Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 193 / Friday, October 5, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 56933 

§ 635.27 Quotas. 

* * * * * 

(c) * * * 

(1) * * * 

(i) * * * 

(A) A swordfish from the North 

Atlantic stock caught prior to the 

directed fishery closure by a vessel for 

which a directed fishery permit, or a 

handgear permit for swordfish, has been 

issued or is required to be issued is 

counted against the directed fishery 

quota. The annual fishery quota, not 

adjusted for over- or underharvests, is 

2,937.6 mt dw for each fishing year. 

After December 31, 2007, the annual 

quota is subdivided into two equal 

semi-annual quotas of 1,468.8 mt dw: 

one for January 1 through June 30, and 

the other for July 1 through December 

31. 

* * * * * 

(D) A portion of the total allowable 

catch of North Atlantic swordfish may 

be held in reserve for inseason 

adjustments to fishing categories, to 

compensate for projected or actual 

overharvest in any category, for fishery 

independent research, for transfer to 

another ICCAT contracting party, or for 

other purposes consistent with 

management objectives. 

* * * * * 

(ii) South Atlantic Swordfish. The 

annual directed fishery quota for the 

South Atlantic swordfish stock is 75.2 

mt dw. After December 31, 2007, the 

annual quota is subdivided into two 

equal semi-annual quotas of 37.6 mt dw: 

one for January 1 through June 30, and 

the other for July 1 through December 

31. The entire quota for the South 

Atlantic swordfish stock is reserved for 

vessels with pelagic longline gear 

onboard and that have been issued a 

directed fishery permit for swordfish. 

No person may retain swordfish caught 

incidental to other fishing activities or 

with other fishing gear in the Atlantic 

Ocean south of 5 degrees North latitude. 

* * * * * 

(3) * * * 

(i) Except for the carryover provisions 

of paragraphs (c)(3)(ii) and (iii) of this 

section, NMFS will file with the Office 

of the Federal Register for publication 

notification of any adjustment to the 

annual quota necessary to meet the 

objectives of the Consolidated Highly 

Migratory Species Fishery Management 

Plan. 

(ii) If consistent with applicable 

ICCAT recommendations, total landings 

above or below the specific North 

Atlantic or South Atlantic swordfish 

annual quota will be subtracted from, or 

added to, the following year(s quota for 

that area. As necessary to meet 

management objectives, such carryover 

adjustments may be apportioned to 

fishing categories and/or to the reserve. 

Carryover adjustments for the North 

Atlantic shall be limited to 50 percent 

of the baseline quota allocation for that 

year. Carryover adjustments for the 

South Atlantic shall be limited to 100 

mt ww (75.2 mt dw) for that year. Any 

adjustments to the 12-month directed 

fishery quota will be apportioned 

equally between the two semiannual 

fishing seasons. NMFS will file with the 

Office of the Federal Register for 

publication any adjustment or 

apportionment made under this 

paragraph. 

* * * * * 

■ 4. In § 635.28, paragraph (c)(2) is 

revised to read as follows: 

§ 635.28 Closures. 

* * * * * 

(c) * * * 

(2) Incidental catch closure. When the 

annual incidental catch quota specified 

in § 635.27(c)(1)(i) is reached, or is 

projected to be reached, NMFS will file 

with the Office of the Federal Register 

for publication notification of closure. 

From the effective date and time of such 

notification until additional incidental 

catch quota becomes available, no 

swordfish may be landed in an Atlantic 

coastal state, or be possessed or sold in 

or from the Atlantic Ocean north of 5° 

N. lat. unless the directed fishery is 

open and the appropriate permits have 

been issued to the vessel. In the event 

of a directed and incidental North 

Atlantic swordfish category closure, 

South Atlantic swordfish may be 

possessed in the Atlantic Ocean north of 

5° N. lat. and/or landed in an Atlantic 

coastal state on a vessel with longline 

gear onboard, provided that the 

harvesting vessel does not fish on that 

trip in the Atlantic Ocean north of 5° N. 

lat., the fish were taken legally from 

waters of the Atlantic Ocean south of 5° 

N. lat., and the harvesting vessel reports 

positions with a vessel monitoring 

system as specified in § 635.69. 

