Saving Seafood

ASMFC Schedules Red Drum Simulation Assessment Review Workshop for March 28 – 30, 2022

March 17, 2022 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Red Drum Simulation Assessment will be peer-reviewed from March 28-30, 2022. The Simulation Assessment will evaluate multiple candidate models using simulated data sets to identify the model best suited for tracking red drum population dynamics. Once a preferred model is identified, it will be used in future benchmark assessments to provide advice to the Sciaenids Fishery Management Board on red drum management. 

The Review Workshop is open to the public and will be held at the DoubleTree Brownstone Hotel, 1707 Hillsborough Street, Raleigh, North Carolina. The Workshop agenda can be found at http://www.asmfc.org/files/Meetings/RedDrumAssessmentReviewWorkshop.pdf.

The Simulation Assessment and Review Report will be considered by the Sciaenids Fishery Management Board in May 2022. For more information, please contact Tina Berger, Director of Communications, at tberger@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740.  

 

ASMFC American Lobster Management Board to Meet March 31 to Consider Final Action on Draft Addendum XXIX: Electronic Vessel Tracking in the Federal American Lobster and Jonah Crab Fisheries

March 16, 2022 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s American Lobster Management Board will meet via webinar on March 31st from 1 – 3:30 PM. At this meeting, the Board will consider final approval ofAmerican Lobster Draft Addendum XXIX and Jonah Crab Draft Addendum IV. The Draft Addenda consider implementing electronic vessel tracking requirements in the federal American lobster and Jonah crab fisheries. The draft agenda and meeting materials are available at http://www.asmfc.org/files/Meetings/AmLobsterBoard_March2022/AmLobsterBoardMaterials_March2022.pdf.

To register for the webinar go to https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/3605881790361602063(Webinar ID 951-453-683). If you are joining the webinar but will not be using VoIP, you can also call in at +1 (562) 247-8422. A PIN will be provided to you after joining the webinar; see webinar instructions for details on how to receive the PIN as well as how to navigate the webinar. For those who will not be joining the webinar but would like to listen in to the audio portion only, you can do so by dialing +1 (562) 247-8422, access code 706-332-029.

The webinar will allow registrants to listen to the Board’s deliberations and view presentations and motions as they occur.  The Board will provide the public the opportunity to bring matters of concern to the Board’s attention at the start of the meeting. The Board Chair will ask members of the public to raise their hands to let the chair know they would like to speak. Depending upon the number of commenters, the Board Chair will decide how to allocate the available time on the agenda (typically 10 minutes) to the number of people who want to speak.

Public Comment Guidelines

With the intent of developing policies in the Commission’s procedures for public participation that result in a fair opportunity for public input, the ISFMP Policy Board has approved the following guidelines for use at management board meetings:

For issues that are not on the agenda, management boards will continue to provide opportunity to the public to bring matters of concern to the board’s attention at the start of each board meeting. Board chairs will ask members of the public to raise their hands to let the chair know they would like to speak. Depending upon the number of commenters, the board chair will decide how to allocate the available time on the agenda (typically 10 minutes) to the number of people who want to speak.

For topics that are on the agenda, but have not gone out for public comment, board chairs will provide limited opportunity for comment, taking into account the time allotted on the agenda for the topic. Chairs will have flexibility in deciding how to allocate comment opportunities; this could include hearing one comment in favor and one in opposition until the chair is satisfied further comment will not provide additional insight to the board.

For agenda action items that have already gone out for public comment, it is the Policy Board’s intent to end the occasional practice of allowing extensive and lengthy public comments. Currently, board chairs have the discretion to decide what public comment to allow in these circumstances.

In addition, the following timeline has been established for the 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)

·        Comments received by 5 PM on Wednesday, March 23 will be included in the supplemental materials.

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.

For more information, please contact Caitlin Starks, Senior FMP Coordinator, at cstarks@asmfc.org. 

 

ASMFC Begins Preparations for Jonah Crab Benchmark Stock Assessment

March 15, 2022 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

In advance of a Data Workshop for the first coastwide stock assessment of Jonah crab, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission is requesting data from academia, member states, federal partners, non-governmental organizations, participating jurisdictions and stakeholders. The Data Workshop will be conducted in June and is open to the public. The workshop location, dates, and agenda will be provided on the Commission’s website in advance of the workshop.

