Fisheries in the Western Pacific; Mechanism for Specifying Annual Catch Limits and Accountability Measures, 37285-37287 [2011-16040]
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Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 123 / Monday, June 27, 2011 / Rules and Regulations
for Research on Cancer, do not pose a
present or potential risk of causing
toxic, carcinogenic, mutagenic or
teratogenic effects on humans or other
life forms. EPA believes the results, of
these reviews as well as their own
assessment of waste generation and
management information for saccharin
and its salts, indicate that saccharin and
its salts do not meet the criteria for
listing as hazardous wastes under 40
CFR 261.11. EPA’s listing of saccharin
and its salts as a hazardous substance
under CERCLA (40 CFR 302.4) was
based solely upon being listed as
hazardous wastes under RCRA (40 CFR
261.33(f)). Thus, we conclude there is
no significant environmental impact
associated with removing saccharin and
its salts for the ‘‘List of Hazardous
Substances and Reportable Quantities’’
found in Table 1 to Appendix A of 49
CFR 172.101 in this final rule.
List of Subjects in 49 CFR Part 172
Education, Hazardous materials
transportation, Hazardous waste,
Hazardous substances, Labeling,
Markings, Packaging and containers,
Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements.
In consideration of the foregoing, Title
49, part 172 of the Code of Federal
Regulations, is amended as follows:
PART 172—HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
TABLE, SPECIAL PROVISIONS,
HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
COMMUNICATIONS, EMERGENCY
RESPONSE INFORMATION, AND
TRAINING REQUIREMENTS
1. The authority citation for part 172
continues to read as follows:
■
Authority: 49 U.S.C. 5101–5128, 44701; 49
CFR 1.53.
[Amended]
2. Section 172.101 Appendix A is
amended as follows:
■ a. By removing the entry ‘‘1,2Benzisothiazol-3(2H)-one, 1,1-dioxide, &
salts’’ from Table 1.
■ b. By removing the entry ‘‘Saccharin
& salts’’ from Table 1.
jlentini on DSK4TPTVN1PROD with RULES
■
Issued in Washington, DC on June 21, 2011
under authority delegated in 49 CFR part 1.
Cynthia L. Quarterman,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2011–15954 Filed 6–24–11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910–60–P
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National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
50 CFR Part 665
[Docket No. 100803320–1319–03]
RIN 0648–AY93
Fisheries in the Western Pacific;
Mechanism for Specifying Annual
Catch Limits and Accountability
Measures
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Final rule.
AGENCY:
This final rule establishes the
procedures and timing for specifying
annual catch limits (ACLs) and
accountability measures (AMs) for
western Pacific fisheries. The final rule
is intended to help NMFS end and
prevent overfishing, rebuild overfished
stocks, and achieve optimum yield.
DATES: This rule is effective July 27,
2011.
SUMMARY:
Copies of the Fishery
Ecosystem Plans (FEP) for the Pacific
Remote Islands Areas (PRIA), American
Samoa, Mariana Archipelago, Hawaii,
and western Pacific pelagic fisheries are
available from the Western Pacific
Fishery Management Council (Council),
1164 Bishop St., Suite 1400, Honolulu,
HI 96813, 808–522–8220, fax 808–522–
8226, or https://www.wpcouncil.org.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Jarad Makaiau, NMFS PIR, Sustainable
Fisheries, 808–944–2108.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery
Conservation and Management Act
requires that fishery management plans
include a mechanism for specifying
ACLs at a level such that overfishing
does not occur and that does not exceed
the fishing level recommendation of a
council’s Scientific and Statistical
Committee (SSC). AMs are also required
to prevent ACLs from being exceeded,
and to correct or mitigate overage of an
ACL should it occur. The requirements
for ACLs and AMs do not apply to
fisheries for stocks that are subject to
international fishery agreements in
which the U.S. participates, or for
species with life cycles of
approximately one year. ACLs and AMs
are also not required for species
classified in a fishery management plan
as ‘‘ecosystem component species,’’
which are generally non-target species,
not determined to be subject to
ADDRESSES:
■
§ 172.101
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
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37285
overfishing, approaching overfished, or
overfished, not likely to become subject
to overfishing or overfished, and
generally not retained for sale or
personal use.
