Rule2026-11021
Fisheries Off West Coast States; the Highly Migratory Species Fishery; Pacific Loggerhead Conservation Area Closure
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
June 2, 2026
Effective
June 1, 2026
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Abstract
NMFS is prohibiting fishing with large-mesh drift gillnet (DGN) gear (>=14 inches mesh) off the coast of southern California east of 120[deg] W meridian from June 1, 2026, through August 31, 2026. This prohibition is based on the fact that the NOAA Climate Prediction Center (CPC) has indicated that the sea surface temperature off the coast of southern California for March and April is warmer than normal and there is an 82 percent probability that El Ni[ntilde]o conditions may occur between May-July. This action protects Endangered Species Act-listed loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta), specifically the endangered North Pacific Ocean Distinct Population Segment.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 105 (Tuesday, June 2, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 105 (Tuesday, June 2, 2026)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 32907-32908]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-11021]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 660
[Docket No. 031125294-4091-02; RTID 0648-XF792]
Fisheries Off West Coast States; the Highly Migratory Species
Fishery; Pacific Loggerhead Conservation Area Closure
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Temporary rule; closure.
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SUMMARY: NMFS is prohibiting fishing with large-mesh drift gillnet
(DGN) gear (>=14 inches mesh) off the coast of southern California east
of 120[deg] W meridian from June 1, 2026, through August 31, 2026. This
prohibition is based on the fact that the NOAA Climate Prediction
Center (CPC) has indicated that the sea surface temperature off the
coast of southern California for March and April is warmer than normal
and there is an 82 percent probability that El Ni[ntilde]o conditions
may occur between May-July. This action protects Endangered Species
Act-listed loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta), specifically the
endangered North Pacific Ocean Distinct Population Segment.
DATES: Effective 12:01 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time (PDT), June 1, 2026,
through 11:59 p.m. PDT, August 31, 2026.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Chris Fanning, West Coast Region
(WCR), NMFS, (562) 980-4198, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#690a011b001a470f08070700070e2907060808470e061f"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="56353e243f2578303738383f3831163839373778313920">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The DGN fishery is managed under the Fishery
Management Plan for U.S. West Coast Fisheries for Highly Migratory
Species and regulations at 50 CFR part 660, subpart K and occurs off
the coast of California. NMFS regulations provide that, ``No person may
fish with, set, or haul back drift gillnet gear in U.S. waters of the
Pacific Ocean east of the 120[deg] W meridian from June 1 through
August 31 during a forecasted, or occurring, El Ni[ntilde]o event off
the coast of southern California'' (50 CFR 660.713(c)(2)). This area,
which falls within the Southern California Bight (SCB), is referred to
in the regulations as the ``Pacific loggerhead conservation area.''
Under 50 CFR 660.713(c)(2)(ii), the Assistant Administrator (AA) is
to rely on information developed by NOAA offices (CPC and the West
Coast Office of the Coast Watch program). The AA is to use monthly sea
surface temperature (SST) charts to determine whether there are warmer-
than-normal SSTs off southern California ``during the months prior to
the closure months for years in which an El Ni[ntilde]o event has been
declared'' by the CPC. Specifically, the AA is to use SST data from the
third and second months prior to the month of closure.
NMFS published these regulations to protect loggerhead sea turtles,
which are listed under the Endangered Species Act. The regulations
addressed a reasonable and prudent alternative (RPA) included in NMFS'
2000 biological opinion on issuance of an incidental take permit under
the Marine Mammal Protection Act. The biological opinion concluded that
bycatch in the DGN fishery was likely to jeopardize the continued
existence of loggerhead sea turtles and, as an RPA, recommended the
fishery be closed during the summer months when El Ni[ntilde]o
conditions are present to avoid the likelihood of jeopardy. The Pacific
Loggerhead Conservation Area regulations were implemented in 2003 to
address this RPA, and were amended in 2007, to protect Pacific
loggerhead turtles (72 FR 31756, June 8, 2007).
In May 2026, NMFS staff reviewed the SST anomalies in the SCB
during March and April of 2026, relying on SST maps available through
NOAA's Coast Watch program (for details see <a href="http://coastwatch.pfeg.noaa.gov/erddap/index.html">http://coastwatch.pfeg.noaa.gov/erddap/index.html</a>). These maps indicated that
SSTs were above normal in the SCB. As such, NMFS concludes that a
closure off southern California is warranted based on SSTs that are
warmer than normal during the third and second months prior to the
month of the closure, consistent with regulations at 50 CFR
660.713(c)(2)(ii).
If SSTs return to normal or below normal during a closure period,
regulations at 50 CFR 660.713(c)(2)(iii) state that the AA may re-open
the fishery after publishing a Federal Register notice. The CPS report
on May 14, 2026, indicates an `El Ni[ntilde]o Watch' status with El
Ni[ntilde]o likely to emerge soon (82 percent chance in May-July 2026)
and continue through Northern Hemisphere winter 2026-27 (96 percent
chance in December 2026-February 2027).
Classification
This action is required by regulations at 50 CFR 660.713 and is
exempt from Office of Management and Budget review under Executive
Order 12866.
[[Page 32908]]
NMFS finds good cause to waive the requirement to provide prior
notice and opportunity for public comment pursuant to the authority set
forth at 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B) for the time-area closure of the DGN
fishery. Notice and comment procedures are impracticable and contrary
to the public interest. The most recent CPC information occurred on May
14, 2026, and regulations require that the closure period begin on June
1; therefore, there is insufficient time for notice and comment
procedures. For the same reasons, NMFS also finds good cause under 5
U.S.C. 553(d)(3) to waive the general requirement for a 30-day delay in
effectiveness for this action. This measure is based upon the best
available information and is necessary for the conservation of
loggerhead sea turtles. The closure period anticipated by the
regulation ends, at the latest, on August 31, 2026. A delay in
effectiveness may allow the fishery to interact with and injure or kill
loggerhead sea turtles that may occur within the SCB during the time
period in which the regulation was intended to protect loggerheads.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: May 29, 2026.
David R. Blankinship,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2026-11021 Filed 5-29-26; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
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