Amendment 53 to the FMP for the Groundfish of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area

NOAA Fisheries issues regulations to implement Amendment 53 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Groundfish Fishery of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Area. This rule allocates shortraker rockfish and rougheye rockfish in the Aleutian Islands subarea between vessels using trawl gear and vessels using non-trawl gear. This action is necessary to prevent the incidental catch of SR/RE in trawl fisheries from closing non-trawl fisheries and is intended to further the objectives of the FMP.