This final rule implements the
mechanism that NMFS will use to
specify ACLs (possibly including multiyear ACLs) and AMs in western Pacific
fisheries. Briefly, the Council will
recommend an ACL to NMFS at least
two months before the start of a fishing
year. The Council will base its
recommendation on the SSC’s fishing
level recommendation for the subject
species or fishery, and may not exceed
it. At least one month before the fishing
year starts, NMFS will request public
comment on the proposed ACL. Before
the start of the fishing year, NMFS will
notify fishermen and the public of the
final ACL specification.
NMFS will monitor the fishery on an
ongoing basis throughout the fishing
year. When an ACL is projected to be
reached during the year, NMFS will
notify fishermen and the public that
fishing for the regulated stock will be
restricted through one or more inseason
accountability measures to ensure that
the ACL is not exceeded. Restrictions
may include, but are not limited to,
closing the fishery, closing specific
areas, changing bag limits, or otherwise
restricting effort or catch. Any inseason
restriction will generally remain in
effect until the end of the fishing year.
If inseason monitoring or subsequent
data analyses indicate that an ACL was
exceeded in the previous fishing year,
the Council may recommend that NMFS
reduce the ACL for the subsequent year
by the amount of the overage.
This rule establishes only the
procedures for specifying ACLs and
AMs. The Council and NMFS will
provide the public with opportunities to
review and comment on the ACLs and
AMs for each fishery at the time they are
proposed.
Comments and Responses
On March 31, 2011, NMFS published
a proposed rule and request for public
comment (76 FR 17808). The public
comment period ended on May 16,
2011. Additional background
information on this final rule is found
in the preamble to the proposed rule
and is not repeated here. NMFS
received two comments that were
generally supportive of this action.
Changes From the Proposed Rule
No changes were made from the
proposed rule.
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37286
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 123 / Monday, June 27, 2011 / Rules and Regulations
§ 665.4
Classification
The Administrator, Pacific Islands
Region, NMFS, determined that the FEP
amendments that establish a mechanism
for specifying ACLs and AMs are
necessary for the conservation and
management of western Pacific
fisheries, and that they are consistent
with the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery
Conservation and Management Act and
other applicable laws.
This final rule has been determined to
be not significant for purposes of
Executive Order 12866.
The Chief Counsel for Regulation of
the Department of Commerce certified
to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the
Small Business Administration during
the proposed rule stage that this action
would not have a significant economic
impact on a substantial number of small
entities. The factual basis for the
certification was published in the
proposed rule and is not repeated here.
No comments were received regarding
this certification. As a result, a
regulatory flexibility analysis was not
required and none was prepared.
NMFS will begin specifying ACLs and
AMs for each fishery that requires them
using the proposed notice-and-comment
mechanism starting in fishing year 2011.
When fishery-specific ACLs and AMs
are specified through subsequent
rulemaking, NMFS will assess each
proposed specification for compliance
with all applicable laws, including any
relevant impacts on small businesses,
organizations and small government
jurisdictions, and will prepare an initial
regulatory flexibility analysis for that
action, if warranted.
List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 665
Accountability measures, Annual
catch limits, Fisheries, Fishing, Western
and central Pacific.
Dated: June 21, 2011.
Samuel D. Rauch III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for
Regulatory Programs, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
For the reasons set out in the
preamble, 50 CFR part 665 is amended
as follows:
jlentini on DSK4TPTVN1PROD with RULES
PART 665—FISHERIES IN THE
WESTERN PACIFIC
1. The authority citation for part 665
continues to read as follows:
■
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq., 50 CFR
part 600.310.
