[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 87 (Friday, May 5, 1995)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 22303-22306]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-11128]



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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 663

[Docket No. 941265-4365; I.D. 041995A]


Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery; Miscellaneous Management 
Measures

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Modification of annual specifications and management measures, 
and inseason adjustment of commercial trip landing and recreational bag 
limits.

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SUMMARY: NMFS announces adjustments to the annual specifications and 
management measures to increase the harvest guideline for sablefish and 
provide conversion factors for lingcod. NMFS also announces inseason 
adjustments to increase the commercial trip limits for trawl-caught 
sablefish and yellowtail rockfish, and to reduce the recreational bag 
limit for rockfish off Washington State. These actions are authorized 
by the Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery Management Plan which governs 
the harvest of groundfish in the U.S. exclusive economic zone off the 
coasts of Washington, Oregon, and California. These actions are 
intended to correct an error in the calculation for the sablefish 
harvest guideline, enable the 1995 harvest guidelines for yellowtail 
rockfish and the limited entry allocation for trawl-caught sablefish to 
be reached, to reduce fishing effort in the recreational fishery for 
black rockfish off Washington State, and to accommodate traditional 
fishing and marketing practices in the lingcod fishery.

DATES: Effective May 1, 1995, until the effective date of the 1996 
annual specifications and management measures, which will be published 
in the Federal Register. Comments will be accepted until May 17, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Comments on these actions should be sent to Mr. William 
Stelle, Jr., Director, Northwest Region, National Marine Fisheries 
Service, 7600 Sand Point Way NE., BIN C15700, Bldg. 1, Seattle, WA 
98115-0070; or Ms. Hilda Diaz-Soltero, Director, Southwest Region, 
National Marine Fisheries Service, 501 West Ocean Blvd., Suite 4200, 
Long Beach, CA 90802-4213. Information relevant to these actions has 
been compiled in aggregate form and is available for public review 
during business hours at the office of the Director, Northwest Region, 
NMFS (Regional Director).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: William L. Robinson 206-526-6140; or 
Rodney R. McInnis 310-980-4040.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On January 4, 1995, NMFS filed 1995 Annual 
Specifications and Mangement Measures for Pacific Coast Groundfish 
Fishery with the Office of the Federal Register (60 FR 2331-2344, 
January 9, 1995). At its April 1995 meeting in Portland, OR, the 
Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) considered the best 
available scientific information, the advice of its advisory 
committees, and public testimony before recommending to NMFS the 
following actions adjusting these annual specifications and measures 
for implementation by May 1, 1995, the beginning of the next period for 
cumulative trip limits in the Pacific [[Page 22304]] groundfish 
commercial fishery. A cumulative trip limit is the maximum amount that 
may be taken and retained, possessed, or landed per vessel in a 
calendar month, without a limit on the number of landings or trips.
    1. Increase of the Harvest Guideline for Sablefish. At its October 
1994 meeting, the Council recommended the annual specifications for the 
1995 groundfish fishery. These specifications include the acceptable 
biological catch (ABC), harvest guidelines, and limited entry and open 
access allocations for certain species. After the specifications were 
announced, an error was discovered in the calculation of the sablefish 
harvest guideline.
    At its October 1994 meeting, the Council was advised that the 1994 
sablefish harvest guideline of 7,000 metric tons (mt) north of the 
Conception subarea (36 deg. N. lat.) would be exceeded by 700 mt. In 
response, the Council reduced the 1995 harvest guideline by 700 mt, 
