11120 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 36 / Thursday, February 22, 2001 / Rules and Regulations

percent by weight of the combined

weight of all CPS on board the vessel.

Classification

This action is required by 50 CFR

660.509 and is exempt from review

under Executive Order 12866.

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

Dated: February 14, 2001.

Bruce C. Morehead,

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 01–4416 Filed 2–21–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

50 CFR Part 660

[Docket No. 000822244–01; I.D. 082100B]

RIN 0648–AO66

Fisheries Off West Coast States and in

the Western Pacific; Western Pacific

Pelagic Fisheries; Hawaii-based

Pelagic Longline Area Closure

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Emergency interim rule;

extension of expiration date.

SUMMARY: This action extends an

emergency interim rule, now in effect,

governing the Hawaii-based pelagic

longline fishery. The rule closes certain

waters to fishing; imposes fishing gear,

landing and transhipment restrictions,

effort limitations, and fish sale

restrictions; and requires increased

observer coverage for the fishery. By

extending the emergency interim rule

that is effective through February 21,

2001, NMFS continues implementation

of an order issued by the U.S. District

Court for the District of Hawaii while an

environmental impact statement (EIS) is

being completed for the Fishery

Management Plan for Pelagic Fisheries

of the Western Pacific Region (FMP).

DATES: This emergency interim rule is

effective from February 22, 2001,

through August 20, 2001.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the environmental

assessment prepared for the emergency

interim rule may be obtained from Dr.

Charles Karnella, Administrator, Pacific

Islands Area Office (PIAO), NMFS, 1601

Kapiolani Blvd., Suite 1110, Honolulu,

HI, 96814–4700.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Alvin Katekaru, PIAO, 808–973–2937.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On August

4, 2000, the U.S. District Court for the

District of Hawaii, in the case Center for

Marine Conservation v. NMFS, issued

an Order Further Modifying Provisions

of Order of Injunction that was

implemented by NMFS by an

emergency interim rule promulgated on

August 25, 2000 (65 FR 51992, August

25, 2000). As intended by the order, the

emergency interim rule reduces adverse

impacts to sea turtles by the Hawaiibased longline fishery while NMFS

prepares an EIS that analyzes the

environmental effects of fishing

activities conducted under the FMP.

The EIS is scheduled for completion by

April 1, 2001.

The emergency interim rule, which

was revised on November 3, 2000 (65

FR 66186, November 3, 2000), prohibits

vessels registered for use with Hawaii

longline limited access permits from

fishing activities throughout the year in

waters between 28° N. and 44° N. lat.,

from 150° W. to 168° W. long. (‘‘Area

A’’); limits vessels registered for use

with Hawaii longline limited access

permits to a total of 154 sets from

August 10 through December 31, 2000,

and a total of 77 sets from January 1

through March 14, 2001, and requires

100-percent observer coverage for these

vessels in waters between 28° N. and

44° N. lat., from 137° W. to 150° W.

long., and in waters between 28° N. and

44° N. lat., from 168° W. to 173° E. long.

(both areas collectively designated

‘‘Area B’’). The rule also prohibits

Hawaii-based longliners operating in

waters between 0° lat. (equator) and 28°

N. lat., from 137° W. and 173° E. long.

(‘‘Area C’’) from engaging in directed

fishing effort for swordfish; requires

deployment of longline gear so that the

deepest point of the longline between

any two floats reaches a depth greater

than 100 m (328.1 ft) below the sea

surface; requires permit holders or

operators to donate to charity at least 30

percent of their gross revenues from the

sale of incidentally caught swordfish

from Area C; and prohibits longline

vessels from possessing lightsticks

aboard the vessels if fishing occurs in

any portion of Area C.

Further, pursuant to the Court’s

Order, NMFS provided observer

coverage for the Hawaii longline fishery

in Area C at a minimum level of 10

percent by September 21, 2000, and

increased the level to 20 percent before

November 7, 2000. To ensure these

levels of coverage, this rule requires any

Hawaii-based longline vessel that NMFS

has exempted from carrying NMFSapproved observers in Area C for a

specific fishing trip to have aboard the

vessel a valid observer waiver form

issued by NMFS. For Areas B and C,

longline fishing activities are prohibited

from March 15 through May 3. During

the closure, Pacific pelagic management

unit species harvested in Areas B and C

(all year in Area A) are prohibited from

being landed or transhipped to Hawaii.

