Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; Fisheries off West Coast States and in the Western Pacific; Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery; Groundfish Fishery Management Measures

This emergency rule sets new depth-based management measures that create a darkblotched rockfish conservation area (DBCA). The DBCA will limit the incidental catch of darkblotched rockfish, an overfished species, while allowing the limited entry trawl fishery access to healthy deepwater groundfish stocks (e.g., Dover sole, thornyhead, sablefish) and nearshore flatfish species (e.g., Dover sole (seasonally), petrale sole, arrowtooth flounder, English sole) outside the DBCA. This action is intended to allow the fisheries to access the optimum yields (OYs) of healthy groundfish stocks while protecting overfished darkblotched rockfish.