Fisheries off West Coast States and in the Western Pacific; Precious Corals Fisheries; Harvest Quotas, Definitions, Size Limits, Gear Restrictions, and Bed Classification

NMFS has partially approved a regulatory amendment under the Fishery Management Plan for Precious Coral Fisheries of the Western Pacific Region (FMP) submitted by the Western Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) and is issuing a final rule that will implement gear restrictions, size limits, and definitions governing the harvest of precious coral resources managed under the FMP. Precious coral management measures that were published in the proposed rule that apply only to the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (NWHI) are not being implemented by NMFS because they were determined to be inconsistent with certain provisions of Executive Order 13178 and Executive Order 13196, which together establish the NWHI Coral Reef Ecosystem Reserve (Reserve).