Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; Fisheries off West Coast States; Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery; Biennial Specifications and Management Measures; Amendment 16-4; Pacific Coast Salmon Fishery

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 660

[Docket No. 060824226-6226-01; I.D. 082806B]

RIN 0648-AU57

Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; Fisheries off West Coast States; Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery; Biennial Specifications and Management Measures; Amendment 16-4; Pacific Coast Salmon Fishery

AGENCY:

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

ACTION:

Proposed rule; request for comments.

SUMMARY:

NMFS proposes a rule to implement Amendment 16-4 to the Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery Management Plan (FMP) and to set the 2007-2008 harvest specifications and management measures for groundfish taken in the U.S. exclusive economic zone (EEZ) off the coasts of Washington, Oregon, and California. Amendment 16-4 would modify the FMP to implement revised rebuilding plans for seven overfished species: bocaccio, canary rockfish, cowcod, darkblotched rockfish, Pacific ocean perch (POP), widow rockfish, and yelloweye rockfish. Groundfish harvest specifications and management measures for 2007-2008 are intended to: achieve but not exceed optimum yields (OYs); prevent overfishing; rebuild overfished species; reduce and minimize the bycatch and discard of overfished and depleted stocks; provide harvest opportunity for the recreational and commercial fishing sectors; and, within the commercial fisheries, achieve harvest guidelines and limited entry and open access allocations as closely as possible. Together, Amendment 16-4 and the 2007-2008 harvest specifications and management measures are intended to rebuild overfished stocks as soon as possible, taking into account the status and biology of the stocks, the needs of fishing communities, and the interaction of the overfished stocks within the marine environment. In addition to the management measures implemented for directed and incidental groundfish fisheries, this proposed rule would implement a new Yelloweye Rockfish Conservation Area off Washington State, which will be closed to commercial salmon troll fishing.

DATES:

Comments must be received no later than 5 p.m., Pacific Standard Time, on October 31, 2006.

ADDRESSES:

You may submit comments, identified by I.D. 082806B by any of the following methods:

• E-mail:

Amendment 16-4.nwr@noaa.gov

: Include I.D. 082806B in the subject line of the message.

• Federal eRulemaking Portal:

http://www.regulations.gov

. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.

• Fax: 206-526-6736, Attn: Yvonne deReynier

• Mail: D. Robert Lohn, Administrator, Northwest Region, NMFS, 7600 Sand Point Way NE, Seattle, WA 98115-0070, Attn: Yvonne deReynier.

Information relevant to this proposed rule, which includes a draft environmental impact statement (DEIS), a regulatory impact review (RIR), and an initial regulatory flexibility analysis (IRFA) are available for public review during business hours at the office of the Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council), at 7700 NE Ambassador Place, Portland, OR 97220, phone: 503-820-2280. Copies of additional reports referred to in this document may also be obtained from the Council.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Yvonne deReynier (Northwest Region, NMFS), phone: 206-526-6129; fax: 206-526-6736 and; e-mail: y

vonne.dereynier@noaa.gov

.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Electronic Access

The proposed rule also is accessible via the Internet at the Office of the

Federal Register

's website at

http://www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/index.html

. Background information and documents, including the DEIS, are available at the Council's website at

http://www.pcouncil.org

.

Background

Groundfish harvest specifications are the amounts of West Coast groundfish species or species groups available to be caught in a particular year. Harvest specifications include acceptable biological catches (ABCs), optimum yields (OYs), and harvest guidelines (HGs), as well as set-asides of harvestable amounts of fish for particular fisheries or particular geographic areas. The ABC is a biologically based estimate of the amount of fish that may be harvested from the fishery each year without jeopardizing the resource. The ABC may be modified with precautionary adjustments to account for uncertainty. A stock's OY is its target harvest level, and is usually lowered from its ABC. The Council's policies on setting ABCs, OYs, and other harvest specifications are discussed later in the preamble to this proposed rule. Proposed harvest specifications for 2007-2008 are provided in proposed Tables 1a through 2c of this proposed rulemaking.

Management measures set in this biennial management process are intended to constrain the fisheries so that OYs of healthier groundfish stocks are achieved as much as is practicable within the constraints of requirements to rebuild co-occurring overfished groundfish species. In order to rebuild overfished species, allowable harvest levels of healthy species will only be achieved where such harvest will not deter rebuilding of overfished stocks. Routine management measures for the commercial fisheries include trip landing and frequency limits, time/area closures, size limits, and gear restrictions. Routine management measures for the recreational fisheries include bag limits, size limits, gear restrictions, fish dressing requirements, and time/area closures. These measures can be adjusted inseason to achieve but not exceed OYs. The groundfish fishery is managed with a variety of other regulatory requirements that are not considered routine, and which are found at 50 CFR 660, Subpart G. Regulations outside of this rulemaking include, but are not limited to long-term harvest allocations, recordkeeping and reporting requirements, requirements to carry vessel monitoring system (VMS) transceiver units and observers, license limitation programs, and essential fish habitat (EFH) protection measures.

The Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery Management Plan (FMP) requires the Council to set harvest specifications and management measures for groundfish at least biennially. This proposed rule would set 2007-2008 harvest specifications and management measures for all of the 90+ FMP-managed groundfish species or species groups, except for Pacific whiting. Pacific whiting harvest specifications will be proposed as a range via this action, with the final specifications for 2007 and 2008 to be set following the March 2007 and March 2008 Council meetings, respectively.

Amendment 16-4, which this action proposes concurrently with the 2007-2008 groundfish specifications and management measures, would modify the FMP to implement revised rebuilding plans for the seven overfished groundfish species bocaccio, canary rockfish, cowcod, darkblotched rockfish, POP, widow rockfish, and yelloweye rockfish consistent with the

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) and

Natural Resources Defense Council

v.

NMFS

, 421 F.3d 872 (9th Cir. 2005) [hereinafter

NRDC

v.

NMFS

,] discussed below. NMFS published a Notice of Availability for Amendment 16-4 on July 28, 2006 (71 FR 42846.) This proposed rule would modify Federal regulations at 50 CFR 660.365 per Amendment 16-4 to specify revised target rebuilding dates and harvest rates for each overfished species.

This preamble describes the new approach taken by NMFS, the Council, and state and tribal partners in light of

NRDC

v.

NMFS

. As in past years, this preamble also discusses the Council′s ABC and OY policies, harvest levels for overfished and all other groundfish species or species groups, fishery-specific management measures, and other issues related to this 2007-2008 management package. Preambles to prior proposed rules on groundfish harvest specifications and management measures have also discussed bycatch accounting and reduction measures. On June 27, 2006, NMFS published a proposed rule to implement Amendment 18 to the FMP on bycatch mitigation (71 FR 36506.) The preamble to that proposed rule discussed NMFS and Council bycatch accounting and mitigation policies, programs, and regulations. Therefore, these issues will only be briefly discussed in this preamble as they pertain to 2007-2008 fisheries.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals Ruling

NRDC

v.

NMFS

, 421 F.3d 872 (9

th

Cir. 2005,) involved a challenge to the 2002 groundfish harvest specifications and management measures, specifically the darkblotched rockfish rebuilding plan. In that case, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals held that, pursuant to the Magnuson-Stevens Act, overfished species rebuilding periods must be as “short as possible, taking into account the status and biology of any overfished stock of fish [and] the needs of fishing communities.” The Court also stated, “Congress intended to ensure that overfished species were rebuilt as quickly as possible, but wanted to leave some leeway to avoid disastrous short-term consequences for fishing communities. . . Section 1854(e)(4)(i)[of the Magnuson-Stevens Act,] then, allows the Agency to set limited quotas that would account for the short-term needs of fishing communities (for example, to allow for some fishing of plentiful species despite the inevitability of bycatch), even though this would mean that the rebuilding period would take longer than it would under a total fishing ban.” In light of this case, NMFS and the Council are revising all seven of the overfished species rebuilding plans by January 1, 2007, and as described in detail below, have taken a new approach to developing rebuilding alternatives per the court ruling.

Rebuild as Quickly as Possible, Taking Into Account the Status and Biology of the Stock

Stock assessments are intended in part to determine the status of each assessed stock relative to its estimated unfished biomass level, B

UNFISHED

. For example, when we say that a stock is at B

40

, we are saying that the stock's abundance is at a level that is 40 percent of the abundance level we have estimated for B

UNFISHED

. Under the FMP, stocks that decline to below 25 percent of estimated B

UNFISHED

are declared overfished and must then be managed under rebuilding plans. The Magnuson-Stevens Act requires that overfished stocks be rebuilt to B

MSY

, which is the biomass level at which a stock is estimated to be able to maintain its maximum sustainable yield (MSY) over time. The FMP sets a proxy B

MSY

level for all groundfish species at B

40

; therefore, an overfished groundfish stock is considered rebuilt once its biomass reaches B

40

.

A rebuilding analysis for an overfished species uses the information in its stock assessment to determine T

MIN

, the minimum time to rebuild to B

40

in the absence of fishing. For each stock, its T

MIN

is dependent on a variety of physical and biological factors. The best available scientific information on each stock's life history characteristics (e.g., age of reproductive maturity, relative productivity at different ages and sizes, etc.) and the effects of environmental conditions on its abundance (e.g., relative productivity under interannual and interdecdal climate variability, availability of suitable feed and habitat for different life stages, etc.) is taken into account in its stock assessment and rebuilding analysis. For example, one of the factors considered in the 2005 widow rockfish stock assessment was that widow rockfish tend to be more easily caught in higher abundance during El Nino (anomalously warm and dry) years, possibly affecting how data from El Nino years is used within a multi-year time series of data. T

MIN

estimates derived from the rebuilding analyses for the seven overfished species are provided for each species in the section below, “OY Policies and Rebuilding Parameters for Overfished Species.”

Rebuilding analyses predict T

MIN

for each overfished species and, in doing so, answer the question of what is “as quickly as possible” for those species. Complete absence of targeted fishing mortality, however, does not necessarily result in the complete absence of human-induced mortality on any species of fish. Federal regulations at 50 CFR 600.310(f)(4)(iii) state, “All fishing mortality must be counted against OY, including that resulting from bycatch, scientific research, and any other fishing activities.” Thus, rebuilding by the T

MIN

date would require elimination of extractive scientific fishing, in addition to any target or incidental commercial, recreational, or ceremonial and subsistence fishing that results in overfished species mortality. Eliminating extractive scientific fishing would eliminate a significant portion of the new data that are used to update stock assessments and our understanding of the biological condition of the majority of groundfish stocks. Because West Coast groundfish species are so intermixed, extractive scientific fishing would have to be eliminated for all groundfish (overfished and healthy), and for some non-groundfish species as well. The Council determined that, in order to appropriately take into account the status and biology of overfished stocks, both now and in the future, scientific take of overfished and other groundfish stocks must continue. Scientific fishing needs in 2007 and 2008 for individual overfished species are estimated below in the species-specific footnotes in Tables 1a and 2a of 50 CFR subpart G.

Rebuild as Quickly as Possible, Taking Into Account the Needs of Fishing Communities

As discussed above, the Court in

NRDC

v.

NMFS

stated that overfished species should be rebuilt as quickly as possible, but noted that Congress “wanted to leave some leeway to avoid disastrous short-term consequences for fishing communities.” The Court also noted that the Magnuson-Stevens Act “ allows the Agency to set limited quotas that would account for the short-term needs of fishing communities (for example, to allow for some fishing of plentiful species despite the inevitability of bycatch), even though this would mean that the rebuilding period would take longer than it would under a total fishing ban.”

National Standard 8 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, 16 U.S.C. 1851(a)(8), also requires consideration of fishing communities consistent with the conservation requirements of the Act: “Conservation and management

measures shall, consistent with the conservation requirements of this Act (including the prevention of overfishing and rebuilding of overfished stocks), take into account the importance of fishery resources to fishing communities in order to (A) provide for the sustained participation of such communities, and (B) to the extent practicable, minimize adverse economic impacts on such communities.” (1851(a)(8).) Both National Standard 8 and

NRDC

v.

NMFS

speak to the difficult and often conflicting short-term and long-term socio-economic and biological considerations in fisheries management, which require sustaining both the long-term productive capacity of marine resources and the ability of fishing communities to harvest those resources.

To address the

NRDC

v.

NMFS

ruling, the DEIS took a significant new direction in analyzing the socio-economic effects of this action. To guide its consideration of the effects of the action on communities, the Council included this statement in the draft Amendment 16-4, “Fishing Communities need a sustainable fishery that is safe, well managed, and profitable, that provides jobs and incomes, that contributes to the local social fabric, culture, and image of the community, and helps market the community and its services and products.” In its recommendations for overfished species rebuilding plans and for 2007-2008 groundfish specifications and management measures, the Council was clear that it did not expect fishing community needs would be

met

by those plans and measures, due to conservation actions needed for the stocks. Rather, the Council took these needs into account as it analyzed different rebuilding plan and management measures alternatives. In essence, this means that harvest levels and management measures for 2007-2008 are expected to allow fishing businesses and communities to operate at a level that will provide for the continued existence of those fishing businesses and communities and will only allow opportunities for economic growth or profit if they are consistent with the rebuilding policies adopted under Amendment 16-4. In many instances this means that the harvests of healthy and growing stocks will be curtailed because of potential effects on rebuilding species.

Determining how to appropriately take into account the needs of fishing communities while preventing short-term disastrous consequences from fishery regulations was the most challenging aspect of this action, as there is little to no guidance provided by the Court, within current NOAA guidelines, or available academic literature. NMFS and its partner agencies have been conducting West Coast groundfish stock assessments for over 20 years. The agencies have been collecting fishery-dependent groundfish data since the early 20th century, and the earliest NMFS shelf/slope trawl survey occurred off the West Coast in 1977. With this history of biological scientific effort, it has been standard Council practice to set groundfish harvest levels using stock assessments that evaluate and take into account the status and biology of those stocks. To address the Court's orders concerning fishing communities, NMFS and its partner agencies had to assess fishing communities for their groundfish harvest needs, just as biological analysts assess the status and biology of the groundfish species.

The DEIS for this action is intended, in part, to assess: the needs of groundfish fishing communities, the dependence of different fishing communities on each overfished species, and the vulnerability of fishing communities to further near-term reductions in groundfish harvest. These analyses were complicated by the fact that different gears and fisheries affect various groundfish species to greater or lesser degrees. For example, slope rockfish such as POP and darkblotched are almost exclusively taken in the trawl fisheries, while yelloweye rockfish is primarily taken in recreational and commercial hook-and-line fisheries. Most fishing communities have a mix of commercial and recreational fishing participation, although community dependence on the different sectors varies. Similarly, some fishing communities are dependent on commercial trawl fisheries, while others have more non-trawl gear fishery participation. To address fishing community heterogeneity, the EIS for this action assesses community dependency on groundfish, on different sectors of the groundfish fishery, and on the fisheries with incidental catch of particular overfished species.

Past EISs for groundfish harvest specifications and management measures have primarily addressed the socio-economic environment of West Coast groundfish fisheries in terms of groundfish landings by weight and ex-vessel revenue over time. This DEIS took a significant new direction in analyzing socio-economic effects of this action. Chapter 7 and Appendix A of the DEIS describe the socio-economic environment, provide economic impact projections of the alternatives, and classify fishing communities in terms of their ability to withstand short-term negative consequences that could result from declines in annual groundfish revenue. Although the “needs” of fishing communities cannot be quantified because of the lack of data and models, available fisheries and economic demographic information communities can be used to develop indicators of community engagement in fisheries, dependence on groundfish, and community resiliency. These indicators can then be combined to classify those communities or associated counties that are most vulnerable. A community or county is considered “vulnerable” and “most vulnerable” to changes in management measures if in comparison to other communities or counties, it is more engaged in fishing, more dependent on groundfish, and least resilient to negative socio-economic impacts.