This extension of the emergency

interim rule implements the Court’s

order for an additional 180 days until

August 20, 2001, unless prior to that

expiration date, NMFS completes the

environmental impact statement for the

FMP and the Court lifts the injunction

contained in its Order dated August 4,

2000. Although NMFS has reorganized

the sequence of several paragraphs in

§§ 660.22 and 660.33(d) and (e), this

emergency interim rule is substantively

identical to the emergency interim rule

published August 25, 2000, as amended

by the rule published on November 3,

2000.

Extension of this emergency interim

rule is authorized under section

305(c)(3)(B) of the Magnuson-Stevens

Fishery Conservation and Management

Act.

Classification

The Assistant Administrator for

Fisheries, NOAA (AA), has determined

that extension of the emergency interim

rule is necessary to comply with a valid

order of the U.S. District Court.

The AA finds for good cause that

providing prior notice and opportunity

for public comment for this rule is

unnecessary given that the Court

ordered the specific actions contained

in this rule, thus precluding

implementation of any alternative, and

is impracticable given the Court’s

deadline. Similarly, the AA finds, for

good cause, under 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3),

that delaying the effectiveness of this

rule for 30 days is impracticable given

the Court’s deadline. Accordingly, the

AA is making this rule effective from

February 22, 2001, through August 20,

2001.

This emergency interim rule has been

determined to be not significant for

purposes of Executive Order 12866.

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 660

Administrative practice and

procedure, American Samoa, Fisheries,

Fishing, Guam, Hawaiian Natives,

Indians, Northern Mariana Islands,

Reporting and recordkeeping

requirements.

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

Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 36 / Thursday, February 22, 2001 / Rules and Regulations 11121

Dated: February 20, 2001.

Clarence G. Pautzke,

Acting Assistant Administrator for Fisheries,

National Marine Fisheries Service.

For the reasons set out in the

preamble, 50 CFR part 660 is amended

as follows:

PART 660—FISHERIES OFF WEST

COAST STATES AND IN THE

WESTERN PACIFIC

1. The authority citation for part 660

continues to read as follows:

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

2. In § 660.22, paragraphs (z), (aa), and

(bb) are suspended, and new paragraphs

(ee) through (ll) are added to read as

follows:

§ 660.22 Prohibitions.

* * * * *

(ee) Fish for Pacific pelagic

management unit species with a vessel

registered for use under a Hawaii

longline limited access permit using

longline gear within the Hawaii

emergency closed areas in violation of

§ 660.33(b)(1), (c)(1), (c)(4), (c)(5), or

(d)(1).

(ff) Use a receiving vessel registered

for use under a receiving vessel permit

to receive from another vessel Pacific

pelagic management unit species

harvested with longline gear, if the fish

were harvested or the transfer occurs

within the Hawaii emergency closed

areas in violation of § 660.33(b)(2),

(c)(2), or (d)(2).

(gg) Land or transship shoreward of

the outer boundary of the EEZ around

Hawaii Pacific pelagic management

species that were harvested with

longline gear within the Hawaii

emergency closed areas in violation of

§ 660.33(b)(3), (c)(3), or (d)(3).

(hh) Land or sell swordfish (Xiphias

gladius) caught by longline gear within

the Hawaii emergency longline closed

Area C in violation of § 660.33(d)(5).

(ii) Use longline gear to fish for Pacific

pelagic management unit species in

Hawaii emergency longline closed Area

B or Area C without a NMFS-approved

observer on board the vessel in violation

of § 660.33(e)(1) or (e)(2).

(jj) Possess light sticks on a longline

vessel within the Hawaii emergency

longline closed Area C in violation of

§ 660.33(d)(6).

(kk) Fail to carry onboard the vessel

or to make available for inspection by an

authorized officer an observer waiver

form issued by the Administrator,

Pacific Islands Area Office, NMFS, or a

designee of the Administrator as

required under § 660.33(e)(2).

(ll) Direct longline fishing effort

toward the harvest of swordfish in

Hawaii emergency longline closed Area

C.

3. In § 660.23, paragraph (a) is

suspended and new paragraph (c) is

added to read as follows:

§ 660.23 Notifications.

