Saving Seafood

NOAA Fisheries Announces 2019 Bluefish Specifications

March 11, 2019 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Today we filed a final rule approving and implementing the 2019 specifications for the Atlantic bluefish fishery recommended by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council in cooperation with the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission.

The final 2019 specifications are fundamentally the same as 2018, with only minor adjustments to the final commercial quota and recreational harvest limit to account for most recent full year of recreational catch data (2017), and a 4.0 million lb of quota transferred from the recreational to the commercial sector rather than 3.5 million lb in 2018.

Table 1 (below) provides the commercial fishery state allocations for 2019 based on the final 2019 coast-wide commercial quota, and the allocated percentages defined in the Bluefish Fishery Management Plan. No states exceeded their state-allocated quota in 2018; therefore, no accountability measures need to be implemented for the 2019 fishing year.

Table 1. 2019 Bluefish State Commercial Quota Allocations.

State Percent Share Quota Allocation (lb)
Maine 0.67 51,538
New Hampshire 0.41 31,956
Massachusetts 6.72 517,828
Rhode Island 6.81 524,874
Connecticut 1.27 97,626
New York 10.39 800,645
New Jersey 14.82 1,142,264
Delaware 1.88 144,801
Maryland 3.00 231,426
Virginia 11.88 915,857
North Carolina 32.06 2,471,746
South Carolina 0.04 2,714
Georgia 0.01 732
Florida 10.06 775,558
Total 100 7,709,565

For more details please read the rule as filed in the Federal Register and our permit holder bulletin.

Questions?
Fishermen: Contact Cynthia Ferrio, Sustainable Fisheries Division, 978-281-9180
Media: Contact Jennifer Goebel, Regional Office, 978-281-9175

ASMFC & MAFMC Set Summer Flounder 2019-2021 Specifications

March 11, 2019 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission and the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (Commission) and the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) approved revised specifications for the 2019 fishing season and set new specifications for 2020 and 2021. The revised specifications are based on the results of the 2018 benchmark stock assessment, which found the stock is not overfished and overfishing is not occurring. The new limits are consistent with the recommendations of the Council’s Scientific and Statistical Committee. The Commission’s actions are final and apply to state waters (0‐3 miles from shore). The Council will forward its recommendations for federal waters (3 – 200 miles from shore) to NOAA Fisheries Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Administrator for final approval. The Council and Commission decided to set commercial quotas and RHLs for all three years, with the intent to maintain regulatory stability. The revised commercial quota was approximately a 49% increase over the previously set 2019 quota.

While the revised RHL represents an approximate 49% increase over the previously set 2019 RHL, the Commission chose to maintain status quo recreational measures, which are projected to achieve a harvest level close to the revised RHL based on the calibrated recreational harvest data from the Marine Recreational Information Program (MRIP). As a result, regions established under Addendum XXXII may submit proposals to make minor adjustments to their 2019 recreational measures, such as adjusting the start and end dates of the season, but must hold projected 2019 harvest at 2018 levels. These proposals will require Technical Committee review and Board approval. Additionally, the Commission and Council approved the use of conservation equivalency, allowing state measures to be extended into federal waters, pending acceptance of final state measures by the Regional Administrator.

Based on the findings of the 2018 Benchmark Stock Assessment and Peer Review, the stock was not overfished nor experiencing overfishing in 2017. Spawning stock biomass (SSB) in 2017 was estimated to be 98 million pounds, approximately 78% of the biomass target of 126 million pounds. The fishing mortality rate was estimated to be 0.334 in 2017, below the fishing mortality threshold of 0.448.

Recruitment in 2017 was estimated at 42 million fish at age 0, below the time series average of 53 million fish at age 0. Recruitment has been below average since 2011.

Data analyzed by the Northeast Fisheries Science Center for the assessment indicate increasing relative abundance of older fish and an expanding age structure. However, the data also indicate a decrease in relative total abundance since the late 2000s, as well as decreasing trends in average lengths and weights at age for both sexes, suggesting slower growth and delayed maturity which impacts the biological reference points. The assessment shows current mortality from all sources is greater than recent recruitment inputs to the stock, which has resulted in a declining stock trend. Additionally, the assessment found the spatial distribution of the resource is continuing to shift northward and eastward.