The Commission welcomes the submission of data sources that will improve the accuracy of a stock assessment. This includes, but is not limited to, data on catch per unit effort, tag-recapture data, biological samples (individual length and weight), and life history information (growth, maturity, natural mortality). For data sets to be considered, the data must be sent in the required format with accompanying description of methods to Jeff Kipp, Senior Stock Assessment Scientist, at jkipp@asmfc.org by April 29, 2022. 

For more information about the workshop including presentation of materials, please contact Caitlin Starks, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator, at cstarks@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740.

 

Draft Agenda and Meeting Materials for the March 24 Meeting of the Summer Flounder, Scup and Black Sea Bass Board Now Available

March 10, 2022 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The draft agenda and meeting materials for upcoming meeting of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Management are now available at http://www.asmfc.org/files/Meetings/SFlounderScupBSBBoardMarch2022/SFSBSB_BoardMaterials_March2022.pdf.  The Board will meet via webinar on March 24th from 10:30 AM – 12:30 PM. The purpose of the meeting is to review regional proposals for summer flounder and black sea bass recreational measures for the 2022 fishing year.

To register for the webinar go to https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/8045885664746620685(Webinar ID 228-241-235). If you are joining the webinar but will not be using VoIP, you can also call in at +1 (213) 929-4212. A PIN will be provided to you after joining the webinar; see webinar instructionsfor details on how to receive the PIN as well as how to navigate the webinar. For those who will not be joining the webinar but would like to listen in to the audio portion only, you can do so by dialing +1 (213) 929-4212, access code 462-622-410.

The webinar will allow registrants to listen to the Board’s deliberations and view presentations and motions as they occur.  The Board will provide the public the opportunity to bring matters of concern to the Board’s attention at the start of the meeting. The Board Chair will ask members of the public to raise their hands to let the Chair know they would like to speak. Depending upon the number of commenters, the Board Chair will decide how to allocate the available time on the agenda (typically 10 minutes) to the number of people who want to speak.

Public Comment Guidelines

With the intent of developing policies in the Commission’s procedures for public participation that result in a fair opportunity for public input, the ISFMP Policy Board has approved the following guidelines for use at management board meetings:

For issues that are not on the agenda, management boards will continue to provide opportunity to the public to bring matters of concern to the board’s attention at the start of each board meeting. Board chairs will ask members of the public to raise their hands to let the chair know they would like to speak. Depending upon the number of commenters, the board chair will decide how to allocate the available time on the agenda (typically 10 minutes) to the number of people who want to speak.

For topics that are on the agenda, but have not gone out for public comment, board chairs will provide limited opportunity for comment, taking into account the time allotted on the agenda for the topic. Chairs will have flexibility in deciding how to allocate comment opportunities; this could include hearing one comment in favor and one in opposition until the chair is satisfied further comment will not provide additional insight to the board.

For agenda action items that have already gone out for public comment, it is the Policy Board’s intent to end the occasional practice of allowing extensive and lengthy public comments. Currently, board chairs have the discretion to decide what public comment to allow in these circumstances.

In addition, the following timeline has been established for the 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)

· Comments received by 5 PM on Wednesday, March 16 will be included in the supplemental materials.

Comments should be submitted to comments@asmfc.org.

For more information, please contact Dustin Colson Leaning, FMP Coordinator, at dleaning@asmfc.org.

 

ASMFC Releases Draft Addenda on Recreational Harvest Control Rule for Public Comment

March 2, 2022 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Interstate Fisheries Management Program Policy Board (Policy Board) approved for public comment the Recreational Harvest Control Rule Draft Addenda to the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management Plan (FMP) and Bluefish FMP. The states of Maine through Virginia have scheduled webinar hearings to gather public input on the Draft Addenda between March 16 and April 13, and written comments will be accepted through April 22. Hearing details and comment instructions can be found below.

