Saving Seafood

April 2017 Council Meeting in Avalon, NJ

March 21, 2017 — The following was released by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

Meeting Materials: Briefing documents will be posted at http://ww.mafmc.org/briefing/april-2017 as they become available.

Public Comments: Written comments must be received by Wednesday, March 29, 2017 to be included in the Council meeting briefing book. Comments received after this deadline but before close of business on Thursday, April 6, 2017 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. Comments submitted via the online form will be automatically posted to the website and available for Council consideration. A link to this form will be available at http://www.mafmc.org/public-comment.

Webinar: For online access to the meeting, enter as a guest at: http://mafmc.adobeconnect.com/april2017.

Tuesday, April 11th

10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. River Herring & Shad Committee

  • Review draft metrics for river herring and shad conservation

12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. Lunch

1:00 p.m. Council Convenes

1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. State of the Ecosystem and EAFM

  • Report on the state of the Mid-Atlantic portion of the Northeast Large Marine Ecosystem, Dr. Sarah Gaichas – Ecosystem Dynamic and Assessment Branch, NEFSC
  • Continue discussion and development of EAFM Risk Matrix
  • Discuss next steps in EAFM development/implementation

3:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. Law Enforcement Reports

3:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. Chub Mackerel Amendment

  • Review amendment development and scoping plans

Wednesday, April 12th

9:00 a.m. Council Convenes

9:00 a.m. – 9:15 a.m. Ricks E Savage Award

9:15 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. Golden Tilefish Specifications

  • Review SSC, Monitoring Committee, Advisory Panel, and staff recommendations regarding 2018 – 2020 specifications
  • Adopt recommendations for 2018 – 2020

11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Blueline Tilefish Specