Source: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2014/01/06/2013-31558/fisheries-of-the-exclusive-economic-zone-off-alaska-inseason-adjustment-to-the-2014-gulf-of-alaska
Timestamp: 2017-08-22 09:38:41
Document Index: 309372697

Matched Legal Cases: ['§\u2009679', '§\u2009679', '§\u2009679', '§\u2009679', '§\u2009679', '§\u2009679', '§\u2009679', '§\u2009679', '§\u2009679']

Federal Register :: Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Inseason Adjustment to the 2014 Gulf of Alaska Pollock and Pacific Cod Total Allowable Catch Amounts
Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Inseason Adjustment to the 2014 Gulf of Alaska Pollock and Pacific Cod Total Allowable Catch Amounts
A Rule by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on 01/06/2014
Effective 1200 hrs, Alaska local time (A.l.t.), January 1, 2014, until the effective date of the final 2014 and 2015 harvest specifications for GOA groundfish, unless otherwise modified or superseded through publication of a notification in the Federal Register.
79 FR 601
601-603 (3 pages)
2013-31558
NOAA-NMFS-2012-0252
https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2013-31558 https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2013-31558
NMFS is adjusting the 2014 total allowable catch (TAC) amounts for the Gulf of Alaska (GOA) pollock and Pacific cod fisheries. This action is necessary because NMFS has determined these TACs are incorrectly specified, and will ensure the GOA pollock and Pacific cod TACs are the appropriate amounts based on the best available scientific information for pollock and Pacific cod in the GOA. This action is consistent with the goals and objectives of the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Gulf of Alaska.
Comments must be received at the following address no later than 4:30 p.m., A.l.t., January 21, 2014.
You may submit comments on this document, identified by FDMS Docket Number NOAA-NMFS-2012-0252 by any of the following methods:
Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to www.regulations.gov/​#!docketDetail;​D=​NOAA-NMFS-2012-0252, click the “Comment Now!” icon, complete the required fields, and enter or attach your comments.
The final 2013 and 2014 harvest specifications for groundfish in the GOA (78 FR 13162, February 26, 2013) set the 2014 pollock TAC at 111,530 metric tons (mt) and the 2014 Pacific cod TAC at 63,150 mt in the GOA. In December 2013, the North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) recommended a 2014 pollock TAC of 174,976 mt for the GOA, which is more than the 111,530 mt established by the final 2013 and 2014 harvest specifications for groundfish in the GOA. The Council also recommended a 2014 Pacific cod TAC of 64,738 mt for the GOA, which is more than the 63,150 mt established by the final 2013 and 2014 harvest specifications for groundfish in the GOA. The Council's recommended 2014 TACs, and the area and seasonal apportionments, are based on the Stock Assessment and Fishery Evaluation report (SAFE), dated November 2013, which NMFS has determined is the best available scientific information for these fisheries.
Steller sea lions occur in the same location as the pollock and Pacific cod fisheries and are listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Pollock and Pacific cod are a principal prey species for Steller sea lions in the GOA. The seasonal apportionment of pollock and Pacific cod harvest is necessary to ensure the Start Printed Page 602groundfish fisheries are not likely to cause jeopardy of extinction or adverse modification of critical habitat for Steller sea lions. The regulations at § 679.20(a)(5)(iv) specify how the pollock TAC will be apportioned. The regulations at § 679.20(a)(6)(ii) and § 679.20(a)(12)(i) specify how the Pacific cod TAC will be apportioned.
In accordance with § 679.25(a)(1)(iii), (a)(2)(i)(B), and (a)(2)(iv) the Administrator, Alaska Region, NMFS (Regional Administrator), has determined that, based on the November 2013 SAFE report for this fishery, the current GOA pollock and Pacific cod TACs are incorrectly specified. Consequently, pursuant to § 679.25(a)(1)(iii), the Regional Administrator is adjusting the 2014 GOA pollock TAC to 174,976 mt and the 2014 GOA Pacific cod TAC to 64,738 mt. Therefore, Table 2 of the final 2013 and 2014 harvest specifications for groundfish in the GOA (78 FR 13162, February 26, 2013) is revised consistent with this adjustment.
Pursuant to § 679.20(a)(5)(iv), Table 4 of the final 2013 and 2014 harvest specifications for groundfish in the GOA (78 FR 13162, February 26, 2013) is revised for the 2014 TACs of pollock in the Central and Western Regulatory Area of the GOA.
Table 4—Final 2014 Distribution of Pollock in the Central and Western Regulatory Areas of the GOA; Seasonal Biomass Distribution, Area Apportionments; and Seasonal Allowances of Annual TAC
Note: Seasonal allowances may not total precisely to annual TAC total due to rounding down, rather than up).
Pursuant to § 679.20(a)(6)(ii) and § 679.20(a)(12)(i), Table 6 of the final 2013 and 2014 harvest specifications for groundfish in the GOA (78 FR 13162, February 26, 2013) is revised for the 2014 seasonal apportionments and allocation of Pacific cod TAC in the GOA consistent with this adjustment.
Table 6—Final 2014 Seasonal Apportionments and Allocation of Pacific Cod Total Allowable Catch Amounts in the GOA; Allocations for the Western GOA and Central GOA Sectors and the Eastern GOA Inshore and Offshore Processing Components
Jig (1.5% of TAC) 573 N/A 344 N/A 229
Jig (1.0% of TAC) 797 N/A 478 N/A 319
Trawl CV 16,230 21.14 8,249 20.45 7,981
Note: Seasonal apportionments may not total precisely due to rounding.
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 allow for harvests that exceed the appropriate allocations for Pacific cod based on the best scientific information available. NMFS was unable to publish a notice providing time for public comment because the most recent, relevant data only became available as of December 30, 2013, and additional time for prior public comment would result in conservation concerns for the ESA-listed Steller sea lions.
Under § 679.25(c)(2), interested persons are invited to submit written comments on this action to the above address until January 21, 2014.
[FR Doc. 2013-31558 Filed 12-31-13; 4:15 pm]