Saving Seafood

Is climate change impacting fish along the NC coast?

January 14, 2021 — Twenty scientists from 13 institutes around the world now report that 2020 brought the highest ocean temperatures since 1955. The study was published Wednesday in the journal Advances in Atmospheric Sciences.

While it is important that we continue to monitor the warming of the ocean temperatures, it is also important to understand the potential impacts that warming temperatures could mean for fisheries along the North Carolina coast.

I sat down with Dr. Rebecca Asch, a professor at East Carolina University, to discuss recent research led by one of her graduate students, Christopher Thaxton, in collaboration with NOAA to take a close look at fish larvae (juveniles) in Beaufort and the pattern changes happening due, in part, to warming water temperatures. Data has been collected on the amounts of fish larvae in this area since 1986 and they took a look at 10 species, including the American Eel, Pinfish, Croaker, and Flounder.

Read the full story at WRAL

Mid-Atlantic Council Seeks Stakeholder Input on Summer Flounder Recreational Management

January 12, 2021 — The following was released by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council is collecting public comments and suggestions regarding current and future management of the recreational summer flounder fishery. Input provided through the scoping comment form will help inform the development of a management strategy evaluation (MSE) which will evaluate different management strategies designed to minimize discards in the recreational summer flounder fishery.

The Council is collecting this information as part of the continued progress and implementation of its Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries Management (EAFM) structured framework process (see: https://www.mafmc.org/eafm for more information).

The Council encourages all stakeholders who have interest, knowledge, or experience related to the recreational summer flounder fishery to provide comments. The form should take 10-15 minutes to complete, and your answers will be kept confidential. More information can be found here.

Click on the link below to provide comments by Monday, January 25, 2021.

Scoping Comment Form – Summer Flounder Recreational Management

Read the full release here

NOAA Fisheries Announces Final 2021 Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Specifications

December 18, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

We are implementing the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council’s recommended 2021 summer flounder, scup, and black sea bass specifications. The final 2021 catch limits are increasing relative to previously approved 2021 quotas because the Council revised its risk policy, which defines the acceptable risk of overfishing. The revised catch limits still minimize the chance of overfishing, while providing more opportunities for fishermen. No additional changes to the federal commercial management measures were made.

Read the full release here

NEFMC Approves Most of Groundfish Framework 61; Final Vote on Redfish Universal Sector Exemption Slated for January

December 10, 2020 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

During its December 1-3, 2020 webinar meeting, the New England Fishery Management Council took final action on new groundfish catch limits and other measures as part of Framework Adjustment 61 to the Northeast Multispecies Fishery Management Plan. The measures will apply to the 2021 fishing year and beyond. One additional provision is still under consideration – a possible universal exemption for groundfish sectors that would make it easier for fishermen to catch redfish. The Council will make a final determination on the proposed exemption during its January 26-28, 2021 webinar meeting and then vote to submit the framework to the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS/NOAA Fisheries) for review and implementation.

Framework 61 includes:

  • Updated status determination criteria for Georges Bank winter flounder and Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic winter flounder to reflect results from the 2020 Management Track Stock Assessments, which were recently conducted for 13 large- and smallmesh Northeast multispecies stocks and Atlantic sea scallops;
  • A revised rebuilding strategy for white hake, which has an 87.4% probability of rebuilding the stock to its maximum sustainable yield within 10 years;

Read the full release here

ASMFC 79th Annual Meeting Supplemental Materials Now Available

October 14, 2020 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

Supplemental materials for the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s 79th Annual Meeting Webinar are now available at http://www.asmfc.org/home/2020-annual-meeting-webinar for the following Boards/Committees (click on “Supplemental” following each relevant committee header to access the information). For ease of access, supplemental meeting materials (with the exception of the Atlantic Coastal Cooperative Statistics Program Coordinating Council) have been combined into one PDF –http://www.asmfc.org/files/Meetings/79AnnualMeeting/ASMFC79thAnnualMeetingSupplementalMaterials.pdf.  Below is the list of documents  included in the supplemental materials.

