Department of Commerce April 24, 2015 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) is scheduling a public meeting of its Scallop Plan Development Team and Advisory Panel to consider actions affecting New England fisheries in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ). Recommendations from this group will be brought to the full Council for formal consideration and action, if appropriate.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council's (Pacific Council) Highly Migratory Species Management Team will hold a meeting, which is open to the public.

The Department of Commerce (``Department'') hereby publishes a list of scope rulings and anticircumvention determinations made between October 1, 2014, and December 31, 2014, inclusive. We intend to publish future lists after the close of the next calendar quarter.

Through this action NMFS is prohibiting directed fishing for Pacific sardine off the coasts of Washington, Oregon and California. This action is necessary because the adjusted non-tribal directed harvest allocation of approximately 5084 metric tons (mt) for the third harvest allocation period from January 1, 2015, through June 30, 2015, is projected to be reached by the date of closure. From the effective date of this rule through June 30, 2015, Pacific sardine may be harvested only as part of either the live bait or tribal fishery or incidental to other fisheries; the incidental harvest of Pacific sardine is limited to 45-percent by weight of all fish per trip. Fishing vessels must cease fishing (be at shore and in the process of offloading) at or before the effective date of this closure.

On March 26, 2015, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) announced the availability for public review of a proposed evaluation of three Hatchery and Genetic Management Plans (HGMPs) submitted by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), with the Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe, the Lummi Nation, the Nooksack Tribe, the Stillaguamish Tribes, and the Tulalip Tribes pursuant to the protective regulations promulgated for Pacific salmon and steelhead under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The HGMPs specify the propagation of early-returning (``early'') winter steelhead in the Dungeness, Nooksack, and Stillaguamish River watersheds of Washington State. The availability of a draft environmental assessment (EA), evaluating the anticipated effects of NMFS' proposed determination on those HGMPs pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), was included in the announcement. The announcement opened a 30-day public comment period. Due to an issue with one of the email addresses provided for receipt of comments, comments submitted to EWSteelheadHatcheries.wcr@noaa.gov prior to April 14, 2015, may not have been received. Therefore, NMFS requests that any such comments be re-submitted. NMFS is extending the comment period to May 4, 2015, to facilitate this re-submittal.