Appendix A, section A.4., describes the analysis in more detail. It describes fishing community engagement in fishing generally and dependence on the groundfish fishery particularly, using indicator factors such as employment in fishing as a percentage of total employment in the community; income from fishing as a percentage of total income in the community; number of fishing vessels in the community; number of fishing permits in the community; number of processors/buyers in the community; and fish landings to the community. These factors are then analyzed to determine community resilience to changes in groundfish revenue, their ability to weather short-term disastrous consequences from landings reductions associated with rebuilding overfished species. It is typically assumed that the greater socio-economic and cultural diversity and infrastructure an area has, the more resilient an area will be if a management regulation negatively affects the area. Community resiliency indices included: employment in various industries; unemployment levels; income levels; resident mobility; resident education, skills and training levels; population density (as a proxy for community infrastructure); community isolation; and fisheries specific infrastructure. (Much of the information was drawn from the NOAA Northwest Fisheries Science Center's Community Profiling Project found at:

http://www.nwfsc.noaa.gov/research/divisions/sd/communityprofiles/index.cfm)

.

Taking these two major factors into consideration, community dependency/engagement and community resiliency to change, Appendix A then identified which communities would be most

vulnerable to changes associated with potential short-term disastrous consequences from shortened rebuilding periods. Vulnerable areas were defined in the DEIS as those communities that have relatively low resilience to economic shifts, and are either highly engaged in or highly dependent on groundfish fishing. With regard to engagement in commercial fishing in general, the DEIS identifies 29 cities and 16 counties as vulnerable areas. With regard to dependency on the commercial groundfish fishery in particular, the draft EIS identifies 32 cities and 17 counties as vulnerable areas. The EIS also identified 10 Washington and Oregon communities as vulnerable areas with regard to recreational fishing dependency. California recreational fisheries data is aggregated in a way that makes identifying vulnerability to recreational fisheries change difficult to identify for particular communities. However, analysts were able to identify vulnerability at the county level for California recreational fisheries, showing that San Luis Obispo through Santa Cruz counties and San Diego through Los Angeles counties are most engaged in recreational fishing and dependent on the groundfish recreational fishery.

When the Council took “into account the needs of fishing communities,” it had before it economic analysis that showed by community and fishing sector, trends in commercial harvests and ex-vessel revenues and in recreational harvests, trips, and expenditures by sector and community (or proxy county or port group). These variables were translated into estimates of regional, state, and community levels of personal income and employment. The economic impacts of the various rebuilding alternatives were projected based on the bycatch models (used by biologists to illustrate the relationships between overfished and healthy groundfish stocks,) which were expanded to include the relationship of overfished species to the various communities. The Council then reviewed the various alternatives in light of the overall and community economic impacts, the above discussed analysis of “vulnerable” communities, and the alternative rebuilding schedules embedded in the alternatives.

NMFS made its first declaration of overfished species in 1999 (bocaccio, lingcod, POP,) and the declines in allowable groundfish harvest levels and associated revenues are a result of NMFS and Council rebuilding policies. On January 19, 2000, under Section 312 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the Secretary of Commerce (Secretary) declared a commercial resource disaster due to a fisheries resource failure in the West Coast groundfish fishery, paving the way for congressional provision of disaster relief to affected commercial fishers and their communities. This declaration was made on a review of past and projected trends in non-whiting commercial groundfish harvests and revenues, and the potential underlying causes of these trends. (In this and many other long-term analyses, whiting is excluded as it is highly variable species that, unlike traditional groundfish fisheries, was predominantly a foreign fishery that transitioned to a joint venture fishery, and finally a Americanized fishery completely harvested and processed by U.S. entities in 1991.) As shown in Figure 2-13 of the Draft EIS “Trends in ex-vessel revenues from the West Coast groundfish fishery and projected revenues under the final Council-preferred alternative,” during the late 1980's and until the late 1990's, non-whiting groundfish fisheries generated annual ex-vessel revenues that largely ranged from $90 million to $110 million annually when adjusted for inflation. In 1998, there was a sharp decline to $64 million, a level that was largely maintained for the next two years. In 2001 and 2002, revenues sharply fell to $51 million and $42 million, respectively. Since 2002, ex-vessel revenues have ranged between $41 million to $45 million. Implementation of the Council's preferred alternative is expected to generate revenues in 2007 and 2008 at levels slightly less than the 2005 level of $43 million. (See also Table 7-2c “Total domestic shoreside landings and at-sea deliveries-ex-vessel revenue... “of the DEIS)

In considering the effects of the action on fishing communities, the Council was concerned about the effects of inseason fishery management on fishing communities. At the start of each biennial management cycle, NMFS and the Council set fishery management measures that are expected to achieve as much of the healthy species′ OYs as possible without exceeding allowable harvest levels for co-occurring overfished species. These management measures are set using the best scientific information available at that time, but new scientific information inevitably becomes available during each fishing year. Catch data vary in quality and abundance both before and during the season, and some of the most constraining rebuilding species are also caught in fisheries not managed under the groundfish FMP. Managing a coastwide fishery to ensure that OYs of overfished species are not exceeded is particularly difficult because many of these OYs are low. If new information received during the season reveals that landings are occurring at a faster pace than were initially anticipated, management action would be needed to keep the harvest of healthy stocks and the incidental catch of overfished species at or below their specified OYs. If these inseason adjustments to management measures are dramatic, such as an early closure of a fishery, then the effects of management actions on these communities can be severe.

To prevent major inseason fluctuations in available harvest, Amendment 16-4 and the 2007-2008 harvest levels account for uncertainty in order to minimize the potential need for dramatic inseason measures. In other words, currently available scientific information is used to design management measures that are projected to result in overfished species harvest levels that are somewhat lower than their OYs. This practice provides a buffer to account for both scientific uncertainty and unexpected occurrences and, in general, has helped prevent OYs from being exceeded in past management years. Even with these safeguards, scientific information that becomes available during the 2007-2008 period may reveal that previously set management measures need to be revised inseason. If that is the case, management measures will be appropriately adjusted inseason to keep harvest from exceeding OYs.

Rebuild as Quickly as Possible, Taking into Account the Interactions of Overfished Stocks Within the Marine Environment

In December 2005, NMFS published a final EIS on the designation of groundfish EFH and minimization of adverse fishing effects on EFH. (See:

http://www.nwr.noaa.gov/Groundfish-Halibut/Groundfish-Fishery-Management/NEPA-Documents/EFH/-Final-EIS.cfm

). The final EFH EIS primarily focuses on the interactions of groundfish species with their physical environment. The DEIS for Amendment 16-4 and the 2007-2008 groundfish specifications and management measures expand upon the EFH EIS's analysis to analyze the interactions of groundfish species with each other and with other marine species within the California Current ecosystem. In general, the DEIS concludes that the life histories of most groundfish species, longer-lived and slower-growing with relatively low rates of predation, make the abundance of particular groundfish

species less likely to affect overall productivity within the California Current ecosystem. Pacific whiting is an exception, its high abundance and productivity, as well as its broad distribution, give it influence on ecosystem productivity both as a predator and as prey.

The abundance of site-loyal overfished rockfish species, cowcod and yelloweye rockfish, is likely to affect marine community composition in particular geographic areas, but not the ecosystem as a whole. The abundance of plankton likely affects the health of overfished planktivorous rockfish (POP, darkblotched, canary, and widow,) but plankton abundance is primarily determined by physical environmental influences that control larval survival and distribution into beneficial habitat. The best available scientific information indicates that no one rockfish species, even those species with abundant population levels, has a population large or productive enough to influence overall biological productivity within the California Current ecosystem. As a consequence, the rate of rebuilding for a particular overfished species is also not expected to influence productivity within the California Current ecosystem. Therefore, the Council focused its efforts at crafting appropriate rebuilding plans within the Court's guidance on the factors discussed earlier in this document the status and biology of the stocks, and the needs of fishing communities.

Council Decision-Making Process

In September and November 2005, the Council adopted most of the new groundfish stock assessments needed to support fishery management in 2007-2008. Yelloweye rockfish was the only species with a stock assessment delayed for adoption until March 2006. Based on the adopted stock assessments, the Council also adopted initial management recommendations for the 2007-2008 fisheries at its November 2005 meeting. These recommendations included: preliminary ABCs and ranges of OYs for all groundfish species, ranges of alternative allocations of canary and yelloweye rockfish to the commercial and recreational fisheries, and a variety of potential management measures for the 2007-2008 fisheries. Taking into account the status and biology of overfished stocks, the Council adopted preliminary ABCs and ranges of overfished species OYs based on: the time to rebuild if fishing were eliminated beginning in 2007 (T

F=0

,) varying probabilities of rebuilding by T

MIN

plus one mean generation time for each species, projecting fishing mortality rates associated with 2005 OYs forward through time, and applying the current FMP harvest rates to the newly assessed biomass levels. Overfished species OY ranges adopted at the Council′s November 2005 meeting for analysis were: bocaccio, 0-425 mt; canary rockfish, 0-67 mt; cowcod, 0-11 mt; darkblotched rockfish, 0-456 mt; POP, 0-741 mt; widow rockfish, 0-1,352 mt; yelloweye rockfish, 0-24 mt.

The Council developed each initial range of overfished species OYs using only biological parameters to ask how quickly the stock might rebuild at differing levels of potential future harvest. The initial ranges were not intended to take into account the needs of fishing communities, nor did they account for the interactions of overfished stocks with each other. However, these ranges provided a starting point for more detailed analysis.

Over winter 2005-2006, the Council's advisory bodies met to discuss and analyze the Council's preliminary harvest level ranges. At its March 2006 meeting, the Council adopted a yelloweye rockfish stock assessment, finalizing the set of stock assessments for the 2007-2008 fisheries. At its April 2006 meeting, the Council adopted, for further analysis, preferred ABCs for all groundfish species, and preferred OYs for the non-overfished species. As discussed below in the section on “ABC-Setting Policies,” ABC-setting for all species is guided by harvest policies in the FMP. From the low end of the ranges of overfished species OYs that it had adopted in November 2005, the Council also adopted suites of “Preferred Low” and “Preferred High” overfished species OYs at its April 2006 meeting. The Preferred Low OY suite set out potential OYs as: bocaccio, 40 mt; canary rockfish 32 mt; cowcod, 4 mt; darkblotched rockfish, 130 mt; POP, 44 mt; widow rockfish, 120 mt; yelloweye rockfish, 12.6 mt. The Preferred High OY suite set out potential OYs as: bocaccio, 218 mt; canary rockfish, 44 mt; cowcod, 8 mt; darkblotched rockfish, 229 mt; POP, 100 mt; widow rockfish, 368 mt; yelloweye rockfish, harvest level ramp-down strategy (i.e. not an OY based on a constant harvest rate.) In addition to these preliminary OY suites, the Council also adopted draft amendatory language for Amendment 16-4, which modifies the FMP to include the Council's approach for developing rebuilding plans in light of

NRDC

v.

NMFS

.

For the April 2006 meeting, NMFS and the Council adopted a new, integrated approach in their analyses to develop and evaluate overfished species OY alternatives. The Council has traditionally been provided with analyses on preferred OYs for each overfished species in isolation from other species. For this action, the analyses not only considered each overfished species OY in isolation, but also considered how different overfished species OYs might affect or constrain other overfished species. By adopting a suite of OYs for overfished species in April 2006, the Council intended to take a realistic look at minimal harvest levels that would rebuild as quickly as possible taking into account the status and biology of the stocks and at least allowing for some extractive scientific take of overfished stocks. Although the Council had not yet fully considered the potential socio-economic effects of the different alternatives on fishing communities, it determined in April that OYs set at zero would not take into account fishing community needs.

At the April Council meeting, in its April 2006 report to the Council, the Council's Groundfish Management Team (GMT) provided the Council with issues to consider when developing the suites of OYs for overfished species in order to take into account the status and biology of the stock, the needs of fishing communities, and the interactions of those species within the marine ecosystem (See April 2006 Agenda Item F.1.c., Supplemental GMT Report.) The GMT suggested that, in taking into account the status and biology of the stock, the Council consider: the different depletion rates of each overfished species relative to their estimated unfished biomasses; the sensitivity of each overfished species' rebuilding trajectory to management decisions that raised or lowered that species' OY; and, the need for extractive scientific research to continue to occur on overfished and co-occurring groundfish species.

The GMT also suggested that, in taking into account the needs of fishing communities, the Council consider: the vulnerability of different fishing communities to reductions in available harvest of different overfished species; the resilience of different fishing communities to changes in community groundfish fishing revenues; the effects that recent past harvest levels have had on fishing communities; and, the uncertainty in pre-season predictions of bycatch rates and the associated need for management flexibility to address that uncertainty without either allowing OYs to be exceeded or causing disastrous immediate consequences for groundfish fishing communities. Finally, the GMT suggested that the Council consider interactions of

overfished species within the marine ecosystem by integrating their considerations of the status and biology of overfished stocks with their considerations of the needs of fishing communities by prioritizing greater protection for the overfished species with rebuilding trajectories most sensitive to changes in OY and to the most vulnerable fishing communities by allowing relatively more incidental take of the less sensitive overfished species. These GMT recommendations, and the advice that the Council received from its other advisory bodies and the public, informed how the Council developed its overfished species OY alternatives at its April 2006 meeting.

In taking the status and biology of the stocks into account via its April preferred alternatives, the Council looked at the sensitivity of each overfished species′ rebuilding trajectory to future changes in OY. Rebuilding times were compared with each other in terms of how far each alternative would extend a species′ rebuilding period beyond T

F=0

, the time at which rebuilding would be estimated to occur were fishing mortality eliminated for that species beginning in 2007. The effects of the alternatives on rebuilding periods were compared to those under a T

F=0

scenario, rather than to those under a T

MIN

scenario. T

MIN

is defined as the shortest time to rebuild if all fishing were eliminated from the start of a species' rebuilding period. For West Coast groundfish species with existing rebuilding plans, T

MIN

is used as a reference point to illustrate what might have been possible had all fishing been eliminated from the start of the rebuilding period. Amendment 16-4 does not set new rebuilding period start dates for overfished species; instead, it revises the rebuilding trajectories and target dates that were set in place by Amendments 16-2 and 16-3, per the requirements of

NRDC

v.

NMFS

. Because the rebuilding period start dates remain in place, comparing rebuilding periods to those that would have occurred under T

MIN

scenarios would have required making an untrue assumption that no fishing mortality had occurred for overfished species since the start of the rebuilding periods. For this reason, comparing rebuilding periods to those that would have occurred under the T

F=0

provides a more useful estimate of what is rebuilding “as soon as possible.”

Some of the overfished stocks are more productive than others, meaning that they are more likely to rebuild to B

MSY

at faster rates. Rebuilding times for the less productive species are more sensitive to changes in OY levels. For example, a 130-mt darkblotched rockfish OY is expected to increase the darkblotched rebuilding period by 4 months beyond T

F=0

, while a 229-mt OY is expected to increase that period by 7 months beyond T

F=0

. Conversely, a 4-mt cowcod OY is expected to increase the cowcod rebuilding period by 4 years beyond T

F=0

, while an 8 mt OY is expected to increase that period by 8 years beyond T

F=0

. Species with rebuilding times that are most sensitive to changes in OYs are yelloweye rockfish, and cowcod. These low productivity stocks would take longer to rebuild than the higher productivity stocks, even if fishing mortality were eliminated. The more productive and less sensitive stocks are darkblotched, POP, and widow rockfish. The productivity and sensitivity of bocaccio and canary rockfish is intermediate to these two groups.

To properly take overfished species productivity into account, the Council also had to make initial recommendations on management measures to best match management programs to the species in need of more or less conservative management. In recent years, groundfish management measures have been designed to reduce effort on overfished stocks with low productivity and redirect effort on healthy stocks, with somewhat higher incidental take of those overfished species with higher productivity. Trawl fishing effort is prohibited on the continental shelf, constrained in nearshore waters, and focused on continental slope waters, where the most productive overfished species tend to occur. The less productive species tend to occur on the shelf, with cowcod and yelloweye being caught primarily by hook-and-line gear, and canary and bocaccio being caught in a broad range of fisheries. Thus, at its April 2006 meeting, the Council recommended that suites of management measures be developed for the Preferred High and Low OY alternatives that would maintain the philosophy of constraining fishing opportunities where trawlers might incidentally catch the most sensitive species.

