Saving Seafood

Council Requests Emergency Action for Commercial Mackerel Fishery

June 17, 2019 — The following was released by the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

Nearly 40 fishermen and others interested in federal fishery management issues spoke during a public hearing held this week as part of the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council’s week-long meeting in Stuart, Florida. The majority of comments focused on the need for an increase in the commercial king mackerel fishery off the southeastern coast of Florida during the second season that extends into the winter months (October 1st through the end of February). Since the 2015-16 season, the commercial fishery in the Southern Zone (Flagler/Volusia county line south) has harvested under 60% of their annual catch limit. The value of the unharvested quota is estimated $3,885,647 per season over the past four fishing seasons.

Fishermen explained that the current limit of 50 fish per trip often marginalizes profit and keeps fishermen from carrying crew, preventing a new generation of fishermen from getting involved in the fishery and presenting safety at sea issues. Fishermen also spoke about the recent negative economic impacts of severe weather and environmental factors such as poor water quality.

After considering public comment and recommendations from its Mackerel Cobia Advisory Panel, the Council approved a motion to request NOAA Fisheries use emergency action to increase the second season commercial king mackerel trip limit from 50 fish to 75 fish in the Southern Zone. The Council made the request with the intention of having the increase in place by the beginning of the October 1, 2019 opening. The Atlantic king mackerel stock is not overfished or undergoing overfishing, and it is not anticipated that the commercial quota will be exceeded with the increased trip limit.

“We sincerely appreciate the Council’s support in recognizing the importance of increasing the commercial king mackerel trip limit here in South Florida,” said Ira Laks, Chairman of the Council’s Mackerel Cobia Advisory Panel and a dual-permitted commercial/charter captain from Jupiter, Florida. “The Council considered input from its advisory panel as well as a number of mackerel fishermen who attended Wednesday night’s public hearing,” explained Laks. “I want to also thank all of the fishermen who took the time and effort to attend the hearing. It made a difference.”

Other Items
Red Grouper
A 2017 stock assessment for red grouper indicates the stock is overfished and undergoing overfishing. As a result, the Council reduced the annual catch limit for red grouper in 2018, but further measures are needed. The Council approved Snapper Grouper Regulatory Amendment 30 during its meeting this week. If approved by the Secretary of Commerce, the amendment will revise the rebuilding schedule for the red grouper stock and modify the spawning season prohibition off the coasts of North Carolina and South Carolina, adding the month of May to the current January through April closure. The amendment would also establish a commercial trip limit of 200 pounds gutted weight for red grouper in federal waters.

Red Snapper
The Council also discussed options for the red snapper fishery. The number of recreational fishing days for red snapper in federal waters in the South Atlantic is determined by NOAA Fisheries each year, based on the estimated harvest from the previous year. If fishing is allowed, the opening dates of both the recreational fishery and commercial fishery currently begin in July. The Council is considering options for modifying the current parameters in place, including the season start dates as well as days of the week when red snapper harvest is allowed to allow more flexibility for the season and reduce the number of fish that must be released.

Regulatory Amendment 33 to the Snapper Grouper Fishery Management Plan would address these modifications and includes action to remove the minimum number of days for allowing a red snapper season (currently 3 days or more), modify the start date of the recreational red snapper season, revise the days of the week harvest would be allowed, and modify the start date of the red snapper commercial fishery. Public hearings via webinar and listening stations will be scheduled for August and the Council will review public comments during its September 16-20, 2019 meeting in Charleston, SC. The public hearing schedule will be publicized as soon as it becomes available.

Dolphin Wahoo
The Council also continued to work on management measures for dolphin fish and wahoo through Amendment 10 to the Dolphin Wahoo Fishery Management Plan. The amendment currently includes actions to revise annual catch limits, sector allocations, and accountability measures and options to reduce the vessel limit for dolphin. The amendment would also remove operator card requirements, addresses retention and gear training requirements for commercial vessels and options for allowing for-hire vessels north of the North Carolina/Virginia border to fillet dolphin with skin intact under the condition that two fillets equal one fish. Dolphin and wahoo are managed in federal waters along the Atlantic coast by the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council in cooperation with the Mid-Atlantic and New England Fishery Management Councils. There is no minimum size limit for dolphin in federal waters off of North Carolina northward. The Council’s Dolphin Wahoo Advisory Panel had requested the Council considers allowing the sale of bag limit dolphin by dual-federally permitted (charter and commercial) vessels. After considering public comment and input received during this week’s public hearing, and much discussion, the Council decided to remove the action as part of Amendment 10. The Council will continue to discuss the amendment in September.

