Saving Seafood

Atlantic Herring Area 1A Trimester 3 Effort Controls Revised

November 13, 2018 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Atlantic Herring Management Board members from Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts revised the effort control measures for the 2018 Area 1A Trimester 3 (October 1 – December 31) fishery. Board members, with input from industry, agreed to seven (7) consecutive landing days until 92% of the Area 1A sub-ACL is projected to be harvested. Vessels may only land once every 24-hour period.

  • Beginning on November 16, 2018: Vessels in the States of Maine and New Hampshire, and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts may land Atlantic herring starting at 12:01 a.m. on seven (7) consecutive days a week.

Trimester 3 landings will be closely monitored and the directed fishery will close when 92% of the Area 1A sub-ACL is projected to be reached. Fishermen are prohibited from landing more than 2,000 pounds of Atlantic herring per trip once the fishery is closed. For more information, please contact Megan Ware at 703.842.0740 ormware@asmfc.org.

Read the full announcement here

Feds eye improved fishing monitoring off East Coast states

November 12, 2018 — Federal ocean managers are looking to increase the amount of monitoring that goes on while fishing boats are out at sea.

Many fisheries are subjected to monitoring, which collects valuable data that inform regulations and catch quotas. The New England Fishery Management Council says it’s looking at ways to beef up monitoring in some fisheries to get an idea of the amount of catch and reduce uncertainty about estimates.

The Federal Register states that the goal of the effort is to “ensure consistency in industry monitoring programs.” It’s also aimed at increasing monitoring in the Atlantic herring fishery, which is a major source for bait fish and food on the East Coast.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at WBNG

ASMFC Atlantic Herring Board Initiates Draft Addenda to Protect Spawning Herring in Areas 1A and 3

October 25, 2018 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Atlantic Herring Management Board initiated Draft Addenda II and III to Amendment 3 of the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Herring to consider strengthening spawning protections in Area 1A (inshore Gulf of Maine) and extending spawning protections to Area 3 (off of Cape Cod and Georges Bank). This action responds to the results of the 2018 Benchmark Stock Assessment which showed reduced levels of recruitment and spawning stock biomass over the past five years, with 2016 recruitment levels the lowest on record.

Currently, the Board uses a series of closures to protect spawning aggregations in the Gulf of Maine. These closures, which were implemented through Amendment 3, extend for four to six weeks; their timing is informed by samples which are used to project the start of spawning. Recent analysis by the Atlantic Herring Technical Committee found that while the current spawning closure system was significantly improved under Amendment 3, the protocol could continue to be strengthened by considering when, and for how long, a closure is initiated. Specifically, the analysis showed, under the current protocol, spawning closures are initiated when there are approximately 25% spawners in the fishery; greater protection could be provided by initiating a closure when a lower percentage of the population is spawning and extending the closure for a longer time. As a result, the Board initiated Draft Addendum II to consider these modifications to the Gulf of Maine spawning closure protocol.

In addition, the Board initiated Draft Addendum III to consider the establishment of a spawning protection program in Area 3. This management area encompasses Georges Bank and the back side of Cape Cod. While both are recognized as important spawning areas for herring, they do not currently have protections specific to spawning. By initiating this addendum, the Board seeks to protect spawning in this region in order to promote stock rebuilding.

Finally, to support future management of the stock, the Commission’s Executive Committee allocated funds to carry out sampling of the Atlantic herring fishery. This sampling will focus on investigating spatial and temporal spawning patterns in Georges Bank and Nantucket Shoals. For more information, please contact Megan Ware, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator, at mware@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740.

Atlantic Herring Massachusetts/New Hampshire Spawning Closure in Effect October 26 through November 22, 2018

October 19, 2018 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic herring Area 1A (inshore Gulf of Maine) fishery regulations include seasonal spawning closures for portions of state and federal waters in Eastern Maine, Western Maine, and Massachusetts/New Hampshire. The Atlantic States marine Fisheries Commission’s Atlantic Herring Management Board (previously Atlantic Herring Section) approved a forecasting method that relies upon at least three samples, each containing at least 25 female herring in gonadal states III-V, to trigger a spawning closure.

Eight samples of female herring were collected to evaluate spawning condition. Based on the analysis of the samples, the Massachusetts/New Hampshire spawning area will be closed starting at 12:00 a.m. on October 26, 2018 extending through 11:59 p.m. on November 22, 2018. Vessels in the directed Atlantic herring fishery cannot take, land or possess Atlantic herring caught within the Massachusetts/New Hampshire spawning area during this time and must have all fishing gear stowed when transiting through the area. An incidental bycatch allowance of up to 2,000 pounds of Atlantic herring per trip/calendar day applies to vessels in non-directed fisheries that are fishing within the Massachusetts/New Hampshire spawning area.

