Saving Seafood

NOAA to open New England scallop areas, invite record harvest

January 5, 2018 — New England sea scallop fishers can start planning now for what promises to be their best season in 14 years, thanks to a decision coming soon from the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS).

John Bullard, the outgoing administrator of NOAA’s greater Atlantic region, informed the New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC), in a five-page letter sent late Wednesday, that the agency will follow most of its recommendations with regard to the “essential fish habitat” amendment – a long-discussed plan to reset fishing management and conservation practices in the area.

That includes opening up to scallop harvesters an expanded portion of Closed Area I and the western part of the Nantucket Lightship area, two sections of the Atlantic Ocean that have been closed for a decade and are now expected to be loaded with large scallops.

“NMFS determined that the removal of the Closed Area I designations and proposed new designations do not compromise the ability of the council’s fishery management plans to comply with the [essential fish habitat] requirements of the Magnuson-Stevens Act,” Bullard wrote in his letter, which was addressed to John Quinn, NEFMC’s chairman.

Based on surveys reported in September, Closed Area 1, including the previous off-limit “sliver” area and northern portion, contains 19.8 million pounds (9,016 metric tons) of exploitable scallop meat, referring to scallops found with shells that were at least 4 inches wide. Even better, as much as 45.6m lbs (20,670t) of exploitable scallop meat is projected to exist in the west Nantucket Lightship area.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

 

Scallops: Framework 29 “Highest Yield, Lowest Impact” Alternative Advances Following NMFS Habitat Decision

January 5, 2018 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

On Wednesday, January 3, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), also known as NOAA Fisheries, informed the New England Fishery Management Council that it had “approved the majority” of the Council’s Omnibus Essential Fish Habitat Amendment 2 (OHA2). The approved provisions include two actions that have a direct impact on Framework Adjustment 29 to the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery Management Plan, which, among other measures, contains 2018 fishing year specifications and 2019 default specifications for the scallop fishery.

The Framework 29 preferred alternative that now will be advancing for NMFS review and implementation contains the following 2018 allocations for the fishing year that begins on April 1:

Full-time limited access scallop permit holders – 24 open-area days-at-sea and six 18,000-pound access area trips with:

  • Two trips in the Mid-Atlantic Access Area
  • Two trips in the newly available Nantucket Lightship West Access Area
  • One trip in the Nantucket Lightship South Area
  • One trip in the new Closed Area I Access Area with the northern portion, including the “sliver,” available

Part-time limited access scallop permit holders – 9.6 open area days-at-sea and three 14,400- pound access area trips with:

  • One trip in the Mid-Atlantic Access Area
  • One trip in the Nantucket Lightship West Area
  • One trip in the reconfigured Closed Area I Access Area

During its December meeting, not knowing whether NMFS would approve all of the proposed changes in the habitat amendment, the Council adopted four Framework 29 preferred alternatives for scallop allocations that covered the potential mix of access area possibilities – both with and without Closed Area I and Nantucket Lightship West. The breakdown of these alternatives is available at: http://s3.amazonaws.com/nefmc.org/NEFMC-Approves-Scallop-Framework-29-REVISED.pdf

Of the four scenarios, the one that now is moving forward for NMFS review and implementation provides the greatest benefits and is projected to result in close to 60.1 million pounds of landings in scallop meat weight over the next fishing year.

“By giving the fleet access to dense concentrations of scallops in the northern portion of Closed Area I and Nantucket Lightship West, scallopers will be able to catch their trip limits faster and reduce the amount of time dredges are on bottom,” said Council Chairman Dr. John Quinn. “This scenario has another benefit in that it lets us shift effort away from Closed Area II, which means flatfish bycatch will be lower and the scallops in that area will have a chance to grow larger.”

The Council also included a provision in Framework 29 to allocate the existing 1.64 million pounds of Closed Area I carryover that are still on the books. These pounds are from trips allocated to Closed Area I in 2012 and 2013 through a lottery system but never were taken due to poor fishing.

The resulting Framework 29 allocations for the Limited Access General Category (LAGC) Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) fishery include: (1) a 3,086,050-pound quota, equivalent to 5.5% of annual projected landings for the fishery as a whole; and (2) a total of 3,426 access area trips at a maximum of 600 pounds each into the following areas:

  • 1,142 trips in the Mid-Atlantic Access Area
  • 1,142 trips in the Nantucket Lightship West Access Area
  • 571 trips in the Nantucket Lightship South Access Area
  • 571 trips in the Closed Area I Access Area

Framework 29 also includes flatfish accountability measures and Northern Gulf of Maine Management Area catch limits and related provisions, which are described at the link above. The Council will provide a broader overview of the habitat amendment decision in a subsequent release.

