groundfish Archives - Page 56 of 74

NEFMC Presents 2017 Award for Excellence to Dr. Matt Cieri

April 20, 2017 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council today presented its 2017 Janice M. Plante Award for Excellence to Dr. Matt Cieri of the Maine Department of Marine Resources (DMR). Dr. Cieri received the award in recognition of the breadth of his scientific contributions and commitment to the Council process.

Council Chairman Dr. John Quinn said, “Dr. Cieri has devoted almost his entire professional career to the betterment of Atlantic herring science and management. He’s contributed extensively to the Council’s Atlantic Herring Plan Development Team and to herring stock assessments, and he’s been heavily involved with quota monitoring, which has helped us track catch trends and quota utilization in this important fishery.”

Dr. Cieri is a Marine Resource Scientist III at Maine DMR. He earned a Master of Science degree from Rutgers University and a PhD from the University of Maine. He oversees several programs and personnel within DMR, ranging from the Maine/New Hampshire Trawl Survey to Recreational Fishery Monitoring. He is well versed in a number of assessment models and methods. In additional to his considerable involvement with Atlantic herring, he also has contributed to assessment efforts related to monkfish, dogfish, groundfish, American eels, and Atlantic menhaden.

The Plante award is the Council’s highest honor, bestowed to an individual who has produced exceptional work “to further the effectiveness of the fishery management process in New England.”

Read the full release here

Pacific Council Approves Electronic Monitoring for West Coast Trawlers

April 11, 2017 — SEAFOOD NEWS — The Pacific Fishery Management Council heard updates on an exempted fishing permit (EFP) and took final action to approve electronic monitoring (EM) in the bottom trawl and non-whiting midwater trawl fisheries. The Council is meeting this week in Sacramento, Calif.

Fishermen, regulators and NGOs like Environmental Defense Fund and The Nature Conservancy have long been interested in EM’s potential as an alternative to the 100 percent human observer coverage requirement for fishing vessels targeting groundfish in the two trawl sectors. This is a follow-on to the Council’s 2016 action authorizing EM for the fixed gear and whiting sectors of the fleet, and once implemented will allow anyone in the West Coast trawl groundfish catch shares program to use EM in lieu of human observers.

Four EFPs for the various gear types have been active since 2015, testing camera systems and EM video data review protocols, and evaluating costs for fishermen. The Council’s final action builds on lessons learned in those EM trials and reflects increased confidence that EM can work in the trawl sector.

Although some questions remain about the final EM program – including a formal implementation date, optimal level of video review, specifics of estimating Pacific halibut bycatch mortality and whether the video review contract now held by Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission will need to go out for third-party bids – the approval is a significant step forward for groundfish trawlers.

In addition to recommendations from its Groundfish Electronic Monitoring Policy Advisory Committee (GEMPAC), Groundfish Management Team (GMT) and Groundfish Advisory Panel (GAP), the Council also heard public comments from industry reps, EFP participants and NGOs involved with the EFPs. Based on those aligned recommendations, the Council’s near-unanimous motion aimed at maintaining necessary accountability at the lowest possible cost included:

That logbooks serve as the primary data source for documenting at-sea discards, and that video review serves to confirm the accuracy of logbook data;
That review rates for video begin at 100 percent but will be lowered in the future to the level sufficient to confirm the accuracy of discard data and maintain incentives for fishermen to continue employing best practices;
That Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission continues as the video reviewer;
That methods to accurately account for discard mortality of Pacific halibut be developed.

Oregon Trawl Commission Director Brad Pettinger noted in his testimony that the significant cost-savings potential of EM – while maintaining 100 percent accountability – can add substantially to a fishing vessel’s bottom line.

“The indicators are that we can eventually get costs-per-day to the $200 – $300 range, which would be a dramatic cost savings over human observers,” Pettinger said in a statement.

Costs of human observers on vessels are estimated at around $500 or more per day.

Trawl sectors such as Pacific whiting would likely see greater cost savings than non-whiting trawl groundfish sectors.

The West Coast trawl catch shares program also utilizes catch monitors at the first receiver to track offloads. As participants have noted, human observers typically step off the vessel to become the catch monitor during offload.

The Environmental Defense Fund noted that while catch monitors are not part of the EFP, the issue should be addressed in the future.

“In geographically dispersed, lower volume ports (such as in California), the ability to train and retain [catch monitors] has been challenging. We have heard from industry as well as CM contractors that filling and funding these positions has been challenging under an EM model,” EDF noted in a public comment letter to the Council. “We encourage Council and NMFS to consider allowing cameras dockside, relaxing eligibility requirements for CMs or a combination of both to address this oncoming problem before it starts to prohibit participation in the fishery.”

A consistent theme of both Council and hallway discussions was that NMFS should look for every opportunity to streamline implementation procedures, keep costs down and put EM on the water as soon as practicable.

