Source: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2012/03/22/2012-6858/pacific-halibut-fisheries-catch-sharing-plan
Timestamp: 2018-02-20 00:11:41
Document Index: 593871364

Matched Legal Cases: ['§\u2009300', 'art 300', 'art 679', '§\u2009300', '§\u2009300', '§\u2009300', '§\u2009300', '§\u2009660', '§\u2009300']

A Rule by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on 03/22/2012
This rule is effective April 23, 2012. The IPHC's 2012 annual management measures are effective March 22, 2012, except for the measures in section 26, which are effective April 23, 2012. The 2012 management measures are effective until superseded.
16740-16760 (21 pages)
Modification of Area 2A Licensing Regulations
Size Limit on the Halibut Retained on Board a Charter Vessel Fishing in Area 2C of Less Than or Equal to 45 Inches and Greater Than or Equal to 68 Inches in Length
Corrections to Federal Regulations at § 300.63
2012 Area 2A Catch Sharing Plan, Annual Management Measures and Federal Regulations
https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2012-6858 https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2012-6858
The Assistant Administrator (AA) for Fisheries, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), on behalf of the International Pacific Halibut Commission (IPHC), publishes annual management measures promulgated as regulations by the IPHC and approved by the Secretary of State governing the Pacific halibut fishery. The AA also announces modifications to the Catch Sharing Plan (CSP) for Area 2A (waters off the U.S. West Coast) and implementing regulations for 2012, announces approval of the Area 2A CSP, and provides notice of the guideline harvest levels (GHLs) for Areas 2C and 3A. These actions are intended to enhance the conservation of Pacific halibut and further the goals and objectives of the Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC) and the North Pacific Fishery Management Council (NPFMC) (Councils).
Additional requests for information regarding this action may be obtained by contacting: the International Pacific Halibut Commission, 2320 W. Commodore Way Suite 300, Seattle, WA 98199-1287; or Sustainable Fisheries Division, NMFS Alaska Region, P.O. Box 21668, Juneau, AK 99802, Attn: Ellen Sebastian, Records Officer; or Sustainable Fisheries Division, NMFS Northwest Region, 7600 Sand Point Way, NE., Seattle, WA 98115. This final rule also is accessible via the Internet at the Federal eRulemaking portal at http://www.regulations.gov.
For waters off Alaska, Glenn Merrill, 907-586-7228, email at glenn.merrill@noaa.gov; or Rachel Baker, 907-586-7228, email at rachel.baker@noaa.gov; or, for waters off the U.S. West Coast, Sarah Williams, 206-526-4646, email at sarah.williams@noaa.gov.
The IPHC has promulgated regulations governing the Pacific halibut fishery in 2012 under the Convention between Canada and the United States for the Preservation of the Halibut Fishery of the North Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea (Convention), signed at Ottawa, Ontario, on March 2, 1953, as amended by a Protocol Amending the Convention (signed at Washington, DC, on March 29, 1979).
As provided by the Northern Pacific Halibut Act of 1982 (Halibut Act) at 16 U.S.C. 773b, the Secretary of State, with the concurrence of the Secretary of Commerce (Secretary), may accept or reject, on behalf of the United States, recommendations made by the IPHC in accordance with the Convention (Halibut Act, Sections 773-773k.). On March 5, 2012, the Secretary of State of the United States, with the concurrence of the Secretary, accepted the 2012 IPHC regulations as provided by the Northern Pacific Halibut Act of 1982 (Halibut Act) at 16 U.S.C. 773-773k.
The Halibut Act provides the Secretary with the authority and general responsibility to carry out the requirements of the Convention and the Halibut Act. The Regional Fishery Management Councils may develop and the Secretary may implement regulations governing harvesting privileges among U.S. fishermen in U.S. waters that are in addition to, and not in conflict with approved IPHC regulations. The NPFMC has exercised this authority most notably in developing a suite of halibut management programs that correspond to the three fisheries that harvest halibut in Alaska: the subsistence, sport, and commercial fisheries.
Subsistence and sport halibut fishery regulations are codified at 50 CFR part 300. Commercial halibut fisheries in Alaska operate within the Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) Program and Community Development Quota (CDQ) Program (50 CFR part 679), and through area-specific catch sharing plans. Regulations for a commercial and sport fishery Halibut CSP in Areas 2C and 3A are being developed pursuant to the NPFMC authority under the Halibut Act. NMFS published a proposed rule for the Area 2C and Area 3A CSP on July 16, 2011, and accepted comments on the proposed rule and on the Environmental Assessment (EA), Regulatory Impact Review, and Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (IRFA) prepared for the CSP through September 21, 2011. In October 2011, NMFS informed the NPFMC that public comments received on the proposed CSP raised issues that may require additional input from the NPFMC before NMFS can proceed to a final rule. NMFS is continuing to work with the NPFMC to address these issues of concern and is seeking NPFMC advice on how to proceed with agency review of the Area 2C and Area 3A CSP.
The PFMC also exercises authority in a CSP allocating halibut among groups of fishermen in Area 2A, off the coasts of Washington, Oregon, and California. The CSP allocates the Area 2A catch limit among treaty Indian and non-Indian harvesters, and non-Indian commercial and sport harvesters. The treaty Indian group includes tribal commercial, and tribal ceremonial and subsistence fisheries. The Secretary implemented the Area 2A CSP recommended by the PFMC in 1995. Each year between 1995 and the present, the PFMC has adopted minor revisions to the plan to account for needs of the fisheries. These revisions are implemented in regulations for Area 2A through annual rule making and annual IPHC review and recommendation of management measures for Secretarial review. The Area 2A regulations are part of the IPHC annual management measures and are superseded each year by new implementing regulations.
The NPFMC implemented a CSP among commercial IFQ and CDQ halibut fisheries in IPHC Areas 4C, 4D and 4E (Area 4) through rulemaking, and the Secretary approved the plan on March 20, 1996 (61 FR 11337). The Area 4 CSP regulations were codified (50 CFR 300.65) and amended through rule making on March 17, 1998 (63 FR 13000). New annual regulations pertaining to the Area 4 CSP also may be implemented through IPHC review and recommendation for Secretarial review.
