13350 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 54 / Thursday, March 20, 1997 / Rules and Regulations

testing rates for the following year. (See

49 CFR 219.602 and 219.608.)

Under this performance-based system,

FRA may lower the minimum random

drug testing rate to 25 percent whenever

the industry-wide random drug positive

rate is less than 1.0 percent for two

calendar years while testing at 50

percent. (For both alcohol and drugs,

FRA reserves the right to consider other

factors, such as the number of positives

in its post-accident testing program,

before deciding whether to lower annual

minimum random testing rates). FRA

will return the rate to 50 percent if the

industry-wide random drug positive rate

is 1.0 percent or higher in any

subsequent calendar year.

In 1994, FRA set the 1995 minimum

random drug testing rate at 25 percent

because 1992 and 1993 industry drug

testing data indicated a random drug

positive rate below 1.0 percent. In this

notice, FRA announces the minimum

random drug testing rate will continue

to be 25 percent of covered railroad

employees for the period January 1,

1997 through December 31, 1997, since

the industry random positive rate for

1995 is below 1.0 percent.

FRA implemented a parallel

performance-based system for random

alcohol testing. Under this system, FRA

may lower the minimum random

alcohol testing rate to 10 percent

whenever the industry-wide violation

rate is less than .05 percent for two

calendar years while testing at a higher

rate. FRA will raise the rate to 50

percent if the industry-wide violation

rate is 1.0 percent or higher in any

subsequent calendar year. If the

industry-wide violation rate is less than

1.0 percent but greater than .05 percent,

the rate will remain at 25 percent.

Random alcohol testing was fully

implemented at a 25 percent minimum

testing rate on January 1, 1996. Since

FRA does not yet have two years of data

for the entire rail industry, the current

random alcohol testing rate will remain

at 25 percent of covered railroad

employees for the period January 1,

1997 through December 31, 1997.

Issued in Washington, DC on March 13

1997.

Donald M. Itzkoff,

Deputy Administrator, Federal Railroad

Administration.

[FR Doc. 97–6831 Filed 3–19–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910–06–M

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

50 CFR Part 630

[I.D. 012197D]

Atlantic Swordfish Fishery; Quota

adjustment; Closure

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Quota adjustment; closure;

bycatch limit adjustment.

SUMMARY: NMFS is reducing the

directed fishery quota for the second

semiannual swordfish season (December

1, 1996, to May 31, 1997), due to

updated estimates of dead discards in

1995 and 1996. The directed fishery

quota is reduced from 1,064.4 metric

tons (mt) dressed weight to 749.7 mt.

Based upon landings to date in the

second semiannual season and

historical landings, NMFS estimates that

this adjusted fishery landings quota will

be reached on or before April 12, 1997.

Therefore, NMFS closes the directed

fishery effective at 12 noon on April 12,

1997.

EFFECTIVE DATES: The reduction is

effective March 14, 1997 through May

31, 1997. The closure is effective at 12

noon on April 12, 1997, through May

31, 1997.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Rebecca Lent or James Chambers, 301–

713–2347.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

Atlantic swordfish fishery is managed

under the Fishery Management Plan for

Atlantic Swordfish and its

implementing regulations at 50 CFR part

630 under the authority of the

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery

Conservation and Management Act (16

U.S.C. 1801 et seq.) (Magnuson Act) and

the Atlantic Tunas Convention Act

(ATCA) (16 U.S.C. 971 et seq.).

Regulations issued under the authority

of ATCA carry out the recommendations

of International Commission for the

Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT).

The regulations governing the

Atlantic swordfish fisheries at 50 CFR

630.24 provide for a specified annual

quota to be landed by the directed

fishery. The annual quota is divided

into two semiannual quotas for each of

the 6-month periods, June 1 through

November 1, and December 1 through

May 31 (61 FR 27304, May 31, 1996).

NMFS is required, under § 630.25(a)(1),

to monitor the catch and landings

statistics and, on the basis of these

statistics, to project a date when the

catch will equal the quota, and to

publish a Federal Register document

announcing the closure.

