Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Allow Longline Pot Gear
bis-export-control · Bureau of Industry and Security · Published 1996-09-18 · 61 FR 49076
Document
Document number
96-23852
Federal Register citation
61 FR 49076
CFR reference
50 CFR 679
Type
Rule
Action
Final rule.
Category
bis-export-control
Sub-agency
Bureau of Industry and Security
Publication date
1996-09-18
Commerce docket
Docket No. 960703187-6253-02
Abstract
NMFS issues a final rule to allow the use of longline pot gear by vessels engaged in directed fishing for sablefish in the Bering Sea subarea (BS). Sablefish hook-and-line fishermen in the BS have faced increasing predation of hooked sablefish by killer whales. The use of longline pot gear will effectively prevent such predation. This action is necessary to protect Bering Sea sablefish harvests and is intended to resolve a conflict between fishermen and a species protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (MMPA).