from 7,800 mt to 7,100 mt, to compensate for the 1994 overage. This 
projected overage subsequently was found to be incorrect due to an 
error in calculation. The best available information at the April 1995 
Council meeting indicated that landings in 1994 were 7,274 mt, less 
than 4 percent above the 7,000 mt harvest guideline for sablefish north 
of the Conception subarea (36 deg. N. lat.). This is within the 
acceptable range allowed for other species. Therefore, at its April 
1995 meeting, the Council recommended that the 700-mt deduction to the 
1995 harvest guideline be eliminated, increasing the harvest guideline 
to 7,800 mt. This increase to the harvest guideline results in 
proportional increases to the limited entry allocation (which includes 
trawl and nontrawl allocations) and to the open access allocation. The 
700-mt increase to the harvest guideline results in: A 43-mt increase 
to the open access allocation (from 420 mt to 463 mt); a 657-mt 
increase to the limited entry allocation (from 5,900 mt to 6,557 mt); a 
383 mt increase (58 percent) to the limited entry trawl allocation 
(from 3,420 mt to 3,803 mt); and a 274-mt increase (42 percent) for the 
limited entry nontrawl allocation (from 2,480 mt to 2,754 mt). No 
change is made to the tribal treaty allocation of 780 mt which was 
calculated before the 700-mt deduction to the harvest guideline had 
been made.
    2. Increase of the Limited Entry Trip Limit for Trawl-Caught 
Sablefish. The best available information through March 18, 1995, 
projected that the trawl fishery would land 3,234 mt of sablefish in 
1995, 566 mt (15 percent) below the revised 3,803-mt limited entry 
allocation for the trawl fishery. So that the trawl allocation could be 
reached, the Council recommended that the limited entry cumulative trip 
limit for trawl-caught sablefish be increased by about 15 percent, from 
6,000 lb (2,722 kg) to 7,000 lb (3,175 kg) per vessel per month 
coastwide. Sablefish often are caught with thornyheads and Dover sole, 
which are managed together as the ``DTS complex.'' NMFS expects that 
increasing the trip limit will not only ensure that the trawl 
allocation is reached, but also will help divert effort from shortspine 
thornyheads, whose trip limit was reduced on April 1, 1995 (60 FR 
16811, April 3, 1995). No change is made to the cumulative trip limit 
for the DTS complex. Also, no change is made to the nontrawl sablefish 
fishery, which is expected to achieve its allocation by the end of the 
year.
    3. Increase of the Limited Entry Trip Limits for Yellowtail 
Rockfish. Yellowtail rockfish are a component of the Sebastes complex, 
which includes most species of rockfish caught off Washington, Oregon, 
and California. The best available information through March 18, 1995, 
projected the catch of yellowtail rockfish in the Vancouver, Columbia, 
and Eureka areas to be 4,607 mt in 1995 (3,661-mt landed catch plus 
946-mt discards), 32 percent below the 6,740-mt combined harvest 
guideline for these areas. (The Vancouver-Eureka area is divided into 
northern and southern subareas at Cape Lookout, OR (45 deg.20'15'' N. 
lat.), with northern and southern harvest guidelines, but projections 
for each subarea separately cannot be determined this early in the 
year.) Therefore, to allow full achievement of the harvest guidelines 
for yellowtail rockfish, the Council recommended that the monthly 
cumulative trip limits be increased by about 30 percent, from 14,000 lb 
(6,350 kg) to 18,000 lb (8,165 kg) north of Cape Lookout, and from 
30,000 lb (13,608 kg) to 40,000 lb (18,144 kg) between Cape Lookout and 
Cape Mendocino (40 deg.30' N. lat., which is the southern boundary of 
the Eureka subarea). South of Cape Mendocino, there is no separate trip 
limit for yellowtail rockfish, which is counted toward the 100,000-lb 
(45,359 kg) cumulative monthly trip limit for the Sebastes complex 
(which includes yellowtail rockfish). Even though the harvest 
guidelines for the Sebastes complex were not projected to be reached, 
no change is made to the cumulative trip limits for the Sebastes 
complex because an increase in yellowtail landings will result in 
increased landings of the entire complex.
    4. Reduction of the Recreational Bag Limit for Rockfish off 
