Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Steller Sea Lion Protection Measures for the Groundfish Fisheries Off Alaska; Final 2002 Harvest Specifications and Associated Management Measures for the Groundfish Fisheries Off Alaska

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 679

[Docket No. 011218304-1304-01; I.D. 121701A]

RIN 0648-AP69

Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Steller Sea Lion Protection Measures for the Groundfish Fisheries Off Alaska; Final 2002 Harvest Specifications and Associated Management Measures for the Groundfish Fisheries Off Alaska

AGENCY:

National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION:

Emergency interim rule; request for comments.

SUMMARY:

NMFS issues an emergency interim rule to implement Steller sea lion protection measures to avoid the likelihood that the groundfish fisheries off Alaska will jeopardize the continued existence of the western population of Steller sea lions or adversely modify their critical habitat. These management measures will disperse fishing effort over time and area to provide protection from potential competition for important Steller sea lion prey species in waters adjacent to rookeries and important haulouts. This action also announces final 2002 harvest specifications and associated management measures for the groundfish fisheries of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area (BSAI) and the Gulf of Alaska (GOA). The intended effect of this emergency interim rule is to protect the endangered western population of Steller sea lions, as required under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), and to conserve and manage the groundfish resources in the BSAI and the GOA in accordance with the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act).

DATES:

Effective January 1, 2002, except for the addition of § 679.7(a)(18), the suspension of § 679.7(c)(3), and the addition of § 679.28(f)(3)(viii) which will be effective 1200 hours A.l.t. on June 10, 2002, through July 8, 2002, and § 679.7(k), § 679.50(c)(4)(vi) and (c)(6) which will be effective January 15, 2002, through July 8, 2002. Comments must be received by February 7, 2002.

ADDRESSES:

Comments may be sent to Sue Salveson, Assistant Regional Administrator, Sustainable Fisheries Division, Alaska Region, NMFS, P.O. Box 21668, Juneau, AK, 99802, Attn: Lori Gravel, or delivered to room 401 of the Federal Building, 709 West 9th Street, Juneau, AK. Comments will not be accepted if submitted via e-mail or Internet. Copies of the Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement on Steller Sea Lion Protection Measures in the Federal groundfish fisheries off Alaska (SEIS), including the 2001 biological opinion, and the Environmental Assessment (EA) for the Total Allowable Catch for the Year 2002 Alaska Groundfish Fisheries may be obtained from the same address. The SEIS and EA are also available on the NMFS Alaska Region homepage at

http://www.fakr.noaa.gov.

Send comments on collection-of-information requirements to the same address and to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Washington, DC 20503 (Attn: NOAA Desk Officer).

Copies of the Final 2002 Stock Assessment and Fishery Evaluation (SAFE) reports, dated November 2001, are available from the North Pacific Fishery Management Council, West 4th Avenue, Suite 306, Anchorage, AK 99510 or from its homepage at

http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/npfmc.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Melanie Brown, Sustainable Fisheries Division, Alaska Region, 907-586-7228 or e-mail at

melanie.brown@noaa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

NMFS manages the groundfish fisheries in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) off Alaska under the Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for the Groundfish Fishery of the BSAI and the FMP for Groundfish of the GOA. The North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) prepared the FMPs under the authority of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, 16 U.S.C. 1801,

et seq.

Regulations governing U.S. fisheries and implementing the FMPs appear at 50 CFR parts 600 and 679. NMFS also has management responsibility for certain threatened and endangered species, including Steller sea lions, under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA), 16 U.S.C. 1531,

et seq.

, and the authority to promulgate regulations to enforce provisions of the ESA to protect such species.

Introduction

The preamble to this emergency rule contains two parts. Part I explains the background surrounding actions taken to protect the endangered western population of Steller sea lions, including information on the development of protection measures for 2002. Part II describes the harvest specifications for the 2002 groundfish fisheries of the BSAI and GOA. These specifications are consistent with the 2002 Steller sea lion protection measures.

Part I. Steller Sea Lion Protection Measures

Steller Sea Lion Endangered Species Status

In 1990, NMFS designated the Steller sea lion as a threatened species under the ESA. The designation followed severe declines throughout much of the GOA and Aleutian Islands region. In 1993, NMFS designated critical habitat for the species to include (among other areas) the marine areas within 20 nautical miles (nm) of major rookeries and haulouts of the species west of 144° W longitude (long.). In 1997, NMFS recognized two separate populations and reclassified the western population (west of 144° W long.) as endangered.

NMFS first began collecting information on the abundance of Steller sea lions during the 1950s and 1960s. However, the first counts based on reliable data were not available until the late 1970s; these counts reported approximately 109,800 animals. During the 1980s, a precipitous decline of Steller sea lions was observed. By 1996, the population had declined by 80 percent from the late 1970s. Counts of adult and juvenile Steller sea lions have continued to decline over the last decade, but at a much lower rate.

Based on the best available scientific information, NMFS attributes the continued decline to multiple factors. Considerable evidence indicates that the lack of available prey is a substantial factor. Diet studies confirm that Steller sea lions depend on pollock, Pacific cod, and Atka mackerel as major prey resources, and that they may be particularly sensitive to reduced availability of prey during the winter. The occurrence of pollock, Pacific cod, and Atka mackerel in the diet of sea lions may have increased since the 1970s due to shifts in the Bering Sea ecosystem related to atmospheric and oceanographic changes. More information on the environmental changes and potential effects on Steller sea lions is detailed in section 4.4.1 of the October 19, 2001, Biological Opinion on the BSAI and GOA groundfish fisheries and the effects on Steller sea lions (see

ADDRESSES

).

Past Biological Opinions and Court Cases

In accordance with the requirements of the ESA, since 1990 the NMFS Office of Protected Resources has issued biological opinions (BiOps) on the pollock fisheries of the BSAI and GOA, on the Atka mackerel fishery of the Aleutian Islands subarea, and on the entire groundfish fishery for the GOA and BSAI. These opinions analyzed the effects of the various groundfish fisheries with emphasis on the Atka mackerel, Pacific cod, and pollock fisheries in the waters off Alaska and recommended actions to avoid jeopardy for the western population of Steller sea lions and to avoid adverse modification of its habitat. The term “jeopardize” means “to engage in an action that reasonably would be expected, directly or indirectly, to reduce appreciably the likelihood of both the survival and recovery of a listed species in the wild by reducing the reproduction, numbers, or distribution of that species” (50 CFR 402.02). The phrase “adversely modify its critical habitat” means “a direct or indirect alteration that appreciably diminishes the value of critical habitat for both the survival and recovery of a listed species. Such alterations include, but are not limited to, alterations adversely modifying any of those physical or biological features that were the basis for determining the habitat to be critical” (50 CFR 402.02).

Two BiOps were issued by NMFS in December 1998. The first one analyzed the Atka mackerel and pollock fisheries (1998-1 BiOp) and the second one analyzed the 1999 harvest specifications for all the 1999 groundfish fisheries in the BSAI and GOA (1998-2 BiOp). The 1998-1 BiOp, issued December 3, 1998, and revised December 16, 1998, concluded that the Atka mackerel fishery, as modified by regulatory changes (64 FR 3446, January 22, 1999), was not likely to jeopardize the endangered western population of Steller sea lions or adversely modify its critical habitat. However, the 1998-1 BiOp concluded that the pollock fishery, as then proposed, was likely to jeopardize the endangered western population of Steller sea lions and adversely modify its critical habitat. Rather than offering a specific reasonable and prudent alternative (RPA) for the BSAI and GOA pollock fisheries, the 1998-1 BiOp provided a framework in which specific management measures could be developed to avoid the likelihood of jeopardizing the continued existence of the western population of Steller sea lions or adversely modifying its critical habitat. The framework consisted of three principles: (1) Temporal dispersion of fishing effort, (2) spatial dispersion of fishing effort, and (3) protection from fisheries competition for Steller sea lion prey in waters adjacent to rookeries and important haulouts. For each of these principles, the 1998-1 BiOp provided guidance on the development of management measures to meet the objectives and, ultimately, to avoid jeopardy and adverse modification. The 1998-1 BiOp stated that certain conservation measures could be phased in over a 2-year period.

In December 1998, NMFS staff briefed the Council on the 1998-1 BiOp. The Council then prepared recommendations for alternative management measures based on the BiOp framework to avoid jeopardy and adverse modification. The Council's recommendation did not contain Bering Sea subarea (BS) pollock harvest specifications for the second half of 1999. However, the Council planned to recommend these measures prior to mid-1999. The Council also recommended closing all but nine of the haulout zones specified by the 1998-1 BiOp in the BSAI and GOA. NMFS determined these recommendations to be acceptable as part of a 2-year phase-in strategy, in which equivalent or better protections would be extended for those areas for 2000 and beyond.

On December 16, 1998, NMFS adopted the measures recommended by the Council (with modifications) into the 1998-1 BiOp as part of the reasonable and prudent alternatives (RPAs) for the Alaska pollock fisheries. NMFS published an emergency interim rule implementing these measures in the

Federal Register

on January 22, 1999 (64 FR 3437), as amended on February 17, 1999 (64 FR 7814), and on February 25, 1999 (64 FR 9375), and effective through July 19, 1999. The preamble to the emergency interim rule provides a detailed description of the purpose and need for the implementation of emergency measures in 1999.

The Council met again in February, April, and June 1999 to consider recommendations for extending the emergency rule for the second half of 1999, and, at its June meeting, voted to extend the emergency rule. Using the Council's recommendation, NMFS extended the emergency rule through December 31, 1999 (64 FR 39087, July 21, 1999; technical amendment 64 FR 43297, August 10, 1999), with revisions that included BS pollock harvest specifications for the second half of 1999.

In June 1999, the Council also deliberated on various management measures to implement permanently the RPAs as described in the 1998-1 BiOp for 2000 and beyond. After significant debate and public comment, the Council voted to recommend a series of conservation measures to protect Steller sea lions.

Greenpeace, the American Oceans Campaign, and the Sierra Club challenged the 1998-1 BiOp in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington (

Greenpeace

v.

NMFS

, Civ. No. C98-0492Z (W.D. Wash.)). Several industry groups and Alaska communities joined the lawsuit as defendant-intervenors. In an Order issued on July 9, 1999 (and amended on July 13, 1999), the Court upheld the no-jeopardy conclusion for the Atka mackerel fishery and the jeopardy conclusion for the pollock fisheries. However, the Court also found that “the Reasonable and Prudent Alternatives * * * were arbitrary and capricious * * * because they were not justified under the prevailing legal standards and because the record does not support a finding that they were reasonably likely to avoid jeopardy.” On August 6, 1999, the Court remanded the RPA back to NMFS for further analysis and explanation.

To comply with the Court's Order, NMFS conducted additional analyses and completed the Revised Final Reasonable and Prudent Alternatives (RFRPAs) on October 15, 1999. The RFRPAs described management measures to avoid the likelihood that the pollock fisheries authorized by regulations will jeopardize the continued existence of the endangered western population of Steller sea lions or adversely modify its critical habitat.

NMFS modified previous measures to conform with the RFRPA and implemented these measures by emergency interim rule for the 2000 groundfish fisheries (65 FR 3892, January 25, 2000, and 65 FR 36795, June 12, 2000). Although both environmental and fishing industry representatives challenged the adequacy of the RFRPAs in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, subsequent events in 2000 further modified measures to protect Steller sea lions (see below).

Greenpeace, the American Oceans Campaign, and the Sierra Club also challenged the legal adequacy of the 1998-2 BiOp, which NMFS issued on December 22, 1998. On January 25, 2000, the Court entered an Order finding the 1998-2 BiOp too narrow in scope (

Greenpeace

v.

NMFS

, 80 F. Supp. 2d 1137 (W.D. Wash. 2000)). On

July 19, 2000, the Court issued an injunction prohibiting fishing for groundfish with trawl gear in the EEZ within Steller sea lion critical habitat west of 144° W long. until NMFS issued a comprehensive biological opinion adequately analyzing the full scope of the FMPs. (

Greenpeace

v.

NMFS

, 106 F. Supp. 2d 1066 (W.D. Wash. 2000)). The critical habitat areas closed by the Court's injunction were defined in regulations codified at 50 CFR 226.202, and in Tables 1 and 2 of 50 CFR part 226. NMFS issued an interim final rule prohibiting fishing for groundfish with trawl gear in Steller sea lion critical habitat during the pendency of the Court's injunction (65 FR 49766, August 15, 2000).

In response to the Court's Order finding the 1998-2 BiOp inadequate, NMFS issued a biological opinion on the BSAI and GOA groundfish fisheries FMPs (Comprehensive BiOp) on November 30, 2000. The Comprehensive BiOp evaluated the Federal groundfish fisheries as implemented by the BSAI and GOA FMPs and their implementing regulations. After analyzing the direct and indirect effects of the groundfish fisheries, as authorized by the BSAI and GOA FMPs, on listed species, the cumulative effects of non-Federal actions, and the environmental baseline, NMFS concluded that the pollock, Pacific cod, and Atka mackerel fisheries as then configured jeopardized the continued existence of the western population of Steller sea lions and adversely modified its critical habitat. This conclusion was reached based on the likelihood that pollock, Pacific cod, and Atka mackerel fisheries compete with Steller sea lions and reduce their ability to survive and recover in the wild. Competition with fisheries is likely to cause reduced availability of sea lion prey (especially on small scales) which would reduce their foraging success and lead to nutritional stress, especially of juveniles and to a lesser extent adult females. The Comprehensive BiOp included an RPA that modified the three fisheries in such a manner as to reduce the likelihood of causing local depletion of key sea lion prey species and thus avoid jeopardizing the continued existence of Steller sea lions or adversely modifying their critical habitat.

On December 21, 2000, prior to the implementation of the Comprehensive BiOp RPAs, the President signed Public Law 106-554. This law contained a one-year timetable for implementing the RPA from the Comprehensive BiOp as well as provisions affecting its implementation. Public Law 106-554, section 209(c)(2) required the RPA contained in the Comprehensive BiOp to become effective in its entirety on January 1, 2002, unless revised as necessary and appropriate based on independent scientific review or other new information. In accordance with Public Law 106-554, and starting on January 1, 2001, the 2001 BSAI and GOA groundfish fisheries were initially managed in accordance with the fishery management plans and Federal regulations in effect for such fisheries prior to July 15, 2000. This initial management regime was subsequently replaced as provided in Public Law 106-554, section 209(c)(4), via an emergency interim rule issued by NMFS under the Magnuson-Stevens Act and effective on January 18, 2001 (66 FR 7276, January 22, 2001). The emergency interim rule contained a suite of management measures that phased in certain provisions of the RPA.

In response to the conclusions of the biological opinions since 1998 and Public Law 106-554, NMFS issued permanent regulations for the Atka mackerel fishery (64 FR 3446, January 22, 1999) and a series of emergency regulations for the pollock fishery (64 FR 3437, January 22, 1999; 65 FR 3892, January 25, 2000) and for Atka mackerel, pollock, and Pacific cod fisheries (66 FR 7276, January 22, 2001, extended and amended 66 FR 37167, July 17, 2001, and corrected 66 FR 44073, August 22, 2001, and 66 FR 48371, September 20, 2001). These regulations disperse harvest over time and area and provide protection to areas important to Steller sea lions. In July 2001, the parties to the litigation concerning the biological opinions and the RFRPA filed a joint status report and agreed to stay further litigation until completion of the 2001 BiOp in October 2001. A subsequent joint status report dated November 1, 2001, agreed to continue the temporary stay of litigation until January 18, 2002, when a follow-up status report will be filed with the Court.

Development of 2002 Steller Sea Lion Protection Measures

In January 2001, the Council established an RPA Committee to make recommendations on Steller sea lion protection measures for the second half of 2001 and to develop Steller sea lion protection measures for 2002 and beyond. The Council's RPA Committee was composed of 21 members from the fishing community, the environmental community, NMFS, the Council's Science and Statistical Committee, the Council's Advisory Panel, and the State of Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

In developing the protection measures for the second half of 2001 and for 2002, the RPA Committee's first goal was to determine adequate forage for Steller sea lions using the best scientific and commercial information available and the second goal was to maximize the economic benefit to the fishing industry within constraints imposed by the ESA. The RPA Committee met numerous times to review Steller sea lion biology and habitat requirements, RPA from the Comprehensive BiOp, the draft SEIS and draft 2001 BiOp for this action, and commercial fishery and scientific survey information. Meetings in 2001 were held on February 10, February 20, March 6-7, March 26-29, April 9, May 9-11, May 21-24, and August 23-24. These meetings were open to the public and the public was provided with several opportunities to comment at each meeting.

After the available scientific information on Steller sea lion biology was discussed, the Committee reviewed commercial fisheries and harvest data to determine the competitive overlap between fisheries and Steller sea lions. With all of this information, the Committee then developed a fisheries management program intended to meet the requirements of applicable law. In April 2001, the RPA Committee presented its recommendations to the Council for fishery management measures for the second half of 2001. These recommendations were then forwarded by the Council to NMFS.