2. In subpart A, add § 665.4 to read as
follows:
■
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Annual catch limits.
(a) General. For each fishing year, the
Regional Administrator shall specify an
annual catch limit, including any
overage adjustments, for each stock or
stock complex of management unit
species defined in subparts B through F
of this part, as recommended by the
Council, and considering the best
available scientific, commercial, and
other information about the fishery for
that stock or stock complex. The annual
catch limit shall serve as the basis for
invoking accountability measures in
paragraph (f) of this section.
(b) Overage adjustments. If landings
of a stock or stock complex exceed the
specified annual catch limit in a fishing
year, the Council will take action in
accordance with 50 CFR 600.310(g),
which may include recommending that
the Regional Administrator reduce the
annual catch limit for the subsequent
year by the amount of the overage or
other measures, as appropriate.
(c) Exceptions. The Regional
Administrator is not required to specify
an annual catch limit for a management
unit species that is statutorily excepted
from the requirement pursuant to 50
CFR 600.310(h)(2), or that the Council
has identified as an ecosystem
component species. The Regional
Administrator will publish in the
Federal Register the list of ecosystem
component species, and will publish
any changes to the list, as necessary.
(d) Annual catch target. For each
fishing year, the Regional Administrator
may also specify an annual catch target
that is below the annual catch limit of
a stock or stock complex, as
recommended by the Council. When
used, the annual catch target shall serve
as the basis for invoking accountability
measures in paragraph (f) of this section.
(e) Procedures and timing. (1) No later
than 60 days before the start of a fishing
year, the Council shall recommend to
the Regional Administrator an annual
catch limit, including any overage
adjustment, for each stock or stock
complex. The recommended limit
should be based on a recommendation
of the SSC of the acceptable biological
catch for each stock or stock complex.
The Council may not recommend an
annual catch limit that exceeds the
acceptable biological catch
recommended by the SSC. The Council
may also recommend an annual catch
target below the annual catch limit.
(2) No later than 30 days before the
start of a fishing year, the Regional
Administrator shall publish in the
Federal Register a notice of the
proposed annual catch limit
specification and any associated annual
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catch target, and request public
comment.
(3) No later than the start of a fishing
year, the Regional Administrator shall
publish in the Federal Register and use
other methods to notify permit holders
of the final annual catch limit
specification and any associated annual
catch target.
(f) Accountability measures. When
any annual catch limit or annual catch
target is projected to be reached, based
on available information, the Regional
Administrator shall publish notification
to that effect in the Federal Register and
shall use other means to notify permit
holders.
(1) The notice will include an
advisement that fishing for that stock or
stock complex will be restricted
beginning on a specified date, which
shall not be earlier than 7 days after the
date of filing the notice for public
inspection at the Office of the Federal
Register. The restriction may include,
but is not limited to, closure of the
fishery, closure of specific areas,
changes to bag limits, or restrictions in
effort. The restriction will remain in
effect until the end of the fishing year,
except that the Regional Administrator
may, based on a recommendation from
the Council, remove or modify the
restriction before the end of the fishing
year.
(2) It is unlawful for any person to
conduct fishing in violation of the
restrictions specified in the notification
issued pursuant to paragraph (f)(1) of
this section.
3. In § 665.12, add the definitions of
‘‘Ecosystem component species’’ and
‘‘SSC’’ in alphabetical order to read as
follows:
■
§ 665.12
Definitions.
*
*
*
*
*
Ecosystem component species means
any western Pacific MUS that the
Council has identified to be, generally,
a non-target species, not determined to
be subject to overfishing, approaching
overfished, or overfished, not likely to
become subject to overfishing or
overfished, and generally not retained
for sale or personal use.
*
*
*
*
*
SSC means the Scientific and
Statistical Committee of the Western
Pacific Fishery Management Council.