A key attribute of the assessment is the incorporation of revised recreational catch data. In July 2018, MRIP revised the previous recreational catch estimates with a calibrated 1982-2017 time series that corresponds to the new MRIP survey methods. For comparison with the previous estimates, the revised estimates of 2017 recreational landings and discards are over three times the previous estimates. The revised recreational catch estimates increased the 1982-2017 total annual catch by an average of 29 percent, ranging from 11 percent increase in 1989 to 43 percent increase in 2017. The increase in estimated removals resulted in an increased population estimate compared to previous assessments.

For more information about please contact Kirby Rootes-Murdy, Senior FMP Coordinator, at krootes-murdy@asmfc.org.

A PDF of the press release can be found here – http://www.asmfc.org/uploads/file/5c868122pr11FlukeSpecs2019-2021andAssessment.pdf

Mid-Atlantic Council Takes Final Action on Summer Flounder Commercial Issues Amendment

March 11, 2019 — The following was released by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) met jointly with the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Board (Board) to select preferred alternatives for the Summer Flounder Commercial Issues Amendment. The Council and Board first considered final action in December 2018 but postponed their decisions until their March 2019 meeting.

At the meeting, the Council and Board approved a commercial allocation alternative which establishes a commercial quota trigger of 9.55 million pounds. This alternative specifies that a coastwide quota of up to 9.55 million pounds in any given year will be distributed according to the current (status quo) allocations. In years when the coastwide quota exceeds 9.55 million pounds, the additional quota beyond this trigger would be distributed based on equal shares to all states except Maine, Delaware, and New Hampshire, which would split 1% of the additional quota. The revised commercial allocations are expected to become effective January 1, 2020 at the earliest with a possible delay until January 1, 2021.

The Council and Board also approved revised Fishery Management Plan (FMP) goals and objectives for summer flounder, which focus on ensuring biological sustainability of the summer flounder resource, supporting and enhancing development of the effective management measures, and optimizing social and economic benefits from the resource.

No changes were made to the federal permit qualification criteria, and the Council did not add landings flexibility policies to the list of frameworkable items in the FMP.

Additional information about this action is available at: http://www.mafmc.org/actions/summer-flounder-amendment. The Council will forward its recommendations to the National Marine Fisheries Service for approval. The full Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission will consider final approval of the amendment, based on the Board’s recommendations, at their 2019 Spring Meeting.

Questions? Contact Kiley Dancy, Fishery Management Specialist, kdancy@mafmc.org, (302) 526-5257.

ASMFC & MAFMC Recommend Approval of Summer Flounder Commercial Issues Amendment

March 11, 2019 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Management Board (Board) and the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) recommended approval of the Summer Flounder Commercial Issues Amendment. The Amendment revises the management program’s goals and objectives specific to summer flounder and implements new state-specific commercial allocations.

The Amendment was initiated in December 2013, with joint work on the Amendment by the Board and Council beginning in 2014. Initially, the Amendment was to consider changes to both commercial and recreational summer flounder fisheries, but over time was refocused to address commercial issues and Fishery Management Plan (FMP) goals and objectives.

The revised management program’s goals and objectives focus on ensuring biological sustainability of the summer flounder resource, supporting and enhancing development of effective management measures, and optimizing social and economic benefits from the resource. These revisions were made to reflect current priorities in sustainably managing the resource.