Publication of this final rule announces that the U.S. Secretary of State has accepted the annual management measures recommended by the IPHC, implements Area 2A regulations supporting annual management measures recommended by IPHC, implements the Area 2A CSP, announces the GHLs for Areas 2C and 3A, and makes minor changes to the codified halibut regulations. The proposed rule for the Area 2A CSP was published on February 3, 2012 (77 FR 5473).
Pursuant to regulations at 50 CFR 300.62, the approved IPHC regulations setting forth the 2012 IPHC annual management measures are published in the Federal Register to provide notice of their immediate regulatory effect, and to inform persons subject to the regulations of the restrictions and requirements. NMFS could implement more restrictive regulations for the sport fishery for halibut or components of it; therefore, anglers are advised to check the current Federal or IPHC regulations prior to fishing.
The IPHC held its annual meeting in Anchorage, Alaska, January 24-27, 2012, and recommended a limited number of changes to the previous IPHC regulations (76 FR 14300, March 16, 2011). The Secretary of State approved the following changes to the previous IPHC regulations for 2012:
3. Licensing requirements for retaining incidental Pacific Halibut caught in the Primary Sablefish Fishery North of Pt. Chehalis, Washington; in Sections 4 and 8;
4. Modified logbook regulations in Areas 2A and 2B in Section 16;
5. Adopting the revised Catch Sharing Plan (CSP) for Area 2A in Sections 22 and 26;
6. Size limit on the halibut retained on board a charter vessel fishing in Regulatory Area 2C of less than 45 inches or greater than 68 inches in length (a “reverse slot limit”) in Section 28.
These are the only changes to the previous IPHC regulations for the 2012 fishing season. NMFS is publishing the 2012 IPHC regulations in this final rule to provide the public with the complete set of regulations.
The IPHC recommended to the governments of Canada and the United States catch limits for 2012 totaling 33,540,000 pounds (15,213 mt), an 18.3 percent reduction from the 2011 catch limits for all areas. The IPHC staff reported on the 2011 assessment of the Pacific halibut stock that estimated coastwide biomass, with apportionment among regulatory areas based on the data from the annual IPHC standardized stock assessment survey. The IPHC recommended a 21.5 percent harvest rate for Area 2A through Area 3A, and a harvest rate of 16.1 percent for Areas 3B, 4A, 4B and 4CDE. Catch limits adopted for 2012 were lower in all regions of the stock except Areas 2A and 2C. The IPHC also recommended using the harvest control rule it adopted in 2011 to implement the full reductions in catch limits identified by the stock assessment, rather than the partial (50 percent) reductions used in previous years. Concern exists over continued declining halibut catch rates in most areas and IPHC staff recommended continued action to reduce harvests. The IPHC staff also noted as a continuing problem that updated information often indicates that previous estimates of biomass are incorrect, and that as a result actual historical harvest rates of the halibut stock are higher than the estimates IPHC used to inform its stock assessments. IPHC scientists will be conducting additional research on this matter in 2012.
The IPHC adopted the staff recommendations for catch limits in 2012 for all areas except 2B. Catch limits adopted for Areas 2A and 2C in 2012 were approximately 9 percent, and 13 percent higher, respectively, than in 2011. Catch limits adopted for Areas 2B, 3A, and 3B in 2012 were approximately 8 percent, 17 percent, and 32 percent lower, respectively, than in 2011 Catch limits in Areas 4A, 4B, 4CD, and 4E were approximately 35 percent, 14 percent, 34 percent, and 26 percent lower, respectively, than in 2011.
The opening date for the tribal commercial fishery in Area 2A and for the commercial halibut fisheries in Areas 2B through 4E is March 17, 2012. The date takes into account a number of factors, including timing of halibut migration and spawning, marketing for seasonal holidays, and interest in getting product in to the processing plants before the herring season opens. The closing date for the halibut fisheries is November 7, 2012. This date takes into account the anticipated time required to fully harvest the commercial halibut catch limits while providing adequate time for IPHC staff to review the complete record of 2012 commercial catch data for use in the 2013 stock assessment process.
In the Area 2A directed fishery, each fishing period shall begin at 0800 hours and terminate at 1800 hours local time on June 27, July 11, July 25, August 8, August 22, September 5, and September 19, 2012, unless the IPHC specifies otherwise. These 10-hour openings will occur until the quota is taken and the fishery is closed.
Because the Area 2A TAC is over 900,000 lbs (408.2 mt), incidental take of halibut will be allowed in the sablefish primary fishery in 2012. Therefore regulations pertaining to vessel licensing in Area 2A were updated at paragraph 4(4)(a) to allow vessels operating in the commercial halibut or sablefish primary fishery to choose a license that allows this type of participation.
This final rule prohibits a person onboard a charter vessel referred to in 50 CFR 300.65 and fishing in Area 2C from taking or possessing any halibut, with head on, that is greater than 45 inches (114.3 cm) and less than 68 inches (172.7 cm), as measured in a straight line, passing over the pectoral fin from the tip of the lower jaw with mouth closed, to the extreme end of the middle of the tail.
The IPHC recognizes the role of the NPFMC to develop policy and regulations that allocate the Pacific halibut resource among fishermen in and off of Alaska, and that NMFS has developed numerous regulations to support the NPFMC's goals of limiting guided sport (charter) harvests over the past several years. The IPHC specifically recommended this additional size limit as a management measure in the Area 2C charter fishery, based on guidance from the NPFMC to limit charter halibut harvests to the stated harvest policy of the United States for the charter fishery, the GHL.
