June 1, 2017 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:
Arlington, VA – The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission has found the State of New Jersey out of compliance with the mandatory management measures contained in Addendum XXVIII to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass. The Commission will notify the Secretaries of Commerce and the Interior of its finding. This action was taken pursuant to the provisions of the Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Cooperative Management Act of 1993. The State of New Jersey has failed to effectively implement and enforce the provisions of Addendum XXVIII to the FMP for Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass. Specifically, New Jersey has not implemented the following regulations required by Addendum XXVIII:
- Shore mode for Island Beach State Park only: 17-inch minimum size limit; 2-fish possession limit and 128-day open season.
- Delaware Bay only (west of the COLERG line): 18-inch minimum size limit; 3-fish possession limit and 128-day open season.
- All other marine waters (east of the COLERG line): 19-inch minimum size limit; 3-fish possession limit and 128-day open season
The implementation of these measures is necessary to achieve the conservation goals and objectives of the FMP to end overfishing of the summer flounder stock. In order to come back into compliance the State of New Jersey must implement all of the above measures. Upon notification by the Commission, the Secretaries of Commerce and the Interior have 30 days to review the recommendation and determine appropriate action, which may include a federal moratorium on fishing for Summer Flounder in New Jersey’s state waters. For more information, please contact Toni Kerns, Director, Interstate Fisheries Management Program, at tkerns@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740.