Saving Seafood

Groundfish: Council Continues Work on Atlantic Cod Transition Planning; SSC to Consider OFLs & ABCs for New Cod Stock Units

July 23, 2024 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council will be working throughout the summer on several groundfish actions that will guide the next few fishing years and set the course for Atlantic cod management based on a new understanding of cod stock structure and results from recent assessments. Here’s a snapshot of what’s under development.

• AMENDMENT 25: Amendment 25 to the Northeast Multispecies (Groundfish) Fishery Management Plan (FMP) is being developed to incorporate four new Atlantic cod stock units into the FMP. The Council is expected to take final action on Amendment 25 during its September 24-26, 2024 meeting in Gloucester. If approved by NOAA Fisheries, this amendment will add the four new cod stock units to the groundfish complex as defined for stock assessment purposes:

• Eastern Gulf of Maine cod;

• Western Gulf of Maine cod;

• Georges Bank cod as a revised stock unit; and

• Southern New England cod.

An outline of the Amendment 25 draft alternatives is posted here.

• FRAMEWORK ADJUSTMENT 69: The Council initiated Framework 69 during its June 2024 meeting. The list of draft framework measures is outlined in the box on page 2 and in this outline. Fishing year 2025-2027 specifications for the four new cod stock units will be established through this framework. The Council also will consider options for prorating commercial and recreational catch limits from the four cod stock units to the two current management units – Gulf of Maine and Georges Bank. The management units will not change under Framework 69, just the stock units.

 

Council Approves Scallop RSA Program Changes and 2025-2027 RSA Priorities; Initiates Framework 39; Discusses Wind, Surveys

July 11, 2024 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council approved several changes to the Scallop Research Set-Aside (RSA) Program when it met June 24-27, 2024 in Freeport, Maine. It also initiated Framework 39 to the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery Management Plan and discussed survey and offshore wind activities.

SCALLOP RSA PROGRAM: The Scallop RSA Program, which began in 1999, supports 10-15 projects each year using 1.275 million pounds of scallops that are “set aside” during the specifications process to support research. The Council sets research priorities, while the Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office (GARFO) of NOAA Fisheries administers the competitive grant process. Up to now, the Council has been approving RSA priorities on an annual basis. At the June meeting, building on a recommendation from its Scallop Committee and Scallop Advisory Panel, the Council agreed to set RSA priorities for two years at a time going forward. GARFO will continue to announce annual funding opportunities.

RSA priorities cover a wide scope and have changed little in recent years. Resource surveys routinely top the list as the highest priority. As action items, the Council:

• Approved RSA priorities for the next two grant cycles covering 2025-2026 and 2026- 2027 as listed in the table at right (GARFO’s Notice of Funding Opportunity for the 2025-2026 cycle is expected to come out in mid-July 2024);

• Approved updates to the Scallop RSA Program Policy outlined in the Council’s Operations Handbook; and

• Voted to ask NOAA Fisheries to allow scallop enhancement research to be funded for up to three years with an option for a one-year extension.

Additionally, based on action the Council and GARFO took in 2023, regional scallop surveys used for stock assessments and specification-setting can be funded for up to four years – with an option for a one-year extension for completing grant reports and data analysis. A breakdown of the RSA categories funded for the 2024-2025 cycle is shown in the table below.

The Council also received preliminary highlights from the 2024 RSA survey season, which showed some signs of recruitment on Stellwagen Bank in the Gulf of Maine, portions of Georges Bank, and selected areas of the Mid-Atlantic. Early 2024 fishery performance has been mixed, with catch rates on open bottom being the lowest in five years. More information can be found in this presentation

Council to Establish Steering Committee to Guide Work on Projects to Prepare Fisheries for Ecosystem, Climate Change

July 8, 2024 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council has agreed to establish a new Ecosystem and Climate Action Steering Committee to help prioritize and organize its work on ecosystem approaches to fishery management in conjunction with preparing fisheries to be more resilient to climate change.