At the request of the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council and after considering public scoping comments, the South Atlantic Council will move forward to develop an amendment to designate bullet and frigate mackerel as ecosystem component species within the Dolphin Wahoo Fishery Management Plan and evaluate appropriate regulatory actions. The designation, widely supported during the scoping process, would acknowledge the important role the two species play as forage fish for dolphin and wahoo.

The next meeting of the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council is scheduled for September 16-20, 2019 at the Town and Country Inn in Charleston, SC. Additional information for this week’s meeting, including final committee reports, an interactive story map, and meeting report is available from the Council’s website at: http://safmc.net/safmc-meetings/council-meetings/.

Saltonstall-Kennedy Program Updates

June 5, 2019 — The following was released by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

2020 Saltonstall-Kennedy Grant Competition

NOAA Fisheries has announced the opening of the 2020 application process for the Saltonstall-Kennedy Grant Program. Pre-proposals will be accepted for 60 days, May 31 through July 30, 2019. This year’s solicitation seeks applications that fall into one of two priorities:

Promotion, Development, and Marketing.

Science or Technology that Promotes Sustainable U.S. Seafood Production and Harvesting.

Relevant information and application instructions are available at https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/grant/saltonstall-kennedy-grant-program.

Saltonstall-Kennedy Program Feedback Session

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council will hold a webinar to gather public feedback on the Saltonstall-Kennedy Grant Program on Friday, June 14, 2019 at 10:30 AM. The purpose of this meeting is to obtain public feedback and recommendations from fishing community constituents on ways to improve communications, dissemination, and utilization of results achieved through projects funded by the Saltonstall-Kennedy Grant Program. Additional details are available at http://www.mafmc.org/council-events/2019/saltonstall-kennedy-grant-program-public-feedback-webinar.

NOAA Fisheries Seeks Comments on Proposed 2019 Recreational Rules for Summer Flounder

May 17, 2019 — The following was published by NOAA Fisheries: 

NOAA Fisheries is seeking comments on proposed recreational fishery management measures for the 2019 summer flounder fishery.

We propose to continue the conservation equivalency approach for the summer flounder recreational fishery, in which states or regions develop minimum sizes, possession limits, and fishing seasons that will achieve the necessary level of conservation. Both the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission recommended continuing conservation equivalency.

The proposed rule contains additional details on conservation equivalency, including what measures would be put in place if conservation equivalency is not ultimately recommended by the Commission.

Note that black sea bass and scup recreational measures for 2019 are unchanged from 2018.

Read the proposed rule as published in the Federal Register today.

Comments are due June 3, 2019.

Submit your comments through the e-rulemaking portal or by mailing: Michael Pentony, Regional Administrator, Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office, 55 Great Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930.

Questions?

Fishermen: Contact Emily Gilbert, Regional Office, 978-281-9244

Media: Contact Jennifer Goebel, Regional Office, 978-281-9175

June 2019 MAFMC Meeting Agenda

May 10, 2019 — The following was released by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

The public is invited to attend the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council’s meeting to be held June 4-6, 2019 in New York, NY. The meeting will be held at the Yotel New York, 570 Tenth Ave (at W 42nd), New York, NY 10036, Telephone 646-449-7700.

Meeting Materials: Briefing documents will be posted at http://ww.mafmc.org/briefing/june-2019 as they become available.

Public Comments: Written comments must be received by 11:59 p.m. on Wednesday, May 22, 2019 to be included in the briefing book. Comments received after this date but before 5:00 p.m. on May 30, 2019 will be posted as supplemental materials on the Council meeting web page. After that date, all comments must be submitted using an online comment form available at http://www.mafmc.org/public-comment.

Webinar: For online access to the meeting, enter as a guest at http://mafmc.adobeconnect.com/june2019.

Agenda: Click here for a detailed meeting agenda.

Fishermen facing new electronic reporting rules

May 8, 2019 — The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council is considering mandating the electronic filing of all commercial vessel trip reports, a move that could impact many New England fishermen.