At its June 2006 meeting, the Council considered three management alternatives that packaged overfished species OYs with management measures intended to constrain fishing to those OYs. To ensure adequate analysis of a no-fishing baseline, the Council also considered F=0 scenarios, which represent each species' shortest time to rebuild in the absence of fishing mortality, starting in 2007. Alternative 1, associated with the Preferred Low OY suite, was more restrictive than status quo and provided the shortest rebuilding times with modest fishing mortality. Under Alternative 1, rebuilding was extended less than five years from the times associated with F=0 for bocaccio, cowcod, darkbloched rockfish, POP, and widow rockfish. Canary and yelloweye rockfish rebuilding periods would have been extended by an estimated 7 and 35 years, respectively, under Alternative 1. Alternative 2 was intermediate to Alternatives 1 and 3, and resulted in overfished species mortality similar to current management measures. Alternative 3, the Preferred High OY, allowed for greater harvest and resulted in longer rebuilding periods than the other alternatives by extending the rebuilding time for bocaccio, darkblotched rockfish, POP and widow rockfish rebuilding periods by five years or less from T

F=0

, and extending the cowcod, canary and yelloweye rockfish rebuilding periods by an estimated 8, 10 and 36 years, respectively, from T

F=0

.

At the June Council meeting, in its June 2006 report to the Council, the GMT again provided the Council with issues to consider when making its final decision on preferred overfished species OYs in order to take into account the status and biology of the stock, the needs of fishing communities, and the interactions of those species within the marine ecosystem (See June 2006 Agenda Item F.2.c., Supplemental GMT Report.) To take into account the status and biology of overfished stocks, the GMT reiterated its April advice that the Council consider the potential rebuilding trajectories of each overfished species and the effects of varying harvest rates on those trajectories, and the need for extractive scientific research to continue into the future. The GMT provided the Council with a comparison of each overfished species' rebuilding trajectory under the different harvest scenarios and under the T

F=0

scenario. Based on that comparison, the GMT reminded the Council that cowcod and yelloweye are the species with rebuilding trajectories most sensitive to changes in OYs, and that bocaccio and canary are moderately sensitive to changes in OY. The GMT identified widow rockfish, darkblotched rockfish and POP as having rebuilding trajectories least sensitive to changes in OY, and most subject to what the GMT called the “rebuilding paradox.” The rebuilding paradox occurs as a stock's size gets closer to its rebuilt level, B

MSY

. Although the fisheries must continue to avoid a rebuilding stock throughout its rebuilding period, rebuilding stocks that are close to B

MSY

are so abundant that

they become increasingly difficult to avoid.

In its June report, the GMT also provided the Council with issues to consider in taking into account the needs of fishing communities. In particular, the GMT discussed the effects of the different action alternatives and the T

F=0

alternative in terms of: short term economic impacts when compared to status quo, short term economic impacts compared to historic economic impacts, short term economic impacts compared to the 2000 disaster declaration by the Secretary, and short term economic impacts of each action alternatives when compared to one another. The GMT noted that, under the status quo (2005-2006) fishery, groundfish revenues are lower than revenues generated in 2000, the year of the disaster declaration. In 2000, 2001, and 2002 groundfish ex-vessel revenues were approximately $62 million, $52 million, and $43 million respectively. Recreational angler trips numbered an estimated 1,218,000 in 2000, 927,000 in 2001, and 843,000 in 2002. The GMT reported that each of the action alternatives under Council consideration would result in ex-vessel revenue, recreational angler trips, and income that would be lower than in 2000, when the disaster declaration was made. Finally, the GMT expressed its concern with the lack of management flexibility under the lowest OYs in the action alternatives, anticipating that implementing the lowest OYs would eliminate management flexibility, potentially resulting in more radical inseason management shifts and potentially disastrous consequences for fishing communities.

When making its recommendations for a preferred suite of rebuilding OYs, the Council considered the differences in the biology of the different overfished rockfish stocks and varying rebuilding schedules. The depletion rates of each overfished species and the sensitivity of each species to changes in the management regime were considered. The OY alternatives considered by the Council included allowances for research catch, in order to ensure that future information could be gathered to assess the status and biology of these and other fish stocks.

In addition, the Council considered the needs of the fishing communities within the framework suggested by its GMT, which looked at the short term economic consequences of the different alternatives and whether those alternatives were likely to be immediately disastrous for fishing communities. The Council also considered the uncertainty inherent in inseason groundfish fisheries management. See inseason discussion, above, under “Rebuild as Quickly as Possible, Taking Into Account the Needs of Fishing Communities.” For example, the Preferred Low OY alternative would have required a variety of fisheries to be either severely constrained or closed by January 1, 2007. In addition, this alternative had little flexibility to respond to management uncertainty and would likely result in inseason fishery closures in response to fishery information received inseason.

In summary, in making its final recommendations for rebuilding OYs in 2007-2008, the Council took into account the status and biology of the stocks by looking for the shortest possible rebuilding periods within a package of management measures that provided the greatest protection for the most sensitive and lowest productivity species. The Council took the needs of fishing communities into account by providing fishing opportunities where such opportunities would have a minimal effect on rebuilding periods for stocks with higher productivity, and by recommending restrictive management measures focused on stocks with the lowest productivity levels. The Council adopted the following optimum yields (OYs) for overfished species in 2007-2008: bocaccio rockfish 218 mt; canary rockfish 44 mt; cowcod 4 mt; darkblotched rockfish 290 mt for 2007 and 330 mt for 2008; Pacific ocean perch 150 mt; widow rockfish 368 mt; and a harvest rate ramp-down strategy for yelloweye rockfish with a 23 mt OY in 2007 and a 20 mt OY in 2008. These recommended OYs allow for extractive scientific research in 2007 and 2008. In order to account for uncertainty in inseason management, the Council's recommended management measures are projected to result in total catch levels that are lower than the overfished species OYs. As discussed below, the recommended overfished species OYs are estimated to extend rebuilding periods beyond T

F=0

by: for bocaccio, 5 years; for canary rockfish, 10 years; for cowcod, 4 years; for darkblotched rockfish, 1 year; for POP, 2 years; for widow rockfish, 2 years; and for yelloweye rockfish, 38 years. These Council-adopted OYs and the associated harvest rates and rebuilding trajectories would be implemented via this action, which implements both the 2007-2008 groundfish harvest specifications and management measures and Amendment 16-4. Amendment 16-4 revises the FMP with new overfished species rebuilding parameters at Section 4.5.

ABC-setting Policies

The Council develops annual estimates of the ABC (acceptable biological catch) for major groundfish stocks. The ABC is a biologically based estimate of the amount of fish that may be harvested from the fishery each year without jeopardizing the resource. The ABC may be modified with precautionary adjustments to account for uncertainty. A stock's OY is its target harvest level, and is usually lowered from its ABC; OY setting policies are explained in a later section of this preamble. When setting the 2007 and 2008 ABCs, the Council maintained a policy of using a default harvest rate as a proxy for the fishing mortality rate that is expected to achieve the maximum sustainable yield (F

MSY

). The ABCs for groundfish species or species groups are derived by multiplying the harvest rate proxy by the current estimated biomass. In 2007 and 2008, the following default harvest rate proxies, based on the Council's Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) recommendations, were used: F

40%

for flatfish and Pacific whiting, F

50%

for rockfish (including thornyheads), and F

45%

for other groundfish such as sablefish and lingcod.

A harvest rate of F

40%

can be explained as that which reduces spawning potential per female to 40 percent of what it would have been under natural conditions (if there were no mortality due to fishing), and is therefore a more aggressive harvest rate than F

45%

or F

50%

. The FMP allows default harvest rate proxies to be modified as scientific knowledge improves for a particular species. A fishing mortality or harvest rate can vary, depending on the productivity of a particular species. For fast growing species (those with individuals that mature quickly and produce many young that survive to an age where they are caught in the fishery,) a higher fishing mortality rate may be used, such as F

40%

. Fishing mortality rate policies must account for several complicating factors, including the capacity of mature individuals to produce young over time and the optimal stock size necessary for the highest level of productivity within that stock.

For some groundfish species, there is little or no detailed biological data available on which to base ABCs, and therefore only rudimentary stock assessments have been prepared. For other species, no stock assessments have been prepared and the ABC levels were established on the basis of historical landings. Since 2000, the Council has

applied a more precautionary ABC policy in which the ABCs are first calculated using the rudimentary stock assessments or historic catch levels, and then those ABCs are reduced by 25 percent as a precautionary measure.

2007 and 2008 ABCs For All Groundfish Species

In 2004, NMFS implemented regulations setting a biennial management cycle for groundfish harvest specifications and management measures. Biennial specification were first established for the 2005 and 2006 management cycle. During the first year in a biennial cycle, new stock assessments are prepared and the results of the new assessments are reviewed and adopted for use in a future management cycle. In some cases, the Council may identify the need to refine a stock assessment, and the assessment may not be adopted until later in the first year or early in the second year of the biennial cycle.

A stock assessment is an evaluation of the biological condition of a stock or stock complex and the impacts of fishing on that stock or stock complex. Stock assessments prepared for Pacific Coast groundfish species include current estimates of the abundance, changes in abundance over time, depletion levels relative to an unfished state, fishing mortality estimates, mortality estimates from other causes, and different harvest forecasts including the harvestable amount and the likely effect on the stock abundance. In addition, Pacific Coast groundfish stock assessments identify areas of uncertainty and modeling difficulties.

To estimate stock abundance and population trends, each stock assessment relies on various types and sources of information, both fishery-dependent and fishery-independent. For example, basic fishery dependent data for stock assessments includes the amount of fish caught and the ratio of fish caught to the time spent fishing (catch per unit of effort (CPUE)). In addition to fishery dependent data, fishery independent data for stock assessments are collected during scientific research surveys. Individual sizes of fish and their biological characteristics (e.g., age, maturity, sex) can be collected from both fishery dependent and independent sources. When data are lacking for a particular species, it can result in uncertainty and modeling difficulties for the stock assessment scientists.

West Coast groundfish stock assessments are developed and evaluated through a thorough review process. Stock assessments for each species are developed in draft by a NMFS or state agency fishery biologist, or team of biologists. Each stock assessment is then reviewed by a Stock Assessment Review (STAR) Panel. STAR panel membership for each species includes NMFS stock assessment scientists other than the scientist(s) who assessed the species in question, scientists from state agencies and/or academic institutions, members of the Council's SSC, and independent peer reviewers chosen from the Center for Independent Experts (See:

http://www.rsmas.miami.edu/groups/cie/

.) Representatives from the Council's GMT and Groundfish Advisory Panel (GAP) also participate in the STAR process. STAR panels review each stock assessment and provide comments back to the stock assessment team, usually suggesting changes or refinements to modeling, methods, or datasets used. The stock assessment team then completes the next draft of the assessment and submits it to the SSC for review. Once it has completed its review of the stock assessments, the SSC reports to the Council on the suitability of each assessment for use in managing the assessed stock.

In preparation for setting new ABC values for 2007 and 2008, stock assessment scientists prepared 23 stock assessments on 22 groundfish stocks. Full stock assessments, those that not only update available biological and fishery information, but also consider the appropriateness of the assessment model and that revise the model as necessary, were prepared for the following species: canary rockfish, cowcod, widow rockfish, yelloweye rockfish, lingcod, English sole, petrale sole, starry flounder, darkblotched rockfish, blackgill rockfish, shortspine thornyhead, longspine thornyhead, sablefish, Dover sole, cabezon, California scorponfish, gopher rockfish and kelp greenling. Stock assessment updates, those that run new data through an existing model without changing the model, were prepared for: bocaccio, POP, and yellowtail rockfish. Vermilion rockfish was assessed for the first time in 2005. However, there were significant concerns about the reliability of the vermilion rockfish assessment and the Council did not accept the assessment for use in management. Instead, vermilion rockfish remains within the minor rockfish complex, managed with harvest levels based on historic harvests, with precautionary reductions for species with little or no scientific information.

At its September and November 2005 meetings, the Council adopted most of the 2005 groundfish stock assessments that were used to derive the 2007-2008 harvest specifications and management measures. Council adoption of stock assessments follows the rigorous Stock Assessment Review panel (STAR) process, which culminates in SSC review of the stock assessments and STAR panel reviews of those assessments. Each new stock assessment included a base model as well as alternative states of nature that assume higher or lower stock productivity than the base model. The SSC makes recommendations to the Council on the appropriateness of using the different stock assessments for management, after which the Council considers adoption of the stock assessments, use of the stock assessment for the rebuilding assessments, and recommends ABCs derived from the base model runs of those stock assessments.

Species that had ABCs in 2005 and 2006 continue to have ABCs in 2007 and 2008. However, because of a lack of data, many groundfish species are grouped into species complexes and managed as a group with an ABC for the complex. In 2005, several stocks received more quantitative stock assessments and are being removed from species complexes. New species-specific ABC values for the 2007 and 2008 management cycle would be implemented by this action for: Starry Flounder and English sole, which are being removed from the “other flatfish” complex; California scorpionfish in the Conception area, which is being removed from the “other fish” complex; and gopher rockfish south of 40°10′ N. lat., which is being removed from the “other rockfish” complex and added to the “remaining minor rockfish” complex. Although a stock assessment was prepared for kelp greenling in waters off California and Oregon, the Council only adopted the Oregon portion of the assessment because the stock assessment review process had concluded that data available for and modeling of the California kelp greenling sub-stock were inadequate to provide management advice for this species. A species specific ABC is not being established for 2007 and 2008, and kelp greenling will remain within the other fish complex.

For species that did not have new stock assessments prepared for the 2007 and 2008 cycle, the Council considered a single ABC derived from the base model of the most recent stock assessment or continued to use the results of rudimentary stock assessments or historical landings data. Species or species complexes without new stock assessments include: Pacific cod, arrowtooth flounder, shortbelly

rockfish, chilipepper rockfish, splitnose rockfish, black rockfish, minor rockfish, bank rockfish, blackgill rockfish, other flatfish, other rockfish, and other fish. Species that are not overfished and which had new stock assessments or stock assessment updates prepared and adopted for use in setting harvest specifications by the Council include: sablefish, Cabezon (California), California Scorpionfish, Dover sole, English sole, petrale sole, starry flounder, yellowtail rockfish, shortspine thornyhead, longspine thornyhead, kelp greenling (Oregon), and blackgill rockfish. Specific information on the ABC values for the species without new stock assessments, and for those species that are not overfished and which have new stock assessments or assessment updates, are provided in the footnotes to Table 1a. and Table 2a.

As mentioned above, petrale sole had a new stock assessment in 2005. When it adopted ABCs for all groundfish species, the Council recommended a 2007 petrale sole ABC of 2,917 mt, based on a table of all species' ABCs provided by the Council's GMT. Following the Council's June 2006 meeting, NMFS discovered that the 2,917 mt 2007 petrale sole ABC the Council had adopted had been incorrectly calculated from the stock assessment. The Council should have specified an ABC of 3,025 mt for 2007, which is the sum of the northern ABC of 1,397 mt and the southern ABC of 1,628 mt. Instead, the 2007 ABC of 2,917 mt chosen by the Council in June 2006 was incorrectly calculated by summing the stock's northern OY of 1,289 mt and the southern ABC of 1,628 mt. The 2008 petrale sole ABC of 2,919 mt had been correctly calculated prior to Council adoption. This action proposes a 2007 petrale sole ABC of 3,025 in Table 1a. The Council plans to review this issue at its September 11-15, 2006 meeting in Foster City, California, to ensure that this correction is made in the Council forum. In the preamble to the final rule for this action, NMFS will review the Council's September 2006 recommendation on the petrale sole and finalize the appropriate ABC based on the stock assessment, the Council's deliberations, and any comments received from the public.