During its June 2024 meeting in Freeport, Maine, the Council covered a wide range of topics that collectively will guide its ecosystem/climate work down the road, including:

• Initiatives and projects being funded by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA);

• Work being conducted by the East Coast Climate Coordination Group (E3CG) and its Core Team;

• NOAA’s Climate, Ecosystems, and Fisheries Initiative (CEFI);

• The 2024 State of the Ecosystem Report for New England (SOE New England);

• The Council’s Risk Policy, which is undergoing extensive revisions; and

• Options for more wholistically addressing ecosystem approaches to fishery management (EAFM).

Here is a brief rundown of each topic, culminating with the Council’s decision to form an overarching Ecosystem and Climate Action Steering Committee.

IRA-FUNDED PROJECTS:

The Council will be working on six projects under IRA funding. The project titles are shown at right. Descriptions of all six initiatives are outlined in this document, which is posted on a new webpage called Council-Related IRA Projects.

The Commerce Department is distributing a total of $20 million to the nation’s eight regional fishery management councils to “support the councils’ development and advancement of climate-related fisheries management and implementation.” The New England Council is receiving approximately $2.37 million from that pool to carry out its six initiatives. Work will be conducted under various timelines, with some projects running through 2027.

MASSACHUSETTS: Mayor Jon Mitchell responds to work being halted on Northern Edge scalloping grounds

July 3, 2024 — The New England Fishery Management Council has decided to halt work on opening the Northern Edge scalloping grounds to commercial fishermen.

Back in April, Mayor Jon Mitchell before the board in Mystic, Conn. and said that making these areas available would benefit the industry greatly, to create a “key new source of scallops.”

“While there are multiple species that are harvested by New Bedford fishing vessels, scallops are the prime drivers of economic activity within the Port of New Bedford,” he said.

“The fishermen of New Bedford know this, and they take great care in maintaining the resource and recognize the strategic long-term importance of managing the biomass,” he continued.

Read the full article at ABC 6

MASSACHUSETTS: Statement from New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell on NEFMC decision on Northern Edge

July 3, 2024 — The following statement was released by New Bedford, Massachusetts Mayor Jon Mitchell:

“I am disappointed by the New England Fishery Management Council’s decision last week after scant public notice to reverse itself and halt further discussion of the opening of the Northern Edge scallop access area. The decision comes less than three months after the Council voted to advance the opening of the Northern Edge, which was grounded in more than a decade of research showing that scallops are abundant in the area. Halting work on the Northern Edge so abruptly is an affront to scallop fishermen who were given every reason to believe that the council was working toward a fair, long-term solution.”

Atlantic Cod Management Track Peer Review – Report Finalization – July 8, 2024 at 12:30 p.m

July 2, 2024 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The Atlantic Cod Management Track Peer Review Panel will reconvene to complete its work on reviewing new management track stock assessments for Western Gulf of Maine cod, Eastern Gulf of Maine cod, Southern New England cod, and Georges Bank cod.  Members of the public are welcome to tune in, but there is not a scheduled public comment period.
 
DATE AND TIME:  The peer review panel will meet by webinar on Monday, July 8, 2024 from 12:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.  Webinar information for this session is posted under Day 6 on the meeting webpage.  Scroll down to “Schedule.” 
 
WHY IS THIS HAPPENING:  The original peer review meeting for Atlantic cod stocks was held June 18, 20, and 21, 2024.  The peer review panel requested additional analyses for three of the four new cod stock units undergoing management track assessments.  The panel will review the information on July 8 in order to finalize its work on the peer review report.
 
MEETING MATERIALS:  Updated documents are posted on the Northeast Fisheries Science Center’s Stock Assessment Support Information webpage.  
 
The peer review meeting is being hosted by the Northeast Fisheries Science Center.  The New England Fishery Management Council is sharing this information to ensure our Council community is aware of its happening.