The GHL was recommended by the NPFMC in February 2000, after several years of debate and refinement. NMFS published a final rule implementing the GHL on August 8, 2003 (68 FR 47256). The GHL establishes a pre-season estimate of the acceptable annual harvests for the charter fishery in Areas 2C and 3A. The GHLs are established as a total maximum poundage, which is responsive to annual fluctuations in abundance. For example, in the event of a reduction in either area's halibut biomass, as determined by the IPHC, the area GHL is reduced incrementally in a stepwise fashion in proportion to the reduction.
Regulations at § 300.65(c)(1) specify the GHLs based on the total constant exploitation yield (CEY) that is established annually by the IPHC. The CEY represents the target level for total halibut removals in an area for the coming year. The IPHC calculates the CEY in a given area by multiplying a target harvest rate by the estimate of exploitable biomass, or the portion of the biomass available to the fishery. The charter halibut fishery exceeded the GHL in Area 2C from 2004 through 2010. During 2004 through 2007, the GHL was 1,432,000 pounds. During that time period, charter harvests were approximately 1,750,000 pounds in 2004, 1,952,000 pounds in 2005, 1,804,000 pounds in 2006, and 1,918,000 pounds in 2007. In 2008, the GHL was 931,000 pounds and charter harvests were approximately 1,999,000 pounds. In 2009 the GHL was 788,000 pounds and the charter harvest was approximately 1,245,000 pounds. In 2010, the GHL was 788,000 pounds and the charter harvest was approximately 1,249,000 pounds. The Area 2C charter harvest exceeded its GHL every year from 2004 through 2010 notwithstanding management measures designed by the NPFMC and implemented by NMFS to control sport halibut harvest to the GHL in this area.
Recognizing that the GHL was not limiting fishing, the NPFMC recommended a CSP for Area 2C and Area 3A in October 2008, to replace the current GHL and establish specific allocations of halibut harvest between the charter and commercial setline fisheries in Area 2C and 3A. Under the CSP, the IPHC would annually establish one combined charter and commercial catch limit to which pre-specified sector allocation percentages would apply. Multiplying the specified percentage by the combined catch limit would result in a specific catch limit for each sector. Using a nondiscretionary process specified in Federal regulations, changes in the combined charter and commercial catch limit could trigger changes in the charter halibut bag and size limit in effect for that year.
At the IPHC's annual meeting in January 2011, the IPHC became aware that charter halibut harvests in Area 2C were likely to exceed the 788,000 pound GHL based on the well-established trend of charter harvests since 2004, and the demonstrated removals under existing regulations. Therefore, the IPHC concluded that additional restrictions were necessary to limit that charter harvest to the GHL and achieve the IPHC's overall conservation objective and the NPFMC's allocation objective for Area 2C.
The IPHC determined that limiting charter harvests in Area 2C to one fish of no more than 37 inches would likely meet the multiple objectives established by the IPHC in 2011. The Secretary of State, with the concurrence of the Secretary, accepted the IPHC's recommended daily bag limit for charter vessel anglers in Area 2C of one halibut with a maximum length of 37 inches (94.0 cm) per day (76 FR 14300, March 16, 2011).
In November 2011, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) estimated that 2011 Area 2C charter harvests under the 37-inch maximum length rule totaled approximately 388,000 pounds, which is significantly below the GHL of 788,000 pounds. The NPFMC determined that the GHL would continue to be in place for the 2012 charter halibut season because the CSP would not be implemented for 2012. Based on the 2011 charter harvest estimate that was well below the GHL under the 37-inch maximum length limit regulation, the NPFMC determined that it would be appropriate for IPHC to consider management measures in addition to a maximum length limit to limit charter harvest to the GHL. To address this issue for 2012, the NPFMC requested that ADF&G analyze the following options for management measures for the Area 2C charter halibut fishery to limit charter harvest to the 2012 GHL:
1. Maximum size limits;
2. Reverse slot limits (anglers may retain fish under a relatively small maximum size limit and fish over a relatively high minimum size limit, but must return to the sea fish that are larger than the lower size limit and smaller than the upper size limit); and
3. Closures on selected days of the week.
In November 2011, the IPHC announced the total CEY for Area 2C in 2012, which results in an Area 2C GHL of 931,000 pounds. In December 2011, the NPFMC reviewed the analysis of the management measures to limit Area 2C charter harvest to the 2012 GHL and unanimously recommended that the IPHC implement a reverse slot limit with a lower limit of under 45 inches (U45) and an upper limit of over 68 inches (O68). This U45/O68 reverse slot limit would allow the retention of halibut approximately ≤ 32 pounds and ≥ 123 pounds (headed and gutted). In considering charter management measures for 2012, the NPFMC sought to select a management measure that would enable the charter sector to harvest an amount of halibut close to the GHL without exceeding it.
The NPFMC noted that its U45/O68 reverse slot limit recommendation is likely to limit charter harvest to the GHL because the analysis projected that charter harvest under these length limits would be 6.4 percent under the GHL. The NPFMC also determined that its recommendation was conservative because it assumes (1) the higher of two harvest projections of numbers of fish (45,338) harvested by charter vessel anglers in Area 2C based on the recent 3-year average; and (2) that charter vessel anglers will want to retain the largest halibut possible, will choose to release more smaller halibut in comparison to recent years, and this selectivity will result in approximately 20 percent more fish harvested that are greater than 68 inches in length than in the previous fishing year.
The NPFMC recommended a reverse slot limit instead of a maximum length limit based on input from its Charter Implementation Committee and charter fishery participants indicating that the reverse slot limit would provide anglers with an opportunity to retain a “trophy” fish (halibut larger than 68 inches), whereas a maximum length limit would prohibit retention of any halibut larger than the maximum length limit. These charter fishery stakeholders indicated that a reverse slot limit would be less likely to result in adverse economic impacts from reduced angler demand than a maximum length limit regulation.
The NPFMC did not recommend daily closures because of identified enforcement difficulties and uncertainty regarding the effects of daily closures on charter harvest. Additionally, the day of the week closure would impact charter businesses differently, depending on their business model and their ability to change halibut fishing schedules for individual clients.