In June 2001, the RPA Committee recommended Steller sea lion protection measures for 2002 and beyond. However, the Committee did not reach consensus regarding the recommendations; two representatives from the environmental community objected and provided a minority report with the May 21-24 Committee minutes. Both the Committee's recommendation and the minority recommendation developed by the American Oceans Campaign and the National Environmental Trust were included as alternatives analyzed in the SEIS. Additionally, protection measures in the GOA, developed by the Alaska Marine Conservation Council, were included as an option to the preferred alternative in the SEIS. Minutes from all RPA Committee meetings have been distributed at Council meetings and are available on the Council's Web site at

http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/npfmc/default.htm.

In June 2001, the Council recommended a suite of alternatives to be analyzed in the SEIS, including the RPA Committee's recommendation and the protection measures described in the

minority report mentioned above. NMFS reviewed the recommendations and determined that they represented an adequate range of reasonable alternatives as required by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). For purposes of identifying a proposed action in order to initiate formal consultation under Section 7 of the ESA, NMFS used the RPA Committee's recommendation as the preferred alternative (Alternative 4) in the draft SEIS. Alternative 4 also included three options added by the Council. Two of the options provided small boat exemptions for nontrawl gear Pacific cod fishing in the Chignik and Unalaska areas, and the third option established gear specific fishing zones for GOA Pacific cod fisheries (the Alaska Marine Conservation Council option).

In July 2001, the NMFS Office of Sustainable Fisheries (OSF) reinitiated consultation under the ESA with the NMFS Office of Protected Resources (OPR) based on the availability of new information and the substantial changes proposed in the fisheries since the completion of the Comprehensive BiOp. The new scientific information is described in more detail below under the specific protection measures. Consultation was requested on the management measures outlined in Alternative 4 of the draft SEIS. A draft biological opinion (2001 BiOp) was prepared by the OPR and distributed as Appendix A to the draft SEIS, which was available for public review on August 20, 2001 (comment period closed October 15, 2001). During informal consultations, the OSF and the OPR concurred that all other listed species occurring in Alaska other than Steller sea lions would not be adversely affected by the implementation of the proposed action. Therefore, only the endangered and threatened populations of Steller sea lions were the subject of the formal consultation and draft biological opinion issued by the OPR.

The draft 2001 BiOp, which is a consultation at the project level, did not supersede the previous Comprehensive BiOp. The Comprehensive BiOp remains valid and meets NMFS' requirement to consult at the FMP level. However, the RPA from the Comprehensive BiOp has been superseded by the managment measures in this rule.

The Council conducted a special meeting in September 2001 to review the draft SEIS and the draft 2001 BiOp. After review of these documents and public testimony, the Council identified Alternative 4 in the draft SEIS, with several modifications and without the options identified in June, as its preliminary preferred alternative. The Council decided not to include additional small boat exemptions for Unalaska and Chignik due to concerns that opening these areas would reduce their values as control sites for evaluating management measures and increase the likelihood for competitive interactions with sea lions, and that these sites have not been economically important to the small boat fleets. Also, the Council preliminarily decided not to include the GOA “gear zone” option due to potential conflicts with Magnuson-Stevens Act national standards 8 and 10 (i.e., local community access to fishing resources and safety).

Based on the analysis of alternatives in the SEIS, public testimony, and the draft 2001 BiOp, the Council made final recommendations for Steller sea lion protection measures. The 2001 BiOp determined that Alternative 4 met the requirements of the ESA by avoiding the likelihood of jeopardy to Steller sea lions and adverse modification of their critical habitat. Alternative 5 was determined in the SEIS to have similar effects as Alternative 4 on Steller sea lions and their critical habitat. Alternatives 2 and 3 were determined in the SEIS to have less adverse effects on Steller sea lions than Alternatives 4 and 5. Alternative 1 was more adverse to Steller sea lions than Alternative 4, based on the SEIS analysis. Given the results of the SEIS and the draft 2001 BiOp, the Council assumed that Alternatives 2, 3, 4, and 5 would meet the requirements of the ESA because Alternatives 2, 3, and 5 were considered to have similar or less adverse effects on Steller sea lions compared to Alternative 4. After the alternatives were identified that met the ESA requirements, the Council then determined which alternative provided the least impact on the human environment, including socioeconomic impacts, and which also met the requirements of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, including the national standards. The Council chose Alternative 4 because it met ESA requirements and came closer to meeting the overall objectives of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, including the national standards, and NMFS concurs with this decision. The final SEIS is available from NMFS (see

ADDRESSES

) or on the NMFS home page at

http://www.fakr.noaa.gov.

NMFS solicited comments on the draft 2001 BiOp, which were considered in the final biological opinion. NMFS released the final 2001 BiOp on October 19, 2001, which was included as an appendix to the SEIS. Copies of the 2001 BiOp are available from the NMFS, Alaska Region homepage at

http://www.fakr.noaa.gov

(or see

ADDRESSES

). The 2001 BiOp concluded that the proposed action under Alternative 4, which is implemented by this emergency interim rule, is not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of either the eastern or western populations of Steller sea lions or adversely modify their critical habitat.

At its October 2001 meeting, the Council slightly modified its preferred alternative to provide limited relief to small vessels in response to public comments. These changes do not undermine the primary objective of avoiding jeopardy and adverse modifications to the Steller sea lions or their critical habitat. All of these modifications fell within the scope of the draft SEIS and the 2001 BiOp. Two modifications provided additional protection to Steller sea lions during 2002 in the Aleutian Islands subarea by eliminating the directed fishery for pollock and by reducing the proposed harvest of Atka mackerel in Steller sea lion critical habitat. The third modification is a near shore exemption for small vessels directed fishing for Pacific cod using hook-and-line or jig gear in the Bogoslof area and includes a harvest limit. Because of the extremely small harvest amount and closures around Steller sea lion haulouts in the area, this modification is expected to have no appreciable effects on Steller sea lions or their critical habitat. Public comment on the 2001 BiOp provided at the October Council meeting raised questions regarding the efficacy of using the Bogoslof area as a control site for comparing the fishery effects on Steller sea lions. Based on the extremely limited fishing by small vessels for Pacific cod and fishing prohibitions around Bishop Point, the Council changed its recommendation from September and requested NMFS implement a small boat exemption in the Bogoslof area (option 2 to Alternative 4 in the SEIS). The small vessel exemption in the Bogoslof area is within the scope of option 2 analyzed in the SEIS.

NMFS concurs with the protection measures recommended by the Council and these measures are contained in this emergency interim rule. NMFS intends to supersede this emergency interim rule implementing 2002 protection measures with proposed and final rulemaking to implement these or similar measures for the remainder of 2002 and beyond. The protection measures also replace the RPA identified in the Comprehensive BiOp.

Protection Measures and the Most Recent Information

Scientists generally agree that the decline of the western population of Steller sea lions is due to a combination of factors including nutritional stress, predation, and natural environmental changes. These factors are primarily thought to affect juveniles, and to a lesser extent adult females, although how this occurs and the magnitude of the effects are largely unknown. Of these factors, the groundfish fisheries primarily affect nutritional stress and, through indirect mechanisms, may increase the likelihood for predation due to increased search time for prey. Funding for Steller sea lion research has increased over the past few years and may provide clarification on the causes for the sea lion decline.

The ESA requires NMFS to develop a Steller sea lion recovery plan, which includes criteria for delisting the species. A recovery plan was developed in 1992 with a set of delisting criteria, but these criteria were never adopted by the agency. A new Steller sea lion recovery team has been assembled and plans to meet in January 2002. Over a course of one to two years, the team will review the best available scientific and commercial data and will develop a new recovery plan replacing the outdated version. Because no recovery criteria are available, the 2001 BiOp addressed recovery in terms of effects of the proposed action on Steller sea lion population trajectories.

The 2001 BiOp concluded that the contribution of the groundfish fisheries to the Steller sea lion decline is likely to be small under the protection measures specified in this emergency interim rule. Although, adverse impacts to the two populations of Steller sea lions and their critical habitat are expected to result from these groundfish fisheries, the fisheries are unlikely to jeopardize the continued existence or adversely modify critical habitat for these populations. These protection measures are intended to avoid fishery-related reductions in abundance of Steller sea lion prey in key local foraging areas, as such reductions could reduce the effectiveness of sea lion foraging.

These protection measures address competitive interactions between the groundfish fishery and Steller sea lions in several ways. First, these measures will modify the existing harvest control rule to ensure that in the future enough prey resources exist overall and that prey densities are sufficient for Steller sea lions on a large scale. Second, the protection measures will distribute the catch of important prey species over zones of key importance to critical components of the Steller sea lion population and over time to reduce the effects of localized depletion. Localized depletion for a Steller sea lion is the reduction of prey resources to a level that decreases the efficiency of a foraging sea lion so that it adversely affects its health or increases its risk to predation. Finally, the protection measures will prohibit fishing in areas immediately surrounding all rookery and many haulout sites and curtail fishing for important prey species in significant portions of designated critical habitat to relieve competition in areas considered important to Steller sea lion survival and recovery.

In 1993, critical habitat was established to 20 nm seaward of haulouts and rookeries based on the best scientific information available at the time, such as Platform of Opportunity (POP) data (August 27, 1993, 58 FR 45269). In 1999 through 2001, protection measures included fishery restrictions out to 20 nm from Steller sea lion rookery and haulout sites. In most cases, the portion of critical habitat areas considered important for protection in 2002 and beyond is between 0 nm and 10 nm of haulout and rookery sites with areas closer to shore considered more important for animals with less foraging skills or for females with pups. POP data still provide the best information for adult male Steller sea lions because little telemetry data have been collected for these animals. Recent telemetry data have been collected and analyzed from primarily adult females and juveniles, which are the portion of the population that pose the most concern for localized depletion of prey. The new telemetry data indicate that waters beyond 10 nm are mainly used by adults and older juveniles, which are considered to have stronger foraging skills, and depletion of prey by groundfish harvesting in these waters is not as likely to adversely affect foraging by these individuals. Both telemetry data and POP data are known to have biased results, but NMFS recognizes that the telemetry data provide more recent information on the more sensitive components of population when considering potential localized depletion of prey by the groundfish fisheries. For these reasons, many of the protection zones or areas in this emergency interim rule extend to 10 nm from Steller sea lion rookeries and haulouts.

Steller sea lion count survey data also were used to determine the areas that needed more protection from potential fishery interaction. Some of the rookeries showed declines of more than 10 percent. In most cases, sites with higher rates of decline receive additional protection over areas with less decline under the measures in this emergency interim rule.

This emergency interim rule also includes provisions for control areas to aid in an experimental design to determine the effectiveness of management measures. The Bogoslof area and Seguam foraging area, and the Chignik critical habitat areas will be closed to pollock, Atka mackerel, and Pacific cod directed fishing, except to vessels using jig gear in the Chignik area and to small vessels fishing for Pacific cod using jig or hook-and-line gear in the Bogoslof area. The Chiniak Gully will be closed to trawling August 1 through September 20 to determine the impact of trawl fishing on localized depletion of pollock. A review of the 2001 BiOp by the National Academy of Science may provide further recommendations on an experimental design that would provide the information needed on the efficacy of management measures.

Summary of the 2002 Management Measures

The following is a summary of protection measures. More detailed descriptions by topic, fishery, and area follow in this preamble. The State of Alaska Board of Fisheries at its November 2001 meeting adopted the same protection measures for the State parallel fisheries with two exceptions in the Pacific cod pot fishery which are noted below. The State of Alaska Department of Fish and Game should be contacted for details on Steller sea lion protection measures inside State waters. The majority of the Steller sea lion protection measures contained in this emergency interim rule are effective January 1, 2002, through July 8, 2002. Protection measures include:

1. Area closures for federally permitted vessels to all groundfish fishing between 0 nm and 3 nm of 39 rookery sites. These sites are considered the most sensitive for females with pups and the near shore marine critical habitat the most important to protect from interactions between groundfish fisheries and Steller sea lions.

2. For the Atka mackerel, pollock, and Pacific cod directed fisheries in the waters off Alaska, protection measures include: (a) A modified harvest control rule (HCR) to prohibit directed fishing when the biomass reaches 20 percent of its unfished level, (b) closures within 10 or 20 nm of selected haulout and rookery sites to directed fishing for Atka mackerel, pollock, and Pacific cod in

the GOA and BSAI, (c) closure of Seguam foraging area and most of the Bogoslof area to all gear types, (d) a VMS requirement, (e) closure of the Chignik area to pot, trawl, and hook-and-line gears, (f) closure within 10-20 nm of 46 rookeries and haulouts to hook-and-line fishing for Pacific cod, and 44 rookeries and haulouts to pot fishing for Pacific cod, and (g) modifications to the CDQ groundfish program.

3. Aleutian Island area protection measures include: (a) Closure of the subarea to directed fishing for pollock, (b) Pacific cod total allowable catch (TAC) apportionment by season and gear, as well as gear specific area restrictions that alternate with the Atka mackerel fishery in critical habitat in areas 542 and 543, (c) closure of the Seguam foraging area to pollock, Atka mackerel, and Pacific cod directed fishing by all gear types, (d) critical habitat harvest limit of 60 percent for Atka mackerel in areas 542 and 543, (e) a platoon management system for Atka mackerel fishing in critical habitat in areas 542 and 543, (f) two observers required for critical habitat Atka mackerel directed fishing, (g) at least 0-3 nm closures around all haulouts for Atka mackerel and Pacific cod trawl fishing and (h) no Atka mackerel critical habitat fishing west of 178° W long.

4. Bering Sea protection measures include: (a) Two seasons (40:60 percent apportionment) for the pollock fishery with no more than 28 percent of the annual directed fishing allowance taken from the Steller sea lion conservation area (SCA) before April 1, (b) continuation of BS pollock fishery cooperatives established under the AFA, (c) establishment of the BS Pollock Restriction Area during the A season, (d) closure of the Catcher Vessel Operation Area (CVOA) to non-CDQ pollock trawl catcher/processors during the B season, (e) Pacific cod TAC apportionments by season and gear, as well as gear specific area restrictions, and (f) closure of all BS subarea critical habitat to Atka mackerel fishing.

5. Gulf of Alaska protection measures include: (a) Distribution of pollock harvest evenly over 4 seasons, (b) closure of directed fishing for pollock in areas that vary from 0-20 nm to 0-3 nm around rookeries and haulouts, (c) two seasons (60 percent:40 percent) for Pacific cod fishing and area restrictions that are dependent on gear type and vessel size, and (d) continuation of the NMFS Chiniak Gully research project to explore the effects of commercial fisheries on pollock abundance and distribution in the GOA.

2002 Protection Measures Details for Harvest Time, Limits, and Apportionments

Modification of the Existing Harvest Control Rule (HCR)

The protection measures include a modification of the existing HCR for pollock, Pacific cod, and Atka mackerel. NMFS currently uses an HCR established under Amendments 56/56 to the FMPs when determining the maximum allowable biological catch (ABC). Under the existing HCR, the ABC for a majority of stocks, including pollock, Pacific cod, and Atka mackerel, is based on a fishing mortality rate intended to reduce the spawning biomass per recruit to 40 percent of its theoretical unfished level (F

40

%%

). When the biomass is below the amount necessary to produce the maximum sustainable yield (MSY), the fishing mortality rate is reduced linearly. When the spawning biomass per recruit is reduced to 2 percent of its unfished level, the fishing mortality rate becomes 0 and all fishing for that target stock is prohibited (see Figure 1). A new HCR was used in 2001 which reduced directed fishing for pollock, Pacific cod, and Atka mackerel in a more aggressive linear fashion than the original HCR and included a directed fishing prohibition at the 20 percent unfished biomass level.

The new HCR will be almost identical except that directed fishing would be prohibited when the spawning biomass is below 20 percent of the unfished level (as opposed to 2 percent in the current HCR).

Figure 1 shows the reduction in fishing mortality under the three methods of harvest control: (1) Amendments 56/56 to the BSAI and GOA FMPs for most groundfish species, (the existing HCR for most groundfish species), (2) the 2001 HCR, and (3) the 2002 HCR. The harvest rate under the 2002 HCR and under Amendments 56/56 would decrease at the same rate until 20 percent of the unfished spawning biomass is reached.

In a model, NMFS analyzed the difference in recovery rates back up to the MSY under the 2001 and 2002 HCRs and found very little difference (3-4 percent) between them. The 2001 BiOp concluded that the 2002 HCR is adequate to avoid locally depleting Atka mackerel, pollock, and Pacific cod for Steller sea lions.

ER08JA02.028

In 2002, the new HCR does not affect the harvest rates for any species. However, the GOA pollock biomass is estimated to be about 45 percent less than the 2000 estimate. Because of uncertainty in the point estimate and continued poor recruitment in the GOA pollock stock, the Plan Team recommended an ABC well below the maximum permissible using the HCR. Given the fact that in hindsight using the current model and known biomass amounts in 2001, the fishery would have overfished this stock if the total TAC would have been taken in areas 620 and 630. NMFS determines that this action is reasonable from a Steller sea lion and stock assessment perspective. See the SAFE reports for the GOA and BSAI and Part II of this preamble for more details. The SAFE reports are available from the Council (see

ADDRESSES

).