A new stock assessment was prepared for lingcod in 2005. The 2005 lingcod stock assessment estimates that the coastwide lingcod stock in 2005 is at 64 percent of its unfished biomass level, with the northern component of the stock (north of Cape Mendocino, CA) at 87 percent of its unfished biomass level and the southern component of the stock at 27 percent of its unfished biomass level. Lingcod is managed as a single coastwide stock; therefore, the stock is considered to be rebuilt because the coastwide biomass is above the MSY level, 40 percent of the stock's unfished biomass. The SSC endorsed the 2005 lingcod stock assessment as the best available science, and the Council adopted the assessment for use in establishing the 2007 and 2008 management measures. Based on the recommendations of the SSC and the Council, NMFS announced on February 17, 2006 that the lingcod stock off the U.S. West Coast was rebuilt (71 FR 8489).

All seven overfished species had new stock assessments or stock assessment updates: bocaccio, canary rockfish, cowcod, darkblotched rockfish, POP, widow rockfish, and yelloweye rockfish. The stock assessments for overfished species are detailed below.

A bocaccio stock assessment update and a rebuilding analysis were prepared in 2005 for the stock south of Cape Mendocino, CA (40° 10′ N. lat.); the last full assessment was conducted in 2003. The 2005 stock assessment update used the 2003 length-based stock synthesis model with input data extending back to 1951. The update followed the methodology and assumptions of the 2003 bocaccio assessment as closely as possible with the main difference from the previous assessment being the addition and revision of recent data. Although the update included the three-model approach from the 2003 assessment (see the 2005-2006 proposed rule preamble, (69 FR 56550, September 21, 2004)), the STATc model was considered as the base model and was the focus of this 2005 update, with limited consideration given to the STARb1 and STARb2 models. The SSC endorsed the updated bocaccio stock assessment as being the best available science that could be used as the basis for the Council's recommendations.

As a result of the assessment update, the bocaccio stock in the Monterey and Conception areas was estimated to be at 10.7 percent of its unfished biomass in 2005 and was projected to continue on an increasing trend if the 2006 exploitation rate of 0.0498 were to remain in place. The ABC of 602 mt for 2007 and 618 mt for 2008 ABC were based on the STATc base model with an F

50%

F

MSY

proxy.

A new coastwide canary rockfish stock assessment and updated rebuilding analysis were completed in 2005. NMFS used a stock synthesis model for the assessment, which is an integrated length-age structured model. Data through 2004 were used to revise and update the assessment model Primary changes to the model included: addition of the 2004 trawl survey and catch data through 2004, recalculation of all historical fishery catch and size/age composition data, extension of the model time series back to 1916, calibration of ageing method, conversion from a age-based selectivity to size-based selectivity, and a modeling change to the Stock Synthesis 2 model coded (AD Model Builder) for faster execution and integration of powerful variance estimation procedures.

The results of the new assessment estimated that the canary rockfish stock was at 9.4 percent (see rebuilding analysis) of its unfished biomass coastwide in 2005. The 2005 stock assessment estimated that the canary rockfish spawning stock biomass was at its lowest level in 2000, but has been increasing since that time and is projected to continue increasing. Canary rockfish recruitment has shown a steady decline over the last 50 years. Recent recruitments have generally been low, with 1998 producing the largest estimated year-class of recruitment in the last decade.

Several alternative model configurations were investigated during the stock assessment process to best understand the patterns and information in the canary rockfish data. These model configurations included variations in specification of age versus length-based selectivity, incorporating changes in ageing criteria and re-estimating growth parameters to reflect these changes, allowing female selectivity to differ from male selectivity, and other factors. It was found that allowing female length-selectivity to differ from male length-selectivity provided a somewhat better statistical fit to the fishery age and length composition data and this configuration was selected as the base model. During its review of the stock assessment, the SSC raised several technical questions, including: the high value for survey catchability (q), the low spawner-recruit relationship being assumed (sigma r), and if juvenile rockfish survey data should be included. The SSC concluded that the parametric variance around a single base model underestimated the overall uncertainty in the canary rockfish assessment. After considerable deliberation, the SSC recommended no major changes to the base model, and the SSC concluded that the Base and alternate models were equally likely and they supported a statistically based blend of the two models as the basis for the rebuilding analysis. The SSC recommended further investigations into the identified technical issues.

The SSC agreed with the principal conclusions of the canary stock assessment and endorsed the assessment as the best scientific data available for management decisions. The canary ABCs of 172 mt for 2007 and 179 mt for 2008 are derived from the base model with an F

50%

F

MSY

proxy.

A new stock assessment and a new rebuilding analysis for cowcod in the Conception area were prepared in 2005. The Conception area (U.S. waters south of 36°N. lat.) is where cowcod are most abundant, where adult habitat is most common and where historical catches were highest. Although larvae may spread across larger distances, it is assumed that the adults do not move beyond the stock boundary.

The cowcod stock assessment is based on catch data from commercial and recreational fisheries, an index of relative abundance (CPUE) from Commercial Passenger Fishing Vessel logbook data, and a single visual transect survey estimate made from a submersible vessel in the Western Cowcod Conservation Area in 2002. The assessment is affected by the lack consistent data of sufficient quality. Catches since 2001 have been very low (< 0.5 mt) due to management constraints on fisheries targeting co-occurring species. A time series of relative abundance after 2000 is not currently available. Development of a quantitative measure of relative abundance is necessary to monitor changes in the cowcod population.

Both the steepness of the stock recruit relationship and the natural mortality rate are influential to the assessment; the cowcod stock assessment used assumed values. The cowcod stock assessment consists of 3 models that differ in the assumed steepness (h) of the Stock-Recruit relationship. The model that assumed the stock recruit relationship as h=0.5 was considered the base model because it has the highest probability of being true, although the actual value of h is not known. The SSC endorsed the assessment as the best scientific data available for management decisions.

Cowcod was estimated to be between 14 and 21 percent of its unfished biomass in 2005 and is believed to be increasing. The ABC in the area south of 36° N. lat., the Conception area, is 17 mt for 2007 and 2008. The ABC is based on the 2005 stock assessment base model and a F

50%

F

MSY

proxy. The ABC for the Monterey area (19 mt) continues to be based on average landings from 1993-1997.

Darkblotched rockfish was assessed coastwide in 2005 and its rebuilding analysis was updated with the new assessment information. The new assessment incorporated a number of significant changes, including: the use of a stock synthesis model, extending the modeling period back in time to 1928 as compared to 1963 in the previous model, estimating stock growth parameters within the model, eliminating all age composition data except for shelf trawl survey data from 2004, and using a delta-GLM (generalized linear model) for estimates of abundance from slope survey data. The results of this stock assessment were primarily influenced by data from four fishery independent surveys: the Alaska Fishery Science Center's triennial shelf, POP, and slope trawl surveys, and the Northwest Fishery Science Center's slope trawl surveys.

The major sources of uncertainty in this stock assessment were: the assumed natural mortality rate, the age to length relationship, indistinct survey indices and length compositions resulting from a few large survey catches with larger than average fish, steepness of the spawner-recruit curve, and the lack of species specific historical landings prior to 1978. Uncertainty in the model results focused on the examination of alternative natural mortality values. The primary source of this conflict was the Alaska Fisheries Science Center slope survey, where the abundance index fit best when natural mortality equaled 0.05, but the lengths fit best when it equaled 0.10. Length data from the fishery, shelf and Northwest Fisheries Science Center slope survey indices and length compositions all fit best for natural mortality values of the 0.07-0.08 range. The STAR panel determined that the confidence intervals produced within the models underestimated uncertainty. They determined uncertainty could be bracketed by assuming a natural mortality value of 0.07 in the base model. Because darkblotched rockfish is a long-lived species that is difficult to age due to frequent natural check marks in the otoliths, the range on natural mortality was broadened to qualitatively reflect this additional uncertainty. The SSC endorsed the stock assessment base model as the best scientific data available for management decisions.

The last full assessment was conducted in 2000 and estimated the stock to be at 22 percent of its unfished biomass in 2000. The result of the new assessment estimates that darkblotched rockfish was at 16 percent of its unfished biomass in 2005, and was notably lower in 2000 (8 percent) than had been estimated in the previous assessment. However, the assessment indicates that the spawning output has more than doubled since 1999 resulting in rapid rebuilding of the stock due to the strong numbers of fish spawned in 1999 and 2000 maturing and entering the fishery. This strong recruitment combined with low exploitation rates in recent years has resulted in more rapid rebuilding than expected in the 2000 assessment. The ABC is projected to be 456 mt in 2007 and 487 mt in 2008. The ABCs are projected from the 2005 base stock assessment model with an F

MSY

proxy of F

50%

.

POP stock assessment and rebuilding analysis updates were prepared in 2005 for the U.S. portion of the Vancouver area and Columbia area (U.S. waters north of 43° N. lat.) This assessment is an update and uses the same model as in the 2003 assessment, a forward projection age-structured model. As a stock assessment update, the model code was unchanged, but the following new data which extended the model time series were incorporated into the model: catch through 2004, fishery length and weight compositions from 2003 and 2004, the 2004 slope survey biomass estimate, the slope survey age composition data for 2001, 2003 and 2004, the 2004 triennial shelf survey biomass estimate, and the triennial shelf survey age composition data from 1995 and 2004.

A number of sources of uncertainty are explicitly addressed in the assessment. For example, allowance is made for uncertainty in natural mortality, the parameters of the stock-recruitment relationship, and the survey catchability coefficients. However, sensitivity analyses based upon alternative model structures and data set choices suggested that the overall uncertainty may be greater than that predicted by a single model specification, as was the case in the 2003 assessment. There are also other sources of uncertainty that are not included in the current model. The SSC endorsed the assessment update as the best scientific data available for management decisions.

The updated assessment estimated the stock to be at 23.4 percent of its unfished biomass in 2005. Recent decades have provided rather poor recruitment when compared with the 1950s and 1960s, although the 1999 and 2000 year classes (2002 and 2003 recruitment years) appear to be larger those seen since the early 1970s. From 1965 to 1998 recruitment was relatively stable and showed recruits/spawning output as an increasing trend over time. The situation is now somewhat more complicated because there was not an obvious increasing trend in recruits/spawning output for either the 2003 or

2005 assessments, nor are the recruitments completely stable.Despite this, the low exploitation rate shown in the assessment (1 percent) since 2000, has allowed the stock to rebuild slowly. Since that time, the POP stock has increased from 20.9 percent of the unfished biomass to 23.4 percent. The POP ABC of 900 mt for 2007 and 911 mt for 2008 were projected from the 2005 stock assessment base model with an F

MSY

proxy of F

50%

.

A new coastwide stock assessment and rebuilding analysis were completed for widow rockfish in 2005. Like the 2003 assessment, an age-based population model was used with updated landings data, additional age composition data, and revised abundance indices. These changes included: the addition of bottom trawl survey indices from 1977 to 2004, a depletion rate computed in the same way as in the 2003 rebuilding analysis, an estimated power coefficient for the midwater juvenile survey rather than a fixed value, a value for recruitment steepness based on past knowledge of the stock was included in the likelihood functions, and effective sample sizes for age composition data were used. Of the four alternative models that were used to measure uncertainty in the stock assessment, one was selected as the base model. The results of the 2005 base model stock assessment estimated that the widow rockfish stock was at 31.1 percent of its unfished biomass in 2004. In retrospect, the new assessment shows that the stock biomass may not have declined below the overfished species threshold of 25 percent of its unfished biomass as was estimated in previous assessments.

Similar to other rockfish species, the biomass of widow rockfish has decreased steadily since the early 1980s and recruitment during early 1990s is estimated to have been considerably smaller than before the mid 1970s. The reason for the lower recruitment during the period could be due to lower spawning stock biomass, but it could also be due to environmental conditions. There is evidence that recruitment of many rockfish species since 1999 has been higher than 1990s average recruitment. This evidence is also supported by the most recent juvenile survey and age composition data.

The lack of a reliable abundance index for widow rockfish is a major source of uncertainty in the assessment results. The primary source of information on trends in abundance of widow rockfish is fishery dependent information from the Oregon bottom trawl logbook data. No Oregon bottom trawl logbook data after 1999 can be used in the assessment because the catch rates were very low due to trip limits and other management regulations. Triennial survey indices were used in the assessment as an additional abundance index. At this time, there is no fishery independent survey conducted specifically for mid-water species such as widow rockfish. Because widow rockfish is a mid-water species, the use of bottom trawl survey data may not be representative of the population and is a source of uncertainty in the assessment model. Additional areas of uncertainty include: the estimated value used for natural mortality, the estimates of stock-recruitment relationships, the appropriate use of the Santa Cruz juvenile survey data where survey indices are highly variable, and the relationship of the Canadian stock to the U.S. stock. Rebuilding analyses rely on estimates of past stock-recruitment relationships to predict future stock-recruitment relationships that are then used to project stock growth rates and rebuilding trajectories. Therefore, uncertainty in the estimates of stock-recruitment relationships may lead to greater uncertainties in a rebuilding analysis and its ability to predict future stock recruitment rates.

The SSC endorsed the assessment update as the best scientific data available for management decisions. The ABCs of 5,334 mt for 2007 and 5,144 mt for 2008 are derived from the base model with the F

50%

F

MSY

proxy.

In September 2005, the Council adopted a new assessment of yelloweye rockfish for use in 2007-2008 management decision-making. However, in November, the Council decided to explore a re-assessment of yelloweye rockfish before the March 2006 Council meeting. Various technical issues compelled the Council to consider re-doing the yelloweye assessment, including an investigation of new data sources particularly the International Pacific Halibut Commission's (IPHC's) fishery independent survey. The STAR Panel reviewing the original assessment was not afforded the time to consider new data sources or new approaches. The Council judged this shortcoming too important to defer until the next assessment cycle.

The March 2006 assessment used a stock synthesis model and re-evaluated all of the available coastwide catch and effort information and reformulated all of the indices of abundance. Yelloweye rockfish populations were treated in two different ways in the assessment model, as a single coastwide stock and as separate and distinct sub-populations of each of the three states. Model changes include: the addition of abundance data from the IPHC's fishery independent survey, a detailed examination of recreational catch per unit of effort, historical data back to 1923, change in selectivity curve for growth parameters, and a reduction in natural mortality rate.

The yelloweye rockfish stock assessment was relatively data poor. Both the current and 2002 yelloweye rockfish stock assessment have been tuned to a recreational catch per unit of effort index and lack fishery independent trend information. Because yelloweye rockfish are found in rocky habitat and are not as vulnerable to trawl gear as other rockfish, the bottom trawl survey data is of limited use in assessing the population. Standardized fishery independent sampling is designed so that changes in sampled indices of the population reflect changes in the population being measured, rather than changes in management and sampling methodology. Fishery catch per unit of effort data can be vulnerable to changes in behavior of the fishery (area of operation, gear, target species, etc.) rather than changes in the population. For yelloweye rockfish, the model's ability to assess the resource is limited by the lack of size and age composition data and the lack of fishery independent survey data. The SSC believes that for future assessments to be fruitful, new trend indices, particularly for waters off California and Oregon, are needed.

Yelloweye rockfish is vulnerable to localized depletion because of its sedentary nature. Although considerable progress was made in developing a plausible model for each of the states, adequate data were not available to support such an approach. The SSC encouraged further development of area-specific models, and ultimately SSC endorsed the coastwide assessment and recommended its use for management decisions. The results of the coastwide assessment estimated that yelloweye rockfish is at 17.7 percent of its unfished biomass coastwide in 2006 and that the stock is lagging behind the original rebuilding schedule. The coastwide ABCs of 23 mt for 2007 and 20 for 2008 were derived from the revised base model stock assessment with an F

MSY

proxy of F

50%

.

The 2007 and 2008 ABCs are based on the best scientific information available to the Council at its November 2005 and April 2006 meetings. Stock assessment documents and related reports were made available to the public prior to the Council's April 2006 meeting and can be obtained from the Council office.

Additional information on the groundfish stocks can be found in the EIS prepared for this action and in documents that were available at the April and June 2006 Council meetings (see

ADDRESSES

).

OY-setting Policies

The Council recommends annual harvest levels, which are OYs, for the species or species groups that it manages. The Magnuson-Stevens Act requires the FMP to prevent overfishing while achieving, on a continuing basis, the OY from each fishery. Overfishing is defined in the National Standards Guidelines (50 CFR part 600, subpart D) as exceeding the fishing mortality rate (F) needed to produce MSY on a continuing basis.