The NPFMC requested that the IPHC implement the U45/O68 reverse slot limit in the 2012 Area 2C charter fishery. At its annual meeting in January 2012, the IPHC reviewed the ADF&G analysis the NPFMC used in developing its recommendation. The IPHC unanimously recommended implementing the U45/O68 reverse slot limit for charter anglers in Area 2C for the 2012 halibut fishing season. The IPHC determined that its recommended reverse slot limit in Area 2C was necessary to prevent excess halibut harvest by charter vessel anglers as an immediate but interim measure for 2012. The IPHC's recommendation was based on the NPFMC's objective to implement a management measure that would (1) restrict charter harvest to the GHL, and (2) be less likely to result in adverse economic impacts for charter operators from reduced angler demand than a maximum length limit regulation.
Current IPHC regulations prohibit the filleting, mutilation or other disfigurement of sport-caught halibut that would prevent the determination of the size or number of halibut possessed or landed. In Southeast Alaska Area 2C, the IPHC recommended maintaining the current regulation at section 28(2)(b) that a person onboard a charter vessel who possesses filleted halibut must also retain the entire carcass, with head and tail connected as a single piece, onboard the vessel until all the fillets are offloaded. This regulation was implemented in 2011 to facilitate enforcement of the 37-inch maximum size limit and accounting of each charter vessel angler's halibut bag limit. The IPHC recommended maintaining the carcass retention requirement in 2012 to facilitate enforcement of the U45/O68 reverse slot limit in Area 2C.
In addition to implementing the IPHC recommendations, this final rule approves several Council-recommended changes to the Pacific Fishery Management Council's Area 2A CSP, implements the CSP through annual management measures, and makes minor changes to NMFS' codified regulations for the halibut fishery in Area 2A.
This final rule makes minor corrections to the Federal regulations at § 300.63 to make the term “sablefish primary fishery” consistent through the halibut regulations to match the groundfish regulations where the term is defined. Current halibut regulations use inconsistent terms to refer to the sablefish primary fishery. These changes are minor corrections and do not represent a shift in policy regarding the sablefish primary fishery or the halibut fishery.
This final rule approves the CSP as revised by recommendations of the PFMC. For 2012 and beyond, the PFMC has recommended several minor changes to the Plan that would: Adjust the primary fishery schedule for the Washington South coast subarea to maintain the number of fishing days seen in previous years; adjust the quota split for the Columbia River subarea between the early and late fishery to better align the fishery with recent effort trends, and adjust the Oregon contribution to the subarea to better align the Oregon quota contribution to the Columbia River subarea quota with previous years' halibut landings from Oregon; adjust the Oregon Central Coast subarea spring and nearshore quotas to allow the maximum number of fishing days in each fishery and adjust the inseason adjustment rules for this subarea so that any remaining quota from the spring fishery may be allocated to either the summer fishery and/or the nearshore fishery. This final rule also adopts the annual domestic management measures for Area 2A. Changes to these management measures from 2011 are necessary to implement the IPHC's decision regarding the Area 2A total allowable catch (TAC) and the above-described changes to the Catch Sharing Plan.
The adjustment in 2012 to the Oregon contribution to the quota for the Columbia River subarea results in a small portion of the overall Oregon/California sport fishery allocation being undistributed. The overall Oregon/California sport fishery allocation is separated into three components: (1) A contribution to the Columbia River subarea (previously 5 percent or amount equal to the Washington contribution, whichever was greater); (2) a 92 percent allocation to the Oregon Central Coast subarea; and (3) a 3 percent allocation to the South of Humbug subarea. In past years the Oregon contribution to the Columbia River subarea quota was set at 5 percent, because this amount was greater than the Washington contribution, meaning that the three components of the Oregon/California sport fishery allocation totaled 100 percent. This year, the Oregon contribution is set equal to the Washington contribution, which is an amount less than 5 percent of the overall Oregon/California sport fishery allocation. This change results in a remainder of 2 percent undistributed Oregon/California sport fishery allocation. To remedy this situation NMFS is not making any long-term changes to allocations, but is distributing the remainder of the overall Oregon/California sport fishery allocation left after the Columbia River contribution is removed according to the Oregon/California subarea allocations specified in the Plan; i.e., the remainder will be distributed 92 percent to the Central Coast subarea and 3 percent to the South of Humbug subarea. For 2013 and beyond NMFS anticipates that the Council will recommend changes to the CSP to address this issue.
The CSP provides that incidental halibut retention in the sablefish primary fishery north of Pt. Chehalis, Washington, will be allowed when the Area 2A TAC is greater than 900,000 lb (408.2 mt), provided that a minimum of 10,000 lb (4.5 mt) is available above a Washington recreational TAC of 214,100 lb (97.1 mt). In 2012, the TAC is 989,000 lb (448.6 mt); therefore incidental halibut retention will be allowed in this fishery. Landing restrictions will be recommended by the PFMC for public review at its March meeting and final recommendations will occur at its April meeting. Following this meeting NMFS will publish the restrictions in the Federal Register.
This rule makes minor corrections to the Federal regulations at § 300.63 to make the term “sablefish primary fishery” consistent through the halibut regulations and match the groundfish regulations where the term is defined. Current halibut regulations inconsistently use the terms when referring to the sablefish primary fishery.
NMFS accepted comments through February 21, 2012, on the proposed rule for the Area 2A CSP and annual regulations and received 2 public comments: One comment letter each from Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) and Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) recommending season dates for halibut sport fisheries in each state.