Steller Sea Lion Protection Measures for Pollock, Atka Mackerel, and Pacific Cod Fisheries

The 2002 Steller sea lion protection measures include fishing seasons and area restrictions for the pollock, Pacific cod, and Atka mackerel fisheries. The seasons will distribute these fisheries over time. Critical habitat harvest limits for pollock and Atka mackerel will be implemented by this emergency interim rule consistent with the Council recommendations. Critical habitat limits will distribute the Atka mackerel and pollock fisheries over area, reducing the potential for localized depletion of prey.

In order to manage fishing to protect Steller sea lions, this emergency interim rule includes changes to the permit information collected under § 679.4. Vessels owners will need to register with NMFS to participate in the pollock, Pacific cod, and Atka mackerel fisheries. These directed fisheries will appear as endorsements on the vessel's Federal fishery permit for the area that the vessel owner has chosen for fishing these species. Vessel owners wishing to fish for Atka mackerel in critical habitat will also need to indicate whether they want to fish in Federal regulatory areas 542, 543, or both. The Atka mackerel registration information will be used for platoon management, which is explained later in this section.

Several AFA provisions from 2001 are extended into 2002 under this emergency interim rule as well as inshore/offshore allocations of GOA pollock and Pacific cod. These provisions effectively slow the rate of fishing and distribute fishing effort in a manner expected to reduce competition with Steller sea lions. These provisions also were evaluated by the Council as part of the new Steller sea lion protection measures. More details are in Part II of this preamble under the BSAI harvest specifications. Separate rulemaking is being pursued by NMFS to permanently implement these provisions in the future.

This action suspends the definition of directed fishing for pollock and other groundfish harvested under the CDQ program. It also revises the way that groundfish CDQ species may be used to calculate retainable amounts of other species, modifies groundfish CDQ retention requirements, and requires that a vessel's intended target fishery be reported on CDQ catch reports. These changes are necessary to ensure that the Steller sea lion protection measures being implemented by this emergency interim rule are applicable to groundfish CDQ harvesting activities.

Under current regulations, the general groundfish fisheries and groundfish CDQ fisheries have different definitions of directed fishing. For recordkeeping and reporting requirements, as well as for License Limitation groundfish fishing, directed fishing is defined as any fishing activity that results in the retention of an amount of a species or species group on board a vessel that is greater than the current maximum retainable bycatch (MRB) amount, based on retained (or “basis”) species on board a vessel at a given time. The pollock and groundfish CDQ directed fishing definitions differ from the MRB-based definition for two reasons. First, the AFA specifies that the only pollock that will accrue to the pollock CDQ reserve will be that amount caught by vessels directed fishing for pollock CDQ. Second, all other groundfish caught while groundfish CDQ fishing

must accrue towards one of the specified CDQ reserves, including economic discards or non-target species. In general, a vessel is considered groundfish CDQ fishing if it has been listed in a NMFS approved Community Development Plan and catches any amount of groundfish CDQ, including pollock. More specifically, the assessment of a vessel's particular target fishery is determined differently, depending on vessel type. For catcher/processors, the species composition of each haul is assessed to determine the directed fishery. For catcher vessels, the species composition on board the vessel at any time is used. Typically this information is used for pollock catch accounting purposes and the calculation of halibut bycatch mortality rather than at-sea enforcement of other management measures.

The definition of directed fishing for pollock CDQ uses a 60 percent threshold to determine whether a vessel using trawl gear is directed fishing for this species. If this criterion is met, then the pollock accrues toward the pollock CDQ reserve. If not, it accrues towards the pollock Incidental Catch Allowance (ICA). Pollock caught incidentally in groundfish CDQ fisheries by vessels using nontrawl gear also accrues towards the ICA. This definition of pollock CDQ fishing was established as part of a final rule implementing Amendment 66 to the BSAI FMP on March 7, 2001 (66 FR 13672), and was intended to meet the intent of the AFA. This definition was designed to facilitate pollock catch accounting, not to identify a vessel's overall target fishery. Defining CDQ directed fisheries via the use of MRB standards will offer a more accurate portrayal of a vessel's actual CDQ target fishery. For purposes of implementing the Steller sea lion protection measures, using the 60 percent definition of pollock CDQ fishing could conflict with the calculated target fishery derived by using MRB amount calculations. A vessel could, under current regulations, be considered directed fishing for pollock CDQ based on the species composition of a single haul, whereas under MRB calculations it would not.

The suspension of CDQ specific directed fishing definitions, modifications of the use of CDQ species as basis species, and suspension of the use of a 60 percent threshold to facilitate pollock CDQ catch accounting in this emergency interim rule are necessary to establish a means to readily enforce time and area closures to directed fishing for pollock, Pacific cod, and Atka mackerel. Applying the definition of directed fishing already used for the non-CDQ groundfish fisheries will enhance the monitoring and enforcement of Steller sea lion protection measures. This will give consistency to the at-sea determination of both a vessel's non-CDQ and CDQ target fisheries. Additionally, to lessen the potential for confusion by NMFS staff, U.S. Coast Guard boarding personnel, vessel operators, and CDQ groups, MRB amounts will be used to define directed fishing for all groundfish CDQ species.

These measures, along with a new requirement to report the intended target species on CDQ catch reports, will also assist NMFS management to determine when catch limits have been reached, when area closures should occur, and how to account for pollock caught in the groundfish CDQ fisheries. The target information that will be received on CDQ catch reports will be used by NMFS to determine whether to accrue pollock towards either the pollock CDQ allocation or the pollock ICA. Additionally, current regulations do not require regulatory discards in the groundfish CDQ fisheries. However, the use of MRB amounts may require that some Atka mackerel or Pacific cod be discarded at-sea if CDQ directed fishery closures are in effect for these two species. Such catch will still be required to be reported on CDQ catch reports and will be subtracted from their corresponding CDQ allocations.

The protection measures addressing temporal and spatial dispersion of the pollock, Atka mackerel, and Pacific cod directed fisheries are as follows:

1. Aleutian Island Subarea Pollock Fishery

In the AI subarea directed fishing for pollock is prohibited at all times.

2. Bering Sea Subarea Pollock Fishery

In the Bering Sea subarea, fishing seasons are continued for the four sectors of the Bering Sea pollock fishery that are defined in the AFA. These seasons are defined as the A season (January 20-June 10, 40 percent) and the B season (June 10-November 1, 60 percent).

Pollock fishing will be prohibited during the A season in the Bering Sea Pollock Restriction Area (BSPRA). This area is based on a series of straight lines tangential to haulouts, 10 nm from the shore between the eastern edge of the SCA and the western edge of Statistical Area 519. The BSPRA is intended to reduce the likelihood of localized depletion and competitive interactions during critical winter months when juvenile Steller sea lions are learning to forage.

This emergency interim rule extends the repeal of the “fair start” provisions at § 679.7(b) that required vessels fishing for pollock in the Bering Sea to cease fishing for groundfish during the week preceding each pollock season or face a mandatory stand-down period during the first week of the pollock season. The Council determined that these fair start requirements were no longer necessary given the changes to the pollock fishery that occurred under the AFA.

Catcher vessel exclusive fishing seasons at § 679.23(i) will be continued by this emergency interim rule. Vessels fishing in one season in the GOA or in the BSAI are restricted from fishing in the alternative management area until the following season. This restriction will limit the concentration of fishing effort in one area and reduce the potential for localized depletion of Steller sea lion prey. Catcher vessels less than 125 ft (38.1 m) LOA fishing east of 157° W long. are exempt from this restriction.

This emergency interim rule also will extend the use of the SCA established by the emergency interim rule published January 25, 2000 (65 FR 3892), at § 679.22(a)(11). The SCA includes the portion of Bering Sea critical habitat known as the Bogoslof Foraging area and the portion of the CVOA that extends eastward from the Bogoslof Foraging area. This eastern block of the CVOA overlaps with the pollock trawl exclusion zone for Sea Lion Rocks (Amak Island). Inclusion of this eastern block in the SCA is necessary to provide sufficient protection from concentrated fishing and resulting localized depletions of sea lion prey in (1) the narrow corridor between the Bogoslof Foraging Area and the Sea Lion Rocks (Amak Island) trawl exclusion zone and (2) the adjacent portions of critical habitat.

The SCA consists of the area of the Bering Sea between 170°00′ W long. and 163°00′ W long., south of straight lines connecting the following points in the order listed:

55°00′ N lat. 170°00′ W long.;

55°00′ N lat. 168°00′ W long.;

55°30′ N lat. 168°00′ W long.;

55°30′ N lat. 166°00′ W long.;

56°00′ N lat. 166°00′ W long.;

56°00′ N lat. 163°00′ W long.

This emergency interim rule specifies the amount of the annual pollock directed fishing allowance (PDFA) that can be taken from the SCA during the A season. The PDFA is equal to the sum of each sector's TAC minus the ICA and 10 percent CDQ reserve. Until April 1, the harvest within the SCA is limited to

28 percent of the annual PDFA which is equivalent to 70 percent of the A season apportionment. The remaining 12 percent of the annual PDFA allocated to the A season may be taken outside of SCA before April 1 or inside the SCA after April 1. If the 28 percent of the annual PDFA is not taken inside the SCA before April 1, the remainder may be taken inside the SCA after April 1. The A season pollock SCA harvest limit will be apportioned to each industry sector in proportion to each sector's allocated percentage of the PDFA as set forth in the AFA. This action is necessary to avoid high harvest rates within a relatively small area of the BS subarea which is Steller sea lion critical habitat.

NMFS will monitor catch by each industry sector and close the SCA to directed fishing for pollock by sector when NMFS determines that a sector's specified portion of the SCA limit has been reached. As in 2001, in accordance with the Council's intent to address small vessel safety concerns, inshore catcher vessels less than or equal to 99 ft (30.2 m) LOA will continue to be exempt from SCA closures unless the cap for the inshore sector has been reached, as specified in § 679.22(a)(11)(vii). Under the authority of the AFA, NMFS will separate the inshore fishery into cooperative and non-cooperative sector allocations. For each sector, NMFS will announce the closure of the SCA to catcher vessels over 99 ft (30.2 m) LOA before the inshore sector SCA limit is reached. NMFS will implement the closure in a manner intended to leave remaining quota within the SCA that is sufficient to support directed fishing for pollock by vessels less than or equal to 99 ft (30.2 m) LOA for the duration of the inshore sector opening.

The CVOA will continue to be closed to pollock trawl catcher/processors during the B season (June 10-November 1) to reduce the amount of pollock taken from this area and to reduce the potential for competition with Steller sea lions.

3. GOA Pollock Fishery Seasons and Apportionments

Fishing seasons and pollock TAC apportionments in the GOA are summarized in Table 1.

Table 1.—Pollock Fishing Seasons and TAC Apportionments for the Western and Central Regulatory Areas of the Gulf of Alaska

Season

TAC apportionment

(percent)

Season dates

A

25

January 20-February 25.

B

25

March 10-May 31.

C

25

August 25-September 15.

D

25

October 1-November 1.

Rollover of a seasonal TAC apportionment is permitted as long as it does not exceed 30 percent of the annual TAC.

The start date of the C season has been changed from August 20 in 2001 to August 25 in 2002. This change is intended to reduce salmon bycatch and to optimize the use of shoreside processing facilities and the harvest of the pollock allocation in the C season. This change is expected to have no appreciable effect on Steller sea lions.

The 300,000 lb (136 mt) trip limit for catcher vessels harvesting pollock in the directed pollock fisheries of the GOA at § 679.7 supports temporal distribution objectives and is maintained by this rule. A catcher vessel fishing for groundfish in the GOA will be prohibited from retaining on board more than 300,000 lb (136 mt) of pollock harvested in the GOA any time during a trip. This trip limit will not exempt vessels from existing regulations that require 100 percent retention of pollock when directed fishing for pollock is open. A vessel would have to stop fishing for pollock during a fishing trip before the 300,000 lb (136 mt) trip limit is reached to avoid a violation of either the 300,000 lb (136 mt) trip limit or the 100 percent retention requirement for pollock.

In addition, § 679.7 continues to prohibit vessels from operating as pollock tenders in the GOA east of 157°00′ W long. to prevent the large scale use of tender vessels to avoid the trip limit restriction. Vessels operating as tenders in the GOA west of 157°00′ W long. will be prohibited from retaining on board more than 600,000 lb (272 mt) of unprocessed pollock or the equivalent of two fishing trips. Tendering west of 157°00′ W long. is allowed because smaller vessels delivering to Sand Point and King Cove are more dependent on tenders than the larger vessels that operate east of 157°00′ W long. and deliver primarily to Kodiak.

4. BSAI Atka Mackerel Seasons, Apportionments, Critical Habitat Harvest Limits, and Platoons

In the BSAI at § 679.23(e)(7), the A season for Atka mackerel will begin January 20 and end April 15. The B season will begin September 1 and end November 1. The CDQ Atka mackerel fishery will have a single season from January 20 through November 1 because the vessels used in the non-CDQ Atka mackerel fishery are generally the same vessels used in the CDQ fishery, and the CDQ harvest historically takes place when the non-CDQ season is closed.

Fifty percent of the annual TACs for the western, central, and eastern Aleutian Islands districts is available during each season. No more than 60 percent of the seasonal TAC may be taken from within the harvest limit area (HLA) in statistical Areas 542 and 543 in the AI subarea. The HLA includes critical habitat and two additional Steller sea lion haulouts located west of 178° W long. and is further explained below. The apportionment is based on the assumed distribution of Atka mackerel based on depth contour of the continental shelf and on an objective to reduce the amount of rockfish bycatch that has occurred historically at relatively high levels outside of critical habitat in deeper waters in areas 542 and 543. Critical habitat limits in 2001 were between 48 and 46 percent. One of the objectives in setting harvest levels is to harvest at a level relative to the abundance of the fish in the area to avoid localized depletion. The biomass estimates in areas 542 and 543 indicated that up to 75 percent of the biomass occurs in critical habitat, but the Council recommended, and NMFS concurs, that a more conservative increase in the amount of harvest from critical habitat is appropriate because this fishery has caused measurable localized depletions in the past. Higher levels of harvest in critical habitat may be considered in the future after additional analysis. Analyzing the effectiveness of the platooning system for managing the fleet in the HLA will provide additional information to understand the potential impact of higher harvest limits in the future. The amount of harvest allocated to the HLA also needs to be enough to encourage the participation in platoons used to manage the critical habitat fisheries.

NMFS catch data indicate a higher catch rate of Atka mackerel in area 542 than in area 543 so that area 542 vessels will likely reach their HLA limit quicker than area 543 vessels. Thus, area 542

vessels could have an earlier opportunity to fish outside of critical habitat and encounter rockfish bycatch in amounts sufficient to pose overfishing concerns and close the Atka mackerel fishery without area 543 critical habitat limits being reached. With the 60 percent limit in the HLA, vessels will be able to spend more effort inside critical habitat and will be less likely to shut down the Atka mackerel fishery due to rockfish bycatch compared to a limit set at 50 percent or less.

To clearly identify the Steller sea lion protection areas for Atka mackerel directed fishing in areas 542 and 543, this emergency interim rule establishes a new definition at § 679.2. For purposes of Atka mackerel platooning and for restriction of Pacific cod trawling during the Atka mackerel HLA directed fishery, the definition of the HLA is waters within 20 nm seaward of Steller sea lion sites listed in Table 24 of 50 CFR part 679. This definition is needed to include Rat Island and Cape Ivakin haulouts because these are not listed under 50 CFR 226.202 as critical habitat but are identified by NMFS as needing protection as part of the measures implemented to avoid the likelihood of jeopardy.

Atka mackerel fishing is prohibited in critical habitat east of 178° W long. to provide maximum protection to Steller sea lions and because Atka mackerel is readily available in waters outside of critical habitat. Atka mackerel harvest is permitted in critical habitat west of 178° W long. under a system of platooning and with observers. All vessels fishing for Atka mackerel in HLA west of 178° W long. are required to have two observers so that NMFS can meet the requirements of the 2001 BiOp to adequately monitor fisheries to manage critical habitat limits.

To reduce the amount of daily catch in the HLA by about half and to disperse the fishery over two areas, the Atka mackerel fleet is divided into two platoons assigned to fish in the HLA in either areas 542 or 543. NMFS will assign vessels to a platoon for each area that a vessel registered to fish. Each platoon in an area will be assigned to fish during one of the two directed fisheries held in the area during a season. This division will be done through a lottery system that ensures random selection of vessels to a platoon. The random selection process will be used to ensure that each participant in a platoon is provided an equal opportunity to fish in a platoon of vessels in an HLA in area 542 or area 543 and that the combination of vessels fishing together is determined by chance.

With the random selection process, the potential exists that vessels of less fishing capability may be in a group of vessels with more fishing capability, affecting the smaller vessel's opportunity to harvest fish. By dividing the vessels registered for an area into platoons, all vessels will be competing with half of the vessels that they normally compete against, reducing competition on the fishing grounds and potentially enhancing the overall harvest for smaller vessels in the HLA. However, the potential for competitive advantage of larger vessels from the same company working together over the smaller vessels will be reduced with the random platoon assignments, making it more likely that dispersion of catch over time is achieved.