The new state commercial allocations are based upon a 9.55 million pound trigger point. When the annual coastwide commercial quota is at or below 9.55 million pounds, the formula for allocating the quota to the states will remain status quo, i.e., the same state-specific percentages that have been in effect since 1993. When the annual coastwide quota exceeds 9.55 million pounds, additional quota above 9.55 million pounds will be distributed as follows: 0.333% to the states of Maine, New Hampshire and Delaware and 12.375% to the remaining states (see table below). As a result, state allocations will vary over time based on overall stock status and the resulting coastwide commercial quotas. For 2019-2021, the Board and Council approved an annual coastwide commercial quota of 11.53 million pounds. Depending on the timing of final rule-making by NOAA Fisheries, the new state allocation strategy could go into effect as early as January 2020.

Read the full release here

MSC Certification Recommended for Atlantic Menhaden Fishery

March 8, 2019 — SEAFOOD NEWS — SAI Global, an independent certification body, has officially recommended that the Atlantic menhaden purse seine fishery be certified sustainable against the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) fisheries standard.

In order to receive MSC certification, fisheries are evaluated against 28 performance indicators in three categories: suitability of the stock, minimizing environmental impacts and effective fisheries management. The Atlantic menhaden fishery cored 82.5, 86.0, and 92.2, respectively, in the three categories.

“We’re very pleased with today’s recommendation, which takes us right up to the fish line of the MSC certification process,” said Bret Scholtes, President and CEO of Omega Protein. “As we complete this process, we will continue working collaboratively with independent certifiers and our management partners to ensure a healthy and sustainable fishery.”

As part of the certification process, in addition to their commitment to menhaden’s long-term sustainability, Omega Protein has agreed to work with management partners at the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) on the three sustainability objectives. Omega is supporting the ASMFC’s development of harvest strategy, as well as new rules that take into consideration the ecological role of Atlantic menhaden. They are also working with NMFS to improve the frequency of observer coverage, making sure bycatch and interactions with marine mammals and endangered, threatened and protected species remain at minimal levels.

This story was originally published on SeafoodNews.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.

Read the full report from SAI Global here

VA won’t be penalized over menhaden regs if it stays under cap

March 5, 2019 — Virginia will not face penalties for failing to formally adopt new catch limits on Atlantic menhaden — as long as harvests stay within limits established by East Coast fishery managers.

The decision by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission in February headed off a potential legal showdown as to whether it had scientific justification for slashing the commercial menhaden harvest in the Bay in 2017, even as it raised catch limits along most of the coast.

Since then, the Virginia General Assembly has twice failed to adopt the commission’s mandated annual Bay cap of 51,000 metric tons.

Failure to adopt the limit put the state out of compliance with the commission’s regulations. As a result, the ASMFC could ask the U.S. Department of Commerce to impose a moratorium on all menhaden harvests in Virginia. Twice last year the ASMFC considered, but delayed, such an action.

Steven Bowman, who heads the Virginia Marine Resources Commission, said his agency monitored 2018 harvests both through catch records and aerial surveillance and would continue to do so. “The cap was not exceeded,” he said. “It did not come close to being exceeded.”

Read the full story at the Bay Journal

Time tension line-cutter could offer lobstermen a whale entanglement solution

March 4, 2019 — A Maine lobsterman and machinist believes he could have the solution to North Atlantic right whale entanglement issues in the state’s lobster fishery.

Ben Brickett of Blue Water Concepts presented – or more accurately re-presented – his idea for a “Time Tension Line-Cutter” at the Maine Fishermen’s Forum on 1 March. The technology, which he invented over a decade ago, provides a solution for whale entanglements that doesn’t compromise rope strength or require any electronics.

“I got started in this in 2003. A good friend of mine who works on an offshore lobster boat came by and was very concerned with having to put weaker lines on his gear,” Brickett said. The friend in question was fishing in deep water, with hauling tensions that can approach 10,000 pounds on large lobster trawls. “They wanted to know if we could put in some kind of timed weak link.”