The Massachusetts/New Hampshire spawning area includes all waters bounded by the Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine coasts, and 43° 30’ N and 70° 00’ W.

Please contact Megan Ware at 703.842.0740 or mware@asmfc.org for more information.

A copy of the announcement can be found here – http://www.asmfc.org/files/AtlHerring/MA_NHSpawningClosure_Oct2018.pdf.

ASMFC: 77th Annual Meeting Supplemental Materials Now Available

October 17, 2018 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

Supplemental materials for the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s 77th Annual Meeting are now available at http://www.asmfc.org/home/2018-annual-meeting for the following Boards/Committees (click on “Supplemental” following each relevant committee header to access the information). For ease of access, supplemental materials have been combined into one PDF – http://www.asmfc.org/files/Meetings/77AnnualMeeting/2018AnnualMeetingCombined_Supplemental.pdf

American Lobster Management Board – Revised Agenda & Meeting Overview; ME DMR letter on NOAA Technical Memorandum on North Atlantic Right Whales—Evaluating Their Recovery Challenges in 2018; Memo on Recent Meeting of Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Team; American Lobster FMP Review; and Report of the Electronic Reporting Subcommittee

Atlantic Herring Management Board – Memo on 2019 Specifications for Area 1A; Amendment 3 Spawning Re-Closure Protocol; and Public Comment

Strategic Planning Workshop – Draft Agenda & Summary of Strategic Planning Workgroup Meeting

Business Session – Draft 2019 Action Plan & Anticipated Board Activities for High Priority Species

Coastal Sharks Management Board – Advisory Panel Meeting Summary

Atlantic Striped Bass Management Board – Public Comment

Executive Committee – Draft Recommendations for Revising the Appeals Process & Awards Committee SOPPs

Weakfish Management Board – FMP Review

Horseshoe Crab Management Board – FMP Review & Public Comment

ISFMP Policy Board – Revised Draft Agenda & Meeting Overview; Public Comment; and Living Shorelines Factsheet

South Atlantic State/Federal Fisheries Management Board – Public Comment Summary on Cobia PID (including hearing overviews and submitted comment); Black Drum, Spotted Seatrout and Spanish Mackerel FMP Reviews; Advisory Panel Nomination

As a reminder, Board proceedings will be broadcast daily via webinar beginning October 22nd at 8:30 a.m. and continuing daily until the conclusion of the meeting (expected to be 1 p.m.) on Thursday, October 25th. 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. Please go to https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/4350173068754736387 to register.

 

NEFMC SSC – Listen Live – Wednesday, October 10, 2018, Scallop and Herring Issues

October 3, 2018 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council’s Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) will meet on Wednesday, October 10, 2018 to discuss scallop and herring issues.  The public is invited to attend in person or listen live via webinar or telephone.  Here are the details.

MEETING LOCATION:  Hilton Garden Inn, Boston Logan Airport, 100 Boardman Street, Boston, MA.  Hotel information is available here.

START TIME:  9:00 a.m.

WEBINAR REGISTRATION:  Online access to the meeting will be available at Listen Live. There is no charge to access the meeting through this webinar.

CALL-IN OPTION:  To listen by telephone, dial +1 (631) 992-3221. The access code is 285-275-351.  Please be aware that if you dial in, your regular phone charges will apply.

AGENDA:  The SSC will:

  • Review the results of the recent Atlantic sea scallop benchmark stock assessment and information provided by the Council’s Scallop Plan Development Team (PDT);
  • Recommend overfishing limits (OFLs) and acceptable biological catches (ABCs) for Atlantic sea scallops for the 2019 and 2020 fishing years with 2020 levels serving as defaults;
  • Review results of the recent Atlantic herring benchmark stock assessment and information provided by the Council’s Herring PDT;
  • Recommend 2019-2021 OFLs and ABCs for Atlantic herring using the Council’s proposed Amendment 8 ABC control rule, as well as the assessment and PDT information; and
  • Discuss other business as necessary.

COMMENTS:  The deadline for submitting written comments for consideration at this meeting is 5 p.m. on Friday, October 5, 2018.  Address comments to Council Chairman Dr. John Quinn or Executive Director Tom Nies and email them to comments@nefmc.org.  The address for mailing comments via the U.S. Postal Service is:  New England Fishery Management Council, 50 Water Street, Mill #2, Newburyport, MA  01950.

MATERIALS:  Meeting materials will be posted on the Council’s website at SSC October 10, 2018 documents.

QUESTIONS:  Contact Joan O’Leary at (978) 465-0492 ext. 106, joleary@nefmc.org or Janice Plante at (607) 592-4817, jplante@nefmc.org.