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

SEAN HORGAN: Bullard pushes case for electronic monitoring

April 10, 2017 — The FishOn gang was kicking around the subject of at-sea monitoring at our decennial staff meeting the other day and we came to a conclusion that absolutely no one can reasonably refute:

That singing in the rails means electronic monitoring is coming at some point to the Northeast groundfish industry and there ain’t no stopping that train.

Beyond that, nothing is certain.

How much will it cost fishermen to buy and install the system? Will the feds subsidize those purchases and associated costs? Will the systems be used on every trip and will they be active for every minute? What are the legal and privacy implications? Will the footage actually be viewed by computers and not humans? On and on it goes.

In the end, this could be a fight that makes the quota contretemps seem like high tea.

NOAA Regional Director John K. Bullard, making his first start of the year, came out last week throwing a mixture of heat and fluffy stuff in an open message to the fishery concerning EM.

He spent much of the top of the piece with off-speed stuff just off the outside corner in explaining why it is actually unfair “and a bit premature” to want to compare the costs of EM and traditional at-sea monitoring.

Read the full opinion piece at the Gloucester Times

Carlos Rafael faces $109K fine, loss of 13 vessels

April 4, 2017 — New Bedford fishing mogul Carlos Rafael may have to surrender up to 13 of his groundfishing vessels and must pay almost $109,000 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service as part of his plea agreement with federal prosecutors.

Rafael pleaded guilty last Thursday to falsifying fish quotas, conspiracy and tax evasion in U.S. District Court in Boston and is scheduled to be sentenced there on June 27 by Judge William G. Young.

The 65-year-old Rafael could face up to 76 months in prison on the three charges — far less than the up to 20 years he would have faced under the original 27-count indictment. Federal prosecutors, however, have recommended a prison sentence of 46 months and a significant period of supervised release.

Young is not bound by the specifics of the plea agreement, nor must he follow federal prosecutors’ sentencing recommendations.

“Based on my experience, (Rafael) is probably looking at least three to four years in prison and a substantial fine,” New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell, a former federal prosecutor, told the Undercurrent News fishing website. “But I think the bigger question is what happens to his groundfish permits. They may be subject to forfeiture, but his forfeiture obligation can be subject in a number of ways.”

Read the full story at the Gloucester Times

Where does Rafael’s guilty plea leave Port of New Bedford?

April 3, 2017 — Carlos Rafael’s journey to Judge William Young’s Courtroom 18 in U.S. District Court began as an underage teenage fish cutter on the city’s docks.

Rafael personified the American Dream in climbing the economic ladder from immigrant with nothing to becoming the face of fishing in a port historically known for its harvest of the Atlantic Ocean.

On Thursday he wore the cloak of a criminal after he pleaded guilty to nearly 30 federal charges that included conspiracy, falsifying fishing quotas, false labeling and tax evasion.

It wasn’t necessarily a new look for the 65-year-old Rafael, who served six months in federal prison in 1988, but his focus after the plea agreement turned to the port that in many ways assembled the man who sat emotionless in the courtroom.

“I have a single goal,” Rafael said in a statement after his guilty plea. “To protect our employees and all of the people and businesses who rely on our companies from the consequences of my actions. I will do everything I can to make sure that the Port of New Bedford remains America’s leading fishing port.”

The Port of New Bedford generates $9.8 billion in total economic value, according to the city’s Harbor Development Commission. It represents 2 percent of Massachusetts’ gross domestic product. The stalwart of this industry could be facing more than six years of prison time after pleading guilty.

Rafael’s guilty plea puts his groundfish fishing vessels in jeopardy due to the possibility of forfeiting assets as part of the plea deal. According to the mayor’s office, Rafael owns about 80 percent of the groundfish permits in New Bedford. Groundfish accounts for about 10 percent of the port’s revenue. Even still, those close to the port say no one person can affect the reputation of the nation’s most successful port.

Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times

Updates from NOAA Fisheries

March 28, 2017 — Groundfish Days-at-Sea Leasing Deadline Extended to March 31

NOAA Fisheries announces an extension of the 2016 Days-at-Sea leasing deadline for the northeast multispecies fishery. If you hold a groundfish permit for 2016, you may submit DAS leases through March 31.

2017 At-Sea Monitoring Coverage Levels for Groundfish Sector Fishery

NOAA Fisheries announces that for fishing year 2017 the total target At-Sea monitoring coverage level is 16 percent of all groundfish sector trips.

This target coverage level is a two-percentage point increase from the 2016 coverage level (14 percent). As the target coverage level is set based on an average of

At-Sea monitoring data from the past three full groundfish fishing years, this level is set based on data from the 2013-2015 fishing years.

Federally funded observer coverage provided by the Northeast Fishery Observer Program to meet the Standardized Bycatch Reporting Methodology (SBRM) requirements will partially satisfy the 16 percent coverage requirement. Sectors will therefore actually pay for At-Sea monitoring coverage on less than 16 percent of their groundfish trips, but the total will depend on the SBRM coverage rates, which are not yet out.

