Programmatic Environmental Assessment to Revise U. S. Commercial Fishing Regulations for Pacific Bluefin Tuna in the Eastern Pacific Ocean

Pacific bluefin tuna is a highly migratory species of substantial ecological and economic importance. The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) regularly implements management measures for Pacific bluefin tuna harvest in the eastern Pacific Ocean, where the species is caught by U.S. coastal purse seine vessels, hook-and-line boats, and other gears. These measures follow from Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC) resolutions, which specify annual and biennial bluefin catch limits for each Member and Cooperating Non-Member, including the United States. Under this proposed action, NMFS seeks to implement revised Pacific bluefin tuna catch limits that ensure equitable fishing opportunity to U.S. fleets. The current management regime expires at the end of calendar year 2025, and implementing new catch limits is necessary to satisfy U.S. obligations as a Member of the IATTC. This Programmatic Environmental Assessment, prepared in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act, assesses the environmental and socioeconomic impacts that could result from the proposed action. It includes three alternatives: (1) a No Action alternative, (2) an alternative based on the catch limits in the most recent IATTC resolution, and (3) a more permissive alternative based on hypothetical future increases in catch limits. We analyzed the impacts of the proposed action to the natural environment as well as the socioeconomic environment, and found no significant impact. The biological impacts of the proposed action alternatives are likely to be minor due to the selective nature of Pacific bluefin tuna fishing methods and the IATTC’s precautionary approach to management. The socioeconomic effects are expected to be positive. If future IATTC resolutions fall within the scope of alternatives analyzed in this Programmatic Environmental Assessment, and the impacts or the affected environment have not significantly changed, this document may be used to evaluate the impacts of those actions.