Currently, the lobster industry in the Northeast U.S. is facing pressure after a number of entanglement-related deaths of North Atlantic right whales – an endangered species with just over 400 individuals left – occurred in 2018. Both NOAA fisheries and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Council have been investigating methods to prevent potential entanglements by the lobster industry.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

ASMFC Seeks Proposals for Regional Pilot Projects in Support of Sustainable Aquaculture Proposals Due April 15, 2019

March 1, 2019 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (Commission), in partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), is seeking proposals to develop regional pilot projects in support of sustainable aquaculture. Specifically, pilot programs should partner with industry to develop techniques and business models to grow domestic seafood production. A priority are projects that consider promising but less commercially developed technologies for species managed by the Commission or those species that contribute to healthy marine habitats, including finfish, shellfish and seaweed.

The NOAA Fisheries FY19 budget contains the “Regional Pilots in Sustainable Aquaculture” provision that authorizes the funding. In addition to this specific item, the budget also focuses renewed interest on maintaining and further developing existing aquaculture capabilities at NOAA Fisheries.

NOAA Fisheries, through the Commission, is making $525,000 available for the funding period of July 1, 2019 to June 30, 2020. Individual proposals should fall within a range from $50,000 to $200,000. Any investigator seeking support for this period must submit, as a single file, an electronic proposal by email no later than 5:00 p.m. EST on Monday, April 15, 2019. Awards and start dates for successful projects will be announced by May 20, 2019. Please see the Request for Proposals (RFP) for complete proposal details, qualifying requirements, and submission instructions. The RFP is available at http://www.asmfc.org/files/RFPs/ASMFCAquacultureRFP_March2019.pdf.

The Gulf and Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commissions have also issued similar RFPs seeking proposals relevant to their respective regions. For more information, please contact Dr. Louis Daniel at ldaniel@asmfc.org or 252.342.1478.

ASMFC 2018 Annual Report Now Available

February 28, 2019 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission is pleased to present you with our 2018 Annual Report, http://www.asmfc.org/files/pub/ASMFC_AnnualReport_2018.pdf. It describes the Commission’s activities and progress in carrying out our public trust responsibilities for the valuable marine fisheries under Commission stewardship. Included in this report are figures displaying the historical trends in stock status or landings for each species managed by the Commission. Also provided is a summary of the significant management actions Commissioners took in 2018 to maintain and restore the abundance of Commission managed species.

This report reflects our Commissioners’ commitment to accountability and transparency in all they do to manage and rebuild stocks under their care. We hope that you will find the information contained within this report useful and interesting.

This year’s cover photo of the New York City (NYC) skyline with views of the One World Trade Center and the Statue of Liberty is in honor of our 77th Annual Meeting, which was held October 2018 in NYC. NYC also played an important role in the Commission’s history, having served as its administrative home and frequent meeting location during the Commission’s first two decades.

ASMFC Schedules Peer Review for Horseshoe Crab Benchmark Stock Assessment for March 26-28, 2019

February 27, 2019 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Horseshoe Crab Benchmark Stock Assessment will be peer-reviewed on March 26 – 28, 2019 at the Commission’s office at 1050 N. Highland Street, Suite 200A-N, Arlington, VA 22201. The assessment will evaluate the horseshoe crab population along the Atlantic coast and inform the management of this species. The peer review is open to the public, except for discussions of confidential data when the public will be asked to leave the room.

Confidential data (see NOTE below) are data such as commercial landings that can be identified down to an individual or single entity. Federal and state laws prohibit the disclosure of confidential data, and ASMFC abides by those laws. Each state and federal agency is responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of its data and deciding who has access to its confidential data. In the case of this stock assessment and peer review, all analysts and reviewers have been granted permission by the appropriate agencies to use and view confidential data. When the assessment team needs to show and discuss these data, observers to the stock assessment process will be asked to leave the room to preserve confidentiality. For horseshoe crab, regional biomedical data and model runs that include these data are considered confidential, as well as any discussions around regional trends or stock status derived from these data. Additionally, the public and all other workshop participants will be asked to leave the room during the Peer Review Panel’s final deliberations.

A copy of the agenda for the peer review can be found here –http://www.asmfc.org/files/Meetings/HSC_PeerReviewWorkshopAgenda_March2019.pdf. For more information, please contact Patrick Campfield, Science Director, at pcampfield@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740.