Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 104 / Thursday, May 29, 2008 / Rules and Regulations 30811 

Exploitable biomass 

estimate (mt) 

Adjusted trips (full-time, 

part-time, occasional) 

Adjusted trips (general 

category) 

Adjusted 2009 research 

set-aside TAC (mt) 

Adjusted 2009 observer 

set-aside TAC (mt) 

10,000–19,000 ................... 1, 0, 0 ................................ 982 .................................... 72.57 ................................. 36.29. 

Less than 10,000 ............... 0, 0, 0 ................................ 491 .................................... 36.29 ................................. 18.15. 

* Part-time vessels may take one trip in the Elephant Trunk Access Area at a reduced possession limit of 3,600 lb (1,633 kg) and one trip in 

the NLCA with a possession limit of 18,000 lb (8,165 kg). 

** Occasional vessels may take 1 trip in the Nantucket Lightship Access Area or 1 trip in the Elephant Trunk Access Area. 

(3) Table of Delmarva Access Area 

TAC and trip allocation adjustments 

based on exploitable biomass estimates 

and revised target TAC levels. The 

following table specifies the required 

adjustments that shall be made through 

the procedure specified in paragraph 

(a)(3)(i)(F)(1) of this section under 

various biomass estimates and adjusted 

2009 target TAC estimates: 

Exploitable biomass 

estimate (mt) 

Adjusted trips (full-time, 

part-time, occasional) 

Adjusted trips (general 

category) 

Adjusted 2009 research 

set-aside TAC 

Adjusted 2009 observer 

set-aside TAC 

10,000 or greater ............... No adjustment ................... No adjustment ................... No adjustment ................... No adjustment. 

Less than 10,000 ............... 0, 0, 0 ................................ 0 ........................................ 0 ........................................ 0. 

* * * * * 

(5) Possession and landing limits—(i) 

Scallop possession limits. Unless 

authorized by the Regional 

Administrator, as specified in 

paragraphs (c) and (d) of this section, 

after declaring a trip into a Sea Scallop 

Access Area, a vessel owner or operator 

of a limited access scallop vessel may 

fish for, possess, and land, per trip, 

scallops, up to the maximum amounts 

specified in the table in this paragraph 

(a)(5). No vessel declared into an Access 

Area as described in § 648.59 may 

possess more than 50 bu (17.62 hL) of 

in-shell scallops outside of the Access 

Area described in § 648.59. 

Fishing year 

Permit category possession limit 

Full-time Part-time Occasional 

2008 ............................................... 18,000 lb .......................................

(8,165 kg) .....................................

18,000 lb .......................................

(8,165 kg) .....................................

7,500 lb. 

(3,402 kg). 

2009 ............................................... 18,000 lb .......................................

(8,165 kg) .....................................

18,000 lb1 .....................................

(8,165 kg) .....................................

7,500 lb. 

(3,402 kg). 

1 Unless reduced per § 648.60(a)(3)(i)(E)(2). 

* * * * * 

(d) Possession limit to defray costs of 

observers—(1) Observer set-aside limits 

by area—(i) Nantucket Lightship Access 

Area. For the 2008 fishing year, the 

observer set-asides for the Nantucket 

Lightship Access Area is 55,000 lb (25 

mt). 

(ii) Closed Area II Access Area. For 

the 2009 fishing year, the observer setaside for the Closed Area II Access Area 

is 58,000 lb (26 mt). 

(iii) Elephant Trunk Access Area. For 

the 2008 and 2009 fishing years, the 

observer set-aside for the Elephant 

Trunk Access Area is 222,000 lb (101 

mt), and 162,000 lb (73 mt), 

respectively, unless the 2009 set-aside is 

adjusted as specified in paragraph 

(a)(3)(i)(E) of this section. 

(iv) Delmarva Access Area. For the 

2009 fishing year, the observer set-aside 

for the Delmarva Access Area is 60,000 

lb (27 mt), unless the 2009 set-aside is 

adjusted as specified in paragraph 

(a)(3)(i)(E) of this section. 