The Draft Addenda consider changes to the process used by the Commission and the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) to set recreational management measures (bag, size, and season limits) for summer flounder, scup, black sea bass, and bluefish. The Council is considering an identical set of options through a framework action. These potential changes are intended to provide greater stability and predictability in recreational management measures from year to year and allow for more explicit consideration of stock status when setting the measures. The Draft Addenda proposes five possible approaches for setting recreational measures. Key differences between the options include the information considered when setting measures and the circumstances under which measures would change. These differences have implications for how often measures would change and the magnitude of those changes. Taking final action on these addenda will not implement any specific bag, size, or season limits but start a new specification process for setting management measures.

The Draft Addenda are available at http://www.asmfc.org/files/PublicInput/HCR_DraftAddenda_PublicComment_March2022.pdf or via the Commission’s public input webpage. A quick reference guide is also available at http://www.asmfc.org/files/PublicInput/HCR_FW_addenda_reference_guide_March2022.pdf to aid stakeholders in understanding the options contained in the Draft Addenda. All those interested in the management of the recreational summer flounder, scup, black sea bass, and bluefish fisheries are encouraged to provide input by participating in the public hearings or by providing written comment.

 

ASMFC Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Board to Meet March 24 to Consider Final Action on 2022 Recreational Measures for Summer Flounder and Black Sea Bass

February 28, 2022 — 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 will meet via webinar on March 24th from 10:30 AM – 12:30 PM. The purpose of the meeting is to review regional proposals for summer flounder and black sea bass recreational measures for the 2022 fishing year. The draft agenda and meeting materials will be posted to the Meeting Archives webpage by March 10th.

To register for the webinar go to https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/8045885664746620685(Webinar ID 228-241-235). If you are joining the webinar but will not be using VoIP, you can also call in at +1 (213) 929-4212. A PIN will be provided to you after joining the webinar; see webinar instructionsfor details on how to receive the PIN as well as how to navigate the webinar. For those who will not be joining the webinar but would like to listen in to the audio portion only, you can do so by dialing +1 (213) 929-4212, access code 462-622-410.

The webinar will allow registrants to listen to the Board’s deliberations and view presentations and motions as they occur.  The Board will provide the public the opportunity to bring matters of concern to the Board’s attention at the start of the meeting. The Board Chair will ask members of the public to raise their hands to let the Chair know they would like to speak. Depending upon the number of commenters, the Board Chair will decide how to allocate the available time on the agenda (typically 10 minutes) to the number of people who want to speak.

Public Comment Guidelines
With the intent of developing policies in the Commission’s procedures for public participation that result in a fair opportunity for public input, the ISFMP Policy Board has approved the following guidelines for use at management board meetings:

For issues that are not on the agenda, management boards will continue to provide opportunity to the public to bring matters of concern to the board’s attention at the start of each board meeting. Board chairs will ask members of the public to raise their hands to let the chair know they would like to speak. Depending upon the number of commenters, the board chair will decide how to allocate the available time on the agenda (typically 10 minutes) to the number of people who want to speak.

For topics that are on the agenda, but have not gone out for public comment, board chairs will provide limited opportunity for comment, taking into account the time allotted on the agenda for the topic. Chairs will have flexibility in deciding how to allocate comment opportunities; this could include hearing one comment in favor and one in opposition until the chair is satisfied further comment will not provide additional insight to the board.

For agenda action items that have already gone out for public comment, it is the Policy Board’s intent to end the occasional practice of allowing extensive and lengthy public comments. Currently, board chairs have the discretion to decide what public comment to allow in these circumstances.
In addition, the following timeline has been established for the 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)
 
·       Comments received by 5 PM on Wednesday, March 9 will be included in the briefing materials.
·       Comments received by 5 PM on Wednesday, March 16 will be included in the supplemental materials.
 
Comments should be submitted to comments@asmfc.org.
 
For more information, please contact Dustin Colson Leaning, FMP Coordinator, at dleaning@asmfc.org.  
 