Council Discontinues Work on Northern Edge Framework

July 2, 2024 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council voted on June 27, 2024 during its four-day meeting in Freeport, Maine to “discontinue development” of an action that potentially would have given scallop fishermen access to part of the Habitat Management Area on the Northern Edge of Georges Bank.

The Council viewed a staff presentation that summed up work to date and outlined additional decision points the Council needed to make regarding when and for how long scallopers would be able to access a new Northern Edge scallop rotational management area if one were to be developed.

The Council engaged in a lengthy debate, narrowing its focus to the pros and cons of further developing the alternatives for final action in September or stopping work on the action. In the end, the Council determined that, “after careful consideration of the ecological importance of the Northern Edge Habitat Management Area and the difficulties of identifying times and areas for scallop access that do not undermine those values,” it voted to halt further development of the framework.

The Council considered information about:

• The action’s goals and objectives;

• The latest memo provided by the Habitat and Scallop PDTs, which included cod spawning information along with details about scallop, habitat, and herring presence and condition; and

• The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s technical report on the lobster resource and fishery in and around the Northern Edge.

 

Council Receives Herring Amendment 10 Scoping Summary and Provides Guidance; Approves 2024-2028 Research Priorities

June 26, 2024 — The following was released by New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council discussed two issues related to Atlantic herring when it met in Freeport, Maine for its June 2024 meeting. It also received an update from its On-Demand Fishing Gear Conflict Working Group and approved a list of 2024-2028 research priorities and data needs.

Atlantic Herring Amendment 10: The Council conducted six scoping meetings in March and April 2024 on Amendment 10 to the Atlantic Herring Fishery Management Plan.

This amendment proposes to (1) minimize user conflicts, contribute to optimum yield, and support rebuilding of Atlantic herring; and (2) enhance river herring and shad avoidance and catch reduction.

The Council received a comprehensive overview of the scoping process, which covered: the number of attendees at in-person and webinar scoping meetings; the number commenters at each meeting; a breakdown of commenters by affiliation or home state; the number of written comments received; general sentiments, major themes, and perceptions of current problems expressed during the meetings; desired outcomes from Amendment 10; the types of potential measures the action could contain; suggested data sources; and more.

Many of the comments focused on river herring and shad, emphasizing the role these species play in the ecosystem and their social and economic importance to many communities.

The compiled summary of all oral and written comments in available in this document.

After hearing the summary, the Council then provided additional guidance to its Herring Committee on next steps. The Council did sovia three motions to direct the Herring Plan Development Team (PDT) on where it should focus its efforts down the road. The tasking specified that the Herring PDT:

Assess data availability and analyze and develop alternatives for Amendment 10 that implement time/area closures for portions of Atlantic Herring Management Areas 2 and 3 where aggregations of river herring and shad overlap with the directed Atlantic herring fishery;

Assess data availability and analyze and develop alternatives for Amendment 10 that implement revisions to the basis of river herring and shad catch cap values that: (1) are reflective of regional river herring/shad abundance, and (2) scale with ceilings and floors to changes in Atlantic herring abundance and/or regional river herring abundance; and

Analyze and develop recommendations for implementing improvements to the accuracy and precision of river herring and shad catch estimates in the directed Atlantic herring fishery.

NEFMC June 24-27, 2024 Meeting – Freeport, ME – Listen Live, View Documents

June 17, 2024 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council will hold a four-day meeting from Monday, June 24 through Thursday, June 27, 2024.  This will be an in-person meeting coupled with a webinar option for individuals who cannot or prefer not to attend in person.  Please participate remotely if you do not feel well.

LOCATION:  Hilton Garden Inn, Freeport, Maine.

START TIME:  1:00 p.m. on Monday and 9:00 a.m. on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.  The webinar will end shortly after the Council adjourns each day.