A biennial management cycle, adopted under Amendment 17 to the FMP, is being used to establish the 2007 and 2008 harvest specifications and management measures. At the beginning of the biennial management cycle, two one-year ABCs and OYs will be adopted for each species or species complex the Council proposes to manage. The annual OYs will be applied in the same manner as has been done in previous years. If an OY is not achieved or is exceeded in the first year, the underage or overage will not be transferred to the following year, as such a transfer could result in severe fishing and management problems in the second year. Overages or underages are accounted for in subsequent stock assessments, which are populated with historical total catch and other relevant data.

The 2007 and 2008 OYs for species other than those managed with overfished species rebuilding plans are set at levels that are expected to prevent overfishing, equal to or less than their ABCs. For overfished species, the OYs are set at levels that allow the overfished species to rebuild as quickly as possible, taking into account the status and biology of the stock, the needs of fishing communities, and the interaction of the stock within the marine ecosystem. The specific OYs being adopted for overfished species are described below in “OY Policies and Rebuilding Parameters for Overfished Species.”

The Council used the FMP's “40-10” policy to set OYs for species not managed with overfished species rebuilding plans, a policy designed to prevent those species from becoming overfished. If the stock biomass is larger than the biomass needed to produce MSY (B

MSY

), the OY may be set equal to or less than ABC. The Council uses 40 percent as a default proxy for B

MSY

, also referred to as B

40%

. A stock with a current biomass between 25 percent of the unfished level and B

MSY

(the precautionary threshold) is said to be in the “precautionary zone.” The Council's 40-10 policy reduces the fishing mortality rate when a stock is at or below its precautionary threshold. The further the stock is below the precautionary threshold, the greater the reduction in OY relative to the ABC, so that the slope of this line assumes that, at B

10%

, the OY would be set at zero. This is, in effect, a default rebuilding policy for precautionary zone stocks that will foster quicker return to the B

MSY

level than would fishing at the ABC level. Stocks below B

25%

have OYs set with species-specific rebuilding plans, designed to meet the rebuilding requirements of the Magnuson-Stevens Act. For further information on the 40-10 policy see the FMP at Section 5.3.

After considering appropriate analysis, the Council may recommend setting the OY higher than what the default OY harvest policy specifies and as long as the OY: does not exceed the ABC (which is set at F

MSY

), complies with the requirements of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, and is consistent with the National Standard Guidelines. On a case-by-case basis, additional precaution may be added as is warranted by uncertainty in the data or by higher risks of being overfished. If a stock falls below 25 percent of its unfished biomass (B

25%

) and is declared overfished, the Magnuson-Stevens Act requires the Council to develop a rebuilding plan within one year from the declaration date.

In addition, the Council has the discretion to make additional OY adjustments for stocks with only rudimentary stock assessments. For such stocks, the Council's policy is to set the OY at 75 percent of the ABC. For stocks that have not been quantitatively assessed and where the ABC is based on historical data, the OY policy is to set the OY at 50 percent of the ABC. For further information, see the preamble discussion of the Annual Specification and Management Measures published on January 11, 2001 (66 FR 2338).

2007 and 2008 OYs For Healthy and Precautionary Zone Species

The species that had OYs in 2005 and 2006 continue to have OYs in 2007 and 2008. As stated above, the FMP provides the Council's guidance on setting harvest specifications for groundfish at a variety of stock status levels. In November 2005, the Council reviewed the list of groundfish stocks that needed species or species group harvest levels set for 2007-2008 to determine which of those species or species complexes either had no new information on its status as of the 2005 stock assessments, or fell clearly into one of the FMP management categories with already-articulated harvest strategy guidance. For each species or species groups falling into one or both of those categories, the Council did not consider a broad set of harvest level alternatives, but only considered a single combination of ABC/OY harvest levels for 2007-2008. These species included: Pacific cod, shortbelly rockfish, splitnose rockfish south, yellowtail rockfish north, black rockfish, cabezon South of 42 deg. N. lat., English sole, arrowtooth flounder, other flatfish, other fish. In April 2006, the Council recommended adoption of the single ABC/OYs combination values for these species. Specific information on the OYs recommended for adoption by the Council, and the information of how the OYs were derived can be found in the footnotes to Table 1a. and Table 2a.

Species for which the Council considered alternative OYs include: lingcod, sablefish, chilipepper, shortspine thornyhead, longspine thornyhead, minor rockfish north and south, California scorpionfish, Dover sole, petrale sole, and starry flounder. Lingcod is currently estimated to be above 40 percent of unfished biomass on a coastwide basis; however, the southern portion of the stock (south of the CA/OR border at 42° N. lat.) is estimated to be just below 25 percent of its unfished biomass. The OYs were divided north and south of the CA/OR border to facilitate better state-based management in nearshore waters. The coastwide lingcod OY under Alternative 1 of 6,280 mt (5,428 mt for the northern portion of the stock and 852 mt for the southern portion of the stock) was calculated by setting the OY equal to the coastwide ABC, as lingcod is a healthy stock. The coastwide lingcod OY under Alternative 2, 6,088 mt (5,428 mt for the northern portion of the stock and 660 mt for the southern portion of the stock) is the sum of separate northern and southern lingcod substock OYs with the southern OY having a 40-10 adjustment, because the southern substock is estimated to be at 27 percent of its unfished biomass. In addition to the first two alternatives, CDFG brought forward a recommendation to maintain the 2006 OY of 612 mt for the southern potion of the stock. The final OY adopted of 6,040 mt was based on the CDFG recommendation of 612 mt for the southern portion of the stock and 5,428 mt for the northern portion of the stock. The final OY is intermediate to the first two alternatives and is expected to

allow the southern portion of the stock to continue increasing in biomass.

A coastwide sablefish stock assessment was prepared in 2005. The coastwide sablefish biomass was estimated to be at 35.2 percent of its unfished biomass in 2005. Projections indicate that the biomass is increasing and will be near 42 percent by 2008. Alternative 1, 4,574 mt was calculated by applying the 40-10 adjustment to the ABC derived from the low stock/production model in the 2005 sablefish assessment and OY Alternative 2, 5,934 mt, was calculated by applying the 40-10 adjustment using the assessment's base case model. Each coastwide OY alternative was also divided north and south of 36° N. lat. using the status quo proportions from 2006. Alternative methods for apportioning the OY were not considered because the STAR Panel recommended calculating coastwide biomass without including Conception area survey data. The Council recommended adopting the Alternative 2 OY, 5,934 mt, for 2007 and 2008, which is substantially less than the 2006 OY of 7,634 mt.

There is no new stock assessment from which to base new harvest specifications for chilipepper rockfish. Chilipepper rockfish is a healthy stock, with its biomass estimated to be above B

40%

. Two OY alternatives were considered because chilipepper rockfish co-occur with bocaccio, an overfished species. Alternative 1 OY is the status quo OY of 2,000 mt, which is a reduction from the ABC determined in the 1998 assessment. The OY adjustment is to constrain mortality on co-occurring bocaccio. The Alternative 2 OY, 2,700 is set equal to the ABC projections in the 1998 assessment. The Council considered the OY alternatives and recommended maintaining a chilipepper rockfish OY of 2,000 mt, which provides the precautionary adjustment for bocaccio.

Shortspine thornyhead was assessed coastwide in 2005 and the stock was estimated to be at 63 percent of its unfished biomass in 2007. The shortspine thornyhead OY alternatives considered by the Council provide for area-specific OYs north and south of Pt. Conception. The OY under Alternative 1 includes an OY for the area south of Pt. Conception (421 mt)on the base case stock assessment scenario from the 2005 stock assessment, which indicated that 34 percent of the coastwide biomass is in this area, and with a 50 percent reduction to account for the paucity of survey data south of Pt. Conception. The Council recommended making a 50-percent reduction because the SSC had concluded that the assessment was only marginally sufficient to estimate resource status given the short duration and density of survey data south of Pt. Conception.

The shortspine thornyhead OY under Alternative 1 for the area north of Pt. Conception (1,240 mt) was from the base case stock assessment indicating 66 percent of the coastwide biomass is in this area, reduced by a 25 percent precautionary deduction from the ABC. The Council recommended making the 25-percent reduction because the SSC had concluded that the assessment was marginally sufficient to estimate resource status. The Alternative 2 OY for the areas north and south of 34° 27′ N. lat. were based on the same biomass estimates from the 2005 stock assessment base case model, but with no precautionary reduction. Under Alternative 2, the OY alternative for the area south of Pt. Conception (841 mt) was based on an estimate that 34 percent coastwide biomass is in this area, and the OY alternative for the northern portion (1,634 mt) is based on an estimate of the remaining 66 percent of the coastwide biomass.

Specifying an OY for the area south of Pt. Conception is expected to distribute harvest opportunities proportional to the relative abundance of the resource. The precautionary OYs specified in Alternative 1 were not considered to be constraining relative to recent catches. In light of the data-poor nature of thisassessment, the Council recommended the adoption of the more precautionary Alternative 1.

Longspine thornyhead was assessed coastwide in 2005 and the stock was estimated to be at 69 percent of its unfished biomass in 2007. The two longspine thornyhead OY alternatives provide for area-specific OYs north and south of Pt. Conception. Area-specific OYs are intended to distribute harvest opportunities in proportion to the relative abundance of the resource. Alternative 1, 2,696 mt, was based on the assumption of a constant density of the stock throughout the Conception area with the proportion of the stock area north and south of Pt. Conception having a 25 percent precautionary reduction. The second alternative, 3,930 mt, was based on a constant density throughout the Conception area and no precautionary adjustment. Because longspine thornyhead is considered to be a healthy stock, the OY can be set equal to the ABC as was done under Alternative 2. The precautionary OYs specified in Alternative 1 are not constraining relative to recent catches. In light of the data-poor nature of this assessment, the Council recommended Alternative 1.

In 2005 the Council approved new assessments for two species managed within the minor rockfish south complex. The Council recommended that California scorpionfish be removed from this complex and be managed with a separate OY, while gopher rockfish remain within the complex and the OY be adjusted to reflect new information from this stock assessment. Gopher rockfish are part of the Minor Nearshore Rockfish South portion of this complex. Gopher rockfish co-occur with both shallow and deeper nearshore species and cannot be cleanly targeted. As a result, raising the gopher rockfish portion of the minor nearshore rockfish south OY to the level derived from the stock assessment could result in additional harvest of other data-poor stocks within the complex, rather than just harvests of gopher rockfish.

The minor rockfish south complex is comprised of three depth-associated rockfish assemblages: minor nearshore, minor shelf, and minor slope. Four OY alternatives considered by the Council for minor rockfish south included: Alternative 1, 1,753 mt, in which the OY includes the current contribution for gopher rockfish (48.5 mt); Alternative 2, 1,855 mt, which was determined by removing the current contribution for gopher rockfish (48.5 mt) from the OY and then increasing the OY by 50 percent of the new gopher ABC/OY of 302 mt (based on the 2007-2008 average ABC/OY; 2007 = 340 mt, 2008 = 264 mt); Alternative 3, 1,898 mt, which was determined by removing the current contribution for gopher rockfish (48.5 mt) from the OY and then increasing the OY by 75 percent of the new gopher ABC/OY of 302 mt (based on the 2007-2008 average ABC/OY; 2007 = 340 mt, 2008 = 264 mt); and Alternative 4, 2,006 mt, which was determined by removing the current contribution for gopher rockfish (48.5 mt) from the OY and then increasing the OY by the new gopher ABC/OY of 302 mt (based on the 2007-2008 average ABC/OY; 2007 = 340 mt, 2008 = 264 mt). The Council recommended 1,904 mt, the preferred OY alternative, which was intermediate to Alternatives 3 and 4 and included the new gopher rockfish contribution. The Council recommended dividing that 1,904 mt OY into the three major depth assemblages for the minor rockfish south OY: 564 mt attributed to minor nearshore species, 714 mt attributed to the minor shelf, and 626 mt to the minor slope species. The minor nearshore rockfish contribution was the ABC contribution based on 2001-2002 landings, reduced by 50 percent as a precautionary measures; the

contributions from the other depth assemblages remain unchanged.

California scorpionfish south of 34° 27′ N. lat. was assessed in 2005 and was estimated to be above 40 percent of its unfished biomass in 2005. The California scorpionfish assessment used a recreational catch data stream based upon Commercial Passenger Fishing Vessel (CPFV) logbook data expanded to total recreational catch using a proportion of CPFV to total recreational catch (based upon Marine Recreational Fisheries Statistics Survey catch history). The Council′s SSC approved this assessment, with the caveat that the ABC/OY from this assessment could only be related to recreational catch calculated in the same manner as this catch stream. Consequently, an alternative ABC/OY was generated by modifying the original ABC/OY from the assessment so that it could be compared and tracked using California Recreational Fisheries Survey (CRFS) catch estimates.

Because the stock is above B

40%

coastwide, the OY could be set equal to the ABC. Both the original stock assessment and the modified stock assessment were used to develop the ABC/OY alternatives for California scorpionfish. Alternative 1, 137 mt, was an average of the 2007 and 2008 ABC/OYs as modified for comparison against CRFS estimates. Alternative 2, 219 mt, was an average of the 2007 and 2008 ABC/OYS based on CPFV logbook data taken directly from the new assessment. The Council selected an OY of 175 mt, which is an intermediate value between Alternatives 1 and 2.

Dover sole north of 34° 27′ N. lat. was assessed in 2005. The Dover sole biomass was estimated to be at 59.8 percent of its unfished biomass in 2005 and is projected to be increasing. The OY alternatives specified for analysis for Dover sole stock are 16,500 mt under Alternative 1 and 28,482 mt under Alternative 2. The first OY alternative is equal to the equilibrium MSY from the 2005 stock assessment; the second alternative is set equal to the ABC because the stock is above B

40%

coastwide. The Council recommended OY Alternative 1, 16,500 mt, which was derived from the equilibrium MSY at F

40%

in the base model. The OY of 16,500 mt, which is less than the ABC, is the MSY harvest level and is considerably larger than the coastwide catches in any recent years.

A petrale sole stock assessment was prepared in 2004. In 2005, the petrale sole stock coastwide was estimated to be at 32 percent of its unfished biomass (34 percent in the northern assessment area and 29 percent of its unfished biomass in the southern assessment area). The petrale sole biomass is believed to be increasing. Three OY alternatives for petrale sole (coastwide) were analyzed for Council decision: 1,921 mt under Alternative 1, 2,499 mt under Alternative 2, and 2,883 mt under Alternative 3. The coastwide OY of 1,921 mt under Alternative 1 was based on the low spawning stock biomass model from the new stock assessment. The Coastwide OY of 2,499 mt under Alternative 2 was derived from the base model with a 40-10 adjustment for the northern and southern substock with an additional 25 percent reduction in the OYs for the southern stock due to assessment uncertainty. The coastwide OY under Alternative 3 of 2,883 mt, was derived from the base case stock assessment model with the 40-10 adjustment for both the northern and southern substock.

Each of the coastwide OYs were also subdivided by INPFC regions (Columbia and US-Vancouver areas and Eureka, Monterey, and Conception areas) and by latitude (north and south of 40°10′ N. lat.) for consideration of regional management. The Council recommended the adoption of the Alternative 2 coastwide OY of 2,499 mt. Although the Council considered regional management designed to achieve the OY specification, stratifying the OY north and south of 40° 10′ N. lat. was expected to result in a decrease in bottom trawl ex-vessel revenues of over $3 million, but could be higher or lower depending on the alternative chosen. The Council did not endorse regional management of petrale sole.

Starry flounder was assessed for the first time in 2005. The SSC reviewed the new stock assessment and recommended the stock assessment for management decision-making. For the first time, starry flounder is proposed to be removed from the “other flatfish” category and managed as a separate species with its own ABC and OY values. The Council requested the following two OY alternatives be analyzed for starry flounder: 890 mt and 1,186 mt. OY Alternative 1 (890 mt) is based on a 25 percent reduction of the combined 2007 and 2008 area OYs from the base model in the stock assessment. The Council recommended a precautionary adjustment of 25 percent because it is a relatively data poor stock. OY Alternative 2 (1,186 mt) was based on the combined area OYs from the base model in the stock assessment. The Council considered the alternative OYs and recommended an OY of 890 mt, which includes the precautionary adjustment of 25 percent for data poor stocks.

