July 23, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine has completed a consensus study report, “Data and Management Strategies for Recreational Fisheries with Annual Catch Limits.” NOAA Fisheries appreciates the hard work of the National Academies in conducting a comprehensive study and providing recommendations on a challenging and important topic.
The report affirms what the National Academies suggested in its 2017 independent, expert review of NOAA Fisheries’ Marine Recreational Information Program, “Within their intended scope and design constraints, MRIP data are critically important for fisheries management.” Annual estimates of landings and discards are usually sufficient for stock assessments of commonly encountered species but by their nature, do not meet in-season management’s demand for near real-time monitoring data. While in-season management of recreational fisheries is rare, this report does provide a number of data and management-related recommendations that could improve MRIP’s contributions to recreational fishing projections, forecasting, and other in-season management tools.
The report includes substantial technical content. NOAA Fisheries will carefully review the National Academies’ findings and recommendations and develop our response in accordance with the provisions of the Modernizing Recreational Fisheries Management Act of 2018.