October 19, 2017 — NORFOLK, Va. — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission approved Amendment 3 to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for Northern Shrimp. The Amendment is designed to improve management of the northern shrimp resource in the event the fishery reopens (the fishery has been under moratorium since 2014). Specifically, the Amendment refines the FMP objectives and provides the flexibility to use the best available information to define the status of the stock and set the total allowable catch (TAC). Furthermore, the Amendment implements a state-specific allocation program to better manage effort in the fishery; 80% of the annual TAC will be allocated to Maine, 10% to New Hampshire, and 10% to Massachusetts. Fishermen with a trap landings history will continue to operate under gear-specific allocations (i.e., 87% of the state-specific quota will be allocated to the trawl fishery, and 13% to the trap fishery), however, the Section anticipates exploring alternative measures through the adaptive management process that would allow states to modify allocation between gear types on an annual basis. The Section also has the discretion to roll over unused quota from the states of New Hampshire and Massachusetts to Maine by a date determined during annual specifications.
Additionally, the Amendment strengthens catch and landings reporting requirements to ensure all harvested shrimp are being reported, and requires shrimp-directed trawl vessels to use either a double-Nordmore or compound grate system (both designed to minimize the catch of small, presumably male, shrimp). Other changes include the implementation of accountability measures (i.e., penalties if states exceed their quota), specification of a maximum fishing season length, and formalizing fishery-dependent monitoring requirements.
The Section will meet November 29 at the Westin Portland Harborview, Hotel 157 High Street, Portland, ME, to review the 2017 stock status report and set specifications for the 2018 fishing season. For more information, please contact, Max Appelman, FMP Coordinator, at mappelman@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740.
A PDF version of the press release can be found here – http://www.asmfc.org/uploads/file/59e8de69pr53NShrimpAm3_Approval.pdf.