*
*
*
*
*
■ 4. In § 665.15, add a new paragraph
(u) to read as follows:
§ 665.15
Prohibitions.
*
*
*
*
*
(u) Fail to comply with the
restrictions specified in the notification
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Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 123 / Monday, June 27, 2011 / Rules and Regulations
issued pursuant to § 665.4(f)(1), in
violation of § 665.15(f)(2).
[FR Doc. 2011–16040 Filed 6–24–11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
50 CFR Part 665
[Docket No. 0808051054–1319–02]
RIN 0648–AW67
Western Pacific Pelagic Fisheries;
Prohibiting Longline Fishing Within 30
nm of the Northern Mariana Islands
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Final rule.
AGENCY:
This final rule prohibits
pelagic longline fishing within
approximately 30 nautical miles (nm) of
the islands of the Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). By
establishing a longline fishing
prohibited area around the CNMI,
NMFS intends to reduce the potential
for nearshore localized fish depletion
from longline fishing, and to limit catch
competition and gear conflicts between
the CNMI-based longline and trolling
fleets. This rule also makes several
administrative clarifications to the
pelagic fishing regulations.
DATES: This final rule is effective July
27, 2011.
ADDRESSES: The background on this
final rule may be found in the Fishery
Ecosystem Plan for Pelagic Fisheries of
the Western Pacific Region (FEP) and
FEP Amendment 2, which are available
from the Western Pacific Fishery
Management Council (Council), 1164
Bishop St., Suite 1400, Honolulu, HI
96813, tel 808–522–8220, fax 808–522–
8226, https://www.wpcouncil.org.
Amendment 2 may also be found at
https://www.regulations.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Toby Wood, NMFS PIR Sustainable
Fisheries, 808–944–2234.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pelagic
fisheries in the U.S. western Pacific are
managed under the FEP. In Amendment
2, the Council recommended that NMFS
prohibit purse seine fishing in the U.S.
EEZ around the Mariana Archipelago,
including the CNMI and Guam, and
prohibit pelagic longline fishing within
30 nm (approx. 56 km) of the CNMI. The
recommended prohibition on purse
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SUMMARY:
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seine fishing was intended to limit
impacts on juvenile recruitment of
bigeye tuna, and reduce the potential for
localized depletion and catch
competition between purse seine vessels
and the pelagic fishing fleets of the
CNMI and Guam. The recommended
longline closed area near the CNMI was
intended to minimize potential gear
conflicts and catch competition between
the local pelagic trolling fleet and the
developing CNMI-based longline fishery
(a 50-nm (93 km) longline prohibited
area currently exists around Guam to
prevent gear conflicts).
Additional background information
on this final rule is found in the
preamble to the proposed rule
published on March 31, 2011 (76 FR
17811); the comment period ended on
May 16, 2011. NMFS received two
substantive comments, and responds as
follows:
Comment 1: The longline prohibited
area around the CNMI should be
increased to 90 nm (167 km) from the
proposed 30 nm to further protect
marine life and seafood resources in the
region.
Response: U.S. longline fishing in the
Pacific is regulated stringently to
minimize impacts on protected species
and harvest fish sustainably.
Requirements for this fishery include
permits, specific gear configuration and
identification, area restrictions
monitored by a satellite vessel
monitoring system, observer placement
when requested, educational
workshops, and reporting requirements
for fishing activities and interactions
with protected resources, and others.
The Council and NMFS assessed the
potential impacts of longline prohibited
areas ranging in size from 25 to 100 nm
(46 to 185 km) around the CNMI, and
concluded that a 30-nm zone best
achieved the conservation and
management objectives of the proposed
amendment, while at the same time
minimizing economic costs and
ensuring sustained participation by
fishermen. The 30-nm prohibited area
encompasses the majority of the
submarine habitat containing banks and
reefs where small boats typically
concentrate their fishing efforts.
