Saving Seafood

December 2021 Highlights: NEFMC Supports Federal Trip Limit Increase for Spiny Dogfish; Approves 2022 Priorities

January 6, 2022 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council met December 7-9, 2021 by webinar and covered a wide range of issues. Here are some of the highlights.

Spiny Dogfish: The Council supported two actions related to spiny dogfish, which is managed jointly by the Mid-Atlantic and New England Fishery Management Councils. The Mid-Atlantic Council has the administrative lead for this fishery.

  • The New England Council supported increasing the spiny dogfish trip limit from 6,000 pounds, which currently is in place, to 7,500 pounds; and
  • As a 2022 dogfish priority, the Council supported pursuing a framework adjustment – at the lead of the Mid-Atlantic Council – to develop possible additional changes to the trip limit if warranted pending the results of the 2022 Spiny Dogfish Research Track Assessment.

The Council made these decisions after receiving a considerable amount of information, including:

  • Dogfish actions taken by the Mid-Atlantic Council during its October 2021 meeting;
  • Recommendations from the Spiny Dogfish Monitoring Committee, the Mid-Atlantic Council’s Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC), and the Joint Spiny Dogfish Committee, which includes representation from both Councils; and
  • The 2021 Spiny Dogfish Advisory Panel Fishery Performance Report.

Read the full release from the NEFMC

NOAA Confirms 2022 At-Sea Monitoring Coverage Levels for Northeast Groundfish Sector

December 16, 2021 — NOAA Fisheries announced that for the 2022 fishing year, the total target at-sea monitoring overall level will be 99% of all groundfish sector trips subject to the at-sea monitoring program.

NOAA said it considered a “variety of factors” when it determined the coverage level for 2022 and wrote a letter to the New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC) to explain their decision.

In a bulletin, NOAA also said it has the funds to reimburse the industry for its at-sea monitoring costs. Plus, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission will continue to administer the reimbursement program for Fishing Year 2022 as in prior years.

Read the full story at Seafood News

NEFMC Signs Off on 2022 Scallop Fishing Year Specifications in Framework 34, Folding in Approved Amendment 21 Measures

December 14, 2021 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council selected final measures for Framework Adjustment 34 to the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery Management Plan when it met by webinar for its December 7-9, 2021 meeting. The Council also voted to send the framework to the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS/NOAA Fisheries) for review and implementation. The target implementation date is April 1, 2022, the start of the new scallop fishing year.

In short, the framework contains five distinct actions:

  1. Updated overfishing limit (OFL) and acceptable biological catch (ABC) specifications for the 2022 and 2023 fishing years as recommended by the Scientific and Statistical Committee in this report;
  2. Northern Gulf of Maine (NGOM) Management Area measures and a total allowable landings limit for the NGOM area;
  3. 2022 specifications for the scallop fishery, including allocations of access area trips, days-at-sea, and LAGC IFQs, plus 2023 default specifications;
  4. Fishing trip allocations into available scallop access areas for limited access general category (LAGC) individual fishing quota (IFQ) permit holders; and
  5. Designations for where fishing can take place in 2022 under the Scallop Research Set-Aside (RSA) Program. ∼ The complete list of alternatives considered by the Council is available in this document. ∼

Read the full release from the NEFMC

Council Approves Revised Wind Energy Policy; Receives Offshore Wind Project Updates from BOEM

December 8, 2021 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council has approved a revised wind energy policy that builds on the original policy and better responds to the rapidly changing ocean landscape associated with offshore wind development in the Greater Atlantic Region.

The Council took this action on the first day of its December 7-9, 2021 webinar meeting. Additionally, the Council received:

  • An update on the status of other 2021 habitat-related work; and
  • A presentation from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) covering the status of proposed and advancing wind energy projects off the Atlantic seaboard.

Wind Energy Policy

The Council adopted its original wind energy policy in 2018 based on the Mid-Atlantic Council’s 2016 policy. The revised policy was prepared by the New England Council’s Habitat Plan Development Team in collaboration with staff from the Mid-Atlantic Council and NOAA Fisheries.

The Council’s Habitat Committee and Advisory Panel reviewed the draft policy for Council approval. Because the New England and Mid-Atlantic Councils coordinate closely on offshore wind issues, the Council also considered comments from the Mid-Atlantic Council’s Ecosystems and Ocean Planning Committee and Advisory Panel.

Read the full release here

Request for Nominations: Northeast Trawl Advisory Panel (NTAP)

November 1, 2021 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council & the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

The Northeast Trawl Advisory Panel (NTAP) is seeking qualified candidates to serve on the panel. Current members and all interested parties are encouraged to apply. The deadline for submitting applications is Friday, November 19, 2021 by 5:00 p.m.

