Fishery conservation and management: West Coast States and Western Pacific Fisheries— West Coast Salmon,

[Federal Register: January 27, 1999 (Volume 64, Number 17)]

[Proposed Rules]

[Page 4065-4066]

From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

[DOCID:fr27ja99-14]

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 660

[I.D. 011999B]

RIN: 0648-AK83

Fisheries Off West Coast States and in the Western Pacific; West Coast Salmon Fisheries; Amendment 13

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

ACTION: Notice of availability of amendment to fishery management plan; request for comments.

SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) has submitted Amendment 13 to The West Coast Salmon Plan (Salmon FMP) for Secretarial review. Amendment 13 changes the management goals for the Oregon coastal natural (OCN) coho salmon (coho). The FMP amendment implements the fisheries management provisions of the Oregon Coastal Salmon Restoration Initiative (OCSRI).

[[Page 4066]]

DATES: Comments on Amendment 13 must be received on or before March 29, 1999.

ADDRESSES: Comments on Amendment 13, or supporting documents should be sent to William W. Stelle, Jr., Administrator, Northwest Region, NMFS, Sand Point Way NE, BIN C15700, Seattle, WA 98115-0070; or to William T. Hogarth, Administrator, Southwest Region, NMFS, 501 West Ocean Boulevard, Suite 4200, Long Beach, CA 90802-4213.

Copies of Amendment 13, the Environmental Assessment (EA)/ Regulatory Impact Review (RIR)/Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (IRFA), the Amendment 13 Issues Attachment, and the ODFW/NMFS risk assessment are available from Lawrence D. Six, Executive Director, Pacific Fishery Management Council, 2130 SW Fifth Ave., Suite 224, Portland, OR 97201.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: William L. Robinson at 206-526-6140, Svein Fougner at 562-980-4040, or the Pacific Fishery Management Council at 503-326-6352.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) requires that each Regional Fishery Management Council submit any fishery management plan (FMP) or FMP amendment it prepares to NMFS for review and approval, disapproval, or partial approval. The Magnuson-Stevens Act also requires that NMFS, upon receiving an FMP or amendment, immediately publish a notice that the FMP or amendment is available for public review and comment. NMFS will consider the public comments received during the comment period in determining whether to approve the FMP or FMP amendment.

Amendment 13 would change the management goals for the OCN coho. The major provisions of this amendment are not codified because, in order to streamline the regulations the salmon escapement goals were previously removed from the codified regulations and remain only in the FMP. Therefore, the modification of the OCN escapement goals requires only a minor modification of the regulations to change the language that explains that the coho allocation provisions south of Cape Falcon apply only when coho abundance allows a directed harvest of coho. The existing language is tied to the existing level of harvest allowed on OCN coho. NMFS will publish a proposed rule that would change the language to be more generic and accurate under Amendment 13.

The FMP amendment implements the fisheries management provisions of the OCSRI. In a Memorandum of Agreement with the Governor of Oregon, NMFS pledged to work with the State of Oregon to encourage the Council to adopt the OCSRI. The OCSRI fisheries management provisions are just one part of a broad-based coastal recovery plan. Amendment 13 is a major step toward full implementation. The amendment would provide a more conservative management of OCN coho, Oncorhynchus kisutch, by disaggregating the OCN stock into four components, restricting total harvest exploitation rates on each component to a maximum of 35 percent, and linking increases in harvest rates for each component from the current low rates (10-13 percent) to increases in marine survival and to proven reproductive success of the present brood year.

NMFS welcomes comments on the proposed FMP amendment through the end of the comment period. NMFS will consider the public comments received during the comment period in determining whether to approve the proposed amendment. A proposed rule to implement Amendment 13 to the Salmon FMP has been submitted for Secretarial review and approval. NMFS expects to publish and request public review and comment on this rule in the near future. Public comments on the proposed rule must be received by the end of the comment period on the amendment to be considered in the approval/disapproval decision on the amendment. All comments received by the end of the comment period for the amendments, whether specifically directed to the amendment or to the proposed rule, will be considered in the approval/disapproval decision on the amendment.

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.

Dated: January 22, 1999. Richard W. Surdi, Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 99-1878Filed1-26-99; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510-22-F