Comment 1: The WDFW held a public meeting following the IPHC's final 2012 TAC decisions to review the results of the 2011 Puget Sound halibut fishery, and to develop season dates for the 2012 sport halibut fishery. Based on the 2012 Area 2A TAC of 989,000 lb (448.6 mt), the halibut quota for the Puget Sound sport fishery is 57,393 lb (26 mt). Because the catch in this area exceeded the quota in 2008, 2009, and 2010, WDFW will continue to use the highest catch rate seen over the last 5 years to determine the number of days available to the fishery. Within the Puget Sound sport halibut fishery, WDFW recommends they open as follows: in the Eastern Region from May 3-19, Thursday through Saturday, and May 24-28, Thursday through Monday, and from May 31 through June 2, Thursday through Saturday. In the Western Region from May 24-28, WDFW recommends the fishery be open Thursday through Monday; and from May 31-June 23, Thursday through Saturday.
Response: NMFS agrees with WDFW's recommended Puget Sound season dates. These dates will help keep this area within its quota, while providing for angler enjoyment and participation. Therefore, NMFS implements the dates in this final rule.
Comment 2: ODFW held a public meeting following the final TAC decision by the IPHC to gather comments on the open dates for the recreational all-depth fishery in Oregon's Central Coast Subarea. Since 2004, the number of open fishing days that could be accommodated in the spring fishery has been roughly constant. The catch limit for this sub-area's spring season will be 191,780 lb (86.9 mt) in 2012, based on the IPHC's 2012 TAC for Area 2A. Because of the increased TAC for 2012, ODFW recommends setting a Central Coast all-depth fishery of 12 days. ODFW recommends the following days for the spring fishery, within this subarea's parameters for a Thursday-Saturday season and with weeks of adverse tidal conditions skipped: Regular open days of May 10-12, 17-19, 24-26 and May 31-June 2; back-up open days of June 14-16, 28-30, July 12-14, and 26-28. For the summer fishery in this subarea, ODFW recommended following the CSP's parameters of opening the first Friday in August, with open days to occur every other Friday-Saturday, unless modified in-season within the parameters of the CSP. Under the CSP, the 2012 summer all-depth fishery in Oregon's Central Coast Subarea occurs: August 3-4, 17-18, August 31-September 1, 14-15, 28-29, October 12-13, and 26-27.
On February 2, 2012, NMFS published a proposed rule to modify the CSP and recreational management measures for Area 2A (77 FR 5473). The final TAC amounts were not available until January 27, 2012, which was after the proposed rule needed to be drafted and sent to the Office of the Federal Register for timely publication. The provisions in the proposed rule were based on the preliminary estimate of the 2A TAC of 989,000 lb. The final 2A TAC is unchanged from the proposed rule. There are four changes to sport fishery season dates in this final rule from the proposed rule. The first two changes are in sections (8)(b)(i)(A) and (B) in the annual management measures. These changes were made after discussion with WDFW to better align the season dates with past practices of having a “quota management closure” following the first two open periods; the dates listed in the proposed rule were in error and did not include a quota management closure.. The third change is in section (8)(d)(i). July 15th was listed as the closing date of the first open period, but it should be July 14th. The first open period is scheduled to close on a Saturday, and July 15 is a Sunday, therefore Saturday July 14 is the correct date. The final change is to season dates in section (8)(e)(i)(C). The opening of the summer season was incorrectly listed as September 7 and 8, the correct dates are September 14-15 to follow the season structure of being open every other week. The remainder of the changes in this final rule are to simply add dates for sport fisheries which were not listed in the proposed rule. The proposed rule does not contain final season dates because the states do not submit their final season date recommendations until the final TAC decision is made by the IPHC (after the publication of the proposed rule) and the states have held their public meetings. There are no other substantive changes from the proposed rule.
NMFS provides notice of the 2012 Pacific halibut GHLs for the charter fishery in IPHC Regulatory Areas 2C and 3A. This notice is necessary to meet the regulatory requirement at 50 CFR 300.65(c) to publish notice announcing the GHLs and to inform the public about the 2012 GHLs for the charter fishery for halibut. The GHLs are benchmark harvest levels for participants in the charter fishery. Regulations at § 300.65(c)(1) specify the GHLs based on the total CEY that is established annually by the IPHC. The total CEY for 2012 is 5,865,000 pounds (2,660.3 mt) in Area 2C, and 19,779,000 pounds (8,971.6 mt) in Area 3A. The corresponding GHLs are 931,000 pounds (422.3 mt) in Area 2C, and 3,103,000 pounds (1,407.5 mt) in Area 3A.
The following annual management measures for the 2012 Pacific halibut fishery are those recommended by the IPHC and accepted by the Secretary of State, with the concurrence of the Secretary. The sport fishing regulations for Area 2A, included in paragraph 26, are consistent with the measures adopted by the IPHC and approved by the Secretary of State, but were developed by the Pacific Fishery Management Council and promulgated by the United States under the Halibut Act.
(2) Each fishing period in the Area 2A directed commercial fishery [2] shall begin at 0800 hours and terminate at 1800 hours local time on June 27, July 13, July 11, July 25, August 8, August 22, September 5, and September 19 unless the Commission specifies otherwise.
(3) Notwithstanding paragraph (7) of section 11, an incidental catch fishery [3] is authorized during the sablefish seasons in Area 2A in accordance with regulations promulgated by NMFS. This fishery will occur between 1200 hours local time on March 17 and 1200 hours local time on November 7.
(4) Notwithstanding paragraph (2), and paragraph (7) of section 11, an incidental catch fishery is authorized during salmon troll seasons in Area 2A in accordance with regulations promulgated by NMFS. This fishery will occur between 1200 hours local time on March 17 and 1200 hours local time on November 7.
(5) The fishing period in Areas 2B, 2C, 3A, 3B, 4A, 4B, 4C, 4D, and 4E shall begin at 1200 hours local time on March 17 and terminate at 1200 hours local time on November 7, unless the Commission specifies otherwise.