Washington. At the March 1995 Council meeting in San Francisco, CA, the 
Council was advised that the State of Washington had recently decided 
to reduce its recreational bag limit for rockfish, and would be 
requesting the same change in Federal waters on the same date, May 1, 
1995. The current Federal bag limit, which is consistent with the 
previous State limit, is 15 rockfish per day south of Leadbetter Point 
(46 deg.38'10'' N. lat.) or 12 rockfish per day north of Leadbetter 
Point. The requested change is 10 rockfish per day in Federal waters 
off Washington State. This reduction in the bag limit is intended to 
reduce the harvest of rockfish (in numbers of fish) by about 10 
percent, and would have the largest effect on black rockfish which 
generally comprise more than 75 percent of the recreational rockfish 
catch off Washington State.
    Off Washington, black rockfish are harvested predominantly in the 
recreational fishery. (The commercial fishery for black rockfish off 
Washington already has been restricted by the regulations at 50 CFR 
663.23(b)(1)(iii).) Black rockfish appear to be the only nearshore 
coastal species sufficiently abundant to support a recreational fishery 
at the current magnitude. Although there is no separate harvest 
guideline for black rockfish at this time and the suggested level of 
removal is more conservative than for most other rockfish species, the 
reduction in the bag limit is intended to avoid a resource conservation 
problem in the future, as well as to maintain reasonable concentrations 
of black rockfish in nearshore areas accessible to the recreational 
fishery. This change also would be more consistent with the bag limits 
for black rockfish caught off Oregon (15 rockfish per day, of which 
only 10 may be black rockfish). The Council concurred with the State of 
Washington's request, and recommended that the Federal bag limit for 
rockfish off Washington be reduced to 10 rockfish for consistency with 
state regulations.
    5. Lingcod Length and Weight Conversions. A Federal trip limit for 
commercially caught lingcod was implemented for the first time in 
January 1995 of 20,000 lb (9,072 kg) cumulative per month. A 22-inch 
(56 cm, total length) size limit also was implemented for the 
commercial and recreational fisheries, which previously had applied 
only to the recreational fishery off California. After the trip and 
size limits were announced, it became apparent that some fishing 
operations had traditionally landed dressed lingcod 
[[Page 22305]] ``headed-and-gutted.'' Other individuals asked to land 
lingcod eviscerated with the head left on. ``Heading'' lingcod is not 
allowed under the annual management measures, which prohibit retention 
of fish subject to a size limit if the total length cannot be 
determined (paragraph IV.A.(6) at 60 FR 2341, January 9, 1995). 
Therefore, to avoid disruption of traditional fishing and marketing 
practices, a length for ``headed'' lingcod is needed which corresponds 
to the 22-inch (56-cm) size limit. Similarly, trip limits apply to the 
round weight of fish, so a conversion to a round-weight equivalent is 
needed for lingcod that have been gutted, or headed-and-gutted, before 
landing.
    The Council recommended that the size limit for lingcod that are 
``heads-off'' be 18 inches (46 cm) based on a published scientific 
report by the Washington Department of Fisheries. (Washington State has 
adopted this size limit for lingcod that are ``heads-off''; Oregon and 
California have not yet adopted a size for lingcod with the head 
removed.) The Council also recommended that the following product 
recovery ratios (PRRs) for lingcod that is headed-and-gutted or only 
eviscerated, taken from an Alaska Sea Grant Report, be used if the 
State of landing has no conversion factors. (Currently, only Washington 
has a conversion factor for headed-and-gutted lingcod, which is the 
same as the conversion factor being adopted in this document.) A 
Product Recovery Rate (PRR) of 1.5 is used to convert the 20,000-lb 
(9,072 kg) round weight, cumulative trip limit for lingcod to 13,333 lb 
(6,048 kg) for headed and gutted lingcod. A PRR of 1.1 is used to 
convert the 20,000-lb (9,072 kg) round weight, cumulative trip limit to 
18,183 lb (8,246 kg) for lingcod that are gutted with the heads left 
on.

