Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 179 / Thursday, September 16, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 56483 

[FR Doc. 2010–23126 Filed 9–15–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 679 

[Docket No. 0910131363–0087–02] 

RIN 0648–XZ08 

Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic 

Zone Off Alaska; Reallocation of Crab 

and Halibut Prohibited Species Catch 

Allowances 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; reallocation. 

SUMMARY: NMFS is reallocating the 

projected unused amounts of the 2010 

crab and halibut prohibited species 

catch (PSC) allowances assigned to the 

Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands trawl 

limited access sector to the Amendment 

80 cooperative in the Bering Sea and 

Aleutian Islands management area 

(BSAI). This action is necessary to allow 

the Amendment 80 cooperative to fully 

harvest their 2010 groundfish 

allocations. 

DATES: Effective September 13, 2010, 

through 2400 hrs, Alaska local time 

(A.l.t.), December 31, 2010. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Steve Whitney, 907–586–7269. 

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 2010 halibut PSC assigned to the 

Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands trawl 

limited access sector is 875 metric tons 

(mt) and to the Amendment 80 

cooperative is 1,754 mt in the BSAI as 

established by the final 2010 and 2011 

harvest specifications for groundfish in 

the BSAI (75 FR 11778, March 12, 

2010). 

The Administrator, Alaska Region, 

NMFS, has determined that 358 mt of 

the halibut PSC assigned to the BSAI 

trawl limited access sector will not be 

needed to support BSAI trawl limited 

access fisheries. Therefore, in 

accordance with § 679.91(f)(4), NMFS is 

reallocating 340 mt of halibut PSC 

assigned to the BSAI trawl limited 

access sector to the Amendment 80 

cooperative in the BSAI. 

The Administrator, Alaska Region, 

NMFS, has also determined that 290,000 

crabs of Zone 1 C. bairdi tanner crab 

PSC, 880,000 crabs of Zone 2 C. bairdi 

tanner crab PSC, and 48,000 crabs of 

Zone 1 red king crab PSC assigned to 

the BSAI trawl limited access sector will 

not be needed to support BSAI trawl 

limited access fisheries. Therefore, in 

accordance with § 679.91(f)(5), NMFS is 

reallocating these crab PSC amounts 

assigned to BSAI trawl limited access 

sector to the Amendment 80 cooperative 

in the BSAI. 

In accordance with § 679.91(f)(1), 

NMFS will reissue cooperative quota 

permits for the reallocated crab and 

halibut PSC following the procedures 

set forth in § 679.91(f)(4) and 

§ 679.91(f)(5). 

The harvest specifications for crab 

and halibut PSC included in the final 

harvest specifications for crab and 

halibut PSC in the BSAI (75 FR 11778, 

March 12, 2010) are revised as follows 

in Tables 8a, 8c, and 8d: 

TABLE 8A—FINAL 2010 AND 2011 APPORTIONMENT OF PROHIBITED SPECIES CATCH ALLOWANCES TO NON-TRAWL GEAR, 

THE CDQ PROGRAM, AMENDMENT 80, AND THE BSAI TRAWL LIMITED ACCESS SECTORS

PSC species Total nontrawl PSC 

Non-trawl 

PSC remaining 

after CDQ 

PSQ 1

Total trawl 

PSC 

Trawl PSC 

remaining 

after CDQ 

PSQ 1

CDQ PSQ 

reserve 1

Amendment 80 sector BSAI trawl 

limited access fishery 2010 2011 

Halibut mortality (mt) BSAI ............................................... 900 832 3,675 3,349 393 2,765 2,375 517 

Herring (mt) BSAI .............................................................. n/a n/a 1,974 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 

Red king crab (animals) Zone 1 1 ..................................... n/a n/a 197,000 175,921 21,079 146,920 93,432 5,797 

C. opilio (animals) COBLZ 2 .............................................. n/a n/a 4,350,000 3,884,550 465,450 2,148,156 2,028,512 1,248,494 

C. bairdi crab (animals) Zone 1 2 ...................................... n/a n/a 830,000 741,190 88,810 641,176 331,608 58,285 

C. bairdi crab (animals) Zone 2 ........................................ n/a n/a 2,520,000 2,250,360 269,640 1,479,271 565,966 173,394 

1Section 679.21(e)(3)(i)(A)(2) allocates 326 mt of the trawl halibut mortality limit and § 679.21(e)(4)(i)(A) allocates 7.5 percent, or 67 mt, of the non-trawl halibut 

mortality limit as the PSQ reserve for use by the groundfish CDQ program. The PSQ reserve for crab species is 10.7 percent of each crab PSC limit. 2 Refer to § 679.2 for definitions of zones. 