2A: directed commercial, and incidental commercial catch during salmon troll fishery 203,784 92.4
2A: incidental commercial during sablefish fishery 21,173 9.6
2B 4 7,038,000 3,191.8
2C 2,624,000 1,190.0
3A 11,918,000 5,405.0
3B 5,070,000 2,299.3
4A 1,567,000 710.7
4B 1,869,000 847.6
4C 1,107,355 502.2
4D 1,107,355 502.2
4E 250,290 113.5
(a) Has a NMFS-certified observer on board when required by NMFS regulations [6] published at 50 CFR 679.7(f)(4); and
(6) Commercial fishing for halibut in Subarea 2A-1 is permitted with hook and line gear from March 17 through November 7, or until 321,650 pounds (145.9 metric tons) net weight is taken, whichever occurs first.
(7) Ceremonial and subsistence fishing for halibut in Subarea 2A-1 is permitted with hook and line gear from January 1 through December 31, and is estimated to take 24,500 pounds (11.1 metric tons) net weight.
(b) 203,783 pounds (92.4 metric tons) net weight in waters off California and Oregon.
(i) The fishing season in eastern Puget Sound (east of 123°49.50′ W. long., Low Point) is open May 3-19, 3 days per week, Thursday-Saturday. May 24-28, Thursday-Monday. May 31-June 2, 3 days per week, Thursday through Saturday. The fishing season in western Puget Sound (west of 123°49.50′ W. long., Low Point) is open May 24-28, Thursday-Monday, and open May 31-June 23, 3 days a week, Thursday-Saturday.
(A) Commencing on May 10 and continuing 2 days a week (Thursday and Saturday) until 108,030 lb (49 mt) are estimated to have been taken and the season is closed by the Commission or until May 19.
(B) If sufficient quota remains the fishery will reopen on May 31 and/or June 2 in the entire north coast subarea, continuing 2 days per week (Thursday and Saturday) until there is not sufficient quota for another full day of fishing and the area is closed by the Commission. When there is insufficient quota remaining to reopen the entire north coast subarea for another day, then the nearshore areas described below will reopen for 2 days per week (Thursday and Saturday), until the overall quota of 108,030 lb (49 mt) is estimated to have been taken and the area is closed by the Commission, or until September 30, whichever is earlier. After May 19, any fishery opening will be announced on the NMFS hotline at 800-662-9825. No halibut fishing will be allowed after May 19 unless the date is announced on the NMFS hotline. The nearshore areas for Washington's North Coast fishery are defined as follows:
(1) WDFW Marine Catch Area 4B, which is all waters west of the Sekiu River mouth, as defined by a line extending from 48°17.30′ N. lat., 124°23.70′W. long. north to 48°24.10′ N. lat., 124°23.70′ W. long., to the Bonilla-Tatoosh line, as defined by a line connecting the light on Tatoosh Island, WA, with the light on Bonilla Point on Vancouver Island, British Columbia (at 48°35.73′ N. lat., 124°43.00′ W. long.) south of the International Boundary between the U.S. and Canada (at 48°29.62′ N. lat., 124°43.55′ W. long.), and north of the point where that line intersects with the boundary of the U.S. territorial sea.
The south coast subarea quota will be allocated as follows: 40,739 lb (18.4 mt) for the primary fishery and 2,000 lb (0.9 mt) for the nearshore fishery. The primary fishery commences on May 6 and continues 2 days a week (Sunday and Tuesday) until May 22. If the primary quota is projected to be obtained sooner than expected the management closure may occur earlier. Beginning on June 3 the primary fishery will be open at most 2 days per week (Sunday and/or Tuesday) until the quota for the south coast subarea primary fishery is taken and the season is closed by the Commission, or until September 30, whichever is earlier. The fishing season in the nearshore area commences on May 6 and continues seven days per week. Subsequent to closure of the primary fishery the nearshore fishery is open seven days per week, until 42,739 lb (19.3 mt) is projected to be taken by the two fisheries combined and the fishery is closed by the Commission or September 30, whichever is earlier. If the fishery is closed prior to September 30, and there is insufficient quota remaining to reopen the northern nearshore area for another fishing day, then any remaining quota may be transferred in-season to another Washington coastal subarea by NMFS via an update to the recreational halibut hotline.
(i) The fishing season commences on May 3, and continues 3 days a week (Thursday, Friday and, Saturday) until 9,516 lb (4.3 mt) are estimated to have been taken and the season is closed by the Commission or until July 14, whichever is earlier. The fishery will reopen on August 3 and continue 3 days a week (Friday through Sunday) until 2,379 lb (1.1 mt) have been taken and the season is closed by the Commission, or until September 30, whichever is earlier. Subsequent to this closure, if there is insufficient quota remaining in the Columbia River subarea for another fishing day, then any remaining quota may be transferred in-season to another Washington and/or Oregon subarea by NMFS via an update to the recreational halibut hotline. Any remaining quota would be transferred to each state in proportion to its contribution.
(A) The first season (the “inside 40-fm” fishery) commences May 1 and continues 7 days a week through October 31, in the area shoreward of a boundary line approximating the 40-fm (73-m) depth contour, or until the sub-quota for the central Oregon “inside 40-fm” fishery (23,014 lb (10.4 mt)) or any in-season revised subquota is estimated to have been taken and the season is closed by the Commission, whichever is earlier. The boundary line approximating the 40-fm (73-m) depth contour between 45°46.00′ N. lat. and 42°40.50′ N. lat. is defined at § 660.71(k).
(B) The second season (spring season), which is for the “all-depth” fishery, is open three days week, Thursday through Saturday, on May 10-12, May 17-19, May 24-26, May 31-June 2, 2012. The projected catch for this season is 120,821 lb (54.8 mt). If sufficient unharvested catch remains for additional fishing days, the season will re-open. Depending on the amount of unharvested catch available, the potential season re-opening dates will be: June 14-16, June 28-30, July 12-14, and July 26-28. If NMFS decides in-season to allow fishing on any of these re-opening dates, notice of the re-opening will be announced on the NMFS hotline (206) 526-6667 or (800) 662-9825. No halibut fishing will be allowed on the re-opening dates unless the date is announced on the NMFS hotline.