[FR Doc. E7–19715 Filed 10–4–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 679 

[Docket No. 070213033–7033–01] 

RIN 0648–XD14 

Fisheries of the Economic Exclusive 

Zone Off Alaska; Pacific Cod in the 

Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule; modification of 

a closure. 

SUMMARY: NMFS is opening directed 

fishing for Pacific cod by catcher vessels 

using pot gear in the Bering Sea and 

Aleutian Islands management area 

(BSAI). This action is necessary to fully 

use the 2007 total allowable catch (TAC) 

of Pacific cod specified for catcher 

vessels using pot gear in the BSAI. 

DATES: Effective 1200 hrs, Alaska local 

time (A.l.t.), October 2, 2007, through 

2400 hrs, A.l.t., December 31, 2007. 

Comments must be received at the 

following address no later than 4:30 

p.m., A.l.t., October 17, 2007. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, 

identified by [0648–XD14], by any one 

of the following methods: 

• Mail to: P.O. Box 21668, Juneau, AK 

99802 

• Hand delivery to the Federal 

Building, 709 West 9th Street, Room 

420A, Juneau, Alaska 

• Electronic Submissions: Submit all 

electronic public comments via the 

Federal eRulemaking Portal http:// 

www.regulations.gov 

• FAX to 907–586–7557, Attn: Ellen 

Sebastian 

• Instructions: All comments received 

are a part of the public record and will 

generally be posted to http:// 

www.regulations.gov without change. 

All Personal Identifying Information (for 

example, name, address, etc.) 

voluntarily submitted by the commenter 

may be publicly accessible. Do not 

submit Confidential Business 

Information or otherwise sensitive or 

protected information. 

NMFS will accept anonymous 

comments. Attachments to electronic 

comments will be accepted in Microsoft 

Word, Excel, WordPerfect, or Adobe 

PDF file formats only. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Jennifer Hogan, 907–586–7228. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NMFS 

manages the groundfish fishery in the 


yshivers on PROD1PC62 with RULES
56934 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 193 / Friday, October 5, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

BSAI exclusive economic zone 

according to the Fishery Management 

Plan for Groundfish of the Bering Sea 

and Aleutian Islands Management Area 

(FMP) prepared by the North Pacific 

Fishery Management Council under 

authority of the Magnuson-Stevens 

Fishery Conservation and Management 

Act. Regulations governing fishing by 

U.S. vessels in accordance with the FMP 

appear at subpart H of 50 CFR part 600 

and 50 CFR part 679. 

NMFS closed directed fishing for 

Pacific cod by catcher vessels using pot 

gear in the BSAI under 

§ 679.20(d)(1)(iii) on September 28, 

2007 (72 FR 56016, October 2, 2007). As 

of October 1, 2007, approximately 529 

metric tons of Pacific cod remain in the 

2007 Pacific cod TAC allocated to 

catcher vessels using pot gear in the 

BSAI. Therefore, in accordance with 

§ 679.25(a)(1)(i), (a)(2)(i)(C) and 

(a)(2)(iii)(D), and to fully use the 2007 

TAC of Pacific cod specified for catcher 

vessels using pot gear in the BSAI, 

NMFS is terminating the previous 

closure and is opening directed fishing 

for Pacific cod by catcher vessels using 

pot gear in the BSAI. The opening is 

effective 1200 hrs, A.l.t., October 2, 

2007, through 2400 hrs, A.l.t., December 

31, 2007. 

Classification 

This action responds to the best 

available information recently obtained 

from the fishery. The Assistant 

Administrator for Fisheries, NOAA 

(AA), finds good cause to waive the 

requirement to provide prior notice and 

opportunity for public comment 

pursuant to the authority set forth at 5 

U.S.C. 553(b)(B) as such requirement is 

impracticable and contrary to the public 

interest. This requirement is 

impracticable and contrary to the public 

interest as it would prevent NMFS from 

responding to the most recent fisheries 

data in a timely fashion and would 

delay the opening of the Pacific cod 

fishery by catcher vessels using pot gear 

in the BSAI. Immediate notification is 

necessary to allow for the orderly 

conduct and efficient operation of this 

fishery, to allow the industry to plan for 

the fishing season, and to avoid 

potential disruption to the fishing fleet 

and processors. NMFS was unable to 

publish a notice providing time for 

public comment because the most 

recent, relevant data only became 

available as of October 1, 2007. 

