National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration May 1, 2018 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Through this final rule, NMFS establishes fishery management measures for the 2018 ocean salmon fisheries off Washington, Oregon, and California and the 2019 salmon seasons opening earlier than May 1, 2019. The temporary rule for emergency action (emergency rule), under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA), implements the 2018 annual management measures for the West Coast ocean salmon fisheries for the area from the U.S./Canada border to Cape Falcon, OR, from May 1, 2018, through October 28, 2018. The emergency rule is required because allocation of coho harvest between recreational and commercial fisheries will not be consistent with the allocation schedule specified in the Pacific Coast Salmon Fishery Management Plan (FMP) in order to limit fishery impacts on Queets and Grays Harbor coho and meet conservation and management objectives. The fishery management measures for the area from Cape Falcon, OR, to the U.S./Mexico border are consistent with the FMP and are implemented through a final rule. Specific fishery management measures vary by fishery and by area. The measures establish fishing areas, seasons, quotas, legal gear, recreational fishing days and catch limits, possession and landing restrictions, and minimum lengths for salmon taken in the U.S. exclusive economic zone (EEZ) (3-200 nautical miles (nmi)) off Washington, Oregon, and California. The management measures are intended to prevent overfishing and to apportion the ocean harvest equitably among treaty Indian, non-treaty commercial, and recreational fisheries. The measures are also intended to allow a portion of the salmon runs to escape the ocean fisheries in order to provide for spawning escapement and inside fisheries (fisheries occurring in state internal waters).

This rule provides allocations to 17 of 19 groundfish sectors for the 2018 fishing year and also approves a new regulatory exemption for sector vessels. The action is necessary because sectors must receive allocations in order to operate in the 2018 fishing year. This action is intended to maximize fishing opportunities, ensure sector allocations are based on the best scientific information available, and help achieve optimum yield for the fishery.

This action closes the Gulf of Maine Cod Trimester Total Allowable Catch Area to Northeast multispecies common pool vessels fishing with trawl gear, sink gillnet gear, and longline/hook gear. The closure is required by regulation because the common pool fishery is projected to have caught 90 percent of its Trimester 3 quota for Gulf of Maine cod. This closure is intended to prevent an overage of the common pool's quota for this stock.