* * * * * 

(e) * * * 

(1) Research set-aside limits and 

number of trips by area—(i) Nantucket 

Lightship Access Area. For the 2008 

fishing year, the research set-aside for 

the Nantucket Lightship Access Area is 

110,000 lb (50 mt). 

(ii) Closed Area II Access Area. For 

the 2009 fishing year, the research setaside for the Closed Area II Access Area 

is 116,000 lb (53 mt). 

(iii) Elephant Trunk Access Area. For 

the 2008 and 2009 fishing years, the 

research set-aside for the Elephant 

Trunk Access Area is 440,000 lb (200 

mt), and 324,000 lb (147 mt), 

respectively, unless the 2009 set-aside is 

adjusted as specified in paragraph 

(a)(3)(i)(E) of this section. 

(iv) Delmarva Access Area. For the 

2009 fishing year, the research set-aside 

for the Delmarva Access Area is 120,000 

lb (54 mt), unless the 2009 set-aside is 

adjusted as specified in paragraph 

(a)(3)(i)(E) of this section. 

* * * * * 

■ 11. In § 648.62, paragraph (b)(1) is 

revised to read as follows: 

§ 648.62 Northern Gulf of Maine (NGOM) 

scallop management area. 

* * * * * 

(b) * * * 

(1) NGOM TAC. The TAC for the 

NGOM shall be 70,000 lb (31.8 mt) for 

both the 2008 and 2009 fishing years. 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. 08–1300 Filed 5–23–08; 12:48 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 660 

[Docket No. 080326475–8686–02] 

RIN 0648–XG22 

Fisheries Off West Coast States; 

Coastal Pelagic Species Fisheries; 

Annual Specifications 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Final rule; closure of directed 

fishing for Pacific sardine 

SUMMARY: NMFS issues this final rule to 

implement the annual harvest guideline 


pwalker on PROD1PC71 with RULES
30812 Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 104 / Thursday, May 29, 2008 / Rules and Regulations 

(HG) for Pacific sardine in the U.S. 

exclusive economic zone (EEZ) off the 

Pacific coast for the fishing season of 

January 1, 2008, through December 31, 

2008. This HG has been determined 

according to the regulations 

implementing the Coastal Pelagic 

Species (CPS) Fishery Management Plan 

(FMP) and establishes allowable harvest 

levels for Pacific sardine off the Pacific 

coast. NMFS also announces that based 

on the best available information 

recently obtained from the fishery, the 

directed fishing harvest total for the first 

allocation period (January 1 – June 30) 

has been reached and therefore directed 

fishing for Pacific sardine is now closed 

until July 1, 2008. 

DATES: Effective May 29, 2008 through 

December 31, 2008, except for directed 

harvest closure effective through June 

30, 2008 

ADDRESSES: Copies of the report 

‘‘Assessment of Pacific Sardine Stock 

for U.S. Management in 2008’’ may be 

obtained from the Southwest Regional 

Office (see the Mailing address above). 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Joshua Lindsay, Southwest Region, 

NMFS, (562) 980–4034. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The CPS 

FMP, which is implemented by 

regulations at 50 CFR part 660 subpart 

I, divides management unit species into 

two categories: actively managed and 

monitored. Harvest guidelines for 

actively managed species (Pacific 

sardine and Pacific mackerel) are based 

on formulas applied to current biomass 

estimates. Biomass estimates are not 

calculated for species that are only 

monitored (jack mackerel, northern 

anchovy, and market squid). 

During public meetings each year, the 

biomass for each actively managed 

species within the CPS FMP is 

presented to the Pacific Fishery 

Management Council’s (Council) Coastal 

Pelagic Species Management Team 

(Team) and the Council’s Coastal 

Pelagic Species Advisory Subpanel 

(Subpanel). At that time, the biomass, 

the acceptable biological catch (ABC) 

and the status of the fisheries are 

reviewed and discussed. This 

information is then presented to the 

Council along with HG 

recommendations and comments from 

the Team and Subpanel. Following 

review by the Council and after hearing 

public comment, the Council makes its 

HG recommendation to NMFS. 

A full assessment for Pacific sardine 

was conducted this management cycle 

and reviewed by a Stock Assessment 

Review (STAR) Panel in La Jolla, 

California, September 18–21, 2007. This 

assessment produced an estimated 

biomass of 832,706 metric tons (mt). 