The AA also finds good cause to 

waive the 30-day delay in the effective 

date of this action under 5 U.S.C. 

553(d)(3). This finding is based upon 

the reasons provided above for waiver of 

prior notice and opportunity for public 

comment. 

Without this inseason adjustment, 

NMFS could not allow the fishery for 

Pacific cod by catcher vessels using pot 

gear in the BSAI to be harvested in an 

expedient manner and in accordance 

with the regulatory schedule. Under 

§ 679.25(c)(2), interested persons are 

invited to submit written comments on 

this action to the above address until 

October 17, 2007. 

This action is required by § 679.25 

and is exempt from review under 

Executive Order 12866. 

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

Dated: October 1, 2007. 

Emily H. Menashes 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 07–4955 Filed 10–2–07; 1:38 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 679 

[Docket No. 070213033–7033–01] 

RIN 0648–XD11 

Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic 

Zone Off Alaska; Pacific Cod by 

Catcher Processor Vessels Using 

Hook-and-line Gear in the Bering Sea 

and Aleutian Islands Management Area 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule; closure. 

SUMMARY: NMFS is prohibiting directed 

fishing for Pacific cod by catcher 

processor vessels using hook-and-line 

gear in the Bering Sea and Aleutian 

Islands management area (BSAI). This 

action is necessary to prevent exceeding 

the 2007 directed fishing allowance 

(DFA) of Pacific cod specified for 

catcher processor vessels using hookand-line gear in the BSAI. 

DATES: Effective 1200 hrs, Alaska local 

time (A.l.t.), October 2, 2007, until 1200 

hrs, A.l.t., December 31, 2007. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Jennifer Hogan, 907–586–7228. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NMFS 

manages the groundfish fishery in the 

BSAI according to the Fishery 

Management Plan for Groundfish of the 

Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands 

Management Area (FMP) prepared by 

the North Pacific Fishery Management 

Council under authority of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act. 

Regulations governing fishing by U.S. 

vessels in accordance with the FMP 

appear at subpart H of 50 CFR part 600 

and 50 CFR part 679. 

The 2007 Pacific cod TAC allocated to 

catcher processor vessels using hookand-line gear in the BSAI as a DFA of 

68,105 metric tons (mt) is established by 

the 2007 and 2008 final harvest 

specifications for groundfish in the 

BSAI (72 FR 9451, March 2, 2007) and 

a reallocation (72 FR 52493, September 

14, 2007). See § 679.20(c)(3)(iii) and 

(c)(5), and (a)(7)(i)(C). 

In accordance with § 679.20(d)(1)(iii), 

the Administrator, Alaska Region, 

NMFS, has determined that the 2007 

Pacific cod TAC allocated to catcher 

processor vessels using hook-and-line 

gear in the BSAI has been reached. 

Consequently, NMFS is prohibiting 

directed fishing for Pacific cod by 

catcher processor vessels using hookand-line gear in the BSAI. 

After the effective date of this closure 

the maximum retainable amounts at 

§ 679.20(e) and (f) apply at any time 

during a trip. 

Classification 

This action responds to the best 

available information recently obtained 

from the fishery. The Assistant 

Administrator for Fisheries, NOAA 

(AA), finds good cause to waive the 

requirement to provide prior notice and 

opportunity for public comment 

pursuant to the authority set forth at 5 

U.S.C. 553(b)(B) as such requirement is 

impracticable and contrary to the public 

interest. This requirement is 

impracticable and contrary to the public 

interest as it would prevent NMFS from 

responding to the most recent fisheries 

data in a timely fashion and would 

delay the closure of Pacific cod by 

catcher processor vessels using hookand-line gear in the BSAI. NMFS was 

unable to publish a notice providing 

time for public comment because the 

most recent, relevant data only became 

available as of September 28, 2007. 

The AA also finds good cause to 

waive the 30-day delay in the effective 

date of this action under 5 U.S.C. 

553(d)(3). This finding is based upon 

the reasons provided above for waiver of 

prior notice and opportunity for public 

comment. 

This action is required by § 679.20 

and is exempt from review under 

Executive Order 12866. 

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


yshivers on PROD1PC62 with RULES