During a fishing season, the fishing limit inside the HLA will be split into two predetermined Atka mackerel directed fisheries with each platoon fishing under a harvest limit in proportion to the number of vessels in the platoon compared to the number of vessels registered for the area. The time period of the directed fishery is based on the combined harvest potential of the vessels in the platoon. The start date for the first directed fishery is 48 hours after the closure of the area 541 Atka mackerel directed fishery. Historically, area 541 is harvested first with vessels, which later move into areas 542 and 543. Starting the HLA directed fisheries 48 hours after closure of area 541 provides a fair start to the HLA fisheries by allowing for off loading of catch and travel to areas 542 and 543. When the HLA directed fishery is closed in either areas 542 or 543, vessels may fish outside of the HLA anywhere in the Aleutian Islands where directed fishing is open.

If a vessel has registered to fish in an HLA in both areas 542 and 543 during a season, it will be assigned to fish in directed fisheries in area 542 and in area 543 that begin on different dates. Regardless of the number of vessels in a platoon, an HLA directed fishery would last no longer than 14 days to allow each platoon ample opportunity to harvest in the HLA in areas 542 or 543 before the end of the season.

During each season, vessels registered to fish in the HLA in areas 542 or 543 may not fish for groundfish in any other location while the first directed fishery in an HLA which the vessel is assigned is open. This stand down provision may last up to 14 days, the maximum length of an HLA directed fishery for Atka mackerel.

Vessels not wishing to participate in the platoons may fish for Atka mackerel outside of the HLA and outside of critical habitat in the BSAI subareas.

5. BSAI and Western and Central Districts of the GOA Pacific Cod Seasons, Apportionments, and Closures

For the BSAI and Western and Central Districts of the GOA Pacific cod seasons, this emergency interim rule separates the TACs into separate seasonal apportionments depending on gear type (Table 2). For the nontrawl vessels in the BSAI and Western and Central Districts of the GOA, the A season begins on January 1, 2002, and ends June 10, 2002. Sixty percent of the annual TAC, after subtraction of any reserves and incidental catch, will be available for harvest during the A season and will be allocated among the various sectors as provided in § 679.20(a)(6)(iii) and (a)(7). The nontrawl B season in both the BSAI and Western and Central Districts of the GOA begins at 1200 hours, A.l.t., on June 10, 2002, and ends on December 31, 2002. Forty percent of the annual TAC, after subtraction of any reserves and incidental catch, will be available for harvest during the B season and will be allocated among the various sectors as provided in § 679.20(a)(6)(iii) and (a)(7). Pot and hook-and-line vessels less than 60 ft (18.3 m) LOA in the BSAI have no seasonal apportionment. For the trawl fisheries in the BSAI, the annual TAC is apportioned to three seasons. The A season starts January 20 and ends April 1 with 60 percent of the annual TAC allocated. The B season starts April 1 (1200 hours, A.l.t.) and ends June 10 with 20 percent of the annual TAC allocated and the C season starts June 10 (1200 hours, A.l.t.) and ends November 1 with 20 percent of the annual TAC allocated. In the Western and Central Districts of the GOA, trawl vessels are allocated 60 percent of the annual TAC in the A season and 40 percent in the B season.

Table 2.—Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Subareas and Western and Central Districts of the Gulf of Alaska Pacific Cod Seasons and TAC Apportionments

Gear and area

A season and apportionment

B season and apportionment

C season and apportionment

Trawl in W/C GOA

January 20-June 10 (60%)

September 1-November 1 (40%)

Trawl in BSAI

January 20-April 1 (60%)

April 1-June 10 (20%)

June 10-November 1 (20%)

Hook-and-line, pot, and jig in W/C GOA, and pot > 60 ft. LOA in BSAI

January 1-June 10 (60%)

September 1-December 31 (40%)

Hook-and-line > 60 ft. and jig in BSAI

January 1-June 10 (60%)

June 10- December 31 (40%)

CDQ* pot, pot and hook-and-line < 60 ft in the BSAI

January 1-December 31

*Community Development Quota program. CDQ vessels fishing with non-pot gear are governed by the gear specific seasonal restrictions listed in Table 2.

Unused Pacific cod allocations among sectors and unused apportionments for seasons in the BSAI and Western and Central GOA may be redistributed, considering bycatch and optimization of catch by gear groups and sectors.

Moving 20 percent of the BSAI Pacific cod TAC from the first season to the second season provides greater dispersion of the harvest and limits fishing in the most sensitive period for Steller sea lions. Apportioning the BSAI Pacific cod trawl TAC among three seasons shifts 20 percent of the harvest out of the June through October time period compared to 2001 apportionments. Moving 20 percent of the harvest from the second half of the year enhances the opportunity for the Pacific cod trawl fleet to harvest Pacific cod when it is aggregated, optimizing the potential to reach the annual harvest limit. The apportionment during the first half of the year is further divided into 60 percent and 20 percent of the annual TAC.

Apportioning Pacific cod between two or among three seasons may affect the ability of fishermen to fully utilize the TAC for Pacific cod. In previous years, a large portion of the Pacific cod TAC was taken during the early part of the calendar year. Pacific cod tends to aggregate during the early part of the calendar year when it is easier to locate and catch. Also, as Pacific cod becomes disaggregated, the increased fishing time and effort to catch the same amount of fish results in increases in bycatch, which also can affect the success of fully utilizing the TAC.

In the BSAI, the trawl allocations of Pacific cod TAC are further allocated to catcher vessels and catcher/processors. The seasonal allocation for the Pacific cod trawl catcher vessels is further split to 70 percent in the A season, 10 percent in the B season, and 20 percent in the C season. Pacific cod trawl catcher/processors' portion of the TAC is allocated 50 percent in the A season, 30 percent in the B season, and 20 percent in the C season. Many of these vessels participate in the AFA pollock fishery, which has resulted in the dispersion over time of not only pollock but also Pacific cod harvests in the BSAI. Rollovers between these sectors will continue to be allowed under § 679.20(a)(7)(ii). Regulatory provisions are added by this emergency interim rule to allow the rollover of BSAI Pacific cod trawl allocations between seasons. Trawl allocations to catcher vessels and catcher/processors may continue to be moved between vessel types within a season before reallocation to other gear types to allow for full optimization of an allocation by the trawl sector during a season. These gear allocations will help to further disperse the Pacific cod fishery over time and lessen the potential for depletion of prey.

In the GOA, bycatch of Pacific cod in other groundfish fisheries during the time period between the closure of the A season and the opening of the B season will be deducted from the B season apportionment. This recommendation by the Council is intended to optimize the harvest of Pacific cod when it is most vulnerable to fishing gear while fully providing for Pacific cod bycatch needs in other groundfish fisheries.

Under this emergency interim rule, Pacific cod harvest by trawl gear in the Aleutian Islands critical habitat in areas 542 and 543, west of 178° W long. is prohibited during the Atka mackerel HLA directed fisheries. (See above discussion of Atka mackerel for the definition of the HLA.) This provision reduces potential competition for prey posed by concurrent trawl fisheries in critical habitat. It also allows for easier management by NMFS of the Atka mackerel fishery during the short time period that HLA is open to directed fishing for Atka mackerel vessels. Vessels fishing in the HLA during the Atka mackerel directed fishing opening will be managed for Atka mackerel only, instead of managing directed fisheries for Atka mackerel and Pacific cod.

Closed Areas and Management Measures

The Steller sea lion protection measures include fishery closure areas designed to reduce competition with Steller sea lions, consistent with the concerns described in the 2001 BiOp. Scientific information suggests that the effects of the groundfish fisheries on Steller sea lions may be greatest around rookeries and haulouts. Fishing prohibitions around rookeries and haulouts is important to the most vulnerable Steller sea lions, lactating females, young-of-the-year, and juveniles.

Since publication of critical habitat definitions in 50 CFR 226.202, NMFS has identified 19 additional haulouts in the BSAI and the GOA as areas to be protected from fishery effects similarly to critical habitat. The Council recommended and NMFS agreed that the 19 additional haulouts should be treated in this manner to provide protection to Steller sea lions occurring in areas with the same features as areas listed as critical habitat. The majority of these sites had fishing prohibitions consistent with those for critical habitat closures sites in 2001. Cape Ivakin and Rat Island in the Aleutian Islands are two haulouts that are not listed as critical habitat and were not protected from fishing activities in 2001 in the same manner as critical habitat in the Aleutian Islands. More information and justification for including these haulouts is contained in the 2001 BiOp.

At its November 2001 meeting, the Alaska Board of Fish (BOF) accepted Steller sea lion protection measures for the State parallel fishery similar to Federal protection measures, with two exceptions. State parallel fisheries are open during the same time period as Federal directed fisheries in the EEZ.

NMFS deducts harvest amounts which occur during the State parallel fisheries from the Federal TACs. Other State-managed groundfish fisheries function exclusively under State regulations and management policies and are not accounted for by NMFS management. The single exception is the State-managed Pacific cod fishery in the Central, Western, and Prince William Sound State waters of the GOA. The Federal TACs for Pacific cod in the Western and Central districts are reduced from the ABCs by the amounts anticipated to be taken in the State-managed Pacific cod fishery. The State parallel groundfish fisheries management plan requires the Commissioner by emergency order to open and close parallel seasons and implement gear, time, and area restrictions at the same time and in the same manner as Federal managers do under the regulations implementing the FMPs. The State intends to implement Steller sea lion protection measures in the State parallel fisheries regulations that apply to State waters 0 nm to 3 nm and in Prince William Sound and Cook Inlet.

The BOF gave the Commissioner of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game emergency order authority to exempt pot fishing for Pacific cod within 0-3 nm of Caton Island and Cape Barnabus from the parallel fishery closures which are based on Federal rules. Because of the slow rate of extraction in the pot fishery and the small amount of Pacific cod harvest by this gear sector, NMFS determined through continued consultation under section 7 of the ESA that this change to the action would not result in any appreciable effects on Steller sea lions not previously considered in the 2001 BiOp.

Four haulout sites listed as critical habitat under 50 CFR 226.202 occur in the internal waters of Prince William Sound. These sites are Pt. Elrington, The Needle, Perry Island, and Pt. Eleanor. Glacier Island also occurs in Prince William Sound and is one of the 19 haulouts not listed as critical habitat. There is no Federal fishery or State parallel fishery in this area. The State-managed fisheries are closed to pollock trawling from June 1-November 1 from 0 nm to 10 nm around Pt. Elrington, The Needle, and Glacier Island. Harvest of pollock is also apportioned across three areas of Prince William Sound with no more than 40 percent of the total harvest coming from a single area. This emergency interim rule includes no protection measures for these sites inside State internal waters.

The protection measures make no changes to the existing 3 nm no-entry zones around rookeries listed in 50 CFR 223.202. Those sites that are subject to the no-entry zones under 50 CFR 223.202 are also listed in Table 21 to 50 CFR part 679 for fishing closures. However, persons should refer to 50 CFR 223.202 for the appropriate locations of the no-entry zones. In some cases those locations may be different than locations for the same sites that are also listed in Table 21 to 50 CFR part 679. NMFS will reconcile any differences between the two sets of regulations in the near future. However, until that occurs, persons are advised to refer to 50 CFR 223.202 for the proper location of no-entry zones and Table 21 to 50 CFR part 679 for proper location of sites for fishery closures. Two additional rookeries currently not designated as critical habitat are included in Table 21 for groundfish fishing closures within 3 nm of the rookeries. These sites are Wooded Island and Seal Rocks (Cordova). The 3 nm groundfish fishing closures apply to all groundfish fishing vessels and all gear types. The State-managed and parallel fisheries through emergency orders and regulations prohibit entry and/or groundfish fishing in waters within 3 nm of all of the rookeries listed on Table 21.

The RPA Committee made recommendations for closures around haulouts and rookeries dependent on the rate of decline seen at the site and historical fishing patterns. In some cases, sites with higher rates of decline received greater protection over areas with lower declines. Jig vessels are exempt from most of the closure zones beyond 3 nm of rookeries and beyond the shore around haulouts. This is due to their slow rate of extraction and small number of vessels which prosecute these fisheries. Site specific closures are detailed in Tables 21 through 24 of 50 CFR part 679 and in § 679.22. Closures apply only to federally permitted vessels. A summary of area and fishery specific closures are as follows:

Groundfish Fishery Closures

1. All rookeries listed in Table 21 of part 679 are closed to directed groundfish fishing with federally permitted vessels using any gear type from 0 nm to 3 nm.

2. Five haulout areas in the Northern Bering Sea are closed to directed fishing with federally permitted vessels for pollock, Pacific cod, and Atka mackerel with vessels using trawl, pot, or hook-and-line gear from 0 nm to 20 nm. These haulouts are Hall Island, Round (Walrus) Island, St. Lawrence Island/S. Punuk Island, St. Lawrence Island/SW Cape, and Cape Newenham. Historically, only limited fishing has occurred for the three prey species near these haulouts, and closures offer protection from developing fisheries in this area.

3. The Seguam foraging area, and the Bogoslof area are closed to pollock, Pacific cod, and Atka mackerel fishing by federally permitted vessels using any gear types. Catcher vessels less than 60 ft (18.3 m) LOA may fish for Pacific cod using hook-and-line or jig gear in the Bogoslof Pacific cod exemption area. In addition, critical habitat areas around two rookeries and four haulouts in the Chignik area are closed to pot, hook-and-line, and trawl fishing for the three species.

Aleutian Island Closures

1. The Aleutian Islands subarea is closed to pollock fishing by federally permitted vessels in 2002. Pollock fishing was prohibited in the Aleutian Islands subarea in 2000 and 2001 as part of Steller sea lion protection measures. The Council recommended and NMFS agrees with the subarea closure in 2002 to allow for additional analysis and consideration for opening the AI subarea to pollock fishing outside of critical habitat in 2003.

2. Atka mackerel fishing by federally permitted vessels is prohibited in critical habitat east of 178° W long. in the Aleutian Islands and Bering Sea subareas. Historically, Atka mackerel has been harvested outside of critical habitat east of 178° W long. Because of this, the fishery is expected to be able to harvest their allocation while providing substantial protection to Steller sea lions. West of 178° W long., Atka mackerel directed fishing by federally permitted vessels is prohibited between 0 nm and 15 nm of Buldir rookery, and prohibited between 0 nm and 10 nm of the remaining rookeries. Due to a continued steep decline in the population at Buldir greater than 10 percent, an additional 5 nm protection zone was added. Additionally, Buldir is isolated from other near shore foraging locations making it more susceptible to local depletions. Atka mackerel directed fishing by federally permitted vessesls is also prohibited between 0 nm and 3 nm of haulouts west of 178° W long. to protect near shore foraging areas.

3. Pacific cod fishing closure areas for federally permitted vessels are dependent on the gear used and location. Hook-and-line and pot vessels are prohibited from fishing (1) in critical habitat east of 173° W long. to the western boundary of the Bogoslof area to reduce gear conflicts with trawl

vessels, (2) 0 nm to 10 nm of Buldir rookery, and (3) 0 nm to 20 nm of Agligadak rookery. Increased protection around Agligadak is established because this site has a high rate of Steller sea lion count declines. Due to limited extraction rates by hook-and-line and pot vessels, closures are limited to 0 nm to 3 nm around rookeries.

Pacific cod trawl closures for federally permitted vessels in the Aleutian Islands include (1) east of 178° W long. between 0 nm and 10 nm of rookeries, except Agligadak rookery which is closed 0 nm to 20 nm, and between 0 nm and 3 nm of haulouts, and (2) west of 178° W long., between 0 nm and 20 nm around haulouts and rookeries until the Atka mackerel HLA fishery is completed. After the HLA fishery for Atka mackerel is closed for the season, Pacific cod trawling is prohibited 0 nm to 3 nm of haulouts and 0 nm to 10 nm of rookeries. Trawl closures are more extensive around haulouts and rookeries due to higher removal rates and large extractions by trawl gear. Increased protection around Agligadak rookery is established because this site has a high rate of Steller sea lion decline.

Bering Sea Closures

1. Atka mackerel directed fishing by federally permitted vessels is prohibited in critical habitat in the Bering Sea subarea. This will provide protection to Steller sea lions by reducing the potential for competition for Atka mackerel prey.

2. Pollock directed fishing by federally permitted vessels is prohibited (a) between 0 nm and 10 nm of all rookeries and haulouts, except four Pribilof haulouts which are closed between 0 nm and 3 nm, (b) in the Bering Sea Pollock Restriction area during the A season, and (c) non-CDQ trawl catcher/processors are prohibited from fishing in the CVOA during the B season (June 10-November 1) to reduce the rate and amount of harvest in critical habitat. No Steller sea lions were observed during the last NMFS survey of the Pribilof haulouts in 1991; therefore, the Council recommended and NMFS concurs that these haulouts do not require 10 nm protection zones. The Pribilof Islands Conservation Zone described at § 679.22(a)(6) is a trawl closure area, which encompasses some of the Steller sea lion critical habitat areas. Five haulouts and one rookery are located in the Bering Sea Pollock Restriction Area. This area is closed to pollock fishing in the A season to provide protection to Steller sea lions in the near shore foraging areas during the most critical time of the year.