At its April meeting, the Council adopted a tentative black rockfish sharing framework for 2007-2008 that would carry forward the 2005-2006 black rockfish catch sharing recommendation of 58 percent to Oregon and 42 percent to California within the southern OY. The Council further recommended specifying those values as harvest guidelines in the Federal regulations for the respective states. These percentages result in an Oregon harvest guideline of 419 mt (recreational and commercial harvest guidelines of 286.6-350.2 mt and 90.5-110.7 mt respectively) and a California harvest guideline of 303 mt. Much of the harvest of black rockfish occurs in state waters and the states actively manage these fisheries. The States of California and Oregon have factored in precautionary approaches in managing to these black rockfish targets.

For the waters off Oregon, the recreational fishery catch estimate and commercial harvest guideline for black rockfish are being presented as a range because the Oregon State rulemaking process does not coincide with the Council's management measures development process. The Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission will make recommendations on in-state allocation issues in December 2006, too late for the proposed rule comment period for this action. The Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission is scheduled to meet on December 8, 2006, at the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) office in Salem. The schedule of meetings, the process for providing written or oral testimony, as well as the agenda and meeting materials for the upcoming meeting, are available online at the following ODFW website address: www.dfw.state.or.us/agency/commission. Information on the Oregon recommendation can be obtained from the following web site in early December:

www.dfw.state.or.us/agency/commission/minutes/

.

OY Policies and Rebuilding Parameters for Overfished Species

Earlier, this notice discussed the Council's decision making process and how that process focused the Council's decision on a suite of inter-related OYs for overfished species. As discussed above, the overfished species OYs constrain fishing for all co-occurring groundfish species and for some non-groundfish species as well, making the suite of overfished species OYs the cornerstone of the entire groundfish harvest specifications and management measures package. As also discussed above, adopting a suite of interrelated overfished species OYs allowed the

Council to recommend a management package that best took into account the status and biology of those stocks and the needs of fishing communities by emphasizing protection for the species most sensitive to changes in OY harvest levels and for communities most vulnerable to shifts in groundfish fishing income.

The results of the most recent round of stock assessments for overfished species were, in general, more optimistic than the prior round of assessments. The exception to this is yelloweye rockfish, which was substantially more pessimistic. Yelloweye rockfish have a life history that illustrates the classic challenge of rebuilding overfished West Coast rockfish stocks they are slow to mature, have low productivity, and can live in excess of 100 years. Given their low productivity, small changes in yelloweye rockfish harvest levels can result in large changes to the associated constant harvest rates. The Council recognized the need to restrict the fisheries based on the new yelloweye rockfish assessment, but also took into account the potentially widespread negative effects of an immediate reduction in OY and recommended an OY ramp-down strategy over a 5-year period. The ramp-down strategy provides time to collect much-needed additional data that could better inform new management measures for greater yelloweye rockfish protection, and reduces the immediate adverse impacts to fishing communities while altering the rebuilding period by less than one year.

The DEIS analyzes the effects of a 12-12.6 mt yelloweye rockfish OY in 2007, estimating that multiple fishing sectors and communities would be negatively affected by that OY level, and affected to large degree. The DEIS estimates that recreational fishing effort for groundfish and Pacific halibut off Washington would decrease by 30 percent under the 12-mt yelloweye rockfish alternative. Off Oregon, it is estimated that recreational fishing effort for groundfish and Pacific halibut would decrease by 32 percent, and recreational fishing effort for groundfish off California would decrease by over 33 percent. Commercial fixed gear vessels that homeport along the northern Washington coast and Puget Sound would likely experience a complete closure of traditional fishing grounds for sablefish. Some of these vessels could choose to move further south along the coast and homeport in different locations in order to access other fishing grounds; however, this would have repercussions to those communities where fixed gear vessels currently homeport, and many of these communities are described as being resource-dependent. Analysis of commercial management measures designed to achieve a suite of OYs for all overfished species and which included the 12 mt yelloweye rockfish OY showed that ex-vessel revenue would be reduced by nearly 40 percent. However, this is likely an overestimate of the reduction in commercial fisheries if only yelloweye rockfish were to be reduced to 12 mt and other overfished species were to remain at status quo levels. By contrast, the EIS estimates that the OY ramp-down strategy would have effects in 2007 on the recreational fisheries ranging from near status quo to 22 percent reduction in angler effort, and on the commercial fisheries ranging from near status quo to 13 percent reduction in revenues.

The yelloweye rockfish OY ramp-down strategy is a departure from the past practice of setting constant harvest rates that are intended to carry through time to the rebuilt dates. The ramped down yelloweye rockfish OYs for 2007-2010 begin with 23 mt in 2007 and continue to 20 mt in 2008, ultimately reaching 13.5 mt in 2011. Beginning in 2011, the yelloweye rockfish rebuilding plan would revert to a constant harvest rate of F = 0.0101 through to the rebuilt date of 2083.5. By contrast, an initial 2007 OY based on this harvest rate would result in an OY of 12.6 mt and a rebuilt date of 2083. As points of reference, the 2006 yelloweye rockfish OY is 27 mt, with expected total catch currently estimated at 21.1 mt.

The Council recommended separate harvest guidelines for yelloweye rockfish for the recreational fisheries that are divided at the Oregon/California border (42° N. lat.). The yelloweye rockfish harvest guideline for the area north of 42° N. lat. is 6.8 mt in 2007 and 2008, and the harvest guideline for the area south of 42° N. lat. is 2.1 mt in 2007 and 2008 with a residual amount of 1.5 mt that will be set aside and, if needed, will have a priority on being made available to the recreational fishery.

Canary rockfish and bocaccio are more productive than yelloweye rockfish and cowcod, but less productive than POP, darkblotched rockfish, and widow rockfish. The Council recommended adopting OYs for canary and bocaccio that are relatively close to preseason catch predictions with room to accommodate inseason deviations from pre-season catch predictions. Doing so would have a relatively small impact on the rebuilding times for these species, but would accommodate management flexibility, reduce the need for inseason adjustments to management, and result in greater stability to the management regime. The Council considered management measures for both species that would result in preseason catch projections that are slightly less than the recommended OY.

Canary's wide geographic distribution and catchability in all fisheries makes it one of the most constraining stocks when setting 2007-2008 management. The commercial trawl preseason bycatch rate projections have been off by a factor of 75-100 percent as compared to inseason estimates in recent years. This has required severe management adjustments inseason to keep canary mortality within the OY. West Coast Groundfish Observer Program (WCGOP) data for fixed gear is fairly sparse, and there is very little observer data for open access and recreational fisheries. Therefore, the Council recommended a 44 mt OY (the Preferred High OY) and management measures that would result in preseason catch projections that are slightly less than the Preferred High OY. The Council recommended separate harvest guidelines for canary rockfish for the recreational fisheries that are divided at the Oregon/California border (42° N. lat.). The canary rockfish recreational harvest guideline for the area north of 42° N. lat. is 8.2 mt in 2007 and 2008, and the recreational harvest guideline for the area south of 42° N. lat. is 9.0 mt in 2007 and 2008.

The Council's recommended OY for bocaccio was 218 mt, however the projected catch is much lower. The bocaccio stock assessment demonstrates that recruitment is highly variable and anecdotal evidence suggests there may be a strong incoming year-class. Past experience indicates that young bocaccio are difficult to avoid for most fisheries and, should this strong year class become evident, incidental encounter rates would be expected to increase. Additionally, the commercial trawl preseason bycatch rate projections for bocaccio have been off by a significant amount (100-200 percent) as compared to inseason estimates in recent years, and fixed gear WCGOP data, especially for the area south of 40°10′N. lat., is fairly sparse. As with canary rockfish, revising catch projections with new information inseason has required severe management adjustments inseason to keep bocaccio mortality within the OY. Therefore, the Council recommended management measures that would result in preseason catch projections that are significantly less (e.g., about 15-20 mt) than the OY to cover this uncertainty.

Cowcod is an unproductive stock, similar to yelloweye rockfish; however, its most recent assessment shows this stock is less depleted than previously thought. Because of the more optimistic stock assessment result, the Council did not recommend a dramatic decrease in the OY, but rather status quo management with an OY of 4 mt. Continued use of closed areas as a management tool is expected to appropriately keep cowcod catch below its OY.

POP, darkblotched rockfish, and widow rockfish are less depleted and more productive than the other three overfished species. The commercial trawl preseason bycatch rate projections for POP have been off by as much as 100 percent as compared to inseason estimates in recent years. Having the POP preseason bycatch rate projections adjusted by new data received inseason has resulted in less dramatic corrective inseason adjustments to constrain POP harvest, mainly because POP harvest has been consistently below its OY due to measures that constrain incidental catch of co-occurring darkblotched rockfish. Like darkblotched, POP is rarely caught by fixed gear and recreational fisheries. However, the time estimated for POP to reach its rebuilt level is relatively short, so there will be increased incidental encounter rates for POP in 2007 and 2008. The OYs analyzed for POP in 2007 and 2008 (44 mt and 100 mt) were significantly reduced from the 2006 OY level of 447 mt. These reduced OYs were not the result of the recent stock assessment or rebuilding plan, but were proposed from recent catch levels in the commercial slope fisheries, which are more significantly constrained by darkblotched rebuilding levels. After weighing the effects of a higher OY on POP's rebuilding time against the effects on fishing communities of more management flexibility, the Council recommended a POP OY of 150 mt. The Council anticipated that this OY, which was higher than the Preferred High OY, would be adequate to cover the rebuilding paradox of a potentially significant increased incidental encounter rate. (See earlier discussion on the Council's decision-making process for an explanation of the rebuilding paradox.)

For widow rockfish, the commercial trawl preseason bycatch rate projections have been off by as much as 100 percent as compared to inseason estimates in recent years. Widow rockfish is primarily incidentally taken in the whiting fishery, which has is constrained by a widow rockfish bycatch limit. Thus, constraining widow rockfish incidental catch inseason to account for revisions to preseason bycatch rate projections has primarily resulted in whiting fishery participants having to shift their fishing areas to better avoid widow rockfish. Precision in widow rockfish catch estimation methodology has greatly improved over the past year, however, especially for the trawl fishery. Widow rockfish occur infrequently in fixed gear and recreational fisheries. The time estimated for widow rockfish to reach its rebuilt level is relatively short, so there would likely be increased incidental encounter rates for widow rockfish in 2007 and 2008. The Council recommended management measures that would result in preseason catch projections that are slightly less than the Preferred High OY of 368 mt.

In the recent past, the commercial trawl preseason bycatch rate projections for darkblotched rockfish have been off by as much as 250 percent as compared to inseason estimates. As with bocaccio and canary rockfish, revising bycatch rate projections with new information inseason has required severe management adjustments inseason to keep darkblotched rockfish mortality within the OY. Slope fishing opportunities have been largely closed in the past several winters in order to constrain darkblotched rockfish incidental catch, following the receipt of new inseason data that revised preseason bycatch rate projections. Darkblotched rockfish is rarely caught by fixed gear and recreational fisheries.

While precision in catch estimation methodology has increased over the past year, inseason data indicates that actual catches are still about 50 percent higher than what was projected preseason for 2006. Additionally, the time estimated for darkblotched rockfish to reach its rebuilt level is relatively short, and strong year classes from 1999 and 2000 are now entering the fishery. Between 2000 and 2005, both the biomass and the spawning output of darkblotched rockfish roughly doubled. The biomass is expected to increase by an additional 40 percent from current levels by 2010, with spawning output doubling again in that period, at which point the stock is expected to be rebuilt. This rapid darkblotched rockfish stock increase means that there would likely be increased encounter rates for darkblotched rockfish in 2007 and 2008 (i.e., the rebuilding paradox that occurs as the stock approaches target biomass levels, where catch rates increase even though fishing effort remains the same or decreases.)

The Council considered including a relatively high amount of OY to cover the rebuilding paradox catch projection modeling uncertainty. As a potential consequence of variable and increasing encounter rates, darkblotched rockfish bycatch may cause early closure of commercial slope fisheries targeting co-occurring healthy stocks. The Council repeatedly heard testimony from industry on the importance of winter petrale and DTS (Dover sole, thornyhead, sablefish) fisheries in maintaining a permanent work force, and avoiding loss of markets to other supply sources which, once lost, can be difficult to regain. Concern over the potential loss of these fisheries, and recognition that an increase in the 2007 and 2008 OYs would make little difference in when darkblotched would be rebuilt, led the Council to recommend OYs for darkblotched rockfish of 290 mt in 2007 and 330 mt in 2008.

For each approved overfished species rebuilding plan, Amendment 16-4 will specify the following parameters in the FMP: estimates of unfished biomass (B

0

) and target biomass (B

MSY

), the year the stock would be rebuilt in the absence of fishing (T

MIN

), the year the stock would be rebuilt if all fishing mortality were to cease beginning in 2007 (T

F=0

,) the year the stock would be rebuilt if the maximum time period permissible under National Standard Guidelines were applied (T

MAX

), the target year in which the stock would be rebuilt under the adopted rebuilding plan (T

target

also referred to as the median time to rebuild), the spawning potential ratio (SPR = spawning per recruit at the current population level relative to that at the stock's unfished condition) and/or the harvest control rule (F). Other relevant rebuilding information will also be included in the FMP. The estimated rebuilding parameters will serve as management benchmarks in the FMP and the FMP will not be amended if the values change after new stock assessments are completed, as is likely to happen. Regulations at 50 CFR 660.365 that would implement Amendment 16-4 update rebuilding plan parameters, the target rebuilding date and the harvest control rule, from the most recent round of stock assessments and in accordance with Council recommendations for Amendment 16-4. Future updates that may be needed to these two parameters would be implemented via the Federal notice-and-comment rulemaking process.

The OY alternatives analyzed in this EIS were based on harvest rates estimated from the rebuilding simulation program and were calculated using an instantaneous rate of fishing

mortality (F or the harvest control rule), which may be converted to a Spawning Potential Ratio or SPR. This value is being provided so the specific fishing mortality rates can be more easily compared to one another and to standardize the basis of rebuilding calculations. Given fishery selectivity patterns and basic life history parameters, there is a direct inverse relationship between the harvest control rule and SPR. When there is no fishing, each new female recruit is expected to achieve 100 percent of its spawning potential. As fishing intensity increases, expected lifetime reproduction declines due to this added source of mortality. Conversion of the harvest control rule into the equivalent SPR has the benefit of standardizing for differences in growth, maturity, fecundity, natural mortality, and fishery selectivity patterns and, as a consequence, the SSC recommended that the SPR value be used routinely.

Rebuilding parameters being defined in regulation include the harvest control rule and the target time to rebuild. If, after a new stock assessment, the Council and NMFS conclude that the parameters defined in regulation should be revised, the revision will be proposed through the Federal rulemaking process, and the updated values codified in the Federal regulation. Any changes to the values in regulation will be fully supported by a corresponding analysis and updated through the Federal rulemaking process, which would include opportunity for public notice and comment.

An approved rebuilding plan will be implemented through setting OYs and establishing management measures necessary to maintain the fishing mortality within the OYs to achieve objectives related to rebuilding requirements. The adopted OYs and management measures being implemented through Federal regulation are summarized below. Management measures adopted for 2007 and 2008 are expected to keep the incidental catch of overfished species within the adopted OYs. Management measures designed to rebuild overfished species, or to prevent species from becoming overfished, may restrict the harvest of relatively healthy stocks that are harvested with overfished species. As a result of the constraining management measures imposed to rebuild overfished species, a number of the OYs for healthy stocks may not be achieved in 2007 or 2008.