Under § 630.25(b), NMFS is

authorized to set aside, during the June

1 through November 30 semi-annual

period, swordfish not exceeding 21,500

lb (9,752 kg), dressed weight, for the

harpoon segment of the fishery if NMFS

determines that the harpoon and

longline quota in this semi-annual

period will be harvested before the

harpoon segment of the fishery has had

an opportunity to harvest the set-aside

amount (61 FR 34746, July 3, 1996). No

set-aside is currently authorized for the

December 1 through May 31 semiannual period. Therefore, this closure is

effective for the entire directed

swordfish fishery and affects all gear

categories.

NMFS is authorized, under

§ 630.25(c)(2), to adjust the longline

bycatch allowance of 15 swordfish per

trip during a closure of the directed

fishery. The bycatch limit of 15

swordfish was reduced to 6 swordfish

during the 1995 closure (60 FR 58245,

November 27, 1995). However, while

this bycatch allowance of 6 fish was

effective for a period of less than one

month, it still did not prevent the quota

from being exceeded. Accordingly,

based on the length of the directed

fishery closure (April 12 through May

31, 1997) and the remaining available

bycatch quota, NMFS believes it is

necessary to further reduce the bycatch

allowance to 5 swordfish per trip.

1996 Quota Adjustment

Estimates of longline swordfish dead

discards were included in the

calculation of the U.S. quota for

landings by longline operators. The

1995 final quota rule (60 FR 46775,

September 8, 1995) allocated 2,676 mt

to the directed swordfish longline

fishery, of which 8.4 percent (226 mt)

was projected to be discarded dead,

yielding a total landings quota of 2,450

mt for the 1995 fishing year. Final 1995

figures indicate that, in fact, swordfish

longline dead discards (394.3 mt)

accounted for 14.7 percent of the total

catch by weight. Thus, actual longline

dead discards exceeded the original

projection by 168.3 mt. The directed

swordfish longline fishery landings

quota for the second 1996 semiannual

season (December 1, 1996, to May 31,

1997) is reduced by 168.3 mt to correct

for this difference. The 1996 fishing year

landings quota for the longline fishery

must also be adjusted to account for the

higher dead discard rate that actually

occurred in the 1995 fishing year.
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 54 / Thursday, March 20, 1997 / Rules and Regulations 13351

Assuming a discard rate of 14.7 percent,

the estimate of dead discards should be

revised from 195.2 mt to 341.6 mt, or an

increase of 146.4 mt.

The total reduction in the 1996

fishing year landings quota for the

longline fishery is 168.3 mt plus 146.4

mt, or 314.7 mt. This leaves a total

directed landing quota of 749.7 mt for

the Atlantic swordfish fishery.

Closure of the Fishery

The landings of swordfish in the

longline fishery in the second

semiannual season reached 610 mt by

March 1, 1997, leaving 139.7 mt in the

landings quota. Additional quota

remaining for the second half includes

90 mt from the bridge period quota

(January 1–May 31, 1996) and 96 mt

from the bycatch quota for 1996. Thus,

the total quota remaining as of March 1,

1997, is 325.7 mt (139.7 + 90 + 96 mt).

In 1996, landings of swordfish by

longliners reached 213 mt in March. If

the same rate occurs in March of 1997,

this would leave 113 mt for both April

and May.

During a two month closure of the

directed fishery in 1995, with a bycatch

limit of 15 fish per trip for November

and 6 fish per trip in December, the

bycatch of swordfish was estimated to

be 64 mt. Under a bycatch limit of 5 fish

per trip during the proposed closure,

NMFS estimates that 50 mt could be

landed during the two month closure,

leaving 63 mt available for the directed

fishery during April. At the rate of

landings which occurred during April

1996 (43 mt per week), 63 mt would

allow 11 days of directed fishing prior

to the closure. Thus, NMFS estimates

that the directed quota for swordfish

will be taken on or before April 12,

1997.

Therefore, NMFS announces that the

directed fishery for swordfish is closed

at 12 noon on April 12, 1997. All vessels

must be in port with their swordfish

offloaded on or before this closing date.

