29074 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 103 / Tuesday, May 29, 2001 / Proposed Rules

publications, reports, or letters by

knowledgeable sources.

What if We Receive Extensive

Substantive Information on a Large

Number of Species?

We will evaluate information received

and information in our files and

determine: (1) whether or not any

currently listed species should be reevaluated; and (2) whether or not the

listing of any currently unlisted species

should be considered. Due to limited

resources available for this effort, our

highest priority will be for those species

whose conservation status in the wild

would most benefit from a change in

their listing status under the WBCA.

Authority: This document is published

under the authority of the Wild Bird

Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 4901–4916 et

seq.).

Dated: May 15, 2001.

Marshall P. Jones, Jr.,

Acting Director.

[FR Doc. 01–13348 Filed 5–25–01; 8:45 am]

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

50 CFR Part 660

[ID. 051601B]

Fisheries Off West Coast States and in

the Western Pacific; Pacific Coast

Groundfish Fishery; Application for an

Exempted Fishing Permit

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of receipt of an

application for an exempted fishing

permit (EFP); request for comments.

SUMMARY: NMFS announces receipt of

an application for an EFP from the

Washington State Department of Fish

and Wildlife (WSDFW). If awarded, the

EFP would allow vessels with valid

Washington State delivery permits to

land certain federally managed

groundfish species in excess of

cumulative trip limits and sell them for

profit, providing the vessel carries a

State- sponsored observer. State

observers would collect total catch and

effort data, and retain specimens that

are otherwise not available shoreside.

This EFP proposal is intended to

promote the objectives of the Pacific

Coast Groundfish Fishery Management

Plan (FMP) by providing data on total

catch and incidental catch rates.

DATES: Comments must be received by

June 28, 2001.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the EFP

application are available from Becky

Renko, Northwest Region, NMFS, 7600

Sand Point Way N.E., Bldg. 1, Seattle,

WA 98115–0070.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Becky Renko, 206–526–6140.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This

action is authorized by the FMP and

implementing regulations at 50 CFR

600.745 and 50 CFR 660.350.

On April 5, 2001, NMFS received an

EFP application from the WSDFW. The

purpose of this exempted fishing

activity would be to measure bycatch

rates for canary rockfish and other

rockfish species associated with fishing

strategies currently used in the northern

arrowtooth flounder fishery off

Washington State.

Fishing for arrowtooth flounder,

which is an abundant and commercially

important species off Washington State,

is constrained by efforts to rebuild

canary rockfish, an overfished species.

Fishers who have historically targeted

arrowtooth flounder believe that the

fishery can be prosecuted with a much

lower rockfish bycatch rate than is

currently assumed.

If issued, this EFP would allow

certain vessels with valid Washington

State delivery permits to retain and sell

groundfish species in excess of

cumulative trip limits, and would

provide for a State-run observer program

where observers collect and retain

specimens of otherwise prohibited fish

caught by the vessel. Observers would

also collect much-needed data from

which incidental catch rates and total

catch of various species and species

groups could be estimated. Without an

EFP, groundfish regulations at 50 CFR

660.306(f) restrict vessels from landing

groundfish species or species groups in

excess of trip limits.

Data collected during this project is

expected to have a broad significance to

the management of the groundfish

fishery by providing much needed

information on: (1) Total catch in the

northern flatfish fishery; (2) catch rates

of incidentally caught species, including

canary rockfish by fishing location; and

(3) age structure data that is otherwise

not available from landed catch. To the

extent possible, data provided by the

State observers will be compatible with

that data collected by the NMFS

coastwide observer program. If the EFP

is issued, approximately seven vessels

are expected to fish under the EFP from

July to September 2001. All groundfish

caught under this EFP would be

counted against the optimum yields

(OYs) for those species and will not

result in total harvest above expected

levels. NMFS will include special

provisions should they be necessary to

ensure that the canary rockfish OY is

not exceeded.

In accordance with Pacific Coast

groundfish regulations, NMFS has

determined that the proposal warrants

further consideration and has initiated

consultation with the Pacific Fishery

Management Council (Council). The

Council will consider the EFP

application during its June 11-15, 2001,

meeting, which will be held at the Park

Plaza Hotel, in Burlingame, CA. The

applicants have been invited to appear

in support of their application. A copy

of the application is available for review

from NMFS (see ADDRESSES).

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

Dated: May 22, 2001.

Richard W. Surdi,

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 01–13434 Filed 5–25–01; 8:45 am]

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