Draft for Secretarial Review EA/RIR/IRFA for Amendment 67 to the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Groundfish Fishery Management Plan

Participants in the BSAI fixed gear Pacific cod fishery include longline and pot fishermen with extensive catch histories. However, given the current economics of the Pacific cod fishery, vessel owners with limited history in the BSAI cod fisheries may be tempted to bring vessels into the fishery. Currently there is no mechanism in place that would limit entry into the fishery by substantial numbers of vessels that hold an LLP endorsement for those areas, but have not participated, or have not participated at a level that could constitute significant dependence on the fishery, in the past. At the April 1999 North Pacific Fishery Management Council meeting, a follow-up amendment was proposed to the recent fixed gear allocations to address concerns with the stability of the fishery and increased competition. Proposed Amendment 67 would add a BSAI Pacific cod endorsement to fixed gear licenses, if the vessel meets a specific recent landings criteria.