3. Pacific cod closures for federally permitted vessels are dependent on the type of gear used. Fishing for Pacific cod with vessels using trawl gear is prohibited between 0 nm and 10 nm around all rookeries and haulouts, except for the four Pribilof haulouts that are closed between 0 nm and 3 nm. All hook-and-line and pot gear vessels are prohibited from fishing between 0 nm and 3 nm of rookeries and haulouts, except the Amak rookery which is closed to hook-and-line and pot gear from 0 nm to 7 nm.

In 2001, the closures around rookeries in the Bering Sea subarea were 10 nm for vessels greater than 60 ft (18.3 m) LOA using nontrawl gear to harvest Pacific cod. For 2002, closure areas are 3 nm, a reduction from the 10 nm based on the lower rate of extraction by vessels using nontrawl gear. As stated earlier in the preamble, the Bogoslof area is closed to pollock, Pacific cod, and Atka mackerel directed fishing. The rest of the Bering Sea subarea, except within 3 nm of rookeries, has been open to Pacific cod nontrawl fisheries during the same time period that the non-pup counts have been increasing. Regardless, for the Bering Sea subarea, an amount of critical habitat closure was the target for designing the protection measures that apply to the Pacific cod nontrawl fisheries. Large amounts of this target were accounted for in the closures of the northern haulouts and the Bogoslof area. Amak rookery is closed out to 7 nm. The extension beyond 3 nm was important to reach an annual BS subarea critical habitat closure amount based on the total area.

A small exemption area was established in the southern portion of the Bogoslof area for catcher vessels less than 60 ft (18.3 m) LOA using hook-and-line or jig gear for directed fishing for Pacific cod. This area includes all water of the Bering Sea south of a line connecting a point 3 nm north of Bishop Pt. to Cape Tanak. The Bishop Pt. 10 nm closure area remains in effect for these vessels in the Bogoslof area. The amount of Pacific cod harvested from the exemption area is limited to 113 mt to minimize the possibility of localized depletion of Pacific cod. This exemption will allow a small number of vessels from the Dutch Harbor area a relatively safe location to harvest Pacific cod and will reduce the potential for gear conflicts east of Bishop Pt. These vessels have limited opportunities because there is no Pacific cod State-managed fishery in the Dutch Harbor area, and some vessels are constrained by their license limitation permit from fishing in Gulf of Alaska waters.

A 0-10 nm closure is also established around Bishop Pt. and Reef/Lava haulouts for vessels greater than or equal to 60 ft (18.3 m) LOA using hook-and-line gear. This restriction was added to reduce the possibility of gear conflicts between hook-and-line and pot vessels in the Pacific cod fishery and to provide added protection to Steller sea lions by reducing fishing effort near these haulouts.

Gulf of Alaska Closures

1. Atka mackerel directed fishing by federally permitted vessels is prohibited in the GOA subarea. Biomass has been insufficient to support a directed fishery for the past several years.

2. Pollock and Pacific cod directed fishing by federally permitted vessels using trawl gear is closed between 0 nm and 10 nm or 20 nm around most haulouts and rookeries year round. Exceptions include: (a) Marmot Island rookery is closed between 0 nm and 15 nm during the first half of the year and between 0 nm and 20 nm during the second half of the year, (b) Gull Point and Ugak Island are closed between 0 nm and 3 nm in the second half of the year, (c) Cape Barnabus, Cape Ikolik, Mitrofania, Spitz, Whaleback, Sea Lion Rocks, Mountain Point, Castle Rock, and Canton haulouts are closed between 0 nm and 3 nm, and (d) Pinnacle Rocks rookery is closed between 0 nm and 3 nm.

Marmot Island is closed between 0 nm and 15 nm in the first half of the year to allow the pollock fishing fleet access to pollock that are likely to have roe and are more valuable. Marmot Island is closed between 0 nm and 20 nm in the second half of the year. Closures are reduced to 3 nm around a number of sites in the GOA year round or for the B season to provide opportunities for fishing by small, local trawl fleets that have historically fished near these sites in consideration of national standard 8 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act. These sites are located in areas that have lower rates of decline for non-pups since 1991 than other areas of the GOA. The rate of extraction by the small vessel trawl fleet is expected to be small enough to avoid any localized depletion of prey for Steller sea lions.

3. Directed fishing for Pacific cod with federally permitted vessels using hook-and-line or pot gear is prohibited: (a) 0 nm to 10 nm or 20 nm of all rookeries except for Seal Rocks, Wooded Island, Atkins, Chernabura, Clubbing Rocks, and Pinnacle Rock which are closed 0 nm to 3 nm; (b) 0 nm to 20 nm around Sutwik, Nagai Rocks, Lighthouse Rocks, and Kak haulouts; (c) 0 nm to 3 nm around Cape Barnabus, Cape Ikolik,

Mitrofania, Spitz, Whaleback, Sea Lion Rocks, Mountain Point, Castle Rock, and Canton haulouts; (d) 0 nm to 10 nm around haulouts between 170° W and 164°30′00″ W long. for hook-and-line; and (e) 0 nm to 20 nm around haulouts between 170° W and 164°30′00″ W long. for pot gear.

Closures around sites in the area of Chignik are to 20 nm to increase the overall closure area for the GOA. This area also has one of the higher rates of Steller sea lion non-pup count declines in the GOA since 1991, making it an area of greater potential sensitivity to fishing activities. In accordance with national standard 8 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, sustained participation of the communities in the Pacific cod fishery in this area was considered by the RPA Committee and Council. Historically, Pacific cod available in the State-managed fishery has not been fully harvested. Even with the Federal fishery closure, opportunity still exists for Pacific cod fishing with vessels using pot or jig gear under the State-managed fishery. With these gear type fisheries available under the State of Alaska managed fishery and jig fishing available under the Federal fishery, the closure of this area should not pose excessive economic hardship on the residents of the small communities which use these fishing grounds.

Vessel Monitoring Systems

To ensure vessels are complying with area restrictions, § 679.7 prohibits all vessels permitted to directed fish for Pacific cod, pollock, or Atka mackerel with trawl, hook-and-line, or pot gear from directed groundfish fishing or fishing for halibut IFQ unless they have an operable VMS at all times that the Atka mackerel, Pacific cod, or pollock directed fisheries they have permits for are open. This is necessary to meet one of the reasonable and prudent measures detailed in the 2001 BiOp requiring that NMFS have the capability to detect illegal fishing activity inside closed areas. Halibut IFQ is included in the prohibition because many Pacific cod vessels may also be used for halibut IFQ fishing and not just groundfish harvest. This emergency interim rule makes this requirement effective 1200 hours, A.l.t., June 10, 2002, to allow the vessel owners time to purchase and install VMS equipment. The Atka mackerel fishing fleet is currently equipped with VMS, as required by § 679.7(c)(3). Jig vessels are exempt from this requirement due to the fact they generally are not restricted except within 3 nm of rookeries (no fishing zones in Table 21 to 50 CFR part 679) and in the Seguam foraging and Bogoslof areas. Before groundfish fishing, vessel owners will also be required to inform NMFS of the VMS transponder ID number and the vessel on which the transponder will be used so that equipment operation can be confirmed.

The Chiniak Gully Pollock Research Program

The Council endorsed a research project proposed by NMFS in the Chiniak Gully off Kodiak Island to determine the effect of pollock fisheries on pollock school dynamics and the likelihood of localized depletions. The experiment includes the closure of Chiniak Gully to trawl fishing from August 1 to no later than September 20. A more detailed description of the experiment is provided in the draft environmental assessment/regulatory impact review/final regulatory flexibility analysis for the proposed rule to implement a seasonal closure of a portion of the Central Regulatory Area, GOA, to vessels using trawl gear (65 FR 41044, July 3, 2000). For copies of these documents, please contact NMFS (see

ADDRESSES

). This experiment was implemented by emergency interim rule in 2001 (66 FR 37167, July 17, 2001). This emergency interim rule continues the implementation of this experiment including trawl closures necessary to conduct the experiment.

National Standards

A summary of how this action addresses relevant national standards under the Magnuson-Stevens Act follows. The Assistant Administrator for Fisheries finds that the Steller sea lion protection measures recommended by the Council meet the applicable national standards.

National Standard 1.

Achieving optimum yield while preventing overfishing. The harvesting of pollock, Atka mackerel, and Pacific cod will be controlled so that directed fishing will stop if the biomass falls to below 20 percent of the unfished projected biomass. This will ensure that prey is available to Steller sea lions and that fish stocks may be maintained for optimal yield without the likelihood of overfishing. NMFS determined in the 2001 BiOp that the harvest control in this emergency interim rule is protective of Steller sea lions and their designated critical habitat and is consistent with this national standard.

National Standard 2.

Use of best scientific information available. NEPA and ESA analyses of this action were based on the latest reliable information available regarding Steller sea lion mortality, diet, foraging behavior, count data, and recent scientific review of the Comprehensive BiOp and the draft 2001 BiOp. The RPA Committee and Council carefully considered these analyses during the development of their recommendations for Steller sea lion protection measures. The standard has been met because NMFS used the best available scientific information, meeting this national standard.

National Standard 3.

Manage an individual stock of fish or interrelated stocks of fish as a unit throughout its range. Groundfish stocks are continuing to be managed under the Steller sea lion protection measures as units based on species and occurrence, and stock assessment information continues to be used in these management decisions. NMFS also works closely with the State of Alaska in managing fish stocks that occur across Federal and State waters as individual units. As an example, GOA Pacific cod acceptable biological catch (ABC) accommodates both a Federal fishery and a State-managed cod fishery. Further, the State opens and closes State waters consistent with the management of the groundfish fisheries in Federal waters.

National Standard 4.

Fair and equitable allocation to individuals, corporations, or other entities. The RPA Committee was comprised of representatives from different regions and types of fisheries so that differential effects of changes to pollock, Pacific cod, and Atka mackerel were considered as the Steller sea lion protection measures were developed. The draft SEIS and public comments from fishing industry representatives and communities also were considered by the RPA Committee and Council before finalizing recommended protection measures. This allowed the RPA committee and Council to consider the impacts of the protection measures on different sectors of the fishing industry and on different communities and to take steps to fairly distribute the impacts so that no one sector or community suffered an excessive adverse economic impact. NMFS determined through SEIS analysis that the process described above provided recommendations that led to fair and equitable allocation of the impacts of the protection measures.

National Standard 5.

Efficiency of using fishery resources. The RPA Committee and Council considered the efficiency of using the fishing resources when developing the Atka mackerel platooning management, and for setting closure areas and seasons for the pollock, Atka mackerel, and Pacific cod fisheries. Within the limitations of protection measures, the fisheries

management measures were developed to ensure that as much of the available TAC as possible could be harvested with the least amount of effort. NMFS has determined that fishing will take place in a manner that protects Steller sea lions and their critical habitat and minimizes disruption to fisheries and allows for efficient use of resources.

National Standard 6.

Consideration of variations among and contingencies in fisheries, fishery resources, and catches. The RPA Committee process ensured that the Steller sea lion protection measures were developed with understanding of the variations in fishing activities in the different areas and for different species and variations in the abundance of different fish stocks in different areas. NMFS determined that the protection measures were developed taking variations into consideration, consistent with this national standard.

National Standard 7.

Minimize cost and avoid unnecessary duplication. The economic analysis in the SEIS for the Steller sea lion protection measures shows that the protection measures in this emergency interim rule minimized the cost to the industry while protecting Steller sea lions and their critical habitat. Based on the SEIS analysis, NMFS determined that the protection measures are consistent with this national standard.

National Standard 8.

Consider the importance of fishing resources to fishing communities. Part of the SEIS analysis included socioeconomic impacts of the action and alternatives on small communities. Several provisions in the protection measures allow small vessels and vessels with nontrawl gear to fish near their home ports to ensure small community access to the fishing resources. Provisions in the protection measures also allow for fishing opportunities for small coastal communities in Alaska by providing for year long Atka mackerel fishing seasons and by allowing access to fishing areas used by these communities.

At its October 2001 meeting, the Council did recognize that its preferred alternative would impose costs and burdens, particularly on some small coastal communities and associated fishing fleets. The Council expressed its intent to explore management measures intended to provide further relief to these sectors, yet meet the requirements of applicable law. Council consideration of these measures is scheduled for its April 2002 meeting. NMFS determined that the impact of the protection measures in this emergency interim rule on fishing communities was considered in developing the Council's recommendation, consistent with this national standard.

National Standard 9.

Reduce bycatch. In designing the protection measures, the RPA Committee considered areas and timing of fishing to address concerns about potential increases in bycatch in the Atka mackerel, pollock, and Pacific cod fisheries. The Atka mackerel additional harvest in the harvest limit area in 2002 is expected to reduce the amount of rockfish bycatch, normally encountered outside of critical habitat. Salmon bycatch will be evaluated in 2002 as the SCA is opened where salmon bycatch is known to occur, but the pollock fishing industry is implementing incentive measures to reduce bycatch. The regulations will continue to have bycatch closure areas for crab, herring, and salmon and prohibited species catch limits as detailed in Part II of this preamble. NMFS has determined through SEIS analysis that the protection measures minimize bycatch to the extent possible while providing protection to Steller sea lions and minimizing adverse economic impacts on the fisheries.

National Standard 10.

Safety. Several provisions in the protection measures allow small vessels to fish near their home ports or in near shore waters that are more protected from bad weather than off shore waters. Some examples include the Bogoslof Pacific cod exemption area and Pacific cod nontrawl fishery in the Sand Point and King Cove area near haulouts.

Part II. Specifications

The FMP and its implementing regulations require NMFS, after consultation with the Council, to specify annually the TAC for each target species and for the “other species” category, the sum of which must be within the optimum yield range of 1.4 million to 2.0 million metric tons (mt) for the BSAI and within the optimum yield range of 116,000 mt to 800,000 mt for the GOA (§ 679.20(a)(1)).

NMFS is establishing the 2002 TAC specifications for the BSAI and GOA by this emergency interim rule. The normal procedure of publishing proposed, interim, and final TAC specifications was not followed in 2002 because the information needed to establish the harvest specifications did not become available until mid-November and the Council recommendations were not received by NMFS until December 11, 2001. Analysis of the action and the preparation of the

Federal Register

notification could not be completed until the Council recommendations were received for the final specifications as well as the Steller sea lion protection measures, of which the specifications are an integral part and must be in place by January 1, 2002, to allow the orderly commencement of the 2002 groundfish fisheries. Accordingly, it is impracticable to provide prior notice and an opportunity for public comment, or to delay for 30 days the effective date of this rule. Further, it would be contrary to the public interest to delay the start of the season to allow for prior notice, an opportunity for public comment, and for a 30-day delay in the effective date.

This emergency interim rule includes the following provisions for the BSAI and GOA: (1) AFA measures; (2) specifications of overfishing level (OFL), ABC, and TAC for each groundfish species category; (3) apportionments of reserves; (4) allocations of the sablefish TAC to vessels using hook-and-line and trawl gear; (5) apportionments of pollock TAC among regulatory areas, seasons, and allocations among different industry sectors including Bering Sea fishery cooperatives; (6) apportionments of Pacific cod TAC among regulatory areas, seasons, and allocations among different industry sectors; (7) apportionment of Atka mackerel in the BSAI among seasons, gear, and regulatory areas; (8) PSC limits; (9) fishery and seasonal apportionments of the Pacific halibut PSC limits; (10) fishery apportionments of other PSC limits in the BSAI; (11) Pacific halibut assumed discard mortality rates; (12) groundfish harvest and PSC limitations for AFA vessels; (13) closures to directed fishing for specified groundfish targets; (14) AFA measures for inshore and offshore component participation, crab harvesting, and observer requirements; and (15) an increase in the contribution of arrowtooth flounder to the CDQ non-specific reserve. A discussion of these measures follows.

AFA Measures

AFA prohibitions on crab harvesting and processing are continued with this emergency interim rule. In § 679.7, catcher vessels must have a sideboard endorsement for BSAI crab to retain crab and can not exceed the processing limits. These prohibitions are necessary to limit the advantage of AFA pollock fishery participants over open access crab fishery participants.

Another AFA measure maintained with this emergency interim rule under § 679.7 is prohibiting the participation in both the inshore and offshore component during a fishing year. This is necessary to maintain the Council's inshore and offshore policy of harvest allocation in the GOA.

Observer coverage requirements for AFA vessels in § 679.50(c)(4)(vi) are continued with this emergency interim rule to maintain consistency between observer requirements in the CDQ fishery and the AFA fishery where the same vessels are used and the same level of observer coverage is needed. This will allow for smoother transitions between the two types of fisheries.

Acceptable Biological Catch (ABC) and TAC Specifications

The final ABC levels are based on the best available scientific information, including projected biomass trends, information on assumed distribution of stock biomass, and revised technical methods used to calculate stock biomass. The FMPs specify the formulas, or tiers, to be used in computing ABCs and overfishing levels. The formulas applicable to a particular stock or stock complex are determined by the level of reliable information available to fishery scientists. This information is categorized into a successive series of six tiers.

In December 2001, the Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC), Advisory Panel (AP), and Council reviewed current biological information about the condition of groundfish stocks in the BSAI and GOA. This information was compiled by the Council's Plan Teams and is presented in the final 2002 SAFE reports for the BSAI and GOA groundfish fisheries, dated November 2001 (See

ADDRESSES

). The SAFE reports contain a review of the latest scientific analyses and estimates of each species' biomass and other biological parameters, as well as summaries of the available information on the BSAI and GOA ecosystem and the economic condition of groundfish fisheries off Alaska. From these data and analyses, the Plan Teams estimate an ABC for each species or species category.