Applying this biomass number to the 

harvest control rule in the FMP 

produces an ABC for the 2008 fishery of 

89,093 (mt). 

In November, the Council adopted, 

and NMFS then approved, an ABC or 

HG of 89,093 mt for the 2008 fishing 

year. This ABC is 42 percent less than 

the ABC/HG adopted by the Council for 

the 2007 fishing season. The Council 

also adopted, and NMFS approved, a 

set-aside of 8,909 mt (10 percent of the 

ABC), establishing a directed harvest 

fishery of 80,184 mt and an incidental 

fishery of 8,909 mt. The purpose of the 

incidental fishery is to allow for 

incidental landings of Pacific sardine in 

other fisheries and prevent the closure 

of such fisheries, particularly other CPS 

fisheries, if a seasonal directed fishery 

total is reached and directed fishing is 

closed. In turn the set-aside also helps 

to ensure the fishery does not exceed 

the ABC. 

The Pacific sardine HG is apportioned 

based on the following allocation 

scheme established by Amendment 11 

(71 FR 36999, June 29,2006) to the CPS 

FMP: 35 percent is allocated coastwide 

on January 1; 40 percent, plus any 

portion not harvested from the initial 

allocation is reallocated coastwide on 

July 1; and on September 15 the 

remaining 25 percent, plus any portion 

not harvested from earlier allocations is 

released. If the total HG or these 

apportionment levels for Pacific sardine 

are reached at any time, the Pacific 

sardine fishery will be closed via 

appropriate rulemaking until it re-opens 

either per the allocation scheme or the 

beginning of the next fishing season. 

The Regional Administrator shall 

publish a notice in the Federal Register 

the date of the closure of the directed 

fishery for Pacific sardine. 

The set-aside is based on recent 

annual incidental sardine landing rates 

in other fisheries during each of the 

seasonal allocation periods. The setaside is initially allocated across these 

periods in the following way: January 1–

June 30, 26,550 mt is allocated for 

directed harvest with an incidental setaside of 4,633 mt; July 1–September 14, 

34,568 mt is allocated for directed 

harvest with an incidental set-aside of 

1,069 mt; September 15–December 31, 

19,066 mt is allocated for directed 

harvest with an incidental set-aside of 

3,207 mt. 

If during any of the seasonal 

allocation periods the applicable 

adjusted directed harvest allocation is 

projected to be taken, only incidental 

harvest will be allowed and, for the 

remainder of the period, any incidental 

Pacific sardine landings will be counted 

against that period’s incidental set 

aside. The incidental fishery will also be 

constrained to a 20–percent by weight 

incidental catch rate when Pacific 

sardine are landed with other CPS to 

minimize targeting of Pacific sardine 

and to maximize landings of harvestable 

stocks. In the event that an incidental 

set-aside is projected to be attained, all 

fisheries will be closed to the retention 

of Pacific sardine for the remainder of 

the period via appropriate rulemaking. 

If the set-aside is not fully attained or is 

exceeded in a given seasonal period, the 

directed harvest allocation in the 

following seasonal period will be 

automatically adjusted to account for 

the discrepancy. The above in-season 

harvest restrictions are not intended to 

affect the prosecution the live bait 

portion of the Pacific sardine fishery. 

For further background information 

on this action please refer to the 

preamble of the proposed rule (73 FR 

20015). 

Comments and Responses 

NMFS received one comment 

regarding the Pacific sardine annual 

specifications. 

Comment 1: The commenter stated 

that they believed that the catch 

specifications for CPS do not adequately 

take into account broader ecosystem 

needs and information such as foraging 

requirements of other species that may 

feed on Pacific sardine. 

