Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 153 / Thursday, August 7, 2008 / Rules and Regulations 45883 

DATES: Effective 0001 hours, August 6, 

2008, through 2400 hours, December 31, 

2008. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Emily Bryant, Fishery Management 

Specialist, (978) 281–9244. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Regulations governing the summer 

flounder fishery are found at 50 CFR 

part 648. The regulations require annual 

specification of a commercial quota that 

is apportioned on a percentage basis 

among the coastal states from North 

Carolina through Maine. The process to 

set the annual commercial quota and the 

percent allocated to each state is 

described in § 648.100. 

The initial total commercial quota for 

summer flounder for the 2008 calendar 

year was set equal to 9,462,001 lb (4,292 

mt) (72 FR 74197, December 31, 2007). 

The percent allocated to vessels landing 

summer flounder in Massachusetts is 

6.82046 percent, resulting in a 

commercial quota of 645,352 lb (293 

mt). The 2008 allocation was reduced to 

615,218 lb (279 mt) when research setaside and 2007 quota overages were 

deducted. 

Section 648.101(b) requires the 

Administrator, Northeast Region, NMFS 

(Regional Administrator), to monitor 

state commercial quotas and to 

determine when a state’s commercial 

quota has been harvested. NMFS then 

publishes a notification in the Federal 

Register to advise the state and to notify 

Federal vessel and dealer permit holders 

that, effective upon a specific date, the 

state’s commercial quota has been 

harvested and no commercial quota is 

available for landing summer flounder 

in that state. The Regional 

Administrator has determined, based 

upon dealer reports and other available 

information, that Massachusetts has 

harvested its quota for 2008. 

The regulations at § 648.4(b) provide 

that Federal permit holders agree, as a 

condition of the permit, not to land 

summer flounder in any state that the 

Regional Administrator has determined 

no longer has commercial quota 

available. Therefore, effective 0001 

hours, August 6, 2008, further landings 

of summer flounder in Massachusetts by 

vessels holding summer flounder 

commercial Federal fisheries permits 

are prohibited for the remainder of the 

2008 calendar year, unless additional 

quota becomes available through a 

transfer and is announced in the 

Federal Register. Effective 0001 hours, 

August 6, 2008, federally permitted 

dealers are also notified that they may 

not purchase summer flounder from 

federally permitted vessels that land in 

Massachusetts for the remainder of the 

calendar year, or until additional quota 

becomes available through a transfer 

from another state. 

Classification 

This action is required by 50 CFR part 

648 and is exempt from review under 

Executive Order 12866. 

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

Dated: July 31, 2008. 

Alan D. Risenhoover, 

Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, 

National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. E8–18066 Filed 8–1–08; 4:15 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 660 

[Docket No. 080326475–8686–02] 

RIN 0648–XJ27 

Fisheries Off West Coast States; 

Coastal Pelagic Species Fisheries; 

Closure 

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 sardine. This action is 

necessary because the directed harvest 

allocation total for the second seasonal 

period (July 1 - September 14) is 

projected to be reached. From date of 

closure until September 15, 2008, 

Pacific sardine may only be harvested 

incidental to other fisheries, with 

incidental harvest constrained by a 20–

percent by weight incidental catch rate. 

DATES: Effective August 8, 2008 through 

September 14, 2008 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Joshua Lindsay, Southwest Region, 

NMFS, (562) 980–4034. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NMFS 

manages the Pacific sardine fishery in 

the U.S. exclusive economic zone (EEZ) 

off the Pacific coast (California, Oregon, 

and Washington) in accordance with the 

Coastal Pelagic Species (CPS) Fishery 

Management Plan (FMP). Annual 

specifications published in the Federal 

Register establish the total harvest 

guideline (HG) and allowable harvest 

levels for each Pacific sardine fishing 

season (January 1 - December 31). The 

total HG for the 2008 Pacific sardine 

fishing season (January 1, 2008 - 

December 31, 2008) is 89,093 mt and is 

divided into a directed harvest fishery 

of 80,184 mt and an incidental fishery 

of 8,909 mt. These directed and 

incidental harvest ammounts are 

subdivided throughout the year in the 

following way: January 1–June 30, 

26,550 mt is allocated for directed 

harvest with an incidental set-aside of 

4,633 mt; July 1–September 14, 34,568 

mt plus any portion not harvested from 

the initial allocation is allocated for 

directed harvest with an incidental setaside of 1,069 mt; September 15–

December 31, 19,066 mt plus any 

portion not harvested from earlier 

allocations is allocated for directed 

harvest with an incidental set-aside of 

3,207 mt (73 CFR 30811). 