To view the release from the NEFMC in its entirety click here.

 

Scallops: NEFMC Approves Framework 29 with 2018-2019 Specs Under Four Potential Habitat Amendment Outcomes

December 8, 2017 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council: 

The New England Fishery Management Council today approved a sweeping package of measures for Framework Adjustment 29 to the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery Management Plan. The framework includes specifications for the 2018 scallop fishing year, which begins April 1, as well as default specifications for 2019. It also includes actions related to Closed Area 1 carryover pounds, the Northern Gulf of Maine Management Area, and flatfish accountability measures, among others.

Several of the actions in Framework 29 are intertwined with the approval and implementation of the Council’s Omnibus Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) Amendment 2, which is under review by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). The amendment may open EFH and groundfish closed areas that have been off limits to scallop fishing for many years. NMFS is expected to announce whether it has approved or disapproved all or part of the amendment by January 4, 2018. The comment period on the amendment closed December 5, but a final rule is not expected until later this winter or early spring.

The Habitat Amendment decisions for two areas in particular – Closed Area I and the Nantucket Lightship Area – will drive the eventual outcome of Framework 29. A substantial biomass of harvestable scallops exists in both the “sliver” portion of Closed Area I and in the western portion of the Nantucket Lightship Area, one or both of which may reopen. Important to note is that even if these areas become available through the Habitat Amendment, they do not automatically become available to the scallop fishery without additional action in Framework 29 to convert them to scallop access areas.

Given this situation and the fact that the Council had to take final action on Framework 29 during its December meeting without knowing the Habitat Amendment outcome, it approved four preferred alternatives to cover all potential scenarios.

  • Closed Area 1/Nantucket Lightship West Scenario – If both of these areas become available, then 24 open area days-at sea and six access area trips:

o One to the reconfigured Closed Area I;

o Two to Nantucket Lightship West;

o One to Nantucket Light South; and

o Two to the Mid-Atlantic Access Area.

Nantucket Lightship West Only Scenario – If only the Nantucket Lightship Area becomes available, then 31 open area days-at-sea and five access area trips:

o Two to Nantucket Lightship West;

o One to Nantucket Lightship South; and

o Two to the Mid-Atlantic Access Area.

Closed Area 1 Only Scenario – If only Closed Area 1 becomes available, then 23 days-at-sea and five access area trips:

o One to the reconfigured Closed Area I;

o One to Closed Area II, including the Closed Area II Extension;

o One to Nantucket Lightship South; and

o Two to the Mid-Atlantic Access Area.

No Change Scenario: If additional access to Nantucket Lightship and/or Closed Area I does NOT become available through the Habitat Amendment, then 26 open area days-at-sea and five access area trips:

o One to Closed Area II, including the Closed Area II Extension;

o One to Nantucket Lightship South; and If additional bottom does not become available under the Habitat Amendment, fulltime limited access scallopers would be allocated five access-area trips for the 2018 fishing year under the Council’s preferred alternative for this scenario – three trips in the Mid-Atlantic, one in Nantucket Lightship South, and one in Closed Area II with the Extension included, along with 26 open area days-at-sea. – NEFMC graphic

o Three to the MidAtlantic Access Area.

The Council approved an 18,000-pound possession limit for all full-time trips. Of the four scenarios described above, only one will be fully developed for implementation once the stage is set by the Habitat Amendment. The Council also voted to allocate the existing 1.64 million pounds of Closed Area I carryover if Closed Area I and/or Nantucket Lightship West are reopened. The carryover is a result of roughly 130 trips that were allocated to Closed Area I in 2012 and 2013 through a lottery system that fishermen did not take because of poor fishing conditions.

According to analyses conducted by the Scallop Plan Development Team, the alternatives that provide access to Nantucket Lightship West and/or Closed Area I generate the greatest benefits in terms of higher landings, higher revenue, and reduced impacts on habitat because the fleet will be able to work in areas with denser concentrations of scallops and catch their trip limits faster, thereby reducing the amount of bottom that is swept by dredges. Flatfish bycatch also is projected to be lower.

Framework 29 includes provisions to allocate 5.5% of the total access area allocations to the Limited Access General Category (LAGC) Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) fleet. The 5.5% is equivalent to 2,855 or 3,426 IFQ trips, which would be distributed proportionally to the available areas depending on which Habitat Amendment-dependent scenario is implemented. Unlike full-time, part-time, and occasional limited access scallop permit holders, LAGC IFQ permit holders are allocated a total number of fleet-wide trips rather than individual allocations. If Closed Area II becomes an access area, LAGC trips for that area will be redistributed evenly across other Georges Bank access areas since Closed Area II is difficult for many LACG IFQ boats to access given its distance from shore.

