[Federal Register: October 24, 2007 (Volume 72, Number 205)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 60283-60284]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr24oc07-20]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 679
[Docket No. 0612242903-7445-03; I.D. 112006I]
RIN 0648-AU48
Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Pacific Cod
Allocations in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area;
Correction
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Final rule; correction.
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SUMMARY: NMFS is correcting a final rule that appeared in the Federal
Register on September 4, 2007. The final rule implemented Amendment 85
to the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Bering Sea and
Aleutian Islands Management Area (FMP) as partially approved by NMFS,
and implemented recent changes to the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery
Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act). Amendment 85
modified the current allocations of Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands
Management Area (BSAI) Pacific cod total allowable catch, and seasonal
apportionments thereof, among various harvest sectors. The final rule
also included the congressionally mandated increase in the allocation
of BSAI Pacific cod to the Community Development Quota (CDQ) Program.
DATES: Effective January 1, 2008.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Becky Carls, 907-586-7228 or
becky.carls@noaa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
A final rule published on September 4, 2007 (72 FR 50788),
implemented Amendment 85 to the FMP by modifying the current
allocations of BSAI Pacific cod total allowable catch (TAC) among
various harvest sectors and seasonal apportionments thereof. The rule
also established a hierarchy for reallocating projected unharvested
amounts of Pacific cod from certain sectors to other sectors, revised
catcher/processor (CP) sector definitions, modified the management of
Pacific cod incidental catch that occurs in other groundfish fisheries,
eliminated the Pacific cod nonspecified reserve, subdivided the annual
prohibited
[[Page 60284]]
species catch (PSC) limits currently apportioned to the Pacific cod
hook-and-line gear fisheries between the catcher vessel and CP sectors,
and modified the sideboard restrictions for American Fisheries Act
(AFA) CP vessels. In addition, the rule increased the percentage of the
BSAI Pacific cod TAC apportioned to the CDQ Program. That final rule is
effective January 1, 2008.
After publishing the final rule to implement Amendment 85, NMFS
published a separate final rule to implement Amendment 80 to the FMP on
September 14, 2007 (72 FR 52668). Amendment 80 primarily allocated
several BSAI non-pollock trawl groundfish fisheries among fishing
sectors, facilitated the formation of harvesting cooperatives in the
non-AFA trawl CP sector, and established a limited access privilege
program for that sector. Most provisions of the Amendment 80 final rule
were effective October 15, 2007.
Need for Corrections
Among other regulatory changes, the final rules implementing
Amendment 80 and Amendment 85 modified current regulations under Sec.
679.21(e) that concern PSC bycatch management. The regulatory changes
made by the Amendment 85 final rule included a rearrangement of
portions of Sec. 679.21(e) to improve the organization of the
regulations. The proposed rule for Amendment 85 published on February
7, 2007 (72 FR 5654), explained some of this reorganization on page
5668: ``The information in Sec. 679.21(e)(1)(i) and (e)(2)(ii),
concerning the reserves in the BSAI for the CDQ Program, would be moved
to Sec. 679.21(e)(3)(i)(A) and (e)(4)(i)(A) respectively. This
regulatory text would be moved from the paragraphs allocating PSC by
species, to the more appropriate location under the paragraphs making
PSC apportionments to the various fishery categories.'' However,
because Amendment 85 has a later effective date than Amendment 80, an
unintended result of this reorganization is that some regulatory
changes made by the Amendment 85 final rule will overwrite some
regulatory changes made by the Amendment 80 final rule. Specifically,
the final rule for Amendment 85 as published will remove regulatory
text allocating prohibited species quota to CDQ groups, a reference to
PSC cooperative quota assigned to Amendment 80 cooperatives, and
paragraphs concerning Amendment 80 sector bycatch limitations.
The preservation of the new regulatory text approved under
Amendment 80 in light of the non-substantive reorganization intended by
Amendment 85 is the goal of this correction notice. In other words, the
intent of the regulatory reorganization made by Amendment 85 was not to
change the substance of existing regulations but to move and
consolidate several existing regulatory provisions. Therefore, two
paragraphs in the Amendment 85 final rule will be corrected to reflect
new regulatory language approved under Amendment 80 and an instruction
for Sec. 679.21 will be inserted. First, the new regulatory text at
Sec. 679.21(e)(1)(i) resulting from Amendment 80 will become Sec.
679.21(e)(3)(i)(A) under this action, with changes made to reflect the
new cross-references. Second, the new regulatory text at Sec.
679.21(e)(3)(i) resulting from Amendment 80 will become Sec.
679.21(e)(3)(i)(B) under this action, with a heading added to the
paragraph. Last, an instruction will be inserted to prevent the
deletion of a new paragraph added at Sec. 679.21(e)(3)(vi) by the
Amendment 80 final rule.
Classification
Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B), the Assistant Administrator of
Fisheries finds good cause to waive prior notice and opportunity for
public comment otherwise required by the section. NOAA finds that prior
notice and opportunity for public comment are unnecessary because the
editorial changes made by this rule are non-substantive. Neither
Amendment 85 nor Amendment 80 intended to remove regulations allocating
a portion of the trawl gear PSC limits to the CDQ Program. This action
will preserve regulatory language approved in the Amendment 80 final
rule when the regulations approved under the Amendment 85 final rule
become effective.
Because prior notice and opportunity for public comment are not
required for this rule by 5 U.S.C. 553, or any other law, the
analytical requirements of the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601
et seq., are inapplicable.
Correction
Accordingly, the final rule, FR Doc. E7-17140, published on
September 4, 2007, at 72 FR 50788, to be effective January 1, 2008, is
corrected as follows:
Sec. 679.21 [Corrected]
1. In Sec. 679.21, on page 50817, columns 1 and 2, revise
paragraphs (e)(3)(i)(A) and (B) to read as set forth below and in
column 2, add five asterisks in between paragraphs (e)(3)(v) and (e)(4)
to account for text not being amended.
Sec. 679.21 Prohibited species bycatch arrangement.
* * * * *
(e) * * *
(3) * * *
(i) * * *
(A) PSQ reserve. The following allocations of the trawl gear PSC
limits are made to the CDQ Program as PSQ reserves. The PSQ reserves
are not apportioned by gear or fishery.
(1) Crab PSQ. 10.7 percent of each PSC limit set forth in
paragraphs (e)(1)(i) through (iii) of this section.
(2) Halibut PSQ. (i) 276 mt of the total PSC limit set forth in
paragraph (e)(1)(iv) of this section in each year for 2008 and 2009.
(ii) 326 mt of the total PSC limit set forth in paragraph
(e)(1)(iv) of this section effective in 2010 and each year thereafter.
(3) Salmon PSQ--(i) Chinook salmon. 7.5 percent of the PSC limit
set forth in paragraph (e)(1)(vi) of this section.
(ii) Non-Chinook salmon. 10.7 percent of the PSC limit set forth in
paragraph (e)(1)(vii) of this section.
(B) Fishery categories. NMFS, after consultation with the Council
and after subtraction of PSQ reserves and PSC CQ assigned to Amendment
80 cooperatives, will apportion each PSC limit set forth in paragraphs
(e)(1)(i) through (vii) of this section into bycatch allowances for
fishery categories defined in paragraph (e)(3)(iv) of this section,
based on each category's proportional share of the anticipated
incidental catch during a fishing year of prohibited species for which
a PSC limit is specified and the need to optimize the amount of total
groundfish harvested under established PSC limits.
* * * * *
Dated: October 19, 2007.
Samuel D. Rauch III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator For Regulatory Programs, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E7-20929 Filed 10-23-07; 8:45 am]
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