If during any of the seasonal 

allocation periods the applicable 

adjusted directed harvest allocation is 

projected to be taken, only incidental 

harvest is 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. 

Under 50 CFR 660.509 if the total HG 

or these apportionment levels for Pacific 

sardine are reached at any time, NMFS 

is required to close the Pacific sardine 

fishery via appropriate rulemaking and 

it is to remain closed until it re-opens 

either per the allocation scheme or the 

beginning of the next fishing season. In 

accordance with § 660.509 the Regional 

Administrator shall publish a notice in 

the Federal Register the date of the 

closure of the directed fishery for Pacific 

sardine. 

The above in-season harvest 

restrictions are not intended to affect the 

prosecution the live bait portion of the 

Pacific sardine fishery. 

Classification 

This action is required by 50 CFR 

660.509 and is exempt from Office of 

Management and Budget review under 

Executive Order 12866. 

NMFS finds good cause to waive the 

requirement to provide prior notice and 

opportunity for public comment 


rmajette on PRODPC74 with RULES
45884 Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 153 / Thursday, August 7, 2008 / Rules and Regulations 

pursuant to the authority set forth at 5 

U.S.C. § 553(b)(B) for the closure of the 

July 1–September 14 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 this action. 

This measure responds to the best 

available information and is necessary 

for the conservation and management of 

the Pacific sardine resource. A delay in 

effectiveness would cause the fishery to 

exceed the in-season 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. 

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

Dated: August 1, 2008. 

Alan D. Risenhoover, 

Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, 

National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. E8–18198 Filed 8–6–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 679 

[Docket No. 071106673–8011–02] 

RIN 0648–XJ58 

Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic 

Zone Off Alaska; Greenland Turbot in 

the Bering Sea Subarea of 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 Greenland turbot in the 

Bering Sea subarea of the Bering Sea 

and Aleutian Islands management area 

(BSAI). This action is necessary to 

prevent exceeding the 2008 Greenland 

turbot total allowable catch (TAC) in the 

Bering Sea subarea of the BSAI. 

DATES: Effective 1200 hrs, Alaska local 

time (A.l.t.), August 1, 2008, through 

2400 hrs, A.l.t., December 31, 2008. 

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 2008 Greenland turbot TAC in 

the Bering Sea subarea of the BSAI is 

1,563 metric tons (mt) as established by 

the 2008 and 2009 final harvest 

specifications for groundfish in the 

BSAI (73 FR 10160, February 26, 2008) 

and the allocation from the nonspecified reserves (73 FR 40193, July 14, 

2008). 

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

the Administrator, Alaska Region, 

NMFS, has determined that the 2008 

Greenland turbot TAC in the Bering Sea 

subarea of the BSAI will soon be 

reached. Therefore, the Regional 

Administrator is establishing a directed 

fishing allowance of 1,063 mt, and is 

setting aside the remaining 500 mt as 

bycatch to support other anticipated 

groundfish fisheries. In accordance with 

§ 679.20(d)(1)(iii), the Regional 

Administrator finds that this directed 

fishing allowance has been reached. 

Consequently, NMFS is prohibiting 

directed fishing for Greenland turbot in 

the Bering Sea subarea of 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 Greenland turbot in 

the Bering Sea subarea of 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 July 31, 

2008. 

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. 

Dated: July 31, 2008. 

Alan D. Risenhoover, 

Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries,National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. E8–18068 Filed 8–1–08; 4:15 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 679 

[Docket No. 071106671–8010–02] 

RIN 0648–XJ64 

Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic 

Zone Off Alaska; Shortraker Rockfish 

in the Western Regulatory Area of the 

Gulf of Alaska 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule; closure. 

SUMMARY: NMFS is prohibiting retention 

of shortraker rockfish in the Western 

Regulatory Area of the Gulf of Alaska 

(GOA). This action is necessary because 

the 2008 total allowable catch (TAC) of 

shortraker rockfish in the Western 

Regulatory Area of the GOA has been 

reached. 

DATES: Effective 1200 hrs, Alaska local 

time (A.l.t.), August 4, 2008, through 

2400 hrs, A.l.t., December 31, 2008. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Jennifer Hogan, 907–586–7228. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NMFS 

manages the groundfish fishery in the 

GOA exclusive economic zone 

according to the Fishery Management 

Plan for Groundfish of the Gulf of 

Alaska (FMP) prepared by the North 

Pacific Fishery Management Council 

under authority of the MagnusonVerDate Aug<31>2005 15:21 Aug 06, 2008 Jkt 214001 PO 00000 Frm 00032 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 E:\FR\FM\07AUR1.SGM 07AUR1

rmajette on PRODPC74 with RULES