Excluding longline fishing from this
zone will prevent gear conflicts and
competition for catches between the
small boats and larger longliners, and
will reduce the likelihood of longline
gear entanglement on the banks and
reefs, thereby protecting reefs and the
marine life that depends on it.
Larger prohibited areas would impose
higher travel costs to the longline
vessels with little to no additional
benefit of conserving stocks of pelagic
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37287
fish or protected resources, or
minimizing the potential for gear
conflicts with the small boat fishery. A
30-nm prohibited area is not so large as
to prevent longline fishing activity,
which will allow for the development of
the longline fishery and provide
economic benefits to the CNMI.
Comment 2: There is little
demonstrated need or justification for
the proposed prohibition on purse seine
fishing because there is virtually no
history of purse seine fishing in the
Mariana Archipelago, and there is little
evidence that purse seine fishing
negatively impacts other pelagic
fisheries in the area. Also, an EEZ
closure will disadvantage the United
States in its negotiations to renew the
South Pacific Tuna Treaty, as the
proposed prohibition on purse seine
fishing in the U.S. EEZ might encourage
other Pacific Island parties to take
similar protective measures in their
national waters.
Response: NMFS agrees, and this final
rule will not implement the proposed
prohibition on purse seine fishing in the
EEZ around the Mariana Archipelago.
Under the Magnuson-Stevens Act,
NMFS may partially approve a plan or
amendment to the FEP offered by the
Council. When partially approving an
amendment, NMFS must specify the
applicable law with which the
amendment is inconsistent, explain the
nature of the inconsistency, and
recommend to the Council actions it
could take to conform the amendment to
the applicable law.
The Magnuson-Stevens Act requires
NMFS to consider ten National
Standards when implementing fishery
conservation and management
measures. National Standard 2 requires
such measures to be based on the best
scientific information available, and
requires fishery management actions to
be founded on thorough analyses that
allow NMFS to rationally conclude that
the selected alternative will accomplish
legitimate conservation and
management objectives. The scientific
analysis in Amendment 2 presented
inconclusive evidence of a negative
impact of purse seine fishing on other
fisheries and fish stocks, with the
possible exception of some localized
impacts on trolling catch rates over
small distances near American Samoa.
Nonetheless, the Council recommended
prohibiting U.S. purse seine fishing
throughout the entire EEZ around the
Mariana Archipelago. That
recommendation is not supported by the
best available scientific evidence on the
need to reduce interactions between the
purse seine and local trolling fisheries
in the area around the CNMI, and is,
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 123 (Monday, June 27, 2011)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 37285-37287]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-16040]
=======================================================================
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 665
[Docket No. 100803320-1319-03]
RIN 0648-AY93
Fisheries in the Western Pacific; Mechanism for Specifying Annual
Catch Limits and Accountability Measures
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Final rule.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: This final rule establishes the procedures and timing for
specifying annual catch limits (ACLs) and accountability measures (AMs)
for western Pacific fisheries. The final rule is intended to help NMFS
end and prevent overfishing, rebuild overfished stocks, and achieve
optimum yield.
DATES: This rule is effective July 27, 2011.
ADDRESSES: Copies of the Fishery Ecosystem Plans (FEP) for the Pacific
Remote Islands Areas (PRIA), American Samoa, Mariana Archipelago,
Hawaii, and western Pacific pelagic fisheries are available from the
Western Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council), 1164 Bishop St.,
Suite 1400, Honolulu, HI 96813, 808-522-8220, fax 808-522-8226, or
https://www.wpcouncil.org.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jarad Makaiau, NMFS PIR, Sustainable
Fisheries, 808-944-2108.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation
and Management Act requires that fishery management plans include a
mechanism for specifying ACLs at a level such that overfishing does not
occur and that does not exceed the fishing level recommendation of a
council's Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC). AMs are also
required to prevent ACLs from being exceeded, and to correct or
mitigate overage of an ACL should it occur. The requirements for ACLs
and AMs do not apply to fisheries for stocks that are subject to
international fishery agreements in which the U.S. participates, or for
species with life cycles of approximately one year. ACLs and AMs are
also not required for species classified in a fishery management plan
as ``ecosystem component species,'' which are generally non-target
species, not determined to be subject to overfishing, approaching
overfished, or overfished, not likely to become subject to overfishing
or overfished, and generally not retained for sale or personal use.