The Council considered the ecological, socioeconomic, and ecosystem information in the SAFE reports, recommendations from its SSC and AP, as well as public testimony when recommending ABCs and TACs at its December 2001 meeting.

The final specifications are set forth in Tables 3 through 29 of this action. For 2002, the sum of TACs is 2 million mt in the BSAI and 237,890 mt in the GOA.

Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area

In December 2001, the SSC, AP, and Council reviewed the BSAI Plan Team's recommendations for OFL and ABC levels. Except for Bogoslof pollock, and the “other species” category, the SSC, AP, and Council endorsed the Plan Team's ABC recommendations. Based on the best available information, the SSC recommended a lower ABC for Bogoslof pollock and a slightly higher ABC for the “other species” category than the Plan Team recommended. For Bogoslof pollock, the SSC agrees with the Plan Team recommended ABC. The Plan Team recommended splitting the “other species” category into sculpins, skates, sharks and octopus with individual group ABCs based on mean catch since 1977. The SSC disagreed with this approach and recommended calculating the individual group ABCs, summing these ABCs to form an aggregate maximum allowable ABC and scaling the ABC down to be closer to recent TACs for the complex. For all species, the AP endorsed the ABCs recommended by the SSC, and the Council adopted the AP's recommendations.

The Council's TAC recommendations were based on the ABCs as adjusted for other biological and socioeconomic considerations, including maintaining the total TAC within the required OY range of 1.4 million to 2.0 million mt. The Council adopted the AP's TAC recommendations.

Through 2000, the “other red rockfish” complex was comprised of northern, sharpchin, rougheye, and shortraker rockfish in the Bering Sea subarea. In the Aleutian Islands subarea, this complex was split out into two groups comprised of northern/sharpchin and rougheye/shortraker rockfish. For 2002, the Council recommended species-specific BSAI OFLs and ABCs for each species in the “other red rockfish” complex to reduce the potential for one species to be fished disproportionately to its abundance and resulting in overfishing concerns. The Council also recommended that sharpchin rockfish, which were previously included in the “other red rockfish” complex, be moved into the “other rockfish” complex.

NMFS agrees with these recommendations, but will not be able to implement all of them in 2002 due to monitoring constraints in the hook-and-line gear fisheries. Shortraker and rougheye rockfish are reported by observers using a group species code, which, under current observer procedures, cannot be separated into specific species and incorporated into routine observer reports prior to the 2002 fishing year. Thus NMFS is modifying the Council's recommendation and is establishing BSAI wide OFL and ABC amounts for northern and rougheye/shortraker rockfish. The Bering Sea subarea and Aleutian Islands subarea now will be managed for CDQ and non-CDQ with one TAC group for shortraker/rougheye rockfish, a separate TAC for northern rockfish, and sharpchin rockfish will join the “other rockfish” category. Changing the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands subareas “other red rockfish” complex in this manner addresses overfishing concern by decreasing the TAC amounts. The final ABCs as recommended by the Council and modified and approved by NMFS are listed in Table 3.

As in 2001, for the CDQ fisheries, NMFS is combining the northern and shortraker/rougheye rockfish in the Bering Sea into the “other red rockfish” species category. The CDQ reserves for rockfish are 7.5 percent of the TAC. If CDQ reserves were specified for the two rockfish TAC categories, they would be 1.4 mt for Bering Sea northern rockfish and 8.7 mt for Bering Sea shortraker/rougheye rockfish. If these CDQ reserves were further divided among the six CDQ groups, the northern rockfish CDQ amounts available to each group would be between 100 kg and 325 kg. NMFS recommends not splitting out the CDQ reserves to the individual species group because these small quotas could prevent the CDQ groups from harvesting much of their other groundfish CDQs. Therefore, to avoid premature closure of the CDQ fisheries, NMFS will continue to specify the CDQ reserve for the Bering Sea “other red rockfish” complex. The CDQ reserve for this complex will be calculated as the sum of an amount equal to 7.5 percent of the TAC for Bering Sea shortraker/rougheye plus 7.5 percent of the TAC for northern rockfish, for a total of 10 mt to the CDQ reserve for the “other red rockfish” complex.

None of the Council's recommended TACs for 2002 exceeds the final ABC for any species category. NMFS finds that the Council's recommended TACs are consistent with the biological condition of groundfish stocks as described in the 2002 SAFE document and approves them with the exception of the “other red rockfish” complex. NMFS has modified the Council's TAC recommendations for this complex as described above to accommodate monitoring and reporting constraints.

For 2002, the Plan Team recommended and the AP, SSC, and NMFS agreed to separate Alaska plaice from the “other flatfish” category. Because 85 percent of the “other flatfish” category is Alaska plaice and the ABC and OFL are calculated separately for Alaska plaice and the remaining “other flatfish” species, the Plan Team recommended setting the

ABC and OFL for Alaska plaice separately from the “other flatfish” species.

Table 3 lists the 2002 OFL, ABC, TAC, initial TAC (ITAC) which is the TAC minus the reserves, and CDQ reserve amounts, overfishing levels, and initial apportionments of groundfish in the BSAI. The apportionment of TAC amounts among fisheries and seasons is discussed below.

Table 3.—2002 Acceptable Biological Catch (ABC), Total Allowable Catch (TAC), Initial TAC (ITAC), CDQ Reserve Allocation, and Overfishing Levels of Groundfish in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Area (BSAI)

1

[All amounts are in metric tons]

Species

Area

Overfishing level

ABC

TAC

ITAC

2

CDQ reserve

3

Pollock

4

Bering Sea (BS)

3,530,000

2,110,000

1,485,000

1,283,040

148,500

Aleutian Islands (AI)

31,700

23,800

1,000

900

100

Bogoslof District

46,400

4,310

100

90

10

Pacific cod

BSAI

294,000

223,000

200,000

170,000

15,000

Sablefish

5

BS

2,900

1,930

1,930

821

265

AI

3,850

2,550

2,550

541

431

Atka mackerel

BSAI

82,300

49,000

49,000

41,650

3,675

Western AI

19,700

19,700

16,745

1,478

Central AI

23,800

23,800

20,230

1,785

Eastern AI/BS

5,500

5,500

4,675

413

Yellowfin sole

BSAI

136,000

115,000

86,000

73,100

6,450

Rock sole

BSAI

268,000

225,000

54,000

45,900

4,050

Greenland turbot

BSAI

36,500

8,100

8,000

6,800

600

BS

5,427

5,360

4,556

402

AI

2,673

2,640

2,244

198

Arrowtooth flounder

BSAI

137,000

113,000

16,000

13,600

1,200

Flathead sole

BSAI

101,000

82,600

25,000

21,250

1,875

Other flatfish

6

BSAI

21,800

18,100

3,000

2,550

225

Alaska plaice

BSAI

172,000

143,000

12,000

10,200

900

Pacific ocean perch

BSAI

17,500

14,800

14,800

12,580

1,111

BS

2,620

2,620

2,227

197

AI Total

12,180

12,180

10,353

914

Western AI

5,660

5,660

4,811

425

Central AI

3,060

3,060

2,601

230

Eastern AI

3,460

3,460

2,941

260

Northern rockfish

7

BSAI

9,020

6,760

6,760

5,746

BS

19

16

(

7

)

AI

6,741

5,730

506

Shortraker/Rougheye

7

BSAI

1,369

1,028

1,028

874

BS

116

99

(

7

)

AI

912

775

68

Other rockfish

8

BS

482

361

361

307

27

AI

901

676

676

575

51

Squid

BSAI

2,620

1,970

1,970

1,675

Other species

9

BSAI

78,900

39,100

30,825

26,201

2,312

Total

4,974,242

3,184,085

2,000,000

1,717,399

187,504

1

Amounts are in metric tons. These amounts apply to the entire Bering Sea (BS) and Aleutian Islands (AI) management area unless otherwise specified. With the exception of pollock, and for the purpose of these specifications, the Bering Sea subarea includes the Bogoslof District.

2

Except for pollock, squid, and the portion of the sablefish TAC allocated to hook-and-line or pot gear, 15 percent of each TAC is put into a reserve. The ITAC for each species is the remainder of the TAC after the subtraction of the reserve.

3

Except for pollock and the hook-and-line or pot gear allocation of sablefish, one half of the amount of the TACs placed in reserve, or 7.5 percent of the TACs, is designated as a CDQ reserve for use by CDQ participants (see § 679.31).

4

The American Fisheries Act (AFA) requires that 10 percent of the annual pollock TAC be allocated as a directed fishing allowance for the CDQ sector. NMFS then subtracts 4 percent of the remainder as an incidental catch allowance of pollock, which is not apportioned by season or area. The remainder is further allocated by sector as follows: inshore, 50 percent; catcher/processor, 40 percent; and motherships, 10 percent. NMFS, under regulations at § 679.24(b)(4), prohibits nonpelagic trawl gear to engage in directed fishing for non-CDQ pollock in the BSAI.

5

The ITAC for sablefish reflected in Table 3 is for trawl gear only. Regulations at § 679.20(b)(1) do not provide for the establishment of an ITAC for the hook-and-line or pot gear allocation for sablefish. Twenty percent of the sablefish TAC allocated to hook-and-line gear or pot gear and 7.5 percent of the sablefish TAC allocated to trawl gear is reserved for use by CDQ participants (see § 679.31(c)).

6

“Other flatfish” includes all flatfish species, except for Pacific halibut (a prohibited species), flathead sole, Greenland turbot, rock sole, yellowfin sole, arrowtooth flounder, and Alaska Plaice.

7

The CDQ reserves for shortraker, rougheye, and northern rockfish will continue to be managed as the “other red rockfish” complex for the BS. For 2002 the CDQ reserve for the “other red rockfish” complex is 10 mt.

8

“Other rockfish” includes all

Sebastes

and

Sebastolobus

species except for Pacific ocean perch, northern, shortraker, and rougheye rockfish.

9

“Other species” includes sculpins, sharks, skates and octopus. Forage fish, as defined at § 679.2, are not included in the “other species” category.

Reserves and the Pollock Incidental Catch Allowance (ICA)

Regulations at § 679.20(b)(1)(i) require that 15 percent of the TAC for each target species or species group, except for the hook-and-line and pot gear allocation of sablefish, be placed in a non-specified reserve. The AFA supersedes this provision for pollock by requiring that the 2002 TAC for this species be fully allocated among the CDQ program, the ICA, inshore, catcher/processor, and mothership directed fishery allowances.

Regulations at § 679.20(b)(1)(iii) require that one-half of each TAC amount placed in the non-specified reserve, with the exception of squid, be allocated to the groundfish CDQ reserve and that 20 percent of the hook-and-line and pot gear allocation of sablefish be allocated to the fixed gear sablefish CDQ reserve. Section 206(a) of the AFA requires that 10 percent of the pollock TAC be allocated to the pollock CDQ reserve. With the exception of the hook-and-line and pot gear sablefish CDQ reserve, the regulations do not further apportion the CDQ reserves by gear. Regulations at § 679.21(e)(1)(i) also require that 7.5 percent of each PSC limit, with the exception of herring, be withheld as a prohibited species quota (PSQ) reserve for the CDQ fisheries. Regulations governing the management of the CDQ and PSQ reserves are set forth at §§ 679.30 and 679.31.

Under section 206(b) of the AFA, NMFS allocates a pollock ICA of 4 percent of the pollock TAC after subtraction of the 10 percent CDQ reserve. This is unchanged from the 4 percent ICA specified for 2001. The 2002 allowance is based on an examination of the incidental catch of pollock in non-pollock target fisheries from 1997 through 2001. During this 4-year period, the incidental catch of pollock ranged from a low of 3 percent in 1998 to a high of about 6 percent in 1997, with a 4-year average of 4 percent. In 2001, the actual incidental catch was only 3 percent of the TAC which resulted in 12,000 mt of pollock reallocated to the directed fishing allowance for non-CDQ fisheries in the fall (66 FR 49146, September 26, 2001). Based on this experience, NMFS believes that a 2002 ICA of 4 percent is appropriate, because the biomass has increased for 2002 to 2.1 million tons and there is the potential for increased bycatch of pollock in other groundfish fisheries.

The regulations do not designate the remainder of the non-specified reserve by species or species group, and any amount of the reserve may be reapportioned to a target species or to the “other species” category during the year, providing that such reapportionments do not result in overfishing. The Regional Administrator has determined that the ITACs specified for the species listed in Table 4 need to be supplemented from the non-specified reserve because U.S. fishing vessels have demonstrated the capacity to harvest the full TAC allocations. Therefore, in accordance with § 679.20(b)(3), NMFS is apportioning the amounts shown in Table 4 from the non-specified reserve to increase the ITAC to an amount that is equal to TAC minus the CDQ reserve.

Table 4.—Apportionment of Reserves to ITAC Categories

[All amounts are in metric tons]

Species—area or subarea

Reserve amount

Final ITAC

Atka mackerel—Western Aleutian District

1,478

18,223

Atka mackerel—Central Aleutian District

1,785

22,015

Atka mackerel—Eastern Aleutian District and Bering Sea subarea

413

5,088

Pacific ocean perch—Western Aleutian District

425

5,236

Pacific ocean perch—Central Aleutian District

230

2,831

Pacific ocean perch—Eastern Aleutian District

260

3,201

Pacific cod—BSAI

15,000

185,000

Northern rockfish—Aleutian Islands subarea

506

6,236

Shortraker/Rougheye rockfish—Aleutian Islands subarea

68

843

Greenland turbot—Bering Sea subarea

402

4,958

Greenland turbot—Aleutian Islands subarea

198

2,442

Total

20,765

256,076

Pollock Allocations Under the AFA

Section 206(a) of the AFA requires the allocation of 10 percent of the BSAI pollock TAC as a directed fishing allowance to the CDQ program. The remainder of the BSAI pollock TAC, after the subtraction of an allowance for the incidental catch of pollock by vessels, including CDQ vessels, harvesting other groundfish species, must be allocated as follows: 50 percent to catcher vessels harvesting pollock for processing by the inshore component, 40 percent to catcher/processors and catcher vessels harvesting pollock for processing by catcher/processors in the offshore component, and 10 percent to catcher vessels harvesting pollock for processing by motherships in the offshore component. These amounts are listed in Table 5.

The AFA also contains several specific requirements concerning pollock and pollock allocations. First, paragraph 210(c) of the AFA requires that not less than 8.5 percent of the pollock allocated to vessels for processing by offshore catcher/processors be available for harvest by offshore catcher vessels listed in section 208(b) harvesting pollock for processing by offshore catcher/processors listed in paragraph 208(e). Second, paragraph 208(e)(21) of the AFA specifies that catcher/processors eligible to fish for pollock under such paragraph are prohibited from harvesting in the aggregate a total of more than one-half of a percent (0.5 percent) of the pollock allocated to vessels for processing by offshore catcher/processors. Third, paragraph 210(e)(1) of the AFA specifies that no particular individual, corporation, or other entity may harvest, through a fishery cooperative or otherwise, a total of more than 17.5 percent of the pollock available to be harvested in the directed pollock fishery. Other provisions of the AFA, including inshore pollock cooperative allocations and AFA harvest limitations are discussed later in this section. Table 5 lists the 2001 allocations of pollock TAC as described by the AFA.

SCA Harvest Limits

The harvest within the SCA, as defined at § 679.22(a)(11), is limited to 28 percent of the annual directed fishing allowance (DFA) until April 1. The remaining 12 percent of the annual DFA allocated to the A season may be taken outside of the SCA before April 1 or inside the SCA after April 1. If the 28 percent of the annual DFA is not taken inside the SCA before April 1, the remainder is available to be taken inside the SCA after April 1. The A season pollock SCA harvest limit will be apportioned to each industry sector in proportion to each sector's allocated percentage of the DFA as set forth in the AFA. These amounts, by sector, are listed in Table 5.

Table 5.—Allocations of the Pollock TAC and Directed Fishing Allowance (DFA) to the Inshore, Catcher/Processor, Mothership, and CDQ Components

1

[All amounts are in metric tons]

Area and sector

2002 DFA

A Season

1

A DFA

(40% of annual DFA)

B Season

1,2

SCA limit

3

B DFA

(60% of annual DFA)

Bering Sea subarea

1,485,000

594,000

891,000

CDQ

148,500

59,400

41,580

89,100

ICA

4

53,460

AFA Inshore

641,520

256,608

179,626

384,912

AFA C/Ps

5

513,216

205,286

143,700

307,930

Catch by C/Ps

469,593

187,837

281,756

Catch by CVs

5

43,623

17,449

26,174

Restricted C/P cap

6

2,566

1,026

1,540

AFA Motherships

128,304

51,322

35,925

76,982

Excessive shares cap

7

224,532

Aleutian Islands:

ICA

8

900

Bogoslof District:

ICA

8

90

1

After subtraction for the CDQ reserve and the incidental catch allowance, the pollock TAC is allocated as a DFA as follows: inshore component—50 percent, catcher/processor component—40 percent, and mothership component—10 percent. Under paragraph 206(a) of the AFA, the CDQ reserve for pollock is 10 percent. NMFS, under regulations at § 679.24(b)(4), prohibits nonpelagic trawl gear to engage in directed fishing for non-CDQ pollock in the BSAI. The A season, January 20—June 10, is allocated 40 percent of the DFA and the B season, June 10—November 1 is allocated 60 percent of the DFA.