TABLE 8C—FINAL 2010 AND 2011 PROHIBITED SPECIES BYCATCH ALLOWANCES FOR THE BSAI TRAWL LIMITED ACCESS

SECTOR AND NON-TRAWL FISHERIES

BSAI trawl limited access fisheries 

Prohibited species and area 1

Halibut mortality (mt) 

BSAI 

Red king crab 

(animals) Zone 

1 

C. opilio (animals) COBLZ 

C. bairdi (animals) 

Zone 1 Zone 2 

Yellowfin sole ........................................................... 47 4,000 1,176,494 27,285 160,304 

Rock sole/flathead sole/other flatfish 2 ..................... 0 0 0 0 0 

Turbot/arrowtooth/sablefish 3 ................................... 0 0 0 0 0 

Rockfish April 15–December 31 .............................. 5 0 2,000 0 848 

Pacific cod ................................................................ 275 1,700 50,000 20,000 8,000 


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56484 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 179 / Thursday, September 16, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 

TABLE 8C—FINAL 2010 AND 2011 PROHIBITED SPECIES BYCATCH ALLOWANCES FOR THE BSAI TRAWL LIMITED ACCESS

SECTOR AND NON-TRAWL FISHERIES—Continued 

BSAI trawl limited access fisheries 

Prohibited species and area 1

Halibut mortality (mt) 

BSAI 

Red king crab 

(animals) Zone 

1 

C. opilio (animals) COBLZ 

C. bairdi (animals) 

Zone 1 Zone 2 

Pollock/Atka mackerel/other species ....................... 190 97 20,000 1,000 4,242 

Total BSAI trawl limited access PSC ...................... 517 5,797 1,248,494 58,285 173,394 

Non-trawl fisheries Catcher 

processor 

Catcher 

vessel 

Pacific cod-Total ...................................................... 760 15 

January 1–June 10 .................................................. 314 10 

June 10–August 15 .................................................. 0 3 

August 15–December 31 ......................................... 446 2 

Other non-trawl-Total ............................................... 58 

May 1–December 31 ............................................... 58 

Groundfish pot and jig ............................................. Exempt 

Sablefish hook-and-line ........................................... Exempt 

Total non-trawl PSC ................................................. 833 

1 Refer to § 679.2 for definitions of areas. 

2 ‘‘Other flatfish’’ for PSC monitoring includes all flatfish species, except for halibut (a prohibited species), flathead sole, Greenland turbot, rock 

sole, yellowfin sole, and arrowtooth flounder. 3Greenland turbot, arrowtooth flounder, and sablefish fishery category. 

TABLE 8D—FINAL 2010 PROHIBITED SPECIES BYCATCH ALLOWANCE FOR THE BSAI AMENDMENT 80 COOPERATIVES

Year 

Prohibited species and zones1

Halibut 

mortality 

(mt) BSAI 

Red king crab 

(animals) 

Zone 1 

C. opilio (animals) COBLZ 

C. bairdi (animals) 

Zone 1 Zone 2 

2010 ..................................................................................... 2,094 118,237 1,461,309 547,715 1,320,277 

1 Refer to § 679.2 for definitions of zones. 

This will enhance the socioeconomic 

well-being of harvesters of groundfish 

dependent upon these PSC amounts. 

The Regional Administrator considered 

the following factors in reaching this 

decision: (1) the current catch and 

stated future harvesting intent of BSAI 

trawl limited access sector fisheries and, 

(2) the harvest capacity and stated intent 

on future harvesting patterns of the 

Amendment 80 cooperative that 

participates in this BSAI fishery. The 

Regional Administrator also has 

determined that this action will create 

no threats of exceeding TACs for any 

species or species group. 

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 reallocation of crab and 

halibut PSC from the BSAI trawl limited 

access sector to the Amendment 80 

cooperative in the BSAI. Since the 

fisheries are currently open, it is 

important to immediately inform the 

industry as to the revised allocations. 

Immediate notification is necessary to 

allow for the orderly conduct and 

efficient operation of these fisheries, to 

allow the industry to plan for the fishing 

season, and to avoid potential 

disruption to the fishing fleet as well as 

processors. NMFS was unable to 

publish a notice providing time for 

public comment because the most 

recent, relevant data only became 

available as of September 8, 2010. 

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 § 679.91 

and is exempt from review under 

Executive Order 12866. 

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

Dated: September 13, 2010. 

Carrie Selberg, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2010–23166 Filed 9–13–10; 4:15 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 


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