(C) If sufficient unharvested catch remains, the third season (summer season), which is for the “all-depth” fishery, will be open every other Friday and Saturday on August 3-4, August 17-18, August 31-September 1, September 14-15, September 28-29, October 12-13 and October 26-27, 2012, or until the combined spring season and summer season quotas in the area between Cape Falcon and Humbug Mountain, OR, totaling 168,766 lb (76.5 mt), are estimated to have been taken and the area is closed by the Commission, or October 31, whichever is earlier. NMFS will announce on the NMFS hotline in July whether the fishery will re-open for the summer season in August. No halibut fishing will be allowed in the summer season fishery unless the dates are announced on the NMFS hotline. Additional fishing days may be opened if sufficient quota remains after the last day of the first scheduled open period August 4, 2012. If, after this date, an amount greater than or equal to 60,000 lb (27.2 mt) remains in the combined all-depth and inside 40-fm (73-m) quota, the fishery may re-open every Friday and Saturday, beginning August 17-18, August 31-September 1. If after September 3, an amount greater than or equal to 30,000 lb (13.6 mt) remains in the combined all-depth and inside 40-fm (73-m) quota, and the fishery is not already open every Friday and Saturday, the fishery may re-open every Friday and Saturday, beginning September 14 and 15, and ending October 31. After September 3, the bag limit may be increased to two fish of any size per person, per day. NMFS will announce on the NMFS hotline whether the summer all-depth fishery will be open on such additional fishing days, what days the fishery will be open and what the bag limit is.
(1) In all waters off British Columbia: [7]
(1) In waters in and off Alaska: [8]
(2) No person on board a charter vessel [9] referred to in 50 CFR 300.65 and fishing in Regulatory Area 2C shall take or possess any halibut that:
The changes to the CSP, which allocates the catch of Pacific halibut among users in Washington, Oregon and California, and the codified regulations:
1. Adjust the primary fishery schedule for the Washington South coast subarea (section (f)(1)(iii)) to be open for the first 3 consecutive weeks Sunday and Tuesday and closed the following week.
2. Adjust the subarea quota split for the Columbia River subarea (section (f)(1)(iv)) between the early and late fishery from 70 percent for the early fishery and 30 percent for the late fishery to 80 percent for the early fishery and 20 percent for the late fishery, and adjust the Oregon contribution to the subarea quota to equal the Washington contribution.
4. Make minor corrections to regulations at 300.63, to make the term “sablefish primary fishery” consistent through the halibut regulations and match the groundfish regulations where the term is defined. Current halibut regulations use inconsistent terms when referring to the same fishery.
Under the RFA, NMFS must identify the small entities impacted by this rule, describe that impact, and describe any alternatives considered. Under the Small Business Administration's (SBAs) regulations implementing the RFA, a fishing entity is considered “small” if it has gross annual receipts of less than $4 million. A governmental jurisdiction (i.e., town or community) is considered a small entity if it has fewer than 50,000 people.
Although many small and large nonprofit enterprises track fisheries management issues on the West Coast, the changes to the Plan, codified regulations and annual management measures will not directly affect those enterprises. Similarly, although many fishing communities are small governmental jurisdictions, no direct regulations for those governmental jurisdictions will result from this rule. However, charterboat operations and participants in the non-treaty directed commercial fishery off the coast of Washington, Oregon, and California, are small businesses that are directly regulated by this rule. In 2008, 570 vessels were issued IPHC licenses to retain halibut. IPHC issues licenses for: the directed commercial fishery in Area 2A, including licenses issued to retain halibut caught incidentally in the primary sablefish fishery (296 licenses in 2008); incidental halibut caught in the salmon troll fishery (135 licenses in 2008); and the charterboat fleet (139 licenses in 2008). In 2011, 604 vessels were issued IPHC licenses to retain halibut. IPHC issues licenses for: the directed commercial fishery in Area 2A (147 licenses in 2011); incidental halibut caught in the salmon troll fishery (316 licenses in 2011); and the charterboat fleet (141 licenses in 2011). No vessel may participate in more than one of these three fisheries per year. Individual recreational anglers and private boats are the only sectors that are not required to have an IPHC license to retain halibut. Current Pacific Fishery Management Council estimates show that there are 44 tribal longline vessels. Therefore, the total estimate of affected entities is 648 vessels when tribal vessels are combined with IPHC licenses. The total estimated of the directed commercial fishery fleet for 2012 is 191 vessels (147 directed commercial fishery licenses plus 44 tribal vessels). In 2008, the total directed commercial fleet was about 340 vessels.
NMFS does not have the data to analyze the impacts of these regulations on the charterboat fleet. However, impacts on the directed commercial fleets can be estimated via changes in ex-vessel revenues. According to the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission PacFIN data reports (Report 307), halibut prices have varied significantly by year: 2008—$3.57/lb, 2009—$2.72/lb, and through November 2010—$4.01 per lb. At $4.01 per lb, the projected ex-vessel value of the 2012 commercial tribal (346,150 lbs) and non-tribal (203,783 lbs) fishery is about $2.2 million. Therefore, average ex-vessel revenue to potential participant in the directed commercial halibut fleet is expected to receive is about $12,000 ($2.2 million divided by 191 vessels). At $3.57/lb, the estimated ex-vessel value of the 2008 commercial tribal (397,000 lbs) and non-tribal (321,381 lbs) fishery is $2.6 million. With a directed commercial fleet of 340 vessels, the 2008 estimated average revenue per potential participating vessel is about $7,500 per vessel. Compared to 2008, despite the decline in the TAC, vessels are benefiting from higher prices and fewer competing vessels.
