Continued operation of the Hawaii-based deep-set pelagic longline fishery Biological Opinion on Continued Operation of the Hawaii-Based Deep-Set Pelagic Longline Fishery on Endangered Species Act Listed Species

Section 7(a) (2) of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) of 1973, as amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1536(a) (2)) requires each federal agency to ensure that any action it authorizes, funds, or carries out is not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of any endangered or threatened species or result in the destruction or adverse modification of critical habitat of such species. When a federal agency’s action “may affect” an ESA-listed species, that agency is required to consult formally with the National Marine Fisheries Service (for marine species or their designated critical habitat) or the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (for terrestrial and freshwater species or their designated critical habitat). Federal agencies are exempt from this formal consultation requirement if they have concluded that an action “may affect, but is not likely to adversely affect” ESA-listed species or their designated critical habitat, and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS, or NOAA Fisheries) or the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) concur with that conclusion (see ESA Section 7 Implementing Regulations; 50 CFR 402). The purpose of this Biological Opinion (BiOp) is for the purpose of consulting on ESA-listed species under NMFS jurisdiction.