2

This emergency interim rule expires on July 8, 2002, before the B season will conclude. Therefore, the B season is not fully authorized unless the emergency interim rule is extended.

3

The SCA limits harvest to 28 percent of each sectors annual DFA until April 1. The remaining 12 percent of the annual DFA allocated to the A season may be taken outside of the SCA before April 1 or inside the SCA after April 1. If the 28 percent of the annual DFA is not taken inside the SCA before April 1, the remainder is available to be taken inside the SCA after April 1.

4

The pollock incidental catch allowance for the BS subarea is 4 percent of the TAC after subtraction of the CDQ reserve.

5

Subsection 210(c) of the AFA requires that not less than 8.5 percent of the directed fishing allowance allocated to listed catcher/processors (C/Ps) shall be available for harvest only by eligible catcher vessels (CVs) delivering to listed catcher/processors.

6

The AFA requires that vessels described in section 208(e)(21) be prohibited from exceeding a harvest amount of one-half of one percent of the directed fishing allowance allocated to vessels for processing by AFA catcher/processors.

7

Paragraph 210(e)(1) of the AFA specifies that “No particular individual, corporation, or other entity may harvest, through a fishery cooperative or otherwise, a total of more than 17.5 percent of the pollock available to be harvested in the directed pollock fishery.”

8

Consistent with the Steller sea lion protection measures, the Aleutian Islands subarea and the Bogoslof District are closed to directed fishing for pollock. The amounts specified are for incidental catch amounts only, and are not apportioned by season or sector.

Allocation of the Atka Mackerel TAC

Regulations implementing Steller sea lion protection measures at § 679.20(a)(8)(ii) apportion the Atka mackerel ITAC into two equal seasonal allowances. After subtraction of the jig gear allocation, the first allowance is made available for directed fishing from January 1 to April 15 (A season), and the second seasonal allowance is made available from September 1 to November 1 (B season) (Table 6). Under § 679.20(a)(8)(ii)(C)(1), the Regional Administrator will establish a harvest limit area (HLA) limit of no more than 60 percent of the seasonal TAC for the Western and Central Aleutian Districts. Pacific cod harvest by trawl gear in the Aleutian Islands HLA in 542 and 543, west of 178° W long. is prohibited during the Atka mackerel HLA directed fisheries. Atka mackerel fishing is prohibited in critical habitat east of 178° W long. to provide maximum protection to Steller sea lions and because Atka mackerel is readily available in waters outside of critical habitat.

Under § 679.20(a)(8)(i), up to 2 percent of the Eastern Aleutian District and the Bering Sea subarea Atka mackerel ITAC may be allocated to the jig gear fleet. The Council determines the amount of this allocation annually, based on several criteria including the anticipated harvest capacity of the jig gear fleet. In December 2001, the Council recommended that 1 percent of the Atka mackerel TAC in the Eastern Aleutian District and Bering Sea subarea be allocated to the jig gear fleet based on historic harvest capacity of the fleet. NMFS finds that this is consistent with the status of the stock and with the regulatory framework stated above. Based on an ITAC of 5,088 mt, the jig gear allocation is 51 mt.

A platoon system to reduce the amount of daily catch in critical habitat by about half and to disperse the fishery over two areas is discussed in the Steller sea lion protection measures part of this emergency interim rule and found in the regulations at § 679.20(a)(8)(iii).

Table 6.—Seasonal and Spatial Apportionments, Gear Shares, and CDQ Reserve of the BSAI ATKA Mackerel TAC

(All amounts are in metric tons)

Subarea and component

TAC

CDQ reserve

ITAC

1

Seasonal appointment

2

A Season

3

Total

HLA Limit

5

B Season

4

Total

HLA Limit

5

Western Aleutian District (543)

19,700

1,478

18,223

9,111

5,467

9,111

5,467

Central Aleutian District (542)

23,800

1,785

22,015

11,008

6,605

11,008

6,605

Eastern AI/BS subarea

6

5,500

413

5,088

Jig (1%)

7

51

Other gear (99%)

5,037

2,518

2,518

Total

49,000

3,676

45,326

22,637

22,637

1

The reserves have been released for Atka mackerel (See Table 4).

2

The seasonal apportionment of Atka mackerel is 50 percent in the A season and 50 percent in the B season.

3

The A season is January 1 through noon April 15.

4

The B season is September 1 through noon November 1.

5

HLA limit refers to the amount of each seasonal allowance that is available for fishing inside the HLA (§ 679.2). In 2002, 60 percent of each seasonal allowance is available for fishing inside the HLA in the Western and Central AI. Pacific cod harvest by trawl gear in the Aleutian Islands HLA in 542 and 543, west of 178°W long. is prohibited during the Atka mackerel HLA directed fisheries.

6

Eastern Aleutian Islands District and Bering Sea subarea.

7

Regulations at § 679.20(a)(8) require that up to 2 percent of the Eastern AI/BS area ITAC be allocated to the jig gear fleet. The amount of this allocation is 1 percent and was determined by the Council based on anticipated harvest capacity of the jig gear fleet. The jig gear allocation is not apportioned by season.

Allocation of the Pacific Cod TAC

Under § 679.20(a)(7), 2 percent of the Pacific cod ITAC is allocated to vessels using jig gear, 51 percent to vessels using hook-and-line or pot gear, and 47 percent to vessels using trawl gear. Under § 679.20(a)(7)(i)(B), the portion of the Pacific cod TAC allocated to trawl gear is further allocated 50 percent to catcher vessels and 50 percent to catcher/processors. Under regulations at § 679.20(a)(7)(i)(C)(

1

), a portion of the Pacific cod allocated to hook-and-line or pot gear is set aside as an ICA of Pacific cod in directed fisheries for groundfish other than Pacific cod by vessels using these gear types. Based on anticipated bycatch in these fisheries, the Council proposed an ICA of 500 mt. The remainder of Pacific cod is further allocated to vessels using hook-and-line or pot gear as the following directed fishing allowances: 80 percent to hook-and-line catcher/processor vessels, 0.3 percent to hook-and-line catcher vessels, 18.3 percent to pot gear vessels, and 1.4 percent to catcher vessels less than 60 feet (18.3 m) LOA using hook-and-line or pot gear.

Due to concerns about the potential impact of the Pacific cod fishery on Steller sea lions and their critical habitat, NMFS is implementing under this emergency interim rule temporal dispersion of fishing effort in the Pacific cod fisheries by apportioning the Pacific cod ITAC into two seasonal allowances. For most non-trawl gear the first allowance, 60 percent of the ITAC, is made available for directed fishing from January 1 to June 10, and the second seasonal allowance, 40 percent of the ITAC, is made available from June 10 to December 31. No seasonal harvest constraints are imposed for the Pacific cod fishery by catcher vessels less than 60 feet (18.3 m) LOA using hook-and-line or pot gear. For trawl gear the first season is January 20 to April 1, and 60 percent of the TAC is allocated to the first season. The second season, April 1 to June 10, and third season, June 10 to November 1, are each allocated 20 percent of the TAC. The trawl catcher vessels' allocation is further allocated as 70 percent in the first season, 10 percent in the second season and 20 percent in the third season. The trawl catcher/processors' allocation is allocated 50 percent in the first season, 30 percent in the second season, and 20 percent in the third season. Table 7 lists the 2002 allocations and seasonal apportionments of the Pacific cod ITAC.

Table 7.—2001 Gear Shares and Seasonal Apportionments of the BSAI Pacific Cod TAC

Gear sector

Percent

Share of gear sector total (mt)

Subtotal percentages for gear sectors

Share of gear sector total (mt)

Seasonal apportionment

2

Date

Amount (mt)

Total hook-and-line and pot gear allocation of Pacific cod TAC

51

94,350

Incidental Catch Allowance

500

Processor and Vessel subtotal

93,850

Hook-and-line Catcher Processors

80

75,080

Jan 1-Jun 10

Jun 10-Dec 31

45,048

30,032

Hook-and-line Catcher Vessels

0.3

282

Jan 1-Jun 10

Jun 10-Dec 31

169

113

Pot Gear Vessels

18.3

17,175

Jan 1-Jun 10

Sep 1-Dec 31

10,305

6,870

Catcher Vessels <60 feet LOA using Hook-and-line or Pot gear

1.4

1,314

Jan 1-Dec 31

1,314

Trawl gear Total

47

86,950

Trawl Catcher Vessel

50

43,475

Jan 1-Apr 1

Apr 1-Jun 10

Jun 10-Nov 1

30,433

4,348

8,695

Trawl Catcher Processor

50

43,475

Jan 1-Apr 1

Apr 1-Jun 10

Jun 10-Nov 1

21,738

13,043

8,695

Jig

2

3,700

Jan 1-Jun 10

Jun 10-Dec 31

2,220

1,480

Total

100

185,000

1

The reserve has been released for Pacific cod (See Table 4).

2

For non-trawl gear the first season is allocated 60 percent of the TAC and the second season is allocated 40 percent of the TAC. No seasonal harvest constraints are imposed for the Pacific cod fishery by catcher vessels less than 60 feet (18.3 m) LOA using hook-and-line or pot gear. For trawl gear, the first season is allocated 60 percent of the TAC and the second and third seasons are each allocated 20 percent of the TAC. The trawl catcher vessels' allocation is further allocated as 70 percent in the first season, 10 percent in the second season and 20 percent in the third season. The trawl catcher/processors' allocation is allocated 50 percent in the first season, 30 percent in the second season and 20 percent in the third season. Any unused portion a seasonal Pacific cod allowance will be reapportioned to the next seasonal allowance.

Allocation of the Shortraker and Rougheye Rockfish TAC

Under § 679.20(a)(9), the ITAC of shortraker rockfish and rougheye rockfish specified for the Aleutian Islands subarea is allocated 30 percent to vessels using non-trawl gear and 70 percent to vessels using trawl gear. Based on a 2002 ITAC of 844 mt, the trawl allocation is 591 mt and the non-trawl allocation is 253 mt.

Sablefish Gear Allocation

Regulations at § 679.20(a)(4)(iii) and (iv) require that sablefish TACs for the BS and AI subareas be allocated between trawl and hook-and-line or pot gear. Gear allocations of TACs for the Bering Sea subarea are 50 percent for trawl gear and 50 percent for hook-and-line or pot gear and for the Aleutian Islands subarea are 25 percent for trawl gear and 75 percent for hook-and-line or pot gear. Regulations at § 679.20(b)(1)(iii)(B) require that 20 percent of the hook-and-line and pot gear allocation of sablefish be reserved as sablefish CDQ. Additionally, regulations at § 679.20(b)(1)(iii)(A) require that 7.5 percent of the trawl gear allocation of sablefish (one half of the reserve) be reserved as groundfish CDQ. Gear allocations of the sablefish TAC and CDQ reserve amounts are specified in Table 8.

Table 8.—Gear Shares and CDQ Reserve of BSAI Sablefish TAC

[All amounts are in metric tons]

Subarea and Gear

Percent of TAC

Share of TAC

ITAC

1

CDQ Reserve

Bering Sea

Trawl

2

50

965

821

72

Hook-&-line/pot gear

3

50

965

N/A

193

Total

100

1,930

821

265

Aleutian Islands:

Trawl

2

25

637

541

48

Hook-&-line/pot gear

3

75

1,913

N/A

383

Total

100

2,550

541

431

1

Except for the sablefish hook-and-line and pot gear allocation, 15 percent of TAC is apportioned to the reserve. The ITAC is the remainder of the TAC after the subtraction of these reserves.

2

For the portion of the sablefish TAC allocated to vessels using trawl gear, one half of the reserve (7.5 percent of the specified TAC) is reserved for the multi-species CDQ program.

3

For the portion of the sablefish TAC allocated to vessels using hook-and-line or pot gear, 20 percent of the allocated TAC is reserved for use by CDQ participants. Regulations in § 679.20(b)(1) do not provide for the establishment of an ITAC for sablefish allocated to hook-and-line or pot gear.

Allocation of Prohibited Species Catch (PSC) Limits for Halibut, Crab, Salmon, and Herring

PSC limits for halibut are set in regulations at § 679.21(e). For the BSAI trawl fisheries, the limit is 3,675 mt mortality of Pacific halibut. For non-trawl fisheries, the limit is 900 mt mortality. PSC limits for crab and herring are specified annually based on abundance and spawning biomass. Regulations at § 679.21(e)(1)(vii) specify a scheduled reduction of Chinook salmon PSC limits until the final limit is reached in 2004. In 2002, the chinook salmon PSC limit for the pollock fishery is 37,000 fish.

The criteria for determining the PSC limits for red king crab in Zone 1 are set forth at § 679.21(e)(1)(ii). For 2002, the PSC limit of red king crab in Zone 1 for trawl vessels is 97,000 animals. The number of mature female red king crab

is estimated in 2002 to be above the threshold of 8.4 million animals, and the effective spawning biomass is greater than 14.5 million lb (6,577 mt) but less than 55 million lb (24,948 mt). Based on the criteria set out at § 679.21(e)(1)(ii)(B), the limit is 97,000 animals.

The criteria for determining the PSC limits for

C. bairdi

crabs are set forth in § 679.21(e)(1)(iii). The 2002

C. bairdi

PSC limit for trawl gear is 980,000 animals in Zone 1 and 2,970,000 animals in Zone 2. These limits are based on the

C. bairdi

abundance of 624 million crab from 2001 survey data because the abundance is over 400 million crabs.

Under § 679.21(e)(1)(iv), the PSC limit for

C. opilio

is based on total abundance as indicated by the NMFS annual bottom trawl survey. The

C. opilio

PSC limit is set at 0.1133 percent of the Bering Sea abundance index. Based on the 2001 survey estimate of 3.86 billion animals, the calculated limit would be 4,373,380 animals. Because this limit is less than 4.5 million, under § 679.21(e)(1)(iv)(B), the 2002

C. opilio

PSC limit is 4,350,000 animals.

Under § 679.21(e)(1)(vi), the PSC limit of Pacific herring caught while conducting any trawl operation for groundfish in the BSAI is 1 percent of the annual eastern Bering Sea herring biomass. NMFS' estimate of 2002 herring biomass is 152,574 mt. This amount was derived using 2001 survey data and an age-structured biomass projection model developed by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G). Therefore, the herring PSC limit for 2002 is 1,526 mt.

Under § 679.21(e)(1)(i), 7.5 percent of each PSC limit specified for crab and halibut is reserved as a PSQ reserve for use by the groundfish CDQ program. Regulations at § 679.21(e)(3) require the apportionment of each trawl PSC limit into PSC bycatch allowances for seven specified fishery categories. Regulations at § 679.21(e)(4)(ii) authorize the apportionment of the non-trawl halibut PSC limit among five fishery categories. The fishery bycatch allowances for the trawl and non-trawl fisheries are listed in Table 9. These amounts are unchanged from those recommended by the Council at its December 2001 meeting.

Regulations at § 679.21(e)(3)(ii)(B) establish criteria under which NMFS must specify an annual red king crab bycatch limit for the Red King Crab Savings Subarea (RKCSS). The regulations limit the RKCSS to 35 percent of the trawl bycatch allowance specified for the rock sole/flathead sole/“other flatfish” fishery category and must be based on the need to optimize the groundfish harvest relative to red king crab bycatch. The Council recommended and NMFS approves a red king crab bycatch limit equal to 35 percent of the trawl bycatch allowance specified for the flatfish fishery within the RKCSS in order to maximize harvest of groundfish relative to red king crab bycatch.

Regulations at § 679.21(e)(4)(ii) authorize exemption of specified non-trawl fisheries from the halibut PSC limit. As in past years, NMFS, after consultation with the Council, is exempting pot gear, jig gear, and the sablefish IFQ hook-and-line gear fishery categories from halibut bycatch restrictions because these fisheries use selective gear types that take few halibut compared to other gear types such as nonpelagic trawl. In 2001, total groundfish catch for the pot gear fishery in the BSAI was approximately 16,655 mt with an associated halibut bycatch mortality of about 5 mt. The 2001 groundfish jig gear fishery harvested about 74 mt of groundfish. Most vessels in the jig gear fleet are less than 60 ft (18.3 m) LOA and are exempt from observer coverage requirements. As a result, observer data are not available on halibut bycatch in the jig gear fishery. However, NMFS assumes a negligible amount of halibut bycatch mortality because of the selective nature of this gear type and the likelihood that halibut caught with jig gear have a high survival rate when released.

As in past years, the Council recommended that the sablefish IFQ fishery be exempt from halibut bycatch restrictions because of the sablefish and halibut IFQ program (subpart D of 50 CFR part 679). The sablefish IFQ program requires legal-sized halibut to be retained by vessels using hook-and-line gear if a halibut IFQ permit holder is aboard and is holding unused halibut IFQ. This action results in less halibut discard in the sablefish fishery. In 1995, about 36 mt of halibut discard mortality was estimated for the sablefish IFQ fishery. A similar estimate for 1996 through 2001 has not been calculated, but NMFS has no information indicating that it would be significantly different. NMFS approves the Council's recommendation to exempt the hook-and-line sablefish from halibut bycatch restrictions.