NEFMC Approves Atlantic Herring Amendment 8; Asks NMFS to Set 2019 Catch Limits

October 2, 2018 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

On September 25 during its meeting in Plymouth, MA, the New England Fishery Management Council approved Amendment 8 to the Atlantic Herring Fishery Management Plan. The Council also asked the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS, NOAA Fisheries) to develop an in-season action to set 2019 specifications for the herring fishery.

ABC Control Rule:

  • The acceptable biological catch (ABC) control rule is a formula that will be used to set annual catch limits. The Council considered close to a dozen alternatives that would allow different levels of fishing mortality depending on the estimated level of herring biomass in the ecosystem. In the end, the Council adopted a control rule that balances many objectives by capping overall fishing mortality at 80% of sustainable levels. Previously, fishermen were allowed to harvest up to 100% of sustainable catch levels. Under the proposed control rule, a portion of the available catch would be set aside to explicitly account for the important role of Atlantic herring as forage with in the ecosystem. The new control rule also will better address uncertainty in year-to-year variation in biomass estimates. While the control rule will reduce catches in the near term, it has a lower probability of resulting in overfishing than previous methods used to set catch limits.

Read the full release here

ASMFC: Atlantic Herring Western Maine Spawning Closure in Effect Oct. 4, 2018 through Oct. 31, 2018

September 28, 2018 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic Herring Area 1A (inshore Gulf of Maine) fishery regulations include seasonal spawning closures for portions of state and federal waters in Eastern Maine, Western Maine and Massachusetts/New Hampshire. The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Atlantic Herring Section approved a forecasting method that relies upon at least three samples, each containing at least 25 female herring in gonadal states III-V, to trigger a spawning closure. However, if sufficient samples are not available then closures will begin on predetermined dates.

There is currently no samples for the Western Maine spawning area to determine spawning condition. Therefore, the Western Maine spawning area will be closed starting at 12:00 a.m. on October 4, 2018 and extending through 11:59 p.m. on October 31, 2018. Vessels in the directed Atlantic herring fishery cannot take, land, or possess Atlantic herring caught within the Western Maine spawning area during this time and must have all fishing gear stowed when transiting through the area. An incidental bycatch allowance of up to 2,000 pounds of Atlantic herring per trip/calendar day applies to vessels in non-directed fisheries that are fishing within the Western Maine spawning area.

Western Maine spawning area includes all waters bounded by the following coordinates:

43° 30’ N     Maine coast
43° 30’ N      68° 54.5’ W
43° 48’ N         68° 20’ W
North to Maine coast at 68° 20’ W

A PDF version of this announcement can be viewed here

 

Cut bait: Regulators move to slash Atlantic herring catch

September 28, 2018 — The New England Fishery Management Council voted this week to approve a new management approach to the region’s Atlantic herring fishery that will significantly scale back catch limits for the species over the next three years.

Based on the council’s latest stock assessment, recruitment numbers were lower than the previous low point in the 1970s when record catches essentially wiped out the fishing. Assessments show that recruitment numbers have been well below average for the species since 2013.

The regulation change, called Amendment 8, has been in the works for several years. The herring committee created nine alternatives for the management plan, ranging from taking no action on the previous management plan to a 50-nautical-mile prohibition on all midwater trawling gear.

The council decided to approve an allowable biological catch control rule, a revised version of Alternative 4B, which will slash the total allowable catch of herring from 49,900 tons to 21,266 tons in 2019. The 2018 total of 49,900 tons was already slashed from the year’s original ACL of 110,500 tons of Atlantic herring. A shortage in herring landings also means a shortage of lobster bait throughout New England.

“There’s no one that has more at stake,” said Patrice McCarron, executive director of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association. “The lobster industry has already been dealing with issues related to bait, and the latest decision by the council will likely cause those problems to be even worse.”

The Gulf of Maine herring fishery was shut down by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission for much of September as the fleet neared its catch limit.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

Maine Fishermen Worry That New Regulations on Herring Will Hurt Small Businesses, Lobstermen

September 27, 2018 — A day after fishing regulators adopted strict new measures to prevent herring stocks from collapsing, some New England fishermen say they fear for their own survival.

Herring are a crucial forage fish for whales, seabirds and other predators. But they’re also the primary bait fish for lobstermen around New England. And, in the face of bleak stock assessments, there’s disagreement about the best way forward for the fish and fishermen.

At the New England Fish Company on Portland’s waterfront, Ryan Raber and his sister, Susanna, say they will likely have to lay off some crew and staff to keep their second generation bait business going. They have 25 employees. Herring and mackerel are the primary species the company targets for bait, but if the rules adopted by the New England Fishery Management Council are approved, the Rabers and others won’t be able to catch herring the way they used to or catch as much.

“Last year we had a quota of about 100,000 metric tons,” says Ryan Raber. “This year industry worked with NOAA to reduce it to about half that to 55,000 tons. Next year’s quota will be down to around 15-thousand tons.”

Read the full story at Maine Public