NMFS Actions

    NMFS concurs with the Council's recommendations, and, for the 
reasons stated above, announces the following changes to the 1995 
fishery specifications and management measures published at 60 FR 2331-
2344, January 9, 1995:
    1. Sablefish Harvest Guideline. The weights (in thousands of metric 
tons) for sablefish in Table 1 (60 FR 2333) are revised so that: The 
sablefish harvest guideline for the area north of 36 deg. N. lat. (the 
Vancouver, Columbia, Eureka, and Monterey statistical subareas) is 
increased from 7.1 to 7.8; the limited entry allocation is increased 
from 5.90 to 6.557; and the open access allocation is increased from 
0.42 to 0.463. Also, footnote f/ to Table 1 is revised to read as 
follows: ``f/ The 7,800 mt sablefish harvest guideline is the 8,700 mt 
ABC north of the Conception subarea (north of 36 deg. N. lat.) reduced 
by 900 mt for estimated discards. The 7,800-mt harvest guideline is 
reduced by 780 mt for the treaty tribes before dividing the remaining 
7,020 mt between the limited entry (6,557 mt) and open access (463 mt) 
fisheries. The limited entry allocation is further allocated 58 percent 
to the trawl fishery (3,803 mt), and 42 percent to the nontrawl fishery 
(2,754 mt), both of which are harvest guidelines. (See the section on 
trawl and nontrawl sablefish management for 1995).'' The ``note'' under 
paragraph IV.E.(3)(a) (at 60 FR 2342) describing the limited entry gear 
allocations is revised to incorporate these new numbers.
    2. Increase to the Limited Entry Trip Limit for Trawl-Caught 
Sablefish. Paragraphs IV.E.(3)(b)(ii)(A) and (B) announcing trip limits 
for the DTS complex (60 FR 2342), as modified for shortspine 
thornyheads (60 FR 16811, April 3, 1995), are revised as follows:
    IV.E.(3)(b)(ii)(A) North of Cape Mendocino. The cumulative trip 
limit for the DTS complex taken and retained north of Cape Mendocino is 
35,000 lb (15,876 kg) per vessel per month. Within this cumulative 
limit, no more than 7,000 lb (3,175 kg) may be sablefish, and no more 
than 15,000 lb (6,804 kg) may be thornyheads. No more than 3,000 lb 
(1,361 kg) of the thornyheads may be shortspine thornyheads.
    IV.E.(3)(b)(ii)(B) South of Cape Mendocino. The cumulative trip 
limit for the DTS complex taken and retained south of Cape Mendocino is 
50,000 lb (22,680 kg) per vessel per month. Within this cumulative 
limit, no more than 7,000 lb (3,175 kg) may be sablefish, and no more 
than 15,000 lb (6,804 kg) may be thornyheads. No more than 3,000 lb 
(1,361 kg) of the thornyheads may be shortspine thornyheads.
    3. Increase to the Limited Entry Trip Limits for Yellowtail 
Rockfish. Paragraphs IV.C.(2)(a)(i) and (ii) announcing trip limits for 
the Sebastes complex (including bocaccio, yellowtail, and canary 
rockfish) (60 FR 2342) are revised as follows:
    IV.C.(2)(a)(i) North of Cape Lookout. The cumulative trip limit for 
the Sebastes complex taken and retained north of Cape Lookout is 35,000 
lb (15,876 kg) per vessel per month. Within this cumulative trip limit 
for the Sebastes complex, no more than 18,000 lb (8,165 kg) may be 
yellowtail rockfish taken and retained north of Cape Lookout, and no 
more than 6,000 lb (2,722 kg) may be canary rockfish.
    IV.C.(2)(a)(ii) Cape Lookout to Cape Mendocino. The cumulative trip 
limit for the Sebastes complex taken and retained between Cape Lookout 
and Cape Mendocino is 50,000 lb (22,680 kg) per vessel per month. 
Within this cumulative trip limit for the Sebastes complex, no more 
than 40,000 lb (18,144 kg) may be yellowtail rockfish taken and 
retained between Cape Lookout and Cape Mendocino, and no more than 
6,000 lb (2,722 kg) may be canary rockfish.
    4. Rockfish Recreational Bag Limit. Paragraph IV.J.(3) announcing 
the recreational bag limits in Federal waters off the State of 
Washington (60 FR 2344) is revised as follows:
    IV.J.(3) Washington. The bag limits for each person engaged in 
recreational fishing seaward of the State of Washington are: Three 
lingcod per day no smaller than 22 inches (56 cm) total length; and 10 
rockfish per day.
    5. Size Limits. Paragraph IV.A.(6)(60 FR 2341) is revised as 
follows:
    IV.A.(6) Size Limits and Length Measurement. Total length is 
measured from the tip of the snout (mouth closed) to the tip of the 
tail (pinched together) without mutilation of the fish or the use of 
additional force to extend the length of the fish. No fish subject to a 
size limit may be retained, if it is in such condition that its length 
has been extended or cannot be determined by these methods or by the 
methods in paragraphs IV.E.(3)(d) for sablefish and IV.G.(1)(a) for 
lingcod.
    6. Lingcod Size and Weight Conversions. New paragraphs
    IV.G.(1)(a) and (b) are added to paragraph IV.G.(1) (60 FR 2343) as 
follows:
    IV.G.(1)(a) Size Conversion. For lingcod with the head removed, the 
minimum size limit, which corresponds to 22 inches (56 cm) total length 
for whole fish, is 18 inches (46 cm) measured from the origin of the 
first dorsal fin (where the front dorsal fin meets the dorsal surface 
of the body closest to the head) to the tip of the upper lobe of the 
tail; the dorsal fin and tail must be left intact.
    IV.G.(1)(b) Weight Conversion. The PRR established by the state 
where the fish is or will be landed will be used to convert the 
processed weight to round weight for purposes of applying the trip 
limit. (The states' PRRs may differ and fishers should contact fishery 
enforcement officials in the state where the fish will be landed to 
determine that state's official PRR.) If a state does not have a PRR 
for lingcod that is headed and gutted, or only gutted, the following 
PRRs will be used. To determine the [[Page 22306]] round weight, 
multiply the processed weight times the PRR.
    (i) Headed and gutted. The PRR for headed and gutted lingcod is 
1.5. Therefore, the cumulative trip limit for headed and gutted lingcod 
is 13,333.3 lb (6,048 kg) processed weight per vessel per month, which 
corresponds to 20,000 lb (9,072 kg) round weight. (The State of 
Washington currently uses a PRR of 1.5.)
    (ii) Gutted, with the head on. The PRR for lingcod that has only 
been eviscerated is 1.1. Therefore, the cumulative trip limit for 
gutted lingcod is 18,182 lb (8,246 kg) processed weight per vessel per 
month, which corresponds to 20,000 lb (9,072 kg) round weight.
    7. Introductory Text is Added to paragraph IV.J.(60 FR 2344) to 
Clarify that Length Measurement is the Same in the Recreational and 
Commercial Fisheries.
    IV.J. Recreational Fishery. Length measurement for lingcod is 
explained at paragraphs IV.A.(6) and IV.G.(1)(a).