The Mid-Atlantic council is working on an omnibus framework that would require commercial vessels fishing within its jurisdiction to file all vessel trip reports electronically while doing away with the traditional method of paper forms.

The transition to fully electronic trip reporting, according to the council, would result in significant savings of money, time and administrative effort, as well as increasing the accuracy of the data and eliminating duplication. It said it received 70,000 paper vessel trip reports from commercial fishermen in 2018 alone.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times

New England, Mid-Atlantic fishery councils ponder switch to electronic vessel trip reporting

May 7, 2019 — The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council is considering an action that would require all vessel trip reporting done by fishermen in the region be electronic.

The move, which is under an omnibus framework action, would require commercial fishing vessels to fill out all of their vessel trip reports electronically, eliminating the ability to fill out paper forms. Electronic vessel trip reporting (eVTR) has been an established way to submit reports since 2013, according to Karson Coutre of the Mid-Atlantic council.

“The Mid-Atlantic Council has been interested in eVTR for the past several years,” Coutre told SeafoodSource. “Many stakeholders have voiced the desire to move in the direction of electronic reporting with technological advances and eVTR being an established means to submit VTRs since 2013.”

The move, Coutre said, is intended to increase the reporting efficiency for both the operators of vessels, and the data collection agency.

“For the vessel operator, eVTR can decrease the entry of redundant information using customized favorites, dropdown menus, plain language instead of codes, and auto-complete features,” Coutre said. “Electronic reporting would also increase the timeliness and accuracy of fisheries data submitted to NMFS [National Marine Fisheries Service] because the VTR data would be available for error-checking and validation instantaneously.”

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Mid-Atlantic Coastal Acidification Network Seeking Stakeholder Perspectives on Ocean Acidification

April 11, 2019 — The following was released by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

The Mid-Atlantic Coastal Acidification Network (MACAN) is seeking perspectives on ocean acidification from members of commercial fishing, seafood, aquaculture, charter boat and recreational fishing organizations in the Mid-Atlantic. MACAN is a nexus of scientists, tribal, federal, and state agency representatives, resource managers, and affected industry partners who seek to coordinate and guide regional observing, research, and modeling of ocean and coastal acidification. MACAN would like to gain a better understanding of how stakeholders see coastal and ocean acidification affecting business operations or recreational fishing activities now or in the future. In addition, MACAN is seeking thoughts on opportunities to raise awareness and encourage participation in regional efforts to monitor for and adapt to coastal and ocean acidification.

You can help by participating in MACAN’s Stakeholder Outreach Survey. To access the survey, click on your industry or affiliation from the list below. The survey should take about 5-10 minutes to complete. Your responses are voluntary and anonymous. Please respond by June 14, 2019.

If you have any questions about the survey, please contact survey coordinators Kirstin Wakefield at kirstin.wakefield@gmail.com or Grace Saba at saba@marine.rutgers.edu. If you’d like to learn more about MACAN, please visit www.MidACAN.org, or send an email to: info@MidACAN.org.

This survey is a collaborative effort with Rutgers University. For more information, please contact Dr. Grace Saba, Assistant Professor, Center for Ocean Observing Leadership, Department of Marine and Coastal Sciences, Rutgers University, 71 Dudley Rd, New Brunswick, NJ 08901. Email: saba@marine.rutgers.edu.

Request for Public Input on Atlantic Surfclam and Ocean Quahog Individual Transferable Quota Program Review

April 9, 2019 — The following was released by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council is seeking public comments on a review of the Atlantic Surfclam and Ocean Quahog Individual Transferable Quota (ITQ) Program. Comments are due by May 8, 2019.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Catch Share Policy prepared in 2010 indicates that periodic reviews are expected of all Limited Access Privilege Programs (LAPPs). This program review report for the Surfclam and Ocean Quahog ITQ fishery covers the time period prior to and after implementation of the program in 1990 and provides a detailed evaluation of the ITQ program since its inception.

The program review document is available on the Council’s website at: http://www.mafmc.org/comments/scoq-itq-review

Comments are due by May 8, 2019 and may be sent by any of the following methods:

Comments are due by May 8, 2019 and may be sent by any of the following methods:

Please include “SCOQ ITQ Review” in the subject line if using email or fax or on the outside of the envelope if submitting written comments.

Please direct any questions about the review to Jessica Coakley at jcoakley@mafmc.org or (302) 526-5252.