Regulations at § 679.21(e)(5) authorize NMFS, after consultation with the Council, to establish seasonal apportionments of PSC amounts in order to maximize the ability of the fleet to harvest the available groundfish TAC and to minimize bycatch. The factors to be considered are: (1) Seasonal distribution of prohibited species, (2) seasonal distribution of target groundfish species, (3) PSC bycatch needs on a seasonal basis relevant to prohibited species biomass, (4) expected variations in bycatch rates throughout the year, (5) expected start of fishing effort, and (6) economic effects of seasonal PSC apportionments on industry sectors. In December 2001, the Council's AP recommended seasonal PSC apportionments in order to maximize harvest among gear types, fisheries, and seasons while minimizing PSC based on the criteria above.

NMFS approves the PSC apportionments specified in Table 9 below with one change. The AP recommended and the Council accepted a July 4 seasonal allocation of PSC to the yellowfin sole, rock sole/flathead sole/“other flatfish” and rockfish fishery categories. Under § 679.21(e)(5), factor (5) expected start of fishing effort, NMFS is changing the July 4 seasonal allocation to a June 30 seasonal allocation to facilitate the inseason management of these fishery categories. The June 30 opening will allow the collection of the data NMFS requires to close a fishery before the interruption of the July 4 holiday when Federal offices are closed.

Table 9.—Prohibited Species Bycatch Allowances for the BSAI Trawl and Non-Trawl Fisheries

1

[All amounts are in metric tons]

Prohibited Species and Zone

Halibut mortality (mt) BSAI

7

Herring (mt) BSAI

Red King Crab (animals) Zone 1

C. opilio (animals) COBLZ

2

C. bairdi (animals)

Zone 1

Zone 2

Trawl Fisheries

Yellowfin sole

886

139

16,664

2,776,981

340,844

1,788,459

January 20-April 1

262

April 1-May 21

195

May 21-June 30

49

June 30-December 31

380

Rock sole/flat. sole/other flatfish

3

779

20

59,782

969,130

365,320

596,154

January 20-April 1

448

April 1-June 30

164

June 30-December 31

167

RKC savings subarea

3

20,924

Turbot/sablefish/arrowtooth

4

9

40,238

Rockfish (June 30-Dec. 31)

5

69

7

40,237

10,988

Pacific cod

1,434

20

11,664

124,736

183,112

324,176

Pollock/Atka/other

6

232

146

1,615

72,428

17,224

27,473

Midwater trawl pollock

1,184

Total Trawl PSC

3,400

1,526

89,725

4,023,750

906,500

2,747,250

Non-Trawl Fisheries

Pacific cod—Total

775

January 1-June 10

320

June 10-August 15

0

August 15-December 31

455

Other non-trawl—Total

58

May 1-December 31

58

Groundfish pot & jig

Exempt

Sablefish hook-&-line

Exempt

Total Non-Trawl

833

PSQ Reserve

8

342

7,275

326,250

73,500

222,750

Grand Total

4,575

1,526

97,000

4,350,000

980,000

2,970,000

1

Refer to § 679.2 for definitions of areas.

2

C. opilio

Bycatch Limitation Zone. Boundaries are defined at 50 CFR part 679, fig. 13.

3

The Council at its December 2001 meeting limited red king crab for trawl fisheries within the RKCSS to 35 percent of the total allocation to the rock sole/flathead sole/ “other flatfish” fishery category (§ 679.21(e)(3)(ii)(B)). “Other flatfish” for PSC monitoring includes all flatfish species, except for Pacific halibut (a prohibited species), Greenland turbot, rock sole, yellowfin sole, arrowtooth flounder.

4

Greenland turbot, arrowtooth flounder, and sablefish fishery category.

5

The Council at its December 2001 meeting apportioned the rockfish PSC amounts from June 30-December 31.

6

Pollock other than pelagic trawl pollock, Atka mackerel, and “other species” fishery category.

7

Any unused halibut PSC apportionment may be rolled into the following seasonal apportionment.

8

With the exception of herring, 7.5 percent of each PSC limit is allocated to the multi-species CDQ program as PSQ reserve. The PSQ reserve is not allocated by fishery, gear or season.

To monitor halibut bycatch mortality allowances and apportionments, the Administrator, Alaska Region, NMFS (Regional Administrator), will use observed halibut bycatch rates, assumed mortality rates, and estimates of groundfish catch to project when a fishery's halibut bycatch mortality allowance or seasonal apportionment is reached. The Regional Administrator monitors a fishery's halibut bycatch mortality allowances using assumed mortality rates that are based on the best information available, including information contained in the annual SAFE reports.

The Council recommended, and NMFS concurs, that the assumed halibut discard mortality rates (DMRs) developed by staff of the International Pacific Halibut Commission (IPHC) for the 2001 BSAI groundfish fisheries be adopted for purposes of monitoring halibut bycatch allowances established for 2002 (Table 10). Results from analysis of halibut release condition data for 2000 showed continued stability in halibut DMRs for many fisheries. Plots of annual DMRs against the 10-year mean indicated little change since 1990 for some fisheries, particularly the major trawl fisheries. DMRs were more variable for the smaller fisheries which typically take minor amounts of halibut bycatch. For 2002, the Council adopted Preseason Assumed DMRs, which included use of the long-term mean DMR for a 3-year period before revisions are proposed except for the BSAI hook-and-line Pacific cod fishery and CDQ fisheries, for which the Council recommended setting annual DMRs. The IPHC will also continue to conduct annual analyses of observer data and recommend changes to the Preseason Assumed DMR where a fishery DMR shows large variation from the mean and for the CDQ fisheries. For 2002, the BSAI hook-and-line Pacific cod fishery DMR did not change; but the CDQ fishery DMRs were adjusted. The justification for these mortality rates is discussed in the final SAFE report dated November 2001.

Table 10.—Assumed Pacific Halibut Discard Mortality Rates for the BSAI Fisheries

Fishery

Preseason Assumed discard mortality

(percent)

Hook-and-line gear fisheries:

Rockfish

25

Pacific cod

12

Greenland turbot

18

Sablefish

22

Other Species

12

Trawl gear fisheries:

Midwater pollock

84

Nonpelagic pollock

76

Yellowfin sole

81

Rock sole

76

Flathead sole

67

Other flatfish

71

Rockfish

69

Pacific cod

67

Atka mackerel

75

Greenland turbot

70

Sablefish

50

Other species

67

Pot gear fisheries:

Pacific cod

8

Other species

8

CDQ Trawl fisheries:

Atka mackerel

89

Flathead sole

83

Midwater pollock

88

Nonpelagic pollock

90

Rockfish

89

Yellowfin sole

77

CDQ Hook-and-line fisheries:

Pacific cod

13

Greenland turbot

14

CDQ Pot fisheries:

Pacific cod

7

Sablefish

38

Directed Fishing Closures

In accordance with § 679.20(d)(1)(i), if the Regional Administrator determines that any allocation or apportionment of a target species or “other species” category has been or will be reached, the Regional Administrator may establish a directed fishing allowance for that species or species group. If the Regional Administrator establishes a directed fishing allowance, and that allowance is or will be reached before the end of the fishing year, NMFS will prohibit directed fishing for that species or species group in the specified subarea or district (§ 697.20(d)(1)(iii)). Similarly, under § 679.21(e), if the Regional Administrator determines that a fishery category's bycatch allowance of halibut, red king crab, or

C. bairdi

Tanner crab for a specified area has been reached, the Regional Administrator will prohibit directed fishing for each species in that category in the specified area.

The Regional Administrator has determined that the following remaining allocation amounts will be necessary as incidental catch to support other anticipated groundfish fisheries for the 2002 fishing year:

Bogoslof District:

Pollock—90 mt

Aleutian Islands subarea:

Pollock—900 mt

Northern rockfish—6,236 mt

Shortraker/rougheye rockfish—844 mt

“Other rockfish”—575 mt

Bering Sea subarea:

Pacific ocean perch—2,227 mt

“Other rockfish”—307 mt

Northern rockfish—16 mt

Shortraker/rougheye rockfish—99 mt

Consequently, in accordance with § 679.20(d)(1)(i), the Regional Administrator establishes the directed fishing allowances for the above species or species groups as zero.

Therefore, in accordance with § 679.20(d)(1)(iii), NMFS immediately is prohibiting directed fishing for these species in the specified areas and these closures will remain in effect through 2400 hrs, Alaska local time (A.l.t.), December 31, 2002, effective January 1, 2002, through July 8, 2002.

In addition, the BSAI Zone 1 annual red king crab bycatch allowance specified for the trawl rockfish fishery (§ 679.21(e)(3)(iv)(D)) is 0 mt and the BSAI first seasonal halibut bycatch allowance specified for the trawl rockfish fishery is 0 mt. The BSAI annual halibut bycatch allowance specified for the trawl Greenland turbot/arrowtooth flounder/sablefish fishery categories, (§ 679.21(e)(3)(iv)(C)) is 0 mt. Therefore, in accordance with § 1(e)(7)(ii) and (v), NMFS is prohibiting directed fishing for rockfish by vessels using trawl gear in Zone 1 of the BSAI and directed fishing for Greenland turbot/arrowtooth flounder/sablefish by vessels using trawl gear in the BSAI for the entire 2002 fishing year. NMFS also is prohibiting directed fishing for rockfish outside Zone 1 in the BSAI until 1200 hrs, A.l.t, June 30, 2002, due to 0 amounts of halibut bycatch allowance apportioned to this fishery prior to that date.

While these closures are in effect, the maximum retainable bycatch amounts at § 679.20(e) and (f) apply at any time during a fishing trip. These closures to directed fishing are in addition to closures and prohibitions found in regulations at 50 CFR part 679. Refer to § 679.2 for definitions of areas. In the BSAI, “other rockfish” includes

Sebastes

and

Sebastolobus

species except for Pacific ocean perch, shortraker, rougheye, and northern rockfish.

BS Subarea Inshore Pollock Allocations

Under § 679.4, NMFS set out procedures for AFA inshore catcher vessel pollock cooperatives to apply for and receive cooperative fishing permits and inshore pollock allocations. NMFS received applications from seven inshore catcher vessel cooperatives. Table 11 lists the pollock allocations to the seven inshore catcher vessel pollock cooperatives that have been approved and permitted by NMFS for the 2002 fishing year. Allocations for cooperatives and vessels not participating in cooperatives are not made for the AI subarea because the AI subarea has been closed to directed fishing for pollock. These allocations may be revised based on any corrections to AFA vessels' catch history.

Table 11.—Bering Sea Subarea Inshore Cooperative Allocations

Cooperative name and member vessels

Sum of member vessel's official catch histories

1

Percentage of inshore sector allocation

(percent)

Annual co-op allocation

Akutan Catcher Vessel Association:

ALDEBARAN, ARCTIC EXPLORER, ARCTURUS, BLUE FOX, CAPE KIWANDA, COLUMBIA, DOMINATOR, EXODUS, FLYING CLOUD, GOLDEN DAWN, GOLDEN PISCES, HAZEL LORRAINE, INTREPID EXPLORER, LESLIE LEE, LISA MELINDA, MAJESTY, MARCY J, MARGARET LYN, NORDIC EXPLORER, NORTHERN PATRIOT, NORTHWEST EXPLORER, PACIFIC RAM, PACIFIC VIKING, PEGASUS, PEGGY JO, PERSEVERANCE, PREDATOR, RAVEN, ROYAL AMERICAN, SEEKER, SOVEREIGNTY, TRAVELER, VIKING EXPLORER

245,527

28.085

180,169

Arctic Enterprise Association:

BRISTOL EXPLORER, OCEAN EXPLORER, PACIFIC EXPLORER

36,807

4.210

27,009

Northern Victor Fleet Cooperative:

ANITA J, COLLIER BROTHERS, COMMODORE, EXCALIBUR II, GOLDRUSH, HALF MOON BAY, MISS BERDIE, NORDIC FURY, PACIFIC FURY, POSEIDON, ROYAL ATLANTIC, SUNSET BAY, STORM PETREL

73,656

8.425

54,049

Peter Pan Fleet Cooperative:

AMBER DAWN, AMERICAN BEAUTY, ELIZABETH F, MORNING STAR, OCEAN LEADER, OCEANIC, PROVIDIAN, TOPAZ, WALTER N

18,693

2.138

13,717

Unalaska Cooperative:

ALASKA ROSE, BERING ROSE, DESTINATION, GREAT PACIFIC, MESSIAH, MORNING STAR, MS AMY, PROGRESS, SEA WOLF, VANGUARD, WESTERN DAWN

106,737

12.209

78,324

UniSea Fleet Cooperative:

ALSEA, AMERICAN EAGLE, ARGOSY, AURIGA, AURORA, DEFENDER, GUN-MAR, NORDIC STAR, PACIFIC MONARCH, SEADAWN, STARFISH, STARLITE

201,566

23.056

147,910

Westward Fleet Cooperative:

A.J., ALASKAN COMMAND, ALYESKA, ARCTIC WIND, CAITLIN ANN, CHELSEA K, DONA MARTITA, FIERCE ALLEGIANCE, HICKORY WIND, OCEAN HOPE 3, PACIFIC KNIGHT, PACIFIC PRINCE, STARWARD, VIKING, WESTWARD I

189,544

21.681

139,089

Open access AFA vessels

1,707

0.195

1,252

Total inshore allocation

874,238

100

641,520

1

Under 679.62(e)(1) the individual catch history for each vessel is equal to the vessel's best 2 of 3 years inshore pollock landings from 1995 through 1997 and includes landings to catcher/processors for vessels that made 500 or more mt of landings to catcher/processors from 1995 through 1997.

Under § 679.20(a)(5)(i)(C), NMFS must subdivide the inshore pollock allocation into allocations for cooperatives and vessels not fishing in a cooperative (i.e., the open access sector). In addition, under § 679.22(a)(11)(vii), NMFS must establish harvest limits inside the Steller sea lion conservation area (SCA) and provide a set-aside so that catcher vessels less than or equal to 99 ft (30.2 m) LOA have the opportunity to operate entirely within the SCA during the A season. Accordingly, Table 12 lists the apportionment of the BS subarea inshore pollock allocation into allocations for vessels fishing in a cooperative and for vessels not participating in a cooperative and establishes a cooperative-sector SCA set-aside for AFA catcher vessels less than or equal to 99 ft (30.2 m) LOA. The SCA set-aside for sector catcher vessels less than or equal to 99 ft (30.2 m) LOA that are not participating in a cooperative will be established inseason based on actual participation levels and is not included in Table 12. These allocations may be revised based on any corrections to AFA vessels' catch history.

Table 12.—Bering Sea Subarea Pollock Allocations To The Cooperative and Open Access Sectors of the Inshore Pollock Fishery. Amounts are Expressed in Metric Tons

A season TAC

A season inside SCA

1

B season TAC

Cooperative sector:

Vessels > 99 ft

n/a

161,601

n/a

Vessels ≤ 99 ft

n/a

17,675

n/a

Total

256,107

179,275

384,161

Open access sector

501

2

351

751

Total inshore

256,608

179,626

384,912

1

Steller sea lion conservation area established at § 679.22(a)(11)(vii). The harvest limit for the SCA applies until April 1.

2

SCA limitations for vessels less than or equal to 99 ft LOA that are not participating in a cooperative will be established on an inseason basis in accordance with § 679.22(a)(11)iiiv)(C)(

2

) which specifies that “the Regional Administrator will prohibit directed fishing for pollock by vessels catching pollock for processing by the inshore component greater than 99 ft (30.2 m) LOA before reaching the inshore SCA harvest limit during the A season to accommodate fishing by vessels less than or equal to 99 ft (30.2 m) inside the SCA for the duration of the inshore seasonal opening.”

2002 Unrestricted AFA Catcher/Processor Sideboards

Regulations at § 679.63(a) establish a formula for setting AFA catcher/processor sideboard limits for non-pollock groundfish and PSC in the BSAI. The basis for these sideboard amounts was recommended by the Council and is described in detail in the Emergency Interim Rule to Implement Major Provisions of the AFA (64 FR 4520, January 28, 2000). The 2002 catcher/processor sideboards are set out in Table 13 below.

All non-pollock groundfish that is harvested by unrestricted AFA catcher/processors, whether as targeted catch or bycatch, will be deducted from the harvest limits in Table 13. However, non-pollock groundfish that is delivered to listed catcher/processors by catcher vessels will not be deducted from the 2002 harvest limits for the listed catcher/processors.

TABLE 13.—2002 Unrestricted BSAI AFA Catcher/Processor Groundfish Sideboards

(Amounts are Expressed in Metric Tons)

Target species

Area

1995-1997

Total catch

Available TAC

Ratio

2002 ITAC available to trawl C/Ps

2002 C/P sideboard amount

Pacific cod trawl

BSAI

13,547

51,450

0.263

43,475

11,434

Sablefish trawl

BS

8

1,736

0.005

820

4

AI

1

1,135

0.001

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