The RIR/FRFA relies on the analysis in the 2009 RIR, which used information from the Pacific Fishery Management Council's Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) (available at ADDRESSES) on the 2009-2010 Groundfish Biennial Harvest Specifications and Management Measures to make personal income impact projections of the TAC on coastal communities. Personal income is considered a key indicator of economic activity, and is used in economic analysis to evaluate distributional effects on local and regional economies associated with changes in regulations. Income impacts include the amount of employee salaries and benefits, business owner (proprietor) income, and property-related income (rents, dividends, interest, royalties, etc.) that result from commercial fishing and recreational expenditures. Using available analysis from the FEIS, the 2009 RIR estimated that the 2008 commercial, recreational, and tribal fisheries generated about $8.8 million in personal income for the coastal tribal and non-tribal communities. This 2008 estimate was based on a TAC of 1,220,000 lbs. For 2012, the TAC is 989,000 lbs, or about 81 percent of the 2008 TAC. On a proportional basis, this decline would suggest that the income impacts for 2012 would be about $7.0 million in 2008 dollars. Using the change in ex-vessel revenues as means of forecasting the change in community impact, the estimated 2012 income impact on coastal communities is about $7.5 million.)
NOAA Fisheries cannot exempt small entities or change the reporting requirements for small entities, because the limits and reporting requirements are determined by international negotiations. Thus, there are no other alternatives to the rule that minimize the impacts on small entities. The major economic effect on the fishery is from a change in the TAC which is set by international agreement. Given the TAC, the sport management measures implement the plan by managing the recreational fishery to meet the differing fishery needs of the various areas along the coast according to the plan's objectives. The measures will be very similar to last year's management measures.
WDFW and ODFW held public meetings and crafted alternatives to adjust management of the sport halibut fisheries in their states. The states then narrowed the alternatives under consideration and brought the resulting subset of alternatives to the Council at the Council's September and November 2011 meetings. The Council and the States both considered a range of alternatives that could have similarly improved angler enjoyment of participation in the fisheries while simultaneously protecting halibut and co-occurring groundfish species from overharvest. The range of alternatives that were considered, but ultimately rejected, includes alternate fishery structures, such as opening the sport fisheries on different days of the week than the final preferred alternative. Generally, because they have been through the state public review process by the time the alternatives reach the Council, there are not a large number of alternatives. Rather, the range of alternatives has generally been reduced to the proposed action and the status quo. The status quo alternative was rejected because it would fail to: align subarea quotas with recent participation, adjust season subarea quota splits to better match participation; and correct the codified regulations consistent with the groundfish regulations.
Pursuant to Executive Order 13175, the Secretary recognizes the sovereign status and co-manager role of Indian tribes over shared Federal and tribal fishery resources. Section 302(b)(5) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act establishes a seat on the Pacific Council for a representative of an Indian tribe with federally recognized fishing rights from California, Oregon, Washington, or Idaho. The U.S. Government formally recognizes that 13 Washington Tribes have treaty rights to fish for Pacific halibut. In general terms, the quantification of those rights is 50 percent of the harvestable surplus of Pacific halibut available in the tribes' usual and accustomed fishing areas (described at 50 CFR 300.64). Each of the treaty tribes has the discretion to administer their fisheries and to establish their own policies to achieve program objectives. Accordingly, tribal allocations and regulations, including the changes to the CSP, have been developed in consultation with the affected tribe(s) and, insofar as possible, with tribal consensus.
NMFS NWR has initiated consultation on the halibut fishery under section 7 of the ESA because of the listing of yelloweye, canary, and bocaccio rockfish of the Puget Sound/Georgia Basin. Area 2A partially overlaps with the Distinct Population Segments (DPSs) for listed rockfish. NMFS completed a 7(a)(2)/7(d) determination memo under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) finding that bycatch in the 2012 fishery was not likely to be a significant impact on listed species, that direct effects of the fishery (e.g. direct takes) were not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of any listed species, and that in no way did the 2012 fishery make an irreversible or irretrievable commitment of resources by the agency. At this time the consultation is not completed.
2. In § 300.63, paragraphs (b)(3), (d)(1)(ii), (d)(3), (d)(4), (d)(6), and (e)(2) are revised to read as follows:
(3) A portion of the Area 2A Washington recreational TAC is allocated as incidental catch in the sablefish primary fishery north of 46°53.30' N. lat, (Pt. Chehalis, Washington), which is regulated under 50 CFR 660.231. This fishing opportunity is only available in years in which the Area 2A TAC is greater than 900,000 lb (408.2 mt,) provided that a minimum of 10,000 lb (4.5 mt) is available above a Washington recreational TAC of 214,100 lb (97.1 mt). Each year that this harvest is available, the landing restrictions necessary to keep this fishery within its allocation will be recommended by the Pacific Fishery Management Council at its spring meetings, and will be published in the Federal Register. These restrictions will be designed to ensure the halibut harvest is incidental to the sablefish harvest and will be based on the amounts of halibut and sablefish available to this fishery, and other pertinent factors. The restrictions may include catch or landing ratios, landing limits, or other means to control the rate of halibut landings.
3. The incidental fishery during the directed, fixed gear sablefish season is restricted to waters that are north of Point Chehalis, Washington (46°53′18″ N. latitude) under regulations promulgated by NMFS at CFR 300.63. Landing restrictions for halibut retention in the fixed gear sablefish fishery can be found at CFR 660.231.
4. Area 2B includes the combined commercial and sport catch limits which will be allocated by DFO.
5. DFO has more restrictive regulations; therefore, section 17 paragraph (2)(b) does not apply to fish caught in Area 2B or landed in British Columbia.
6. Without an observer, a vessel cannot have on board more halibut than the IFQ for the area that is being fished, even if some of the catch occurred earlier in a different area.
7. DFO could implement more restrictive regulations for the sport fishery, therefore anglers are advised to check the current Federal or Provincial regulations prior to fishing.
8. NMFS could implement more restrictive regulations for the sport fishery or components of it, therefore, anglers are advised to check the current Federal or State regulations prior to fishing.
9. Charter vessels are prohibited from harvesting halibut in Area 2C and 3A during one charter vessel fishing trip under regulations promulgated by NMFS at CFR 300.66.
[FR Doc. 2012-6858 Filed 3-19-12; 11:15 am]