This final rule implements the mechanism that NMFS will use to
specify ACLs (possibly including multi-year ACLs) and AMs in western
Pacific fisheries. Briefly, the Council will recommend an ACL to NMFS
at least two months before the start of a fishing year. The Council
will base its recommendation on the SSC's fishing level recommendation
for the subject species or fishery, and may not exceed it. At least one
month before the fishing year starts, NMFS will request public comment
on the proposed ACL. Before the start of the fishing year, NMFS will
notify fishermen and the public of the final ACL specification.
NMFS will monitor the fishery on an ongoing basis throughout the
fishing year. When an ACL is projected to be reached during the year,
NMFS will notify fishermen and the public that fishing for the
regulated stock will be restricted through one or more inseason
accountability measures to ensure that the ACL is not exceeded.
Restrictions may include, but are not limited to, closing the fishery,
closing specific areas, changing bag limits, or otherwise restricting
effort or catch. Any inseason restriction will generally remain in
effect until the end of the fishing year.
If inseason monitoring or subsequent data analyses indicate that an
ACL was exceeded in the previous fishing year, the Council may
recommend that NMFS reduce the ACL for the subsequent year by the
amount of the overage.
This rule establishes only the procedures for specifying ACLs and
AMs. The Council and NMFS will provide the public with opportunities to
review and comment on the ACLs and AMs for each fishery at the time
they are proposed.
Comments and Responses
On March 31, 2011, NMFS published a proposed rule and request for
public comment (76 FR 17808). The public comment period ended on May
16, 2011. Additional background information on this final rule is found
in the preamble to the proposed rule and is not repeated here. NMFS
received two comments that were generally supportive of this action.
Changes From the Proposed Rule
No changes were made from the proposed rule.
[[Page 37286]]
Classification
The Administrator, Pacific Islands Region, NMFS, determined that
the FEP amendments that establish a mechanism for specifying ACLs and
AMs are necessary for the conservation and management of western
Pacific fisheries, and that they are consistent with the Magnuson-
Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act and other applicable
laws.
This final rule has been determined to be not significant for
purposes of Executive Order 12866.
The Chief Counsel for Regulation of the Department of Commerce
certified to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business
Administration during the proposed rule stage that this action would
not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small
entities. The factual basis for the certification was published in the
proposed rule and is not repeated here. No comments were received
regarding this certification. As a result, a regulatory flexibility
analysis was not required and none was prepared.
NMFS will begin specifying ACLs and AMs for each fishery that
requires them using the proposed notice-and-comment mechanism starting
in fishing year 2011. When fishery-specific ACLs and AMs are specified
through subsequent rulemaking, NMFS will assess each proposed
specification for compliance with all applicable laws, including any
relevant impacts on small businesses, organizations and small
government jurisdictions, and will prepare an initial regulatory
flexibility analysis for that action, if warranted.
List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 665
Accountability measures, Annual catch limits, Fisheries, Fishing,
Western and central Pacific.
Dated: June 21, 2011.
Samuel D. Rauch III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
For the reasons set out in the preamble, 50 CFR part 665 is amended
as follows:
PART 665--FISHERIES IN THE WESTERN PACIFIC
0
1. The authority citation for part 665 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq., 50 CFR part 600.310.
0
2. In subpart A, add Sec. 665.4 to read as follows:
Sec. 665.4 Annual catch limits.