Flatfish Accountability Measures

The scallop fishery is subject to sub-annual catch limits (sub-ACLs) for four flatfish stocks. The Council uses accountability measures (AMs) to prevent or react to ACL overages and prevent overfishing. “Proactive” AMs are designed to avoid overages, while “reactive” AMs are triggered once an overage occurs. Framework 29 contains a new AM for northern windowpane flounder, as well as modified AMs for Georges Bank yellowtail flounder and Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic yellowtail. The Council took action through this framework to streamline all of the reactive flatfish AMs in the scallop fishery and make them consistent with the current AM for southern windowpane flounder.

If an AM is triggered, scallopers will need to use modified dredges – configured with a five-row apron with a 1.5:1 maximum hanging ratio – to fish in designated GRA areas.

The duration of an AM is dependent on the magnitude of a sub-ACL overage as follows:

  • Small AMs – These are triggered if a quota overage is greater than 0% but less than 20%; and
  • Large AMs – These are triggered when overages exceeds 20% of the sub-ACL for a flatfish stock.

The Council approved identical reactive AMs for northern windowpane flounder and Georges Bank yellowtail flounder. The Council took this step so that if an AM is triggered for either stock, the action will reduce the impacts of scallop fishing on both flatfish stocks. The reactive AMs for the scallop fishery are described as follows:

Northern windowpane flounder and Georges Bank yellowtail flounder:

o Small AM: If triggered, modified dredges will need to be used for six weeks from November 16 through December 31 in Closed Area II and the Closed Area II Extension; and

o Large AM: If triggered, modified dredges will need to be used year-round in Closed Area II and the Closed Area II Extension

The Council already has taken many steps to reduce flatfish bycatch in the scallop fishery, including: prohibiting possession of flatfish; requiring that dredges be constructed with a maximum of seven rows in the apron and 10” twine tops to allow flatfish escapement; and seasonally closing the Scallop Closed Area II access area from August 15 through November 15 to protect yellowtail flounder and windowpane flounder.

In order to continue reducing overall fishery impacts, the Council approved two measures in Framework 29 related to the Scallop Research Set-Aside (RSA) Program. The measures stipulate that RSA compensation fishing will be: (1) prohibited once again in Closed Area II to help reduce potential bycatch of flatfish; and (2) capped in the Northern Gulf of Maine Management Area at the total allowable catch level designated for the limited access fishery.

Northern Gulf of Maine Management Area

The Council voted to set the total allowable catch (TAC) for the Northern Gulf of Maine (NGOM) Management Area at 200,000 pounds for the 2018 fishing year and 135,000 pounds for 2019 as a default.

The Council also voted to split the TAC between the limited access (LA) and LAGC components of the fishery with the first 70,000 pounds of the TAC going to the LAGC fishery and the remainder split 50/50 between the LA and LAGC components. Furthermore, the Council stipulated that the limited access portion of the TAC would be available for RSA compensation fishing only. Priority will be given to RSA projects that involve research in the Northern Gulf of Maine area.

More Information to Come

The Council voted to submit Framework 29 to NMFS – also called NOAA Fisheries – for review and implementation. The target date for implementation is April 1, 2018, which marks the beginning of the new fishing year.

The Council will distribute another news release after NMFS announces its decision on the Habitat Amendment. At that point, the Council will know which of its four preferred alternatives for limited access days-at-sea and access area trip allocations will advance in the scallop rulemaking process.

View the full release by the NEFMC here.

 

NOAA Fisheries Proposes State Water Exemptions for Scallop Fisheries in Maine and Massachusetts

June 29, 2017 — The following was released by NOAA:

NOAA Fisheries is seeking comment on a proposed rule that would revise the State Waters Exemption Program under the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery Management Plan.

Under this proposed rule, vessels holding both a Massachusetts state scallop permit and either a Limited Access General Category (LAGC) Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) or LAGC Northern Gulf of Maine (NGOM) Federal scallop permit could continue to fish in state waters once the Federal Total Allowable Catch (TAC) for the NGOM Management Area has been fully harvested.

This action would also modify the State Waters Exemption for Maine, which already has this exemption for vessels holding state scallop permits and LAGC NGOM permits, to include vessels that have both a state scallop permit and an LAGC IFQ permit.

Read the proposed rule as published in the Federal Register.

We will be accepting public comment on this proposed rule through July 14.

Please submit comments through our e-rulemaking portal or by sending your comments to: John Bullard, Regional Administrator, Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office, 55 Great Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930. Please make the outside of the envelope “Comments on Maine and Massachusetts State Waters Exemption Program.”