MAFMC to Hold Public Meetings for Input on 2020-2024 Strategic Planning Process

April 4, 2019 — The following was released by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

The Mid-Atlantic Council will hold three in-person public meetings, and one public webinar, to seek additional feedback on the development of their 2020-2024 Strategic Plan. The new strategic plan will be informed by progress on the 2014-2018 Strategic Plan, stakeholder feedback, and management partner outreach.

The public is invited to attend these meetings to provide feedback on performance relative to the 2014-2018 Strategic Plan, and to identify recommendations, challenges, and opportunities for the next five years. In addition, participants will review preliminary results of the strategic planning stakeholder survey conducted earlier this year.

The meeting schedule is as follows:

  1. Wednesday, April 24, 2019 at 6:00 PM: University of Rhode Island Bay Campus, Corless Auditorium, South Ferry Road, Narragansett, RI 02882.
  2. Monday, May 6, 2019 at 5:30 PM: Ocean County Administrative Building Room 119, 101 Hooper Ave, Toms River, NJ 08753.
  3. Tuesday, May 7, 2019 at 5:30 PM: Webinar meeting, with connection information to be posted on the Council’s website.
  4. Tuesday, May 21, 2019 at 5:30PM: Virginia Marine Resources Commission (New Location), 380 Fenwick Road, BLDG 96, Fort Monroe, VA 23651.

Public input gathered during these meetings will be compiled into a report and presented to the Council during its June 2019 meeting for review.

For additional information and updates on the strategic planning process, please visit www.mafmc.org/strategic-plan or contact Michelle Duval at michelleduval22@gmail.com or 919-601-3798.

NEFMC Seeks Contractor for Atlantic Herring Offshore Spawning Discussion

March 27, 2019 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council is seeking the services of an independent contractor to prepare a Discussion Document that summarizes all scientific research and other relevant information about offshore spawning of Atlantic herring, Clupeidae clupea. Letters of interest and supporting materials must be received by April 22, 2019.

WHAT’S INVOLVED: The successful candidate’s role will be to serve as the primary author of the Discussion Document and then present the document to pertinent Council committees. The contractor will work under the supervision of Council staff. More specifically, the contractor will:

  • Summarize the status of Atlantic herring, including historical and updated research about spawning activity;
  • Provide maps showing historical and current spawning locations and herring egg beds to the extent that information is available;
  • Summarize all fishery data – both direct and incidental – that could have relevant information about the location, season, condition, or trends in Atlantic herring spawning activity;
  • Review the draft Discussion Document with the Council’s Herring Plan Development Team and incorporate input during the summer of 2019;
  • Subsequently present the Discussion Document to the Council’s Herring Committee, likely in September 2019; and
  • Finalize the Discussion Document in October 2019 following the full Council’s review in late September.

FOCUS OF REVIEW: At a minimum, the Discussion Document should contain the following updated information:

  • Results from recent stock assessments prepared by the Northeast Fisheries Science Center and other indicators of spawning trends and activity;
  • A review of historical and current research collected on spawning of Atlantic herring;
  • A description of potential impacts of fishing on spawning of Atlantic herring, which may include a summary of data from observers and other sources such as portside sampling;
  • A review of measures in place in other fisheries for spawning protection of herring;
  • A summary of other sources of mortality and risks for successful spawning of Atlantic herring; and
  • Recent management actions by the New England and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Councils and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission that may have impacts on spawning of Georges Bank Atlantic herring.

TIMELINE: The contractor’s role is a short-term, temporary position that will begin on or about May 1, 2019 and end when the Council reviews the Discussion Document, tentatively in September 2019, followed by completion of a finalized document in October 2019.

WHY IS THIS HAPPENING: The Council intends to use this document to support future deliberations about potential management measures that may be considered to minimize impacts on spawning of Atlantic herring on Georges Bank and Nantucket Shoals.

APPLICATION DETAILS: Interested professionals are encouraged to submit a letter of interest, current resume or curriculum vitae, examples of similar work completed for other organizations or publications, and a budget with expected expenses no later than April 22, 2019.

  • A list of desired experience and demonstrated skills can be found in the solicitation notice.
  • Additional information and application mailing/email addresses are contained in the full solicitation notice, which can be accessed at the link above and here.
  • NOTE: Candidates employed by advocacy organizations or by organizations that are parties in fishery lawsuits will not be considered.