(a) General. For each fishing year, the Regional Administrator
shall specify an annual catch limit, including any overage adjustments,
for each stock or stock complex of management unit species defined in
subparts B through F of this part, as recommended by the Council, and
considering the best available scientific, commercial, and other
information about the fishery for that stock or stock complex. The
annual catch limit shall serve as the basis for invoking accountability
measures in paragraph (f) of this section.
(b) Overage adjustments. If landings of a stock or stock complex
exceed the specified annual catch limit in a fishing year, the Council
will take action in accordance with 50 CFR 600.310(g), which may
include recommending that the Regional Administrator reduce the annual
catch limit for the subsequent year by the amount of the overage or
other measures, as appropriate.
(c) Exceptions. The Regional Administrator is not required to
specify an annual catch limit for a management unit species that is
statutorily excepted from the requirement pursuant to 50 CFR
600.310(h)(2), or that the Council has identified as an ecosystem
component species. The Regional Administrator will publish in the
Federal Register the list of ecosystem component species, and will
publish any changes to the list, as necessary.
(d) Annual catch target. For each fishing year, the Regional
Administrator may also specify an annual catch target that is below the
annual catch limit of a stock or stock complex, as recommended by the
Council. When used, the annual catch target shall serve as the basis
for invoking accountability measures in paragraph (f) of this section.
(e) Procedures and timing. (1) No later than 60 days before the
start of a fishing year, the Council shall recommend to the Regional
Administrator an annual catch limit, including any overage adjustment,
for each stock or stock complex. The recommended limit should be based
on a recommendation of the SSC of the acceptable biological catch for
each stock or stock complex. The Council may not recommend an annual
catch limit that exceeds the acceptable biological catch recommended by
the SSC. The Council may also recommend an annual catch target below
the annual catch limit.
(2) No later than 30 days before the start of a fishing year, the
Regional Administrator shall publish in the Federal Register a notice
of the proposed annual catch limit specification and any associated
annual catch target, and request public comment.
(3) No later than the start of a fishing year, the Regional
Administrator shall publish in the Federal Register and use other
methods to notify permit holders of the final annual catch limit
specification and any associated annual catch target.
(f) Accountability measures. When any annual catch limit or annual
catch target is projected to be reached, based on available
information, the Regional Administrator shall publish notification to
that effect in the Federal Register and shall use other means to notify
permit holders.
(1) The notice will include an advisement that fishing for that
stock or stock complex will be restricted beginning on a specified
date, which shall not be earlier than 7 days after the date of filing
the notice for public inspection at the Office of the Federal Register.
The restriction may include, but is not limited to, closure of the
fishery, closure of specific areas, changes to bag limits, or
restrictions in effort. The restriction will remain in effect until the
end of the fishing year, except that the Regional Administrator may,
based on a recommendation from the Council, remove or modify the
restriction before the end of the fishing year.
(2) It is unlawful for any person to conduct fishing in violation
of the restrictions specified in the notification issued pursuant to
paragraph (f)(1) of this section.
0
3. In Sec. 665.12, add the definitions of ``Ecosystem component
species'' and ``SSC'' in alphabetical order to read as follows:
Sec. 665.12 Definitions.
* * * * *
Ecosystem component species means any western Pacific MUS that the
Council has identified to be, generally, a non-target species, not
determined to be subject to overfishing, approaching overfished, or
overfished, not likely to become subject to overfishing or overfished,
and generally not retained for sale or personal use.
* * * * *
SSC means the Scientific and Statistical Committee of the Western
Pacific Fishery Management Council.
* * * * *
0
4. In Sec. 665.15, add a new paragraph (u) to read as follows:
Sec. 665.15 Prohibitions.
* * * * *
(u) Fail to comply with the restrictions specified in the
notification
[[Page 37287]]
issued pursuant to Sec. 665.4(f)(1), in violation of Sec.
665.15(f)(2).
[FR Doc. 2011-16040 Filed 6-24-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
