Saving Seafood

Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council to Offer Training on Electronic Vessel Trip Reports for the For-Hire Community

April 17, 2017 — The following was released by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

This is the final call for registration to participate in the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council’s (Council) workshops to help the for-hire community prepare for submitting Vessel Trip Reports (VTRs) electronically.

The Council approved a measure last year that will phase out the current paper-based reports over the coming year. For-hire vessel operators/owners who must report VTRs for species managed by the Mid-Atlantic Council will need to report using their mobile device or personal computer in order to be in compliance. Such options are already available on a voluntary basis.

While all options for electronic reporting will be briefly discussed, the workshops will focus on hands-on training for the eTrips/mobile and eTrips/PC system, a free program developed by the Atlantic Coastal Cooperative Statistics Program (ACCSP). Instruction and guidance will be led by Rick Bellavance, Owner/Operator of Priority Fishing Charters in Point Judith, Rhode Island, and ACCSP staff.

April 25th, 2017, 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 pm at the Hilton Mystic Hotel 20 Coogan Blvd., Mystic CT 06355. Phone: (860) 572-0731.

April 27th. 2017, 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. at the Doubletree by Hilton Baltimore-BWI Airport, 890 Elkridge Landing Rd, Linthicum Heights, MD 21090. Phone:  (410) 859-8400.

Participation is limited to 30 individuals per workshop!

Registration: To register for one of the workshops, visit http://www.mafmc.org/forms/evtr-workshop-registration.

What to Bring: It would be extremely helpful to bring an electronic tablet or laptop capable of connecting to the internet via W-Fi. For the mobile-based version, participants will need either a Google account (for Android systems) or an iTunes account (for Apple systems) to download the eTrips/mobile app. This will allow you to work along with the instructors and be set up and ready to begin electronic reporting once you leave the workshop.

Please direct any questions to workshop coordinator Andrew Loftus (aloftus@andrewloftus.com; 410-295-5997).

ASMFC February/March Issue of Fisheries Focus Now Available

March 25, 2016 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Management Comission:

The February/March issue of ASMFC Fisheries Focus is now available at http://www.asmfc.org/uploads/file/56f557b0FishFocusFebMarch2016.pdf.

INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

ASMFC 2016 Spring Meeting Preliminary Agenda

page 1 

Upcoming Meetings

page 2

From the Executive Director’s Desk

A New Initiative: ASMFC Kicks-off Socioeconomic Study on Atlantic Menhaden Commercial Fisheries

page 3

Species Profile

Northern Shrimp

page 4

Science Highlight

Larval Fish and Climate Change Research in National Estuarine Research Reserves

page 8

ACCSP

GARFO Authorizes eTrips/ Mobile for Use in Electronic Trip Reporting

ACCSP Seeks Your Feedback on Ways to Improve SAFIS 

ACCSP Happenings

page 10

On the Legislative Front

page 11

ASMFC Releases 2015 Annual Report

page 11 

ASMFC Comings & Goings

page 12

Past issues of Fisheries Focus can be found at http://www.asmfc.org/search/%20/%20/Fishery-Focus.

Supplemental Materials Now Available for ASMFC’s 2016 Winter Meeting

January 27, 2016 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

Supplemental meeting materials for the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s 2016 Winter Meeting have been posted at http://www.asmfc.org/home/2016-winter-meeting for the following Boards/Sections (click on “Supplemental” following each relevant committee header to access the information). 

American Lobster Management Board – Preliminary Results of Claw Removal and its Impacts on Survivorship and Physiological Stress in Jonah crab (Cancer borealis) in New England Waters; NEFMC Correspondence on Jonah Crab Permit Holders; Jonah Crab Plan Review Team FMP Implementation Memo; MaineJonah Crab FMP Implementation Program

Atlantic Herring Section – Revised Draft Amendment 3 (please note this version has been revised from January 21st draft); Public Hearing Summary; Written Comment (Summary and Submitted Comments); Advisory Panel Meeting Summary

Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Management Board – Draft Addendum XXVII Public Hearing Summaries; Written Comment (Summary and Submitted Comments); Law Enforcement Committee Comments; General Public Comment

ACCSP Executive Committee (please note meeting materials are available through the main header not supplemental) – Draft Minutes from December 17, 2015; Draft Standard Operating Procedures; 2016 Meetings Calendar 

ACCSP Coordinating Council (please note meeting materials are available through the main header not supplemental) – Draft Minutes from November 2, 2015