Classification

    The determination to take this action is based on the most recent 
data available. The aggregate data upon which the determination is 
based are available for public inspection at the office of the Regional 
Director, Northwest Region, (see ADDRESSES) during business hours. 
There was an opportunity for public comment at the April Council 
meeting. Supporting documents were available for public inspection 
prior to, and at, the Council meeting. The Secretary therefore finds 
good cause under 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B) to waive the requirements for 
publication of a general notice of proposed rulemaking. Most actions 
taken in this rule relieve restrictions and therefore, according to 5 
U.S.C. 553(d)(1), are not subject to the 30-day delayed effectiveness 
requirement of the Administrative Procedure Act. The only action that 
does not relieve a restriction is the reduction in the rockfish bag 
limit off the State of Washington. This action, however, is being 
implemented by the State of Washington on May 1, 1995, and NMFS finds 
that it is necessary to have consistent state and Federal bag limits. 
NMFS finds that need for consistency is good cause to waive the 30-day 
delay in effectiveness under 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3). This action is taken 
under the authority of 50 CFR 663.21(a) and 50 CFR 663.23(c)(1)(i)(C), 
(1)(i)(E), and (3)(B), and is exempt from review under E.O. 12866.

    Dated: May 1, 1995.
Richard H. Schaefer,
Director of Office of Fisheries Conservation and Management, National 
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 95-11128 Filed 5-2-95; 2:44 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-F