POP

Date declared overfished: March 3, 1999

Areas affected: Vancouver and Columbia

Status of stock: Following the 2005 assessment, the stock was believed to be at 23.4 percent of unfished biomass level in 2005

SB

0

: 37,838 units of spawning output

SB

MSY

: 15,135 units of spawning output

T

MIN

: 2015

T

F=0

: 2015

T

MAX

: 2043

Target (median) year to rebuild: 2017

SPR harvest rate: 86.4 percent

Harvest control rule: F=0.011

ABC: 900 mt in 2007, 911 mt in 2008

OY: 150 mt in 2007 and 2008

Biology of the stock: POP occur in the western north Pacific south to Honshu Japan, southern Bering Sea, and the eastern north Pacific south to Baja California. POP are found on the upper continental slope (slope), 109-150 fm (200-275 m) during the summer and somewhat deeper 164-246 fm (300-450 m) during the winter. Adults sometimes aggregate up to 16 fm (29 m) above hard-bottom features and may then disperse and rise into the water column at night.

POP are livebearers. Most larvae are released February through May. The maximum age of POP has been determined to be 70 to 90 years. The mean generation time is 28 years. POP recruitment into the population occurs when the stock is at 3 years of age. Age of maturity and size varies with locality. POP reach 90 percent of their maximum size by age 20 years. Average size at age of mature females is greater than males.

From 1965 to 1998, recruitment was relatively stable and showed recruits/spawning output as an increasing trend over time. The situation is now slightly more complicated because there was not an obvious increasing trend in recruits/spawning output for either the 2003 or 2005 assessments, nor are the recruitments completely stable.

Management measures for 2007 and 2008: POP tend to occur in similar depths as darkblotched rockfish, although they have a more northern geographic distribution. Adult POP are often caught with other upper slope groundfish such as Dover sole, thornyheads, sablefish, and darkblotched, rougheye, and sharpchin rockfish. North of 40°10′ N. lat., POP are caught in similar fisheries as darkblotched rockfish. POP are rarely caught in the recreational fisheries. Management measures for 2007 and 2008 that are intended to limit the bycatch of POP and keep fishing mortality within the OY include (1) RCAs to restrict fishing in areas where overfished species are found and (2) cumulative trip limits.

Because POP co-occur with darkblotched rockfish, measures to reduce the incidental catch of darkblotched rockfish benefit POP. These measures include seaward trawl RCA boundaries that are established to keep fishing effort in deeper water where POP are less abundant, and cumulative limits for POP and minor slope rockfish that are intended to discourage targeting while allowing low levels of incidental catch to be landed. As needed, trip limits for other co-occurring species may be adjusted to reduce POP bycatch.

Darkblotched Rockfish

Date declared overfished: January 11, 2001 (66 FR 2338)

Areas affected: Coastwide

Status of the stock: Following the 2005 stock assessment the coastwide stock was believed to be at 16 percent of its unfished biomass level.

SB

0

: 25,361 mt

SB

MSY

: 10,144 mt

T

MIN

: 2009

T

F=0

: 2010

T

MAX

: 2033

ABC: 456 mt in 2007, 487 mt in 2008

OY: 290 mt in 2007, 330 mt in 2008

Target (median) year to rebuild: 2011

SPR harvest rate: 64.1 percent for 2007 and 60.7 percent for 2008

Harvest control rule: F=0.029 for 2007 and F=0.030 for 2008

Biology of the stock: Darkblotched rockfish occur from Tanaga Island (Aleutian Islands) and Bering Sea to near Catalina Island, California. They are most abundant from Oregon to British Columbia. Darkblotched rockfish occur on the outer shelf and slope, mainly north of Point Reyes (38° N. lat). Most adult darkblotched rockfish are associated with hard substrates on the lower shelf and upper slope at depths between 77 and 200 fm (140 and 365 m).

Like many Sebastes species, darkblotched rockfish show sexually dimorphic growth, in that females grow faster than and reach larger sizes than males. Darkblotched rockfish migrate to deeper waters with increasing size and age. Diurnal migration, raising off-bottom at night, is also is a likely behavior of darkblotched rockfish.

In general, darkblotched rockfish mate from August to December, eggs are fertilized from October through March, and larvae are released from November through April. Fecundity increases with fish size. Size-at-age estimates vary widely. Fish landed in California generally had smaller size-at-age than fish landed in the two northern states (Oregon-Washington). Size-at-age in the 2003-2004 survey data did not, however, change significantly with latitude.

Management measures in 2007 and 2008: Because of their deeper distribution, darkblotched rockfish are caught almost exclusively by commercial vessels. Most landings have been made by bottom trawl vessels targeting flatfish on the shelf, and rockfish and the DTS species on the slope. Even once the darkblotched rockfish population is rebuilt to B

MSY

, its population size will still be small relative to the larger complex of slope rockfish species it commonly co-occurs with. Having an overfished species rebuilding plan has required, and the detailed stock assessments have allowed, darkblotched ABCs and OYs to be established separately from the rest of the minor slope rockfish complex since 2001. In continued recognition of its status as a minor, but increasingly healthy, stock within a larger stock complex, darkblotched rockfish continues to be managed within the minor slope rockfish trip limit. Management measures intended to limit bycatch of darkblotched rockfish and keep fishing mortality within the OY specified for 2004 include (1) RCAs and (2) cumulative trip limits.

The boundaries of the RCAs vary by season and fishing sector and may be modified in response to new information about geographical and seasonal distribution of bycatch. The seaward boundary of the trawl RCA was set at a depth that was likely to keep fishing effort in deeper waters and away from areas were the bycatch of darkblotched rockfish was highest. During the winter months, modifications to the line allow for the harvest of flatfish while minimizing the impacts on darkblotched rockfish.

Cumulative limits for slope rockfish north of 40°10′ N. lat. are intended to accommodate incidental take of darkblotched rockfish. These slope rockfish limits are intended to allow vessels to retain slope rockfish taken as bycatch in the DTS (Dover sole, thornyhead, sablefish) fishery. Cumulative limits for splitnose rockfish, a co-occurring species between 40°10′ N. lat. and 38° N. lat., are constrained by darkblotched rockfish. As needed, trip limits for other co-occurring species may be adjusted to reduce darkblotched rockfish bycatch.

Incidental catch of darkblotched rockfish will continue to be allowed during the primary season for whiting, but will be constrained by bycatch limits that require closure of the commercial fisheries when reached. For 2007 and 2008, the darkblotched rockfish bycatch limit is 25 mt for the commercial whiting fisheries. A final 2007 and 2008 whiting ABC and OY will be adopted at the Council's March meetings in those years, and the bycatch limits may be reconsidered at that time and adjusted inseason.

Canary Rockfish

Date declared overfished: January 4, 2000 (65 FR 221)

Affected area: Coastwide

Status of the stock: 9.4 percent of its unfished biomass level in 2005.

B

0

: 34,798 mt

B

MSY

: 15,584 mt

T

MIN

: 2048

T

F=0

: 2053

T

MAX

: 2071

Target (median) year to rebuild: 2063

SPR harvest rate: 88.7 percent

Harvest control rule: F=0.018

ABC: 172 mt in 2007, 179 mt in 2008

OY: 44 mt in 2007 and 2008

Biology of the stock: Canary rockfish are a continental shelf (shelf) species ranging from the western Gulf of Alaska to northern Baja California and are most abundant from British Columbia to central California. Juveniles settle in nearshore waters after a several month pelagic stage. Adults range from depths of 25-475 fm (46-868 m). Most adults are caught off the middle and lower shelf at depths between 44 fm and 109 fm (80 and 200 m). Larger fish tend to be found in deeper waters. Canary rockfish are usually associated with areas of high relief such as pinnacles, but also occur over flat rock or mud and boulder bottoms. They are usually found near the bottom. A tagging study showed that they can migrate up to 700 km (435 miles).

The maximum age of canary rockfish is 84 years. Mature females may have higher natural mortality rate than males. Females tend to be larger than males of the same age. Female canary rockfish reach 90 percent of their expected maximum size at 15 years. Canary rockfish are live bearers. Parturition occurs from September through March peaking December-January. Little is known about ecological relationships between canary rockfish and other organisms.

Management measures in 2007 and 2008: Unavoidable incidental catches of canary rockfish occur in trawl, fixed gear, open access, and recreational fisheries targeting groundfish, as well as commercial and recreational fisheries targeting species other than groundfish. Canary is one of the most constraining stocks in 2007-2008 management. Adult canary rockfish are often caught with bocaccio, sharpchin, yelloweye, and yellowtail rockfishes, and lingcod. Researchers have also observed canary rockfish associated with silvergray, and widow rockfish. Management measures intended to limit bycatch of canary rockfish include RCAs and cumulative trip limits to constrain the fishery coastwide. Canary′s wide geographic distribution and catchability in all fisheries makes it difficult to manage with species-specific RCAs, like yelloweye rockfish and cowcod.

Bottom trawling is prohibited in the trawl RCA, which covers depths where canary rockfish have been most frequently caught. Cumulative limits are structured to discourage targeting of shelf species while allowing very low levels of incidental take to be landed. Because vessels fishing with trawl gear shoreward of the trawl RCA are more likely to encounter canary rockfish than those fishing seaward of the RCA, differential trip limits have been used for large footrope, small footrope and selective flatfish trawl gear. To reduce incidental take of canary rockfish in the area north of 40°10′ N. lat. vessels fishing shoreward of the RCAs are required to use selective flatfish trawl gear. By allowing higher limits for large and small footrope gear in areas seaward of the RCAs and prohibiting its use in nearshore areas, there is an incentive for vessels to fish in deeper waters, beyond the range of canary rockfish.

Incidental catch of canary rockfish will continue to be allowed during the primary season for whiting, but will be constrained by bycatch limits that require closure of the commercial fisheries when reached. For 2007 and 2008 the canary rockfish bycatch limit is 4.7 mt. A final 2007 and 2008 Whiting ABC and OY will be adopted at the Council's March meeting and the bycatch limits may be reconsidered at that time and adjusted inseason.

The non-trawl limited entry fisheries will be constrained by RCAs coastwide that are intended to reduce the catch of canary rockfish. Ridgeback prawn trawl vessels fishing in waters off the state of California will continue to be required to have and use finfish excluder devices that are intended to reduce the catch of overfished species including canary rockfish.

Recreational fisheries are managed through bag limits, size limits and seasons. As necessary, seasons can be shortened and bag limits reduced to stay within the OYs. The retention of canary rockfish is prohibited in the recreational fisheries.

Bocaccio

Date declared overfished: March 3, 1999

Areas affected: Monterey and Conception

Status of stock: 10.7 percent of its unfished biomass in 2005

B

0

: 13,402 Billion eggs in 2005

B

MSY

: 5,361 Billion eggs in 2005

T

MIN

: 2018

T

F=0

: 2021

T

MAX

: 2032

Target (median) year to rebuild: 2026

SPR Harvest rate: 77.7 percent

Harvest control rule: F=0.034

ABC: 602 mt in 2007, 618 mt in 2008

OY: 218 mt in 2007 and 2008

Biology of the stock: Bocaccio is a rockfish species that ranges from Kodiak Island, Alaska south to central Baja California. Bocaccio are historically most abundant in waters off central and southern California. Juveniles settle in nearshore waters after a several month pelagic stage. Adults range from depths of 6.5-261 fm (12-478 m). Most adults are caught off the middle and lower shelf at depths between 27 fm and 137 fm (50 and 250 m). Larger fish tend to be deeper. Bocaccio are found in a wide variety of habitats, often on or near bottom features but sometimes over muddy bottoms. While usually found near the bottom they also occur as much as 16.4 fm (30 m) off bottom. Tagging studies have shown that young fish move up to 148 km (92 miles).

Maximum age of bocaccio was determined to be at least 40 and perhaps more than 50 years. Bocaccio are live bearers. Parturition occurs from October through July peaking January-February off California. Little is known about ecological relationships between bocaccio and other organisms.

Management measures for 2007 and 2008: Bocaccio have historically been taken by commercial trawl and fixed gear vessels and in the recreational fisheries. Adult bocaccio are often caught with chilipepper rockfish and have been observed schooling with speckled, vermilion, widow, and yellowtail rockfish. South of 40°10′ N. lat. the bottom trawl, limited entry fixed gear, and open access fishing opportunities in the depths where bocaccio are most commonly encountered have been reduced though the use of RCAs. To accommodate incidental catch of shelf species, very small limits are allowed to be retained with large footrope and midwater trawl gear, but bocaccio is prohibited with small footrope trawl gear.

Chilipepper rockfish limits for limited entry large footrope and mid-water trawl gear are being established for the area south of 40°10′ N. lat. and may be reduced inseason if incidental catch of bocaccio is greater than pre-season projections. The Chilipepper rockfish limits are conservative and not expected to result in the bocaccio OY being exceeded.

Ridgeback prawn trawl vessels fishing in waters off the State of California will continue to be required to have and use fin fish excluder devices that are intended to reduce the catch of overfished species including bocaccio.

Bocaccio are vulnerable to commercial non-trawl gears and to recreational fishing gear. To accommodate incidental catch of bocaccio in commercial fixed gear fisheries, very small limits are allowed to be retained. California recreational fisheries will constrain incidental bocaccio catch with recreational fishery bag limits.

Cowcod

Date declared overfished: January 4, 2000

Areas affected: Point Conception to the U.S.- Mexico boundary.

Status of stock: between 14 and 21 percent of unfished biomass in 2005

B

0

: 3,045 mt

B

MSY

: 1,218 mt

T

MIN

: 2035

T

F=0

: 2039

T

MAX

: 2074

Target (median) year to rebuild: 2039

SPR harvest rate: 90 percent

Harvest control rule: F=0.004

ABC: 17 mt south of 36° N. lat. and 19 mt between of 36 N. lat. and 40° 30′ N. lat. in both 2007 and 2008.

OY: 4 mt in 2007 and 2008

Biology of the stock: Cowcod are found at 11-200 fm (75 366 m) depths. Cowcod range from central Oregon to central Baja California and Guadalupe Island. However, they are rare off Oregon and Northern California. It has long been argued that smaller cowcod are found at the shallow end of the depth range. Recent submersible work, however, indicates that cowcod size distribution may be more associated with sea floor structure than depth.

As with other species of Sebastes, fertilization is internal and females give birth to first-feeding stage planktonic larvae during the winter. Peak abundance of cowcod larvae is January through April, with some larvae present from November through August. In Monterey Bay, juveniles recruit to fine sand and clay sediments at depths of 22-56 fm (40 100 m) during the months of March September. Adults are found at depths of 50-280 fm (90 500 m) usually on high relief rocky bottom.

Management measures in 2007 and 2008: All directed cowcod fishing opportunities have been eliminated since 2001. Retention of cowcod will continue to be prohibited for all commercial and recreational fisheries. To prevent incidental cowcod harvest, two Cowcod Conservation Areas (CCAs) (the Eastern CCA and the Western CCA) in the Southern California Bight were delineated to encompass key cowcod habitat areas and known areas of high catches. The CCAs were codified into regulation on November 4, 2003 (68 FR 62374). Fishing for groundfish is prohibited within the CCAs, except that minor nearshore rockfish, California scorpionfish, cabezon, lingcod, and greenling may be taken from waters where the bottom depth is less than 20 fm (36.9 m). Recent catches have been <1 mt, and indicate that management has been effective at reducing landings unless there has been significant unreported fishing mortality.

The boundaries of the Western CCA for limited entry fixed gear and open access non-trawl fisheries are proposed to be modified by this action. The current western CCA would be segmented into several smaller areas and fishing in waters greater than 175 fm (323 m) in depth would be allowed. Adult cowcod are believed to be less abundant in depths greater than 175 fm (323 m).

Widow Rockfish

Date declared overfished: January 11, 2001

Areas affected: Coastwide

Status of stock: 31.1 percent of its unfished biomass in 2004

B

0

: 49,678 million eggs

B

MSY

: 19,871 million eggs

T

MIN

: 2013

T

F=0

: 2013

T

MAX

: 2033

Target (median) year to rebuild: 2015

SPR harvest rate: 95 percent

Harvest control rule: F=0.008

ABC: 5,334 mt in 2007, 5,144 mt in 2008

OY: 368 in 2007 and 2008

Biology of the stock: Occur from near Kodiak Island, Alaska to Bahia de Todos Santos, Baja California. They are most abundant off northern Oregon and southern Washington and are one of the most abundant West Coast rockfish. Young of the year recruit to shallow nearshore waters after spending up to 5 months as pelagic larvae and juveniles in offshore waters. Adults range from bottom depths of 13 fm to 300 fm (24 m to 549 m). Most adults occur near the shelf break at bottom depths between 77 fm to 115 fm (140 m to 210 m). Adults are semi-pelagic and their behavior is dynamic.