* * * * *

(c) The permit holder of a vessel

registered for use with a Hawaii longline

limited access permit or with an agent

designated by the permit holder shall

provide notice to the Regional

Administrator at least 72 hours (not

including weekends and holidays)

before the vessel leaves port on a fishing

trip, any part of which occurs in Area

B or Area C, as described in

§ 660.33(a)(2) or (a)(3). The vessel

operator will be presumed to be an

agent designated by the permit holder

unless the Regional Administrator is

otherwise notified by the permit holder.

The notice must be provided to the

telephone number designated by the

Regional Administrator. The notice

must provide the official number of the

vessel, the name of the vessel, the

intended departure date, time, and

location, the name of and telephone

number of the agent designated by the

permit holder to be available between

8:00 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Hawaii time) on

weekdays for NMFS to contact in order

to arrange observer placement.

§ 660.28 [Amended]

4. In § 660.28, paragraph (c) is

suspended.

5. New § 660.33 is added to subpart C

to read as follows:

§ 660.33 Hawaii emergency closure.

(a) Longline fishing restricted areas.

(1) ‘‘Area A’’, as used in this section, is

defined as all waters bounded on the

south by 28° N. lat., on the north by 44°

N. lat., on the east by 150° W. long., and

on the west by 168° W. long. (see Figure

2 to this section).

(2) ‘‘Area B’’, as used in this section,

is defined as all waters bounded on the

south by 28° N. lat., on the north by 44°

N. lat., on the east by 137° W. long., and

on the west by 150° W. long; and all

waters bounded on the south by 28° N.

lat., on the north by 44° N. lat., on the

east by 168° W. long., and on the west

by 173° E. long. (see Figure 2 to this

section).

(3) ‘‘Area C’’, as used in this section,

is defined as all waters bounded on the

south by 0° latitude, on the north by 28°

N. lat., on the east by 137° W. long., and

on the west by 173° E. long. (see Figure

2 to this section).

(b) Longline fishing restrictions in

Area A. (1) A vessel registered for use

under a Hawaii longline limited access

permit may not use longline gear to fish

for Pacific pelagic management unit

species in Area A.

(2) A vessel registered for use under

a receiving vessel permit may not

receive from another vessel Pacific

pelagic management unit species in

Area A.

(3) A vessel registered for use under

a Hawaii longline limited access permit

or receiving vessel permit may not land

or transship Pacific pelagic management

unit species that were harvested with

longline gear in Area A shoreward of the

outer boundary of the EEZ surrounding

Hawaii.

(c) Longline fishing restrictions in

Area B. (1) A vessel registered for use

under a Hawaii longline limited access

permit may not use longline gear to fish

for Pacific pelagic management unit

species in Area B from March 15

through May 31.

(2) A vessel registered for use under

a receiving vessel permit may not

receive from another vessel Pacific

pelagic management unit species in

Area B from March 15 through May 31.

(3) A vessel registered for use under

a Hawaii longline limited access permit

or receiving vessel permit may not land

or transship Pacific pelagic management

unit species that were harvested with

longline gear in Area B shoreward of the

outer boundary of the EEZ surrounding

Hawaii.

(4) From August 7 through December

31, 2000, the number of longline sets

allowed in Area B is limited to a total

of 154 sets.

(5) From January 1 through March 14,

2001, the number of longline sets

allowed in Area B is limited to 77 sets.

(6) Between August 7 through

December 31, 2000, the Regional

Administrator shall prohibit the use of

longline gear to fish for Pacific pelagic

management unit species on the date

and time that an estimated 154 longline

sets will have been made in Area B.

(7) Between January 1 through March

14, 2001, the Regional Administrator

shall prohibit the use of longline gear to

fish for Pacific pelagic management unit

species on the date and time that an

estimated 77 longline sets will have

been made in Area B.

(8) The Regional Administrator shall

determine on the basis of available data

when the maximum number of sets will

be reached in Area B.

(9) The Regional Administrator will

notify each permit holder and each

operator of vessels fishing in Area B

when further use of longline gear to fish

for Pacific pelagic management unit

species in Area B is prohibited.

(10) At least 24 hours advance notice

will be given of the effective date and

11122 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 36 / Thursday, February 22, 2001 / Rules and Regulations

time after which the use of longline gear

to fish for Pacific pelagic management

unit species in Area B is prohibited, as

prescribed in paragraph (b)(9) of this

section.

