Bering Sea/Aleutian Islands and Gulf of Alaska Harvest Specifications for 2006-2007: Environmental Assessment and Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis
January 01, 2006
Environmental Assessment and Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis of the Gulf of Alaska and Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands groundfish harvest specifications for 2006-2007.
The proposed action would adopt harvest specifications for the Federally managed groundfish fisheries in the Gulf of Alaska (GOA) and Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands (BSAI) management areas. In the GOA and BSAI, groundfish harvests are managed subject to annual limits on the amounts of each fish species , or each group of species, that may be taken.
The U.S. Secretary of Commerce sets the limits based on the recommendations of the North Pacific Fishery Management Council. The set of annual limits adopted are referred to as “harvest specifications.” The process of adopting them is referred to as the “specifications process.” NOAA Fisheries manages the groundfish fisheries.