Large concentrations of widow rockfish form at night and disperse at dawn, an atypical pattern for rockfish. Widow rockfish tend to be more easily caught in higher abundance during El Nino (anomalously warm and dry) years. Maximum age of widow rockfish

is 59 years. Size and age of maturity varies with locality. Females attain a larger size compared to males and fish from the northern part of the range tend to be larger at age compared to those in the south. Widow rockfish are live bearers and most larvae are released January through March. Little is known about ecological relationships between widow rockfish and other organisms.

Management measures in 2007 and 2008: Historically, widow rockfish were caught with yellowtail rockfish in waters off Washington, while California and Oregon fishers often made large pure catches of widow rockfish from mid-water schools. Current commercial limits for widow rockfish are intended to accommodate incidental catch and do not provide an incentive for directed fishing. Therefore, the midwater trawl fisheries for yellowtail rockfish, a co-occurring species with widow rockfish, are also being constrained.

Because bottom trawl opportunities for more constraining shelf rockfish species continue to be extremely limited, RCA management measures to restrict fishing on the shelf is expected to be beneficial to the recovery of widow rockfish. Non-trawl fisheries have little incidental catch of widow rockfish.

Incidental catch of widow rockfish will continue to be allowed during the primary season for whiting, but will be constrained by bycatch limits that require closure of the commercial fisheries when reached. For 2007 and 2008 the widow rockfish bycatch limit is 200 mt. Final 2007 and 2008 Whiting ABC and OY will be adopted at the Council's March meeting and the bycatch limits may be reconsidered at that time and adjusted inseason.

Yelloweye Rockfish

Date declared overfished: January 11, 2002

Areas affected: Coastwide

Status of stock: 17.7 percent of its unfished biomass in 2006

B

0

: 3,322 mt

B

MSY

: 1,328 mt

T

MIN

: 2046

TF=

0

: 2048

T

MAX

: 2096

Target (median) year to rebuild: 2084

SPR rate: 55.4 percent in 2007 and 60.8 percent in 2008

Harvest control rule: 0.015 in 2007 and 0.013 in 2008

Biology of the stock: Yelloweye rockfish range from Umnak Island, Aleutian Islands to Ensenada, northern Baja California. They are most abundant from southeastern Alaska to central California. Yelloweye rockfish can be characterized as relatively low in abundance, extremely long-lived (aged up to 120 years), late maturing, and slow growing. Juveniles have been found at depths greater than 8 fm (15 m) in areas of high bottom relief. Adults range to depths of 300 fm (549 m). Most adults are caught off the middle and lower shelf at depths between 50 fm and 98 fm (91 m and 180 m). Adult yelloweye rockfish tend to be solitary and are usually associated with areas of high relief with refuges such as caves and crevices, but also occur on mud adjacent to rock structures. They are usually found on or near the bottom.

The affinity for hard bottom suggests that yelloweye rockfish may form stable local populations that, when recognized, could be treated as independent stocks. Evaluation of stock boundaries is reliant upon life history traits associated with a population or sub-population. Data for delineation of stock boundaries for yelloweye rockfish off the West Coast are limited. Maximum age of yelloweye rockfish is 115 years. Parturition occurs from March through September and peak May-June. Yelloweye are carnivorous feeding primarily on other rockfishes, herring, sand lance, crab and shrimp.Little is known about the ecological relationships between yelloweye rockfish and other organisms. Researchers have observed adult yelloweye rockfish associated with bocaccio, cowcod, greenspotted, and tiger rockfish.

Management measures in 2007 and 2008: Yelloweye rockfish inhabit areas typically inaccessible to trawl gear. In the coastal trawl fishery, incidental catch occurs during the harvest of other target fisheries operating at the fringes of yelloweye rockfish habitat. Yelloweye rockfish is particularly vulnerable to hook-and-line gear. Since the 1970′s, yelloweye rockfish has been subjected to a periodic target fishery for both commercial hook-and-line and sport fisheries. Current yelloweye rockfish harvest is incidental and occurs in tribal and non-tribal hook and line fisheries, and in recreational fisheries.

North of 40°10′ N. lat., Yelloweye Rockfish Conservation areas (YRCAs) will continue to be used to reduce yelloweye rockfish catch in the commercial fixed gear, open access, and recreational fisheries. Off Washington, recreational fishing for groundfish and halibut will continue to be prohibited inside the YRCAs and limited entry fixed gear and open access fishing in the “C” shaped YRCA off Washington will continue to be designated as an area to avoid. New YRCAs off the coast of Washington are being defined in Federal regulation at § 660.390. The new North Coast Commercial YRCA would restrict commercial limited entry and open access, the new Salmon Troll YRCA would restrict salmon troll fishing, and a new recreational YRCA off the southern coast of Washington would prohibit all recreational fishing for groundfish and halibut. A new recreational YRCA is also being defined for Stonewall banks off Oregon.

Overfishing

The Magnuson-Stevens Act defines “overfishing” as “a rate or level of fishing mortality that jeopardizes the capacity of a fishery to produce the maximum sustainable yield on a continuing basis.” Under the FMP, ABCs for all species are set at the F

MSY

level, the level that, for a particular year, is intended to produce maximum sustainable yield for that species on a continuing basis. None of the 2007-2008 ABCs is set higher than F

MSY

or its proxy, none of the OYs is set higher than the corresponding ABCs, and the management measures in this proposed rule are designed to keep harvest levels within specified OYs.

When evaluating whether overfishing has occurred for any species under the FMP, NMFS compares that species' estimated total catch (landed catch + discard) in a particular year to its ABC for that year. Overfishing is difficult to detect inseason for many groundfish, particularly for minor rockfish species, because most species are not individually identified on landing. Species compositions, based on proportions encountered in samples of landings and extrapolated observer data, are applied during the year. However, final results are not available until after the end of the year.

In the preamble to the proposed rule for the 2005-2006 groundfish specifications and management measures, NMFS discussed overfishing that had occurred in 2003. NMFS has completed its analysis of 2004 groundfish total catch, but will not be able to complete its analysis of 2005 groundfish total catch until after observer program data become available in autumn 2006. Therefore, this proposed rule discusses both overfishing estimated to have occurred in 2004 and preliminary indicators of whether overfishing occurred on any species in 2005. When new data are available, NMFS updates estimates of whether overfishing has occurred as part of the agency's report to Congress on the “Status of U.S. Fisheries” (See

http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/sfa/statusoffisheries/SOSmain.htm#congress05

.)

NMFS estimates that overfishing occurred on darkblotched rockfish during the 2004 fishing season, since the total catch of darkblotched rockfish exceeded its ABC of 240 mt by 1.6 mt. In 2004, the darkblotched rockfish OY was also 240 mt. For canary rockfish, NMFS estimates that while the 2004 total catch of canary rockfish of 58 mt was below its ABC of 243 mt, that level of catch exceeded the OY of 47.3 mt. While the canary rockfish OY was exceeded, overfishing did not occur because total catch was below the canary rockfish ABC. For all remaining groundfish species or species groups, NMFS estimates that total catch was below both ABCs and OYs. Both canary and darkblotched rockfish are overfished. NMFS has taken action to prevent the fisheries from exceeding the ABCs and OYs for these species in 2006 and does not expect that harvest exceedances in 2004 will jeopardize the rebuilding progress for either species.

Darkblotched rockfish are taken almost exclusively in the limited entry trawl continental slope fishery. The 2004 exceedance of the darkblotched rockfish ABC/OY is so slight that it is difficult to assess what particular action might have allowed overfishing to occur. As discussed earlier, darkblotched rockfish are rebuilding at a rapid rate and are expected to be fully rebuilt by 2011. As the darkblotched rockfish population nears the B

MSY

level, it becomes increasingly more difficult to craft management measures that constrain the fisheries to appropriately avoid darkblotched rockfish. Data from the 2006 trawl fisheries are showing higher darkblotched rockfish encounter rates than NMFS had estimated from prior years' observer data. At the Council's recommendation, NMFS took action on July 1, 2006 to constrain the fisheries to stay within the 2006 darkblotched rockfish OY (71 FR 37839, July 3, 2006.) Proposed management measures for 2007-2008 are intended to keep the fisheries within the darkblotched OYs for those years, but NMFS anticipates again evaluating the fisheries inseason to determine whether even more constraining measures are needed to minimize darkblotched rockfish bycatch through the end of its rebuilding period.

Canary rockfish are taken in all fisheries coastwide, making management to prevent incidental canary catch one of the more challenging requirements of groundfish management. As mentioned above, the estimated 2004 canary rockfish total catch is 10.7 mt above its 2004 OY. Of the catch from the post-season catch estimate that was apparently not anticipated pre-season 7.3 mt of the 10.7 mt exceedance was taken in research and exempted fishing permit (EFP) fisheries. Portions of the remaining 3.4 mt exceedance, in amounts of less than 1 mt, were taken in most of the coastwide fishing sectors. The Oregon recreational fishery was the exception to these exceedances, since it is estimated to have finished 2004 with a 3.9-mt catch, 2 mt below that anticipated for that fishery at the start of 2004 (See EIS for 2004 groundfish harvest specifications and management measures.)

In its EIS on the 2005-2006 groundfish specifications and management measures, the Council more closely examined anticipated research catch in those years and adjusted overfished species research set asides appropriately. The 2004 arrowtooth trawl EFP took 2.5 mt of the unanticipated EFP canary rockfish catch; that EFP was not renewed for 2005 or 2006. While these measures were appropriately precautionary, they could not fully address the question of how to facilitate the collection of best available scientific data while minimizing overfished species mortality in research activities.

NMFS must support and conduct scientific activity on canary and other rockfish, and it would be unrealistic to expect this research to be entirely non-extractive. Important data on rockfish habitat and behavior are being collected via non-extractive methods, such as underwater remotely-operated-vehicles. However, methods like these are expensive and site-specific, gathering a great deal of data specific to small sites. The collection of fisheries independent data for coastwide stock assessments, particularly for broadly distributed schooling species like canary rockfish, requires extractive scientific fishing to occur over as much of the range of managed species as possible. If NMFS were to operate its continental shelf/slope survey with the intent of avoiding overfished rockfish, the data from that survey would lose its scientific value. The Council's preferred alternative for 2007-2008 anticipates 3 mt of canary rockfish being taken in scientific research activities each year. Consistent with Council policy and Federal regulations at 50 CFR 600.310 (f)(4)(iii), that 3 mt of anticipated research catch is deducted from the canary rockfish OY. Research catch levels are monitored inseason. Should research take of canary rockfish in either year be predicted, based on information received inseason, to exceed 3 mt, commercial and recreational fisheries will be constrained to ensure that the overall canary rockfish take remains below the OY.

Preliminary data from the 2005 fisheries show that the catch of petrale sole exceeded its 2005 ABC. This is the only species for which it is now evident that overfishing occurred in 2005. NMFS will not have complete observer data on the 2005 fisheries until autumn 2006, at which time NMFS will be better able to analyze total groundfish catch to determine whether overfishing occurred on any other species. Petrale sole is almost exclusively taken in the groundfish trawl fishery. The Council addressed higher than expected 2005 petrale sole catch levels at its September and November 2005 meetings. Data available at the September Council meeting indicated that the fisheries were approaching the petrale sole ABC/OY of 2,762 mt, which led the Council to recommend and NMFS to implement a closure of the winter petrale sole fisheries (See 70 FR 50866, October 5, 2005). Data available at the November Council meeting indicated that the petrale sole ABC/OY had been exceeded and that further action was needed to minimize potential incidental petrale sole mortality through the end of the year. Thus, the Council recommended and NMFS implemented management measures to further constrain the November-December continental slope fisheries to constrain petrale sole bycatch (70 FR 72385, December 5, 2005.)

2007-2008 Fishery Management Measures

As discussed earlier in this document, groundfish fishery management measures for 2007-2008 are intended to facilitate the rebuilding of overfished species as quickly as possible, taking into account the status and biology of the stocks and the needs of fishing communities. Within the constraints of protecting overfished species, the Council's management measure recommendations are intended to allow fishery participants as much access to healthy stocks as possible. In 2007 and beyond, fishing communities will have to forego much of the available harvestable surplus of healthy groundfish stocks that co-occur with overfished species so that overfished species may be rebuilt as quickly as possible. Management measures intended to address the rebuilding needs of specific overfished species are discussed earlier in this document, in the species-specific sections of “OY Policies and Rebuilding Parameters for Overfished Species.”

The types of management measures in this proposed rule do not vary

significantly from those used in recent years to reduce the incidental catch of overfished species while allowing some harvest of co-occurring healthy stocks. Management measures are intended allow overfished species to rebuild by reducing their catch in times and areas where they most frequently occur, to minimize bycatch with gear and fishing area restrictions, and to distribute groundfish harvest throughout the year to maintain groundfish fishing opportunities and markets. The fisheries management regime tends to be most constrained by protective measures for canary rockfish coastwide, yelloweye rockfish north of 40° 10′ N. lat., and bocaccio south of 40° 10′ N. lat. Trawl fisheries are additionally constrained by measures to prevent bycatch of POP, darkblotched, and widow rockfish.

Groundfish management measures that will continue to be used in 2007-2008 include: trip and bag limits, size limits, differential trip limits by gear type, season openings and closures, large-scale area closures such as the RCAs, gear restrictions, and bycatch limits. In addition to the fishery-specific management measures addressed below, the Council recommended that NMFS work with the states to include in this proposed rule any revisions to RCA boundary lines needed to ensure that: the lines better approximate the depth contours they are intended to represent; open fishing areas to allow petrale sole targeting are as consistent as possible between petrale-modified depth contour lines; and the lines that may intersect with EFH conservation area polygons are as compatible as possible with the boundaries of those areas. In addition, the Council recommended extending the 180-fm (329-m) line south of 42° N. lat., and recommended extending the 250-fm (458-m) line, including petrale areas, south of 38° N. lat., making both of these lines available coastwide. New RCA lines proposed via this action include: 10-fm (18-m) off Washington; 20-fm (37-m) off Washington and Oregon; 25-fm (46-m) off Washington and Oregon, which will replace the 27-fm (49-m) line; 180-fm (329-m) south of 42° N. lat., modified to allow fishing in petrale sole areas; 250-fm (458-m) lines around San Clemente Island, Santa Catalina Island, Lasuen Knoll, and San Diego Rise; 250-fm (458-m) line, including petrale areas, south of 38° N. lat., making both of these lines available coastwide. To implement this Council recommendation, this proposed rule would make changes to the RCA boundary line regulations at 50 CFR 660.390 through. 660.394.

The management measures proposed in this rule are only part of the overall management strategy for West Coast groundfish. On May 11, 2006, NMFS published a final rule to implement management measures to protect groundfish EFH under Amendment 19 to the FMP, including 51 new EFH conservation areas (71 FR 27408.) On June 27, 2006, NMFS published a proposed rule to implement bycatch mitigation measures in the groundfish fisheries under Amendment 18 to the FMP including, among other measures, the requirement that management take into account the co-occurrence ratios of overfished stocks with more abundant target stocks (71 FR 36506.) On September 7, 2006, NMFS approved Amendment 18; this proposed rule to implement Amendment 16-4 and the 2007-2008 groundfish specifications and management measures complies with the FMP as revised through Amendments 18 and 19. NMFS will continue to require vessels to carry and operate VMS units to monitor fishing locations, and to carry observers when requested by NMFS. NMFS and the states will again be conducting stock assessments over the next two years, which will inform the 2009-2010 specifications and management measures process and provide a gauge for rebuilding progress.

Federal regulations for the West Coast ground

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