Supplemental Materials for February 22 Meeting of the American Lobster Board Now Available

February 17, 2022 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

Supplemental materials for the February 22nd meeting of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s American Lobster Management Board are now available athttp://www.asmfc.org/files/Meetings/AmLobsterBoardFeb2022/AmLobsterBoardSupplementalMaterials_Feb2022.pdf. The Board will meet via webinar on February 22nd from 1 – 3:30 PM. The purpose of the meeting is to review submitted public comment and advisory panel input on Draft Addendum XXIX: Electronic Vessel Tracking in the Federal American Lobster and Jonah Crab Fisheries and consider final approval of the Addendum.

To register for the webinar go to https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/2930590334961190923 (Webinar ID 845-804-555). If you are joining the webinar but will not be using VoIP, you can also call in at +1 (562) 247-8422, access code 538-513-755. A PIN will be provided to you after joining the webinar; see webinar instructions for details on how to receive the PIN as well as how to navigate the webinar. For those who will not be joining the webinar but would like to listen in to the audio portion only, you can do so by dialing +1 (562) 247-8422, access code 538-513-755. The webinar will begin at 12:30 PM so people can troubleshoot any connectivity or audio issues they mayencounter. If you are having issues with the webinar (connecting to or audio related issues), please contact ChrisJacobs at 703.842.0790.

The webinar will allow registrants to listen to the Board’s deliberations and view presentations and motions as they occur.  The Board will provide the public the opportunity to bring matters of concern to the Board’s attention at the start of the meeting. The Board Chair will ask members of the public to raise their hands to let the chair know they would like to speak. Depending upon the number of commenters, the Board Chair will decide how to allocate the available time on the agenda (typically 10 minutes) to the number of people who want to speak.

 

ASMFC 2021 Annual Report Now Available

February 14, 2022 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission is pleased to present you with our 2021 Annual Report, http://www.asmfc.org/files/pub/ASMFC2021AnnualReport_web.pdf. In the report, you will find a quick guide to stock status for the 27 species and species groups the Commission manages; a fisheries management section, which focuses on species which had the most significant management or stock assessment activities in 2021; and sections highlighting our major accomplishments in 2021 in the areas of fisheries science, habitat conservation, and fishery-dependent data collection and management. Please visit the Commission’s website at www.asmfc.org for additional information on any of our programs or activities.

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

Meeting Details for Upcoming Summer Flounder, Scup and Black Sea Bass Board and Joint Meeting of the ISFMP Policy Board and MAFMC

February 4, 2022 —  The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

Good Afternoon Members of the Summer Flounder, Scup and Black Sea Bass Management Board and the ISFMP Policy Board – Following are the details of your upcoming meetings next week.

The Summer Flounder, Scup and Black Sea Bass Management Board will meet on February 8th from 1 – 1:45 PM using the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council’s (Council) webinar to discuss the 2022 black sea bass recreational fishery reduction. This is a board-only meeting. The Board Chair will give time to Council members, as public, to ask questions and comment. The Board will need keep its deliberations to 45 minutes in order to not disrupt the Council’s agenda for the rest of the day. The Board meeting will include a very short presentation on the Technical Committee memo and Board discussion and action on the motions made via email. Once the Board has conducted its business, it will adjourn and the Council will reconvene to consider action on the motion made by the Board. Meeting materials for the Board meeting can be found here. Any public received by noon on Monday February 7, 2022 will be distributed to the Board on Monday afternoon.

Following this, the ISFMP Policy Board will meet jointly with the Council to discuss the Recreational Harvest Control Rule Addenda/Framework. Meeting materials for that meeting can be found here.

Additional information on the Council’s meeting, including webinar instructions, can be found below.

 

Herring fishermen file appeal brief in at-sea monitoring case

February 2, 2022 — Atlantic herring fishermen who lost their case in 2021 against the federal government regarding an at-sea monitoring program filed their opening brief late last week to an appellate court seeking to overturn the decision.

That brief, which was filed to the U.S. First Circuit Court of Appeals late Friday, 28 January, claims Rhode Island U.S. District Judge Patricia A. Sullivan erred last year when she ruled the Magnuson-Stevens Act allowed the government to order the fishermen to cover the costs for monitors on their vessels.

Read the full story at SeafoodSource