribal fishery) and to three nontribal commercial sectors: the catcher/ 

processor cooperative (C/P Co-op), the 

mothership cooperative (MS Co-op), and 

the Shorebased Individual Fishery 

Quota (IFQ) Program. 

This notice announces the 

reapportionment of 45,000 metric tons 

(mt) of Pacific whiting from the tribal 

allocation to the non-tribal commercial 

sectors. This reapportionment was 

effective on September 26, 2024. 

Regulations at 50 CFR 660.131(h) 

contain provisions that allow the 

Regional Administrator to reapportion 

Pacific whiting from the tribal 

allocation, specified at 50 CFR 660.50, 

that will not be harvested by the end of 

the fishing year to other sectors. 

Pacific Whiting Reapportionment 

For 2024, the Pacific Coast treaty 

tribes were allocated 71,755.95 mt of 

Pacific whiting. The best available 

information on September 15, 2024, 

indicated that at least 45,000 mt of the 

tribal allocation would not be harvested 

by December 31, 2024. As required 

under the 2017 Endangered Species Act 

section 7(a)(2) biological opinion on the 

effects of the Pacific Coast Groundfish 

Fishery Management Plan on listed 

salmonids, NMFS considered the 

number and bycatch rate of Chinook 

salmon taken by the Pacific whiting 

fishery sectors prior to reapportionment. 

Based on the best available information 

in September 2024, NMFS determined 

there is low risk that the 

reapportionment will cause the Pacific 

whiting sector fisheries to exceed both 

the guideline limit of 11,000 and reserve 

of 3,500 Chinook salmon under current 

regulations and practices. At the time of 

this notice, incidental take of Chinook 

salmon by the non-tribal sectors is five 

percent of the guideline limit. NMFS 

will continue to monitor Chinook 

salmon bycatch as part of inseason 

management. 

To allow for increased utilization of 

the resource, on September 26, 2024, 

NMFS reapportioned 45,000 mt from 

the tribal allocation to the Shorebased 

IFQ Program, C/P Co-op, and MS Co-op 

in proportion to each sector’s original 

allocation. Reapportioning this amount 

is expected to allow for greater 

attainment of the TAC while not 

limiting tribal harvest opportunities for 

the remainder of the year. NMFS 

provided notice of the reapportionment 

on September 26, 2024, via emails sent 

directly to fishing businesses and 

individuals. Reapportionment was 

effective the same day as the notice. 

The amounts of Pacific whiting 

available for 2024 before and after the 

reapportionment are described in table 

1 below. 

TABLE 1—2024 PACIFIC WHITING

ALLOCATIONS

Sector 

Initial 2024 

allocation 

(mt) 

Final 2024 

allocation 

(mt) 

Tribal ................. 71,755.95 26,755.95 

C/P Coop .......... 114,759.53 130,059.53 

MS Coop ........... 81,006.73 91,806.73 

Shorebased IFQ 

Program ........ 141,761.78 160,661.78 

Classification 

NOAA’s Assistant Administrator for 

Fisheries (AA) finds that good cause 

exists for this notification to be issued 

without affording prior notice and 

opportunity for public comment 

pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B), because 

such notification would be 

impracticable and contrary to the public 

interest. As previously noted, NMFS 

provided actual notice of the 

reapportionment to fishery participants 

at the time of the action. Prior notice 

and opportunity for public comment on 

this reapportionment was impracticable 

because NMFS had insufficient time to 

provide prior notice between the time 

the information about the progress of 

the fishery needed to make this 

determination became available and the 

time at which fishery modifications had 

to be implemented in order to allow 

fishery participants access to the 

available fish during the remainder of 

the fishing season. For the same reasons, 

the AA also finds good cause to waive 

the 30-day delay in effectiveness for 

these actions, required under 5 U.S.C. 

553(d)(3). 

These actions are authorized by 50 

CFR 660.55(i), 660.60(d), and 660.131(h) 

and are exempt from review under 

Executive Order 12866. 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq. and 16 

U.S.C. 7001 et seq. 

Dated: October 16, 2024. 

Karen H. Abrams, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2024–24361 Filed 10–21–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 


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