COUNCIL PUBLIC OUTREACH:  Join the Council on Tuesday, June 25, 2024 at 6:00 p.m. for an informational exchange to foster open lines of communication among Council members, staff, industry, and meeting attendees.  The event will be held in the lobby area of the Hilton Garden Inn, right down the hall from the Council’s meeting room.  All are welcome.  Light snacks will be provided.

PUBLIC COMMENT OPPORTUNITIES:  The Council wants to hear from you.  Here’s how you can let the Council know what you think.

  • WRITE A LETTER:  The deadline for submitting written comments for consideration at this meeting is 8:00 a.m. on Thursday, June 20, 2024. Please note that written comments mustaddress items listed on the agenda for this meeting.
  • TALK TO THE COUNCIL:  You’ll be able to address the Council directly through two different avenues:
  1. By commenting on motions at the discretion of the Council chair (if commenting remotely, raise your hand on the webinar and unmute yourself when called upon); and
  2. By speaking during the open period for public comment.  Here are the Guidelines for Providing Public Comment.
  • OPEN PERIOD FOR PUBLIC COMMENT:  On Wednesday, June 26, 2024 at 1:45 p.m., the Council will offer the public an opportunity to provide comments on issues relevant to Council business but not listed on this agenda.  Given the Council’s busy meeting schedule, we ask that you limit remarks to 3-5 minutes.
    • SIGN UP:  Interested in speaking?  If attending in person, fill out the sign-up sheet on the table at the entrance to the Council meeting room.  To speak remotely, email Janice Plante at jplante@nefmc.org to get on the list.

WEBINAR REGISTRATION:  Online access to the meeting is available at Listen Live.  There is no charge to access the meeting through this webinar.

  • Here are instructions in the Remote Participation Guide for successfully joining and participating in the webinar.
  • We have a Help Desk in case you get stuck joining the webinar or have trouble along the way.  Just email helpdesk@nefmc.org and we’ll get right back to you.

CALL-IN OPTION:  To listen by telephone without joining the webinar, dial +1 (213) 929-4212.  The access code is 794-178-483.  Please be aware that if you dial in, your regular phone charges will apply.  This phone number provides a “listen-only” option without the webinar component.  You will not be able to speak if you do not first join the webinar.

AGENDA:  All meeting materials and the agenda are available on the Council’s website at NEFMC June 24-27, 2024 meeting webpage.  Additional documents will be posted as they become available.

THREE MEETING OUTLOOK:  A copy of the New England Council’s Three Meeting Outlook is available HERE.

COUNCIL MEETING QUESTIONS:  Anyone with questions prior to or during the Council meeting should contact Janice Plante at (607) 592-4817, jplante@nefmc.org.

Council Takes Final Action on Joint Monkfish/Dogfish/Sturgeon Framework; Posts 2024 Monkfish RSA Project Summaries

May 21, 2024 — The following was released by New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council took final action during its April 2024 meeting on a joint framework adjustment to reduce the bycatch of Atlantic sturgeon in the large-mesh gillnet fisheries for monkfish and spiny dogfish.

The New England and Mid-Atlantic Councils jointly manage both fisheries. The two Councils each took final action in April on:

• Framework Adjustment 15 to the Monkfish Fishery Management Plan, for which the New England Council has the lead; and

• Framework Adjustment 6 to the Spiny Dogfish Fishery Management Plan, for which the Mid-Atlantic has the lead.

Approved Measures: Here are the measures the Councils selected as preferred alternatives and submitted to NOAA Fisheries for approval and implementation.

A year-round low-profile gear requirement in the New Jersey bycatch hotspot polygon for federal gillnet fishing vessels targeting monkfish (colored magenta at right); and

An overnight soak time prohibition from 8:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. for vessels targeting spiny dogfish in (1) the New Jersey bycatch hotspot polygon in May and November, and (2) the Delaware/Maryland/Virginia (DE/MD/VA) bycatch hotspot polygons from November through March – with an exemption for federal vessels using <5.25” mesh in the DE/MD/VA polygons (colored blue in the map at right).