Response: NMFS agrees that Pacific 

sardine is an important prey component 

of the California Current ecosystem and 

as such the current harvest control rule 

formula used to determine the harvest 

guideline for Pacific sardine takes into 

account ecosystem as well as physical 

environmental factors. This is achieved 

by means of a formula that, after overall 

biomass is determined, takes into 

account the viability of the sardine stock 

and its value as forage when 

determining the guideline number. This 

is accomplished by a harvest rate or 

harvest ‘‘fraction’’ that is adjusted 

between 5 percent and 15 percent based 

on current ocean temperatures. Because 

past shifts in sardine productivity are 

linked with warm or cold ocean regimes 

a higher fraction is allotted for harvest 

when ocean temperatures are warmer 

and sardine production is greater, while 

the lower fraction is used when ocean 

temperatures are cooler and sardine 

production is decreased. In addition, a 

150,000 mt stock biomass threshold, or 

‘‘cutoff’’, is established below which no 

harvest is allowed in order to ensure a 

minimum spawning biomass is 

protected. Each year this ‘‘cutoff’’

number of 150,000 mt is subtracted from 

the overall biomass number before the 


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Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 104 / Thursday, May 29, 2008 / Rules and Regulations 30813 

harvestable biomass is calculated to take 

into account the importance of Pacific 

sardine as forage. 

Classification 

The Administrator, Southwest Region, 

NMFS, determined that this final rule is 

necessary for the conservation and 

management of the CPS fishery and that 

it is consistent with the MagnusonStevens Fishery Conservation and 

Management Act and other applicable 

laws. 

NMFS 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) for the closure of the 

January 1- June 30 directed harvest of 

Pacific sardine. For the reasons set forth 

below, notice and comment procedures 

are impracticable and contrary to the 

public interest. For the same reasons, 

NMFS also finds good cause under 5 

U.S.C. § 553(d)(3) to waive the 30–day 

delay in effectiveness for both the 

establishment of the harvest guideline 

and closure of the January 1 June 30 

directed harvest. These measures 

respond to the best available 

information and are necessary for the 

conservation and management of the 

Pacific sardine resource. The most 

recent data from the fishery, received by 

NMFS on May 11, 2008, shows that 

projected landings, along with some 

previously reported landings, are 

significantly greater than anticipated. 

Based on this data, NMFS believes that 

the directed harvest allocation for the 

period January 1 through June 30 will be 

attained much sooner than predicted 

and prior to publication of this 

rulemaking. A delay in effectiveness 

would cause the fishery to further 

exceed the in-season directed harvest 

level. These seasonal harvest levels are 

important mechanisms in preventing 

overfishing and managing the fishery at 

optimum yield. The established directed 

and incidental harvest allocations are 

designed to allow fair and equitable 

opportunity to the resource by all 

sectors of the Pacific sardine fishery and 

to allow access to other profitable CPS 

fisheries, such as squid and Pacific 

mackerel. Many of the same fishermen 

who harvest Pacific sardine rely on 

these other fisheries for a significant 

portion of their income. To help keep 

the regulated community advised of the 

progression of sardine landings, the 

California Department of Fish and Game 

provided a detailed accounting of 

landings-to-date to the CPS Advisory 

Subpanel in late April. The Subpanel is 

comprised of representatives from all 

sectors and regions of the sardine 

industry, including processors, 

fishermen, user groups and fishermen 

association representatives. As landing 

totals have become available, they are 

also posted on NMFS’ Southwest 

Regional Office website, http:// 

swr.nmfs.noaa.gov/. NMFS will also 

announce this closure through other 

means available, including fax, email, 

and mail to fishermen, processors, and 

state agencies. Therefore, NMFS finds 

that there is good cause to waive the 30–

day delay in effectiveness in this 

circumstance. 

This final rule is exempt from Office 

of Management and Budget review 

under Executive Order 12866. 

The Chief Counsel for Regulation of 

the Department of Commerce certified 

to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the 

Small Business Administration during 

the proposed rule stage that this action 

would not have a significant economic 

impact on a substantial number of small 

entities. The factual basis for the 

certification was published in the 

proposed rule (73 FR 20015) and is not 

repeated here. No comments were 

received regarding this certification or 

the economic impact of the proposed 

rule. As a result, a regulatory flexibility 

analysis was not required and none was 

prepared. 

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

Dated: May 23, 2008. 

Samuel D. Rauch III, 

Deputy Assistant Administrator for 

Regulatory Programs, National Marine 

Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 08–1304 Filed 5–23–08; 3:15 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 


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