This notice provides more than a four

week period during which swordfish

vessel owners can plan their fishing and

sale of landings prior to the closure

deadline. During the closure of the

directed fishery, a person may not fish

for swordfish from the North Atlantic

stock, and no more than 5 swordfish per

vessel per trip may be possessed or

landed incidental to longline fishing for

other species. As previously stated, no

harpoon fishery set-aside has been

established for this semi-annual period.

Therefore, a person fishing aboard a

vessel using or having aboard harpoon

gear may not fish for swordfish from the

North Atlantic swordfish stock, and no

swordfish may be possessed in the

North Atlantic Ocean, including the

Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea, north

of 5° N. latitude, or landed in an

Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico, or Caribbean

state.

Classification

This action is required by 50 CFR

630.24(d) and is exempt from review

under E.O. 12866.

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 971 et seq.

Dated: March 14, 1997.

Gary C. Matlock,

Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries,

National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 97–6979 Filed 3–14–97; 4:49 pm]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P

50 CFR Part 679

[I.D. 031497A]

Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic

Zone Off Alaska; Season Opening

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of fishing season dates.

SUMMARY: NMFS is opening the directed

fishery for sablefish with fixed gear

managed under the Individual Fishing

Quota (IFQ) program. The season will

open on 12:00 noon, Alaska local time

(A.l.t.), March 15, 1997, and will close

12:00 noon, A.l.t., November 15, 1997.

This period runs concurrently with the

IFQ season for Pacific halibut

announced by the International Pacific

Halibut Commission (IPHC).

EFFECTIVE DATE: March 15, 1997, 12:00

noon, A.l.t., through November 15,

1997, 12:00 noon, A.l.t.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John

Lepore, 907–586-7228.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Beginning

in 1995, fishing for Pacific halibut

(Hippoglossus stenolepis) and sablefish

(Anoplopoma fimbria) with fixed gear

in the IFQ regulatory areas defined in 50

CFR 679.2 has been managed under the

IFQ Program. The IFQ Program is a

regulatory regime designed to promote

the conservation and management of

these fisheries and to further the

objectives of the Magnuson-Stevens

Fishery Conservation and Management

Act and the Northern Pacific Halibut

Act. Persons holding quota share receive

an annual allocation of IFQ. Persons

receiving an annual allocation of IFQ

are authorized to harvest IFQ species

within specified limitations. Further

information on the implementation of

the IFQ Program, and the rationale

supporting it, is contained in the

preamble to the final rule implementing

the IFQ Program published in the

Federal Register, November 9, 1993 (58

FR 59375) and subsequent amendments.

This announcement is consistent with

50 CFR 679.23(g)(1), which requires that

directed fishing for sablefish managed

under the IFQ program be specified by

the Administrator, Alaska Region,

NMFS (Regional Administrator), and

announced by publication in the

Federal Register. This method of season

announcement was selected to facilitate

coordination between the sablefish

season, chosen by the Regional

Administrator, and the halibut season,

chosen by the IPHC. The directed

fishing season for sablefish with fixed

gear managed under the IFQ program

will open on 12:00 noon, A.l.t., March

15, 1997, and will close 12:00 noon,

A.l.t., November 15, 1997. This period

runs concurrently with the IFQ season

for Pacific halibut announced by the

IPHC. The IFQ halibut season was

announced by publication in the

Federal Register, March 18, 1997.

Classification

This action is taken under

§ 679.23(g)(1) and is exempt from

review under E.O. 12866.

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

et seq.

Dated: March 14, 1997.

Bruce Morehead,

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable

Fisheries

National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 97–6965 Filed 3–14–97; 4:34 pm]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–F

50 CFR Part 679

[Docket No. 961107312–7012–02; I.D.

031297A]

Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic

Zone Off Alaska; Offshore Component

Pollock in the Aleutian Islands Subarea

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Modification of a closure.

SUMMARY: NMFS is opening directed

fishing for pollock by vessels catching

pollock for processing by the offshore

component in the Aleutian Islands

subarea (AI) of the Bering Sea and

Aleutian Islands management area

(BSAI). This action is necessary to fully

utilize the total allowable catch (TAC) of

pollock in that area.