The NTAP is a joint advisory panel of the New England and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Councils. It is comprised of Council members, as well as fishing industry, academic, and government and non- government fisheries experts who provide advice and direction on the conduct of trawl research. It is supported by NOAA’s Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC). Additional information about the NTAP is available at http://www.mafmc.org/ntap.

The panel consists of 20 members as follows:

  • Two members each from the New England and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Councils (4 total)
  • Up to three fishery stakeholder representatives appointed by each Council (6 total)
  • Two academic and non-academic scientists appointed by each Council (4 total)
  • Two members from the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (2 total)
  • Four staff members from the Northeast Fisheries Science Center (4 total)

Read the full release from the NEFMC

Council Endorses 2022 U.S./Canada TACs; Discusses Groundfish Framework 63, Focuses Options to Promote Stock Rebuilding

October 20, 2021 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

During its late-September 2021 meeting, the New England Fishery Management Council agreed by consensus to accept the U.S./Canada Transboundary Management Guidance Committee’s (TMGC) total allowable catch (TAC) recommendations for three shared groundfish resources on Georges Bank. These involve Eastern Georges Bank cod, Eastern Georges Bank haddock, and Georges Bank yellowtail flounder. The TMGC recommended the TACs based on advice from the U.S./Canada Transboundary Resources Assessment Committee (TRAC). The U.S. has members on both the TMGC and the TRAC. The TRAC deals with the science and assessment end of the process, while the TMGC focuses on management.

The TACs will be included in Framework Adjustment 63 to the Northeast Multispecies Fishery Management Plan, which is under development. The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS, NOAA Fisheries) must approve the TACs before they are implemented.

page1image2469710032

Read the full release from the NEFMC

 

Directed herring fishery closed for rest of the year, incidental catch still allowed 

October 19, 2021 — The directed herring fishery has been closed for the rest of the year for the inshore Gulf of Maine, according to officials.   

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Atlantic Herring Management Board voted late last month to set the number of landing days at zero for the second half of the herring season, meaning a vessel can’t go out fishing directly for herring.   

Fishermen are allowed to fish for other species and may land up to 2,000 pounds of Atlantic herring per trip as incidental catch only, said Emilie Franke, the fishery management plan coordinator at the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission.   

Herring is a prized bait fish for lobstermen in Maine, though many have resorted to other species, such as  pogies,  as  herring numbers have  declined  and quotas have tightened. Herring is considered overfished, but overfishing  by fishermen  is  not  currently happening, leaving officials searching for an answer on how to help the species  rebound. 

The New England Fishery Management Council met late last month to talk about how to move forward with the conservation of the species across New England. The council decided to go forward with an acceptable biological catch strategy that allows for sustainable harvest of the fish while accounting for the species role as a forage species  and baitfish. The rule works by allowing fishing mortality rate to fluctuate with the highs and lows of the species’ biomass, allowing flexibility depending on how the fish is doing. It also adds accountability measures.   

Read the full story at the Mount Desert Islander

 

Fishery regulators ponder how climate change will affect ocean management 

September 7, 2021 — Fishery regulators up and down the east coast met in a series of remote meetings last week to help them address how fishery management needs to evolve to handle an era of climate change in the coming decades.  

“We’re likely going to have to approach things differently in order to cope with these new and very uncertain conditions ahead,” said Deirdre  Boelke, a fishery analyst with the New England Marine Fisheries Council, at the first meeting, which included participants from several organizations and other members of the fisheries community.  

The “East Coast Climate Change Scenario Planning” series was done to rethink how the fisheries are governed, the different structures of management and how the different regulating bodies on the Atlantic coast would collaborate going forward at a time where species may be moving outside of their traditional range.   

Read the full story at the Mount Desert Islander

 

Sea Scallop Research Program Seeks Proposals

August 20, 2021 — NOAA Fisheries is soliciting proposals for the 2022-2023 Sea Scallop Research Set-Aside Program, in coordination with the New England Fishery Management Council.

Approved applications are awarded pounds of scallops that have been set aside to pay for research experiments.

No federal funds are provided for research.

The New England Fishery Management Council sets the priorities for the research, and NOAA Fisheries administers the competition, oversees awarded projects and set-aside harvest activities.

Read the full story at CapeCod.com

Sea Scallop Research Program Seeks Proposals

August 19, 2021 — NOAA Fisheries is soliciting proposals for the 2022-2023 Sea Scallop Research Set-Aside Program, in coordination with the New England Fishery Management Council.

Approved applications are awarded pounds of scallops that have been set aside to pay for research experiments.

No federal funds are provided for research.

The New England Fishery Management Council sets the priorities for the research, and NOAA Fisheries administers the competition, oversees awarded projects and set-aside harvest activities.

Read the full story at CapeCod.com