The Pacific Fishery Management Council voted on Saturday to adopt a final preferred alternative to revise management of the Cordell Bank area that reduces overlapping regulations, reconfigures boundaries to simplify compliance, and preserves a 100-fathom coordinate ring to prevent large-footrope trawl gear.

Council staff described the action as deregulatory and narrowly sized: the preferred alternative would remove the Cordell Bank Groundfish Conservation Area (GCA), implement a groundfish exclusion area (GEA) overlapping the existing bottom-contact essential fish habitat conservation area (EFHCA), and reopen small amounts of seafloor to bottom trawling and nontrawl fishing under revised, simplified rules. Staff said the change would open roughly 10.2 square miles to bottom trawling and 40.1 square miles to nontrawl gears but would account for only 0.014% of the U.S. exclusive economic zone.

The motion adopted by the council directed staff to make the preliminary preferred alternative (Alternative 1 in the briefing materials) the final preferred alternative and to "include the coordinates defining the 100-fathom depth contour around the bank in the regulations at 50 CFR 660.73," following a NIMS (National Marine Fisheries Service) recommendation intended to retain the large-footrope prohibition. Caroline McKnight, who moved the motion, said the changes address regulatory confusion and provide limited additional access while strengthening habitat protection around the high-relief core of Cordell Bank.

Advisory bodies largely supported the preferred alternative. The Groundfish Advisory Subpanel (GAP), Groundfish Management Team (GMT), Habitat Committee and Enforcement Consultant each recommended adopting the preliminary preferred alternative with the NIMS administrative modification to move the 100-fathom coordinates into regulation. James Phillips of the GMT said the team did "not anticipate concerning increases in mortality of yelloweye rockfish and California quillback rockfish" from the action and called it deregulatory, reducing stakeholder confusion.

Public commenters who favored more access praised the change. Longtime charter fisherman Richard Powers said the revision would be "a breath of fresh air" for anglers and thanked the council for the proposal. Council members and advisory chairs noted the change reflects years of rebuilding for some stocks and is intended to reduce regulatory overlap that has confused fishers and enforcement.

The motion passed by voice vote after the mover and a seconder (Mark Guralnick) presented the motion; council members answered in the affirmative when the chair called for aye. The council directed staff to incorporate the Habitat Committee's recommended updates to the habitat-effects text in the final analytical document and to make the administrative regulatory changes specified by NIMS.

The council also asked staff to monitor enforcement and outreach needs, consistent with the Enforcement Consultant's recommendation that polygon definitions be clear and that the minimum number of waypoints be used for enforceability.

What happens next: staff will incorporate the regulatory coordinate language into 50 CFR 660.73 and finalize the environmental analysis; the council and NIMS staff noted this is intended to reduce complexity and preserve sensitive habitat protections while providing modest additional access.