Atlantic Herring Management Board – Letter from Mike Pentony to New England Fishery Management Council

Winter Flounder Management Board – Draft Working Papers of the 2020 Assessment Update Reports for Gulf of Maine and Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic Winter Flounder Stocks

American Lobster Management Board – Draft Fishery Management Plan Reviews for the 2019 Fishing Year for American Lobster and Jonah Crab

Atlantic Menhaden Management Board – Advisory Panel Recommendations on 2021-2022 Fishery Specificationsand Public Comment

South Atlantic State/Federal Fisheries Management Board – Revised Agenda & Meeting Overview; Atlantic Cobia Draft Addendum I Public Hearing and Written Comment Summaries; Draft Fishery Management Plan Reviews for the 2019 Fishing Year for Red Drum, Atlantic Croaker and Atlantic Cobia

Executive Committee – Revised Agenda

Horseshoe Crab Management Board – ARM Subcommittee and Delaware Bay Ecosystem Technical Committee Call Summary

Spiny Dogfish Management Board – Revised Meeting Overview; MAFMC Scientific and Statistical Committee Report: Revised Risk Policy for 2021

Atlantic Striped Bass Management Board – Public Information Document for Amendment 7 to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Striped Bass

ACCSP Coordinating Council – Draft Agenda; Draft Proceedings from October 2020; FY21 Proposals; Funding Decision Process; Committee & Program Updates

Business Session – Draft 2021 Action Plan

Live-Streaming

Board meeting proceedings will be broadcast daily via webinar beginning Monday, October 19 at 9:00 a.m. and continuing daily until the conclusion of the meeting (expected to be 1:45 p.m.) on Thursday, October 22. The webinar will allow registrants to listen to board deliberations and view presentations and motions as they occur. Meeting participants and attendees can register for the webinar at https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/1878402776294803471 (Webinar ID: 796-314-395).

Each day, the webinar will begin 30 minutes prior to the start of the first meeting so that people can troubleshoot any connectivity or audio issues they may encounter.  If you are having issues with the webinar (connecting to or audio-related issues), please contact Chris Jacobs at 703.842.0790.

If you are joining the webinar but will not be using VoIP, you can also call in at 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. 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 562.247.8422 (access code: 225-820-088).

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. Please note these guidelines have been modified to adapt to meetings via webinar.

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). 

  1. Comments received 3 weeks prior to the start of the webinar (September 28) will be included in the briefing materials.
  2. Comments received by 5 PM on the Tuesday, October 13 will be included in the supplemental materials.
  3. Comments received by 10 AM on Friday, October 16 will be distributed electronically to Commissioners/Board members prior to the meeting.

Comments should be submitted via email at comments@asmfc.org. All comments must clearly indicate the commenter’s expectation from the ASMFC staff regarding distribution.

Electronic monitoring long-awaited boon for Cape fishermen

October 12, 2020 — More than a decade of advocacy by local fishermen finally paid off when the New England Fishery Management Council at its meeting last month approved the use of video cameras on fishing vessels to monitor catches.

Electronic monitoring is a critical part of the council plan known as Amendment 23 that passed Sept. 30 and set a target of covering 100% of all fishing trips to catch bottom-feeding species such as cod, haddock and flounders that are collectively known as groundfish.

“The Council has known for quite a while now that we needed to improve the groundfish monitoring program,” council spokesperson Janice Plante said. “We’d had some issues in the past with unreported or misreported catches. We know there’s an incentive to illegally discard certain stocks, especially those with low catch limits.”

Plus, just 31% of groundfish trips were required to be covered by human observers riding on fishing vessels tracking the number of discarded and caught fish and Plante said the council knew that sometimes fishermen fished differently on observed trips and unobserved trips.

“These are all things the Council wanted to address by improving the catch monitoring program,” Plante wrote in an email.

Read the full story at the Cape Cod Times

Regulators Move to Increase At-Sea Monitoring of Groundfish Catch in New England Waters

October 2, 2020 — New England fishing regulators have approved a plan that would significantly increase at-sea monitoring for groundfish trips, as a way to help inform scientists and stocks managers about what’s being caught in area waters.

The plan calls for in-person observers or video monitoring on up to 100 percent of trips made by fishermen who target cod, flounder, haddock, and other groundfish.

For the first four years, nearly all costs are expected to be covered by the federal government and other organizations to avoid financially burdening fishermen. But if the full costs aren’t covered beyond that point, the monitoring level could drop back to the current 40 percent, paid for, at least in part, by fishermen. The new plan calls for reevaluation of costs and other considerations in the fifth year.