Executive Committee (please note these materials are the same as those provided for the ISFMP Policy Board) – Memo on Changes to Commission Guidance Documents; Draft ISFMP Charter; Draft Compact, Rules and Regulations; Draft Technical Support Group Guidance and Benchmark Assessment Process

Atlantic Menhaden Management Board – Law Enforcement Committee Report on Maryland and Potomac River Fisheries Commission Equivalency Proposals; Public Comment

Atlantic Sturgeon Management Board – 2016 FMP Review

Horseshoe Crab Management Board – Adaptive Resource Management Subcommittee Meeting Summary

Tautog Management Board – Decision Document for Draft Amendment 1; Law Enforcement Committee Report on Commercial Harvest Tagging Program Objectives 

Winter Flounder Management Board – NEFMC Presentation on Overview of Federal Management Measures for Gulf of Maine and Southern New England/ Mid-Atlantic Stocks; Scientific and Statistical Committee Report

American Eel Management Board – Advisory Panel Report and Technical Committee Review  on North Carolina’s Aquaculture Plan; Final version of North Carolina’s Aquaculture Plan; Public Comment

ISFMP Policy Board (please note these materials are the same as those provided for Executive Committee) – Memo on Changes to Commission Guidance Documents; Draft ISFMP Charter; Draft Compact, Rules and Regulations; Draft Technical Support Group Guidance and Benchmark Assessment Process

As a reminder, Board/Section meeting proceedings will be broadcast daily via webinar beginning at 9:00 a.m. on February 2nd and continuing daily until the conclusion of the meeting (expected to be 3:45 p.m.) on February 4th. The webinar will allow registrants to listen to board/section deliberations and view presentations and motions as they occur. No comments or questions will be accepted via the webinar. Should technical difficulties arise while streaming the broadcast, the boards/sections will continue their deliberations without interruption. We will attempt to resume the broadcast as soon as possible. To register for the webinar, please go to https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/86228471613051649.

Robert Boyles new ACCSP Chair of the Coordinating Council

November 2, 2015 — ST. AUGUSTINE, Fl. — The following was released by the Atlantic Coastal Cooperative Statistics Program:

Today, Program partners of the Atlantic Coastal Cooperative Statistics Program’s (ACCSP) Coordinating Council (the ACCSP’s governing body), acknowledged the many accomplishments of outgoing Chair, Cheri Patterson of New Hampshire and elected Robert H. Boyles, Jr. as its new Chair.

In assuming the chairmanship, Mr. Boyles spoke eagerly about his new position, “It is with much honor that I accept the position of Chair of the Coordinating Council. To be elected by my fellow colleagues is humbling and I pledge to continue to advance the ACCSP as the principle source of dependable fisheries data on the Atlantic coast. In order to achieve this goal, I plan on guiding ACCSP through a successful governance review process to ensure that the ultimate decision is in the best interest of the Program. I also commit to working with ACCSP staff and Council members committees to upgrade ACCSP applications to the standards that our partners deserve.”

“My predecessor, Cheri Patterson, has paved a smooth path for me as I take on Chairmanship through what I know was countless hours of dedication to this Program. In two short years, Cheri has guided ACCSP through 67 recommendations that were a result of an Independent Review of the Program, ensuring that all recommendations were addressed for implementation through seven different vehicles. Additionally, Cheri oversaw a historic meeting at our last annual meeting in Mystic, Connecticut where the ACCSP’s Coordinating Council met jointly with the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s (ASMFC) Interstate Fisheries Management Program Policy Board to decide on whether both groups, working with the Atlantic states, should move forward on conducting the Access Point Angler Intercept Survey (APAIS) portion of the Marine Recreational Information Program. The result was a unanimous vote to allow for state conduct of the APAIS beginning in 2016.

Mr. Boyles currently is the Deputy Director for Marine Resources with the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources. In this position, Mr. Boyles oversees the State of South Carolina’s marine resources research, management, and education operations. Mr. Boyles received his B.S. in Mathematical Economics from Wake Forest University and his M.S. in Marine Policy from the University of Delaware. In 1993, Robert was a Dean John A. Knauss Sea Grant Marine Policy Fellow, where he worked for the NOAA Coastal Ocean Program.

The Coordinating Council also elected Lynn Fegley from Maryland as its Vice-Chair. Ms. Fegley is the Maryland Department of Natural Resources Fisheries Service Deputy Director.

View a PDF of the release