Saving Seafood

ASMFC August/September 2017 issue of Fisheries Focus Now Available

October 6, 2017 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The August/September 2017 issue of ASMFC Fisheries Focus is now available at http://www.asmfc.org/uploads/file/59d79752FishFocusAugustSept2017.pdf.

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Upcoming Meetings

page 2

From the Executive Director’s Desk

ASMFC Discusses Next Steps in State/Federal Management

page 3

Species Profile

Spot

page 4

Fishery Management Actions

American Lobster

Scup

page 7

Proposed Management Actions

Atlantic Menhaden

Cobia

page 9 

Science Highlight

ASMFC Releases Stock Assessment Updates for Atlantic Menhaden and River Herring

page 11

ACCSP

ACCSP Submits Regional Recreational Implementation Plan to NOAA Fisheries MRIP

page 12

Comings & Goings
page 14

Employees of the Quarter Named

page 16

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

ASMFC Atlantic Herring Section Launches New Website on Atlantic Herring Area 1A Spawning Monitoring System

October 6, 2017 — ARLINGTON, Va. — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

In May, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Atlantic Herring Section approved the continued use of the GSI30-based forecast system to predict when the population will be spawning and when spawning closures should be set based on the development of herring gonads (reproductive organs) in Area 1A (inshore Gulf of Maine). GSI stands for gonadosomatic index and in its simplest terms assesses the onset of spawning based on the ratio of the weight of a female herring’s ovaries to its body weight. This new system, which was successfully piloted in 2016, uses the observed rate of increase in GSI to predict when spawning will occur and when the fishery will be closed. This replaces an earlier system that simply closed the fishery when the observed GSI was above a threshold value.

Stakeholders can see the spawning forecast model in real time here: https://www.massmarinefisheries.net/herring/.

Atlantic herring spawn in the late summer or early fall of each year. The timing of this event can vary by several weeks, which necessitates sampling the population each year to determine when the spawning closure should occur.  Once three samples have been collected that show a positive progression in gonadal development, a forecasted closure date can be determined by projecting forward when the population is likely to cross the spawning threshold. This forecasted closure date is continuously updated as new samples are acquired, and the closure is finally set within 5 days of the forecast date.

If not enough samples can be collected to forecast a closure date, a default closure date will go into effect. This date varies slightly by region:

  • Eastern Maine: August 28th
  • Western Maine: October 4th
  • Massachusetts-New Hampshire: October 4th

Whether initiated by the forecast model or a default date, the spawning closure lasts four weeks. If more than 25% of sampled fish are still in spawning condition when the fishery is reopened, the fishery will reclose for another two weeks. For more information, please contact Toni Kerns, ISFMP Director, at tkerns@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740.

Read the release at the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission

ASMFC 76th Annual Meeting Final Agenda and Meeting Materials Now Available

October 5, 2017 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The final agenda and meeting materials for the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s 76th Annual Meeting are now available at http://www.asmfc.org/home/2017-annual-meeting; click on the relevant Board/Committee name to access the documents for that Board/Committee.  For ease of access, all Board/Section meeting documents have been combined into two documents – Main Meeting Materials 1 and Main Meeting Materials 2. Main Meeting Materials 1 include all Board/Section meeting materials for October 16 & 17, while Main Meeting Materials 2 include Board/Section meeting materials for October 18 & 19. Not included in the combined documents are materials for the ACCSP Coordinating Council, LEC, ACFHP Steering Committee and Habitat Committee.

Please note: If you are planning on attending any of the Annual Meeting social events, please register now (see attached registration form). These events are filling up quickly and we cannot guarantee that we can accommodate you if you do not register  by the end of this week.   

The agenda is subject to change. The agenda reflects the current estimate of time required for scheduled meetings. The Commission may adjust this agenda in accordance with the actual duration of meetings. Interested parties should anticipate meetings starting earlier or later than indicated herein.

Board meeting proceedings will be broadcast daily via webinar beginning August 1st at 9:45 a.m. and continuing daily until the conclusion of the meeting (expected to be 4:30 p.m.) on Thursday, August 3rd. 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://register.gotowebinar.com/register/8911027556606824449 to register.

As a reminder, the guidelines for submission of written comment for issues for which the Commission has NOT established a specific public comment period (i.e., in response to proposed management action) are as follows:

  1. Comments received 3 weeks prior to the start of a meeting week will be included with the main meeting materials.
  2. Comments received by 5:00 PM on the Tuesday immediately preceding the scheduled ASMFC Meeting (in this case, the Tuesday deadline will be October 10, 2017) will be distributed electronically to Commissioners/Board members prior to the meeting and a limited number of copies will be provided at the meeting.
  3. Following the Tuesday, October 10, 2017 5:00 PM deadline, the commenter will be responsible for distributing the information to the management board prior to the board meeting or providing enough copies for the management board consideration at the meeting (a minimum of 50 copies).

The submitted comments must clearly indicate the commenter’s expectation from the ASMFC staff regarding distribution.  As with other public comment, it will be accepted via mail, fax, and email.

Decision soon on whether to keep Maine shrimpers shut down

October 3, 2017 — PORTLAND, Maine — Fishing regulators will decide in November whether it’s time to reopen Maine’s shuttered shrimp fishery.

An arm of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission plans to meet on Nov. 29 in Portland to determine specifications for the 2018 fishing year. The fishery was shut down in 2013 amid concerns about poor reproduction and declining population.