Questions? Contact Jennifer Goebel at 978-281-9175 or jennifer.goebel@noaa.gov

NEFMC Approves Scallop IFQ Program Review, RSA Priorities

June 22, 2017 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council took several actions related to Atlantic sea scallops during its June 20-21 meeting in Portland, ME. In summary, the Council:

  • Approved the Limited Access General Category (LAGC) Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) Program Review for fishing years 2010-2015;
  • Approved priorities for the 2018-2019 Scallop Research Set-Aside (RSA) Program;
  • Voted against establishing a control date to address movement between LAGC Northern Gulf of Maine (NGOM) permits and LAGC incidental permits; and
  • Voted to request the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) Regional Administrator use his authority to “expand the Great South Channel scallop dredge exemption area to encompass all or part of the Georges Bank regulated mesh area, not including habitat closed areas or year round closed areas except when allowed under the Scallop Access Area Program.”

The Council also received a progress report on Framework Adjustment 29 to the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery Management Plan (FMP), which will include: (1) fishery specifications for the 2018 fishing year and default specifications for 2019; (2) flatfish accountability measures for the scallop fishery; (3) NGOM Management Area modifications; and, potentially (4) modifications to scallop access areas, consistent with pending habitat area revisions.

The Council’s Scallop Plan Development Team, Scallop Committee, and Scallop Advisory Panel will work on these Framework 29 measures through the fall using 2017 survey results and updated scallop biomass estimates. Final action is scheduled for December.

Read the full release here

NEFMC Initiates Scallop Framework 29 to Address Specifications, Flatfish AMs, NGOM

April 18, 2017 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

During its mid-April meeting in Mystic, CT, the New England Fishery Management Council initiated Framework Adjustment 29 to the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery Management Plan. The framework will address four “2017 scallop management priorities” identified last fall. These include:

  • Fishery specifications for the 2018 scallop fishing year and default specifications for 2019;
  • Flatfish accountability measures for scallopers;
  • Scallop access area modifications to be consistent with pending habitat area revisions; and
  • Measures for the Northern Gulf of Maine (NGOM) Management Area.

While specifications and AM adjustments are required to be in the framework, the following problem statement explains the reason for the NGOM measures:

“Recent high landings and unknown biomass in the Northern Gulf of Maine Scallop Management Area underscore the critical need to initiate surveys and develop additional tools to better manage the area and fully understand total removals.”

Framework 29 may consider limiting vessels from fishing in the NGOM until biomass is more accurately determined and management measures can ensure sustainable harvest for all permit categories.

Read the full release here

New England council votes to increase scallop catch allowance for 2016

December 11, 2015 — The New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC) has elected to increase fishing days at sea for the 2016/17 scallop season.

Total landings are projected to increase on the 2015/16 season, to around 47 million pounds, NEFMC told Undercurrent News.

The council chose its final preferred recommendations for ‘framework 27’, the sea scallop management plan, at its December meeting.

Days at sea have been recommended at slightly higher levels for next year — 34.55 compared to 31, per full-time vessel, this year, while the level of catch from access areas is the same as in 2015: 51,000 pounds per full-time vessel, or about 17 million pounds in total.

All limited access trips were assigned to the Mid-Atlantic access areas. The general category individual fishing quota increased from about 3m pounds this year to about 4.5m pounds.

If approved, they will be allowed to take about 1.5m pounds of that total from access areas, mostly the Mid-Atlantic access area, and around 300,000 pounds were made available from the northern part of Nantucket Lightship.

These remain recommendations; they still need to be approved. The National Marine Fisheries Service will publish a proposed rule in several months with what it plans to implement, before taking public comment and then publishing a final rule.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

 

MAINE: NOAA Allows State Waters Scallop Exemption Program

October 6, 2015 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Through a final rule published today, scallop vessels holding both Northern Gulf of Maine Federal permits and Maine commercial licenses may fish inside Maine state waters, even if the Federal Northern Gulf of Maine fishery is closed.

Maine requested this exemption as part of the Scallop State Water Exemption Program, which allows Federal permit holders to be exempted from a few specific regulations when fishing in a state waters scallop fishery where the state’s program does not jeopardize the objectives of the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery Management Plan.

This rule goes into effect on November 6.

This exemption will benefit approximately 40 Federal Northern Gulf of Maine permit holders.

Read the rule as filed in Federal Register and the permit holder bulletin.

Questions? Contact Jennifer Goebel, Regional Office, at 978-281-6175 or Jennifer.Goebel@noaa.gov.

Atlantic Sea Scallop. Credit: NOAA