We expect to be able to reimburse sectors for some portion of their ASM costs. We do not yet have the information we need to determine the reimbursement rate. We were able to reimburse 85 percent of At-Sea monitoring costs in 2016, but expect the 2017 reimbursement rate to be lower.

Read the full story from at Wicked Local

Groundfisherman fear more federal regulations

March 23, 2017 — STONINGTON, Conn. — Groundfishermen at the Fishing Fleet in Stonington, those who catch flounder and a dozen other bottom feeding fish, fear federal regulators are trying to sink their livelihood by mandating more regulations.

“We don’t need somebody on our back every day to watch what we do. Now they want to put cameras on the boat,” said Bob Guzzo, of Southern New England Fisherman & Lobsterman’s Association.

Guzzo has been fishing the region for nearly four decades.

He said the New England Fishery Management Council wants to increase at-sea monitoring of groundfish, in order to verify what they catch and release.

Guzzo said the added cost of paying someone to monitor what happens on the boat, or even watch remotely by camera, doesn’t help them or the industry but only increases the cost of doing business.

Read the full story WFSB

NMFS Sets 16 Percent Observer Coverage Level for NE Groundfish Sector for 2017

March 20, 2017 — SEAFOOD NEWS — The National Marine Fisheries Service announced a 16 percent at-sea monitoring coverage level target for groundfish sector trips in the Northeast for 2017.

This target coverage level is a 2 percentage point increase from the 2016 coverage level (14 percent). The target coverage level is set based on an average of at-sea monitoring data from the past 3 full groundfish fishing years, so the 2017 level is set based on data from the 2013-2015 years.

Federally funded observer coverage provided by the Northeast Fishery Observer Program to meet the Standardized Bycatch Reporting Methodology requirements will partially satisfy the 16 percent coverage requirement. Sectors will actually pay for at-sea monitoring coverage on less than 16 percent of their groundfish trips, but the total will depend on the SBRM coverage rates. The SBRM coverage rates have not been published yet.

NMFS said the agency expects to be able to reimburse sectors for some portion of their monitoring costs but doesn’t have the information it needs to determine the reimbursement rate. The agency was able to reimburse 85 percent of at-sea monitoring costs in 2016, but expects the 2017 reimbursement rate to be lower.

Certain sector groundfish trips, those using gillnets with 10-inch or greater mesh in Southern New England and Inshore Georges Bank, are also excluded from the ASM requirement due to their low catch of groundfish species. This further reduces the portion of sector trips subject to industry-funded monitoring and better focuses monitoring resources, the agency said in a press release.

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

NOAA calls for more groundfish monitoring at sea

March 16, 2017 — NOAA Fisheries will increase its target level for at-sea monitoring to 16 percent of all groundfish trips in 2017 and expects industry reimbursements to continue, but at a lower level.

The target level for at-sea coverage, based on at-sea monitoring data from the 2013-15 fishing seasons, is a 2 percent increase over the 14 percent of all groundfish trips that included at-sea observers in 2016.

NOAA Fisheries, however, said it expects fishing sectors will pay for less than the full 16 percent because coverage from another federally-mandated monitoring program will mitigate the expense being passed to the fishing industry.

“Federally funded observer coverage provided by the Northeast Fishery Observer Program to meet the Standardized Bycatch Reporting Methodology requirements will partially satisfy the 16 percent coverage requirement,” NOAA Fisheries said. “Sectors will therefore actually pay for at-sea monitoring coverage on less than 16 percent of their groundfish trips, but the total will depend on the SBRM coverage rates, which are not yet out.”

The news that NOAA Fisheries would continue to reimburse fishermen for the expense of at-sea monitoring was surprising.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Times

NOAA Fisheries Announces 2017 At-Sea Monitoring Coverage Levels for Groundfish Sector Fishery

March 15, 2017 — The following was released by NOAA:

NOAA Fisheries announces that for fishing year 2017 the total target at-sea monitoring coverage level is 16 percent of all groundfish sector trips.

This target coverage level is a 2 percentage point increase from the 2016 coverage level (14 percent). As the target coverage level is set based on an average of at-sea monitoring data from the past 3 full groundfish fishing years, this level is set based on data from the 2013-2015 fishing years.

Federally funded observer coverage provided by the Northeast Fishery Observer Program to meet the Standardized Bycatch Reporting Methodology (SBRM) requirements will partially satisfy the 16 percent coverage requirement. Sectors will therefore actually pay for at-sea monitoring coverage on less than 16 percent of their groundfish trips, but the total will depend on the SBRM coverage rates, which are not yet out.

We expect to be able to reimburse sectors for some portion of their ASM costs. We do not yet have the information we need to determine the reimbursement rate. We were able to reimburse 85 percent of at-sea monitoring costs in 2016, but expect the 2017 reimbursement rate to be lower.

For more information, please read the Summary of Analysis Conducted to Determine At-Sea Monitoring Requirements for Multispecies Sectors FY 2017available on our website.

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