Fishery Management Plan for the Scallop Fishery Off Alaska; Amendment 13

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) announces approval of Amendment 13 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Scallop fishery off Alaska (FMP). Amendment 13 implements an annual catch limit (ACL) and accountability measures (AMs) to prevent overfishing in the target fishery for weathervane scallops. Implementing these measures requires revising the maximum sustainable yield (MSY) and the optimum yield (OY) for weathervane scallops to account for total catch. Amendment 13 also clarifies that, in the absence of a statewide estimate of spawning biomass for weathervane scallops, the overfishing level (OFL) is specified as the MSY. Under Amendment 13, scallop species not targeted in the fishery are classified as Ecosystem Component (EC) species. Amendment 13 is intended to promote the goals and objectives of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson- Stevens Act), the FMP, and other applicable laws. No changes in Federal regulations are implemented by this amendment.