(d) Longline fishing restrictions in

Area C. (1) A vessel registered for use

under a Hawaii longline limited access

permit may not use longline gear to fish

for Pacific pelagic management unit

species in Area C from March 15

through May 31.

(2) A vessel registered for use under

a receiving vessel permit may not

receive from another vessel Pacific

pelagic management unit species in

Area C from March 15 through May 31.

(3) Landing or transshipping Pacific

pelagic management unit species, that

were harvested with longline gear in

Area C from March 15 through May 31,

shoreward of the outer boundary of the

EEZ surrounding Hawaii is prohibited.

(4) For the purpose of this section,

‘‘charity’’ means an entity to which a

taxpayer can contribute and deduct the

value of any such contribution from

taxable income as a ‘‘charitable

contribution’’ as defined by the Internal

Revenue Code at 26 U.S.C. § 170(c).

(5) Within 30 days of each landing of

swordfish caught by longline gear in

Area C, the permit holder or operator of

a vessel registered for use under a

Hawaii longline limited access permit

must donate to charity at least 30

percent of the total proceeds from the

sale of such swordfish.

(6) A vessel registered for use under

a Hawaii longline limited access permit

may not possess lightsticks during a

fishing trip where part (or all) of the trip

involves fishing in Area C.

(7) Any longline gear deployed after

November 3, 2000, by a vessel registered

for use under a Hawaii longline limited

access permit that fishing for Pacific

pelagic management unit species in

Area C, must be deployed such that the

deepest point of the main longline

between any two floats, i.e., the deepest

point in each sag of the main line, is at

a depth greater than 100 m (328.1 ft or

54.6 fm) below the sea surface.

(e) Emergency closure at-sea observer

coverage. (1) A vessel registered for use

under a Hawaii longline limited access

permit may not use longline gear to fish

for Pacific pelagic management unit

species in Area B without a NMFSapproved observer aboard the vessel.

(2) A vessel registered for use under

a Hawaii longline limited access permit

may not use longline gear in Area C

without a NMFS-approved observer

aboard the vessel, unless it is issued a

written waiver on a per trip basis by the

Administrator, Pacific Islands Area

Office, NMFS, or a designee. The waiver

must be on board the vessel and make

available for inspection by an

authorized office any time during the

trip for which the waiver is valid.

(3) The Regional Administrator may

assign NMFS-approved observers to

vessels registered for use under Hawaii

longline permits:

(i) Based on notice provided by the

permit holder or by an agent designated

by the permit holder to the Regional

Administrator according under

§ 660.23(c), or,

(ii) According to a list containing

vessel names randomly ordered by the

Regional Administrator.

(4) When NMFS notifies the permit

holder or the designated agent of the

obligation to carry an observer as

required under this section, the vessel

may not engage in the fishery without

taking the observer.

(5) An operator of a vessel registered

for use under a Hawaii longline limited

access permit must immediately

terminate longline fishing in Area C

while at sea upon notification by the

Regional Administrator that the level of

observer coverage is below the 10

percent or 20 percent level of observer

coverage established by NMFS.

(6) An operator of a vessel registered

for use under a Hawaii longline limited

access permit that has been notified by

the Regional Administrator as described

in paragraph (e)(5) of this section is

prohibited from using longline gear in

Area C for the remainder of the trip,

unless notified by the Regional

Administrator that the prohibition has

been removed for the vessel.

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S

Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 36 / Thursday, February 22, 2001 / Rules and Regulations 11123

[FR Doc. 01–4492 Filed 2–20–01; 1:44 pm]

BILLING CODE 3510–22 –C

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

50 CFR Part 679

[Docket No. 010112013-1013-01; I.D.

021601A]

Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic

Zone Off Alaska; Groundfish by

Vessels Using Non-pelagic Trawl Gear

in the Red King Crab Savings Subarea

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Closure.

SUMMARY: NMFS is closing directed

fishing for groundfish with non-pelagic

trawl gear in the red king crab savings

subarea (RKCSS) of the Bering Sea and

Aleutian Islands management area

(BSAI). This action is necessary to

prevent exceeding the amount of the

2001 red king crab bycatch limit

specified for the RKCSS.

DATES: Effective 1200 hrs, Alaska local

time (A.l.t.), February 18, 2001, until

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

2001.