Saving Seafood

NMFS Institutes More Swordfish Research Off Florida, Praised by EDF

August 16, 2017 — SEAFOOD NEWS — Dr. David Kerstetter of Nova Southeastern University will receive an exempted fishing permit (EFP) from the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to conduct research in the East Florida Coast Pelagic Longline Closed Area. Dr. Kerstetter will be working alongside Atlantic swordfish fishermen in an effort to “improve understanding of encounter rates of juvenile swordfish and species like sharks, bullfishes and sea turtles in order to find the best ways to reduce their mortality.”

According to Katie Westfall, senior manager of highly migratory species advocacy for EDF’s Oceans Program, fishermen have already made sacrifices to help the Atlantic swordfish population rebound. However, this project will help by collecting data from fisheries that “interact with imperiled highly migratory species.”

“The project will also pioneer an approach to link catch data with oceanographic data, allowing researchers to learn over time where and when species will occur in order to help fishermen avoid bycatch of sharks, billfishes, and sea turtles,” Westfall added. “This has the potential to be transformative by dramatically minimizing unnecessary deaths of protected species while improving the catch of healthy target species like swordfish.”

Westfall is hopeful that the research will help “pave the way to responsibly increasing yield in domestic fisheries and strengthening revenues for American seafood businesses.”

This story originally appeared on Seafoodnews.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.

EFP Application for Snapper-Grouper Catch Share Pilot Program Pulled After Widespread Opposition

WASHINGTON (Saving Seafood) – March 10, 2017 – The South Atlantic Commercial Fishing Collaborative pulled its application for an Exempted Fishing Permit (EFP) in the South Atlantic snapper-grouper fishery on Wednesday after a letter of opposition from Rep. Walter Jones (NC-3) and widespread opposition from fishermen. The EFP would have allowed the Collaborative access to numerous species in the snapper-grouper fishery as part of a pilot catch share program.

Rep. Jones wrote to the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council on Wednesday urging opposition to the EFP application. In his letter, Rep. Jones cited widespread opposition among commenters on the Council’s draft vision blueprint to including a voluntary catch share program as a part of South Atlantic snapper-grouper management. He also cited a similar EFP proposal that was put forward and rejected in 2013.

“Clearly, the overwhelming sentiment of permit holders, and the precedent of prior council actions, argue for opposition to this application,” Rep. Jones wrote. “The snapper-grouper permit holders of the South Atlantic have not only not given their consent to this proposal, they appear to be nearly unanimous in their opposition.”

The North Carolina Fisheries Association, a commercial fishing trade group, also opposed the application on the basis of their longtime opposition to catch shares.

Read the full letter from Rep. Jones here