April 20, 2016 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

Former Massachusetts state fishery scientist Steven Correia received the New England Fishery Management Council’s (NEFMC) Janice Plante Award of Excellence for 2016 at its meeting today in Mystic, CT. While the now-retired Fairhaven resident was employed by the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries for over 30 years, Steve was honored by the NEFMC for his extraordinary contributions to federal fisheries management.

The annual Janice Plante Award of Excellence, first awarded to Janice herself in 2015 for her outstanding news coverage of New England’s fisheries, was established to pay special tribute to those who have displayed outstanding commitment and contributions of time and energy in service to the Council fishery management system.

For the last 26 years Steve served the NEFMC in various ways. He was a member of the technical teams that provide the scientific underpinnings of the Council’s management actions. To that end, he was a charter member of the Scallop Plan Development Team, or PDT, beginning in 1991 and served on the Groundfish PDT from 1994 through 2015, during one of the most challenging periods faced by the New England Council.

But he also was a key contributor to nearly all of the Council’s major PDTs at one time or another. The standing joke among his colleagues was that Steve was the most valuable Council employee who was not on the NEFMC payroll. He was Chairman of the Multispecies Monitoring Committee from 1997 through 2001 and during other periods was a member of the Atlantic Herring, Monkfish, Red Crab, and Dogfish PDTs, always bringing ideas, analysis, and integrity to the job.

During the development of the Groundfish Fishery Management Plan (FMP) as we know it today, he was influential in designing effort controls to reduce fishing pressure on fish stocks of concern and stock rebuilding programs, harvesting “sector” rules, and methods to establish and account for catch limits. As a member of the Scallop PDT, Steve participated in the development of the rotational management system and the early scallop closed area access programs. He also helped develop measures to protect river herring and shad that were eventually included in the NEFMC’s Herring Fishery Management Plan.

Steve frequently contributed to the stock assessments supporting each fishery management plan. Through his long experience, he was able provide key perspectives to management challenges, often helping less experienced Council staff better understand the context of management choices. He also served on the Council’s Scientific and Statistical Committee in 2011 and several years on its Research Steering Committee.

He touched nearly every management decision made by the Council since at least 1990. His hard work and technical skills were valued by every PDT chair and significantly improved the analyses that supported Council actions. During his many years of service Steve Correia was an invaluable asset to both staff and the Council alike.