The shrimp have been largely unavailable to American consumers since the shutdown, though they are also harvested by Canadian fishermen.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at the News & Observer

ASMFC Northern Shrimp Section and Advisory Panel to Meet November 29th to Consider 2018 Fishery Specifications

September 28, 2017 — ARLINGTON, Va. — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Northern Shrimp Section (Section) and Advisory Panel (AP) will meet on November 29, 2017 to consider specifications for the 2018 fishing season. The AP will meet in the morning (10 – 11:30 a.m.) to formulate recommendations for the Section’s consideration, and the Section will meet in the afternoon (1 – 3:30 p.m.) to set the specifications. Both meetings are scheduled to take place at the Westin Portland Harborview, Hotel 157 High Street, Portland, Maine; 207.517.8822.

In 2016, the Section approved a moratorium for the fourth consecutive fishing season (2014-2017) based on the status of the resource, which is considered at record low levels and experiencing low recruitment since 2012. The Northern Shrimp Technical Committee is currently updating the 2017 Northern Shrimp Stock Status Report, the findings of which will form the basis of the Section’s determinations for the 2018 season.  This Report will be included in the meeting materials, which will be available in early November.

For more information, please contact Max Appelman, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator, at mappelman@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740.

Herring fishing to be shut down along New England in October

September 27, 2017 — PORTSMOUTH, N.H. — Fishing regulators are shutting down a chunk of the New England coast to herring fishing for most of the month of October.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission says vessels in the Atlantic herring fishery cannot catch or possess the fish in the shuttered area from Oct. 1 to Oct. 28. The closed area stretches along a coastal area that runs from southern Maine to Cape Cod.

The fisheries commission says the decision is based on an analysis of samples of female herring in the area.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at the Greenwich Time

Atlantic Herring Massachusetts/New Hampshire Spawning Closure in Effect Starting October 1 through October 28, 2017

September 27, 2017 — 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 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.

Fifteen 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 1, 2017 extending through 11:59 p.m. on October 28, 2017. 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.   For more information, please contact Toni Kerns, ISFMP Director, at 703.842.0740 or tkerns@asmfc.org.

A PDF version of the announcement can be found here –http://www.asmfc.org/files/AtlHerring/MA_NH_SpawningClosureSept2017.pdf

Menhaden battle once again pits Virginia against Northern states

September 25, 2017 — HEATHSVILLE, Va. — Five years ago, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission cut the menhaden harvest by 20 percent, forcing the largest employer in the rural tip of the Northern Neck, Omega Protein, to lay off workers and decommission a ship.

The tiny fish is sold by fishermen as bait to catch blue crabs and commercially rendered for its oil and byproducts at Omega’s Reedville plant. Environmentalists and anglers say it’s critical to the diet of other Chesapeake Bay and Atlantic species such as osprey, striped bass and dolphin. At the time, commissioners said menhaden was at the point of being depleted.

Since then, ASMFC, which manages fisheries from Maine to Florida, changed its method of assessment and says stocks are now healthy. It began easing catch limits to where the quota is now only about 6 percent short of the 212,000 metric tons it once was.

Omega, which catches a half-billion fish each year, replaced two of its seven ships this year with larger, more efficient ships and rehired some of its employees.

But the company sees a new problem.

Monty Deihl, vice president of Omega’s operations, calls it “a fish grab” by other ASMFC member states, specifically northern states where more menhaden have been showing up.

“The stock is very healthy, the quota could be raised, but no one wants to raise the quota because Virginia will get 85 percent of whatever is raised,” he told a crowd of mostly employees and their families at an ASMFC public hearing last week. “You should be offended at the way all the other stuff was done to try to get a piece of what you all put your time and careers in to build.”

Read the full story at the Free Lance-Star

Non-Traditional Stakeholders Sought for Participation on ASMFC’s Horseshoe Crab Advisory Panel

September 25, 2017 — ARLINGTON, Va. — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Horseshoe Crab Management Board is seeking nominations from nontraditional stakeholders to fill two seats on the Horseshoe Crab Advisory Panel. Examples of such stakeholders include, but are not limited to environmental organizations, grassroots organizations, and individuals/groups with an expertise or interest in shorebird conservation.

The intent of this action is to broaden the scope of public input to the Horseshoe Crab Management Board as it continues to manage resources with diverse stakeholder needs. Individuals interested in serving as advisors can submit an advisory panel nomination form via email (tberger@asmfc.org) or fax (703.842.0741) by 5:00 PM on October 6, 2017.

The Commission’s advisory panel process was established to address its increasing responsibilities under the Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Cooperative Management Act. The Act mandates, among other considerations, that the Commission provide adequate public participation in its fishery management planning process, including at least three public hearings (during amendment development) and procedures for submission of written comments to the Commission. Advisory Panels have been developed for Atlantic herring, Atlantic menhaden, American eel, American lobster, black sea bass, bluefish, coastal sharks, horseshoe crab, Jonah crab, northern shrimp, scup, shad & river herring, South Atlantic species (croaker, spot, spotted seatrout, Spanish mackerel, red drum, cobia, black drum), spiny dogfish, striped bass, summer flounder, tautog, weakfish, and winter flounder.

For more information, please contact, Tina Berger, Director of Communications, at tberger@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740.

Atlantic Herring Western Maine Spawning Closure in Effect Starting September 26, 2017 through October 24, 2017

September 22, 2017 — 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.

Sampling in the Western Maine spawning area began on July 31, 2017; four samples of female herring were collected to evaluate spawning condition. Based on the analysis of the samples, the Western Maine spawning area will be closed starting at 12:00 a.m. on September 26, 2017 extending through 11:59 p.m. on October 24, 2017. 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

For more information, please contact Toni Kerns, ISFMP Director, at 703.842.0740 or tkerns@asmfc.org.