The plan was endorsed by the New England Fishery Management Council but still requires additional federal approvals before taking effect.

Read the full story at CAI

NEFMC adopts controversial plan to monitor all trips to sea

September 30, 2020 — After years of concerns about the overfishing of some of New England’s iconic species, the regional body overseeing fishing issues on Wednesday adopted a divisive plan that could require monitors to accompany groundfishermen on all trips to sea.

The plan approved by the New England Fishery Management Council would require that fishermen who target cod, flounder, and other groundfish bring monitors on their trips or install electronic devices to track their catch. The plan aims to ensure that fishermen accurately account for the haul they unload at the dock and are not improperly discarding fish that might exceed their quotas.

But the plan is contingent on Congress covering much of the costs, putting its future in doubt.

At the start of a contentious virtual meeting, John Quinn, the council’s chairman, described the debate over increased monitoring as “the most divisive issue” he has experienced in his five years overseeing the group, noting there have been multiple threats of lawsuits.

Environmental advocates called the plan a step in the right direction, but they worried that it wouldn’t be viable without sufficient government support.

“If federal funding continues, we will finally have accurate and precise baseline information about the catch, discards, and landings in this fishery,” said Gib Brogan, a fisheries policy analyst at Oceana, a Washington D.C.-based advocacy group. “This information is the foundation of successful modern fisheries management, and we are optimistic that today’s action will help chart the future success of this fishery.”

One environmental group, The Nature Conservancy, offered to pay as much as $2 million to cover the costs of the entire fleet to equip the boats with electronic monitoring devices, calling such action “essential” to preserving the region’s fisheries.

“The critical discussion of establishing monitoring targets that improve catch accounting while maintaining flexibility and fleet viability has yet to be addressed by the council,” said Jackie Odell, executive director of the Northeast Seafood Coalition, an advocacy group for groundfishermen in Gloucester. “The can has been kicked down the road.”

Read the full story at The Boston Globe

Flounder: Summer landings on track; reductions coming for southern allocations

August 18, 2020 — Summer flounder is a popular commercial fishery in the Mid-Atlantic region, with North Carolina allocated the largest share at 27.44 percent. Despite the widespread disruption in markets from covid-19, the state’s fleet by early summer was on track for landings just slightly lower than 2019.

Preliminary statistics show 69 North Carolina vessels representing 131 trips had landed 744,479 pounds of summer flounder by late June, with a value of $2.67 million distributed to 16 dealers.

“Landings of summer flounder appear to be somewhat down from last year, but the trend seems similar,” said Lee Paramore, biologist supervisor with the North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries. “Since we can modify trip limits to stay within quota, it may be possible to allow for increased harvest if landings remain down relative to last year.

“There a lot of factors that can impact landings, and we haven’t yet determined if covid will play a part, but currently the fish houses here that typically land summer flounder have been operating at same level.”

The state’s commercial landings for summer flounder have been consistent since 2008 ,with the exception of 2012-13, where excessive shoaling in Oregon Inlet limited the number of trawl boats able to land in North Carolina. Annual commercial landings averaged 2.25 million pounds of summer flounder since 2008.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

It’s nice to share: NMFS, Mid-Atlantic council propose more flounder quota for states

August 14, 2020 — With the East Coast summer flounder stock on an upswing, more states could share when the annual commercial quota can be raised above 9.55 million pounds, under a proposal by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council and NMFS.

Amendment 21 to the council’s summer flounder management plan “would change the state-by-state commercial quota allocations when the coastwide quota exceeds 9.55 million pounds,” according to a rulemaking notice from NMFS in the Aug. 12 federal Register.

“When the coastwide quota is 9.55 million pounds or less, the quota would be distributed according to the current allocations,” held mostly by North Carolina, Virginia, New Jersey and Rhode Island, under historic allocation splits that date back to 1993, the notice explains.

Now, with the flounder biomass and the fishery in good shape, fishermen and their state governments have been pressing to share the benefits.

Under the proposed amendment, “in years when the coastwide quota exceeds 9.55 million pounds, any additional quota, beyond this threshold, would be distributed in equal shares to all states except Maine, Delaware, and New Hampshire, which would split 1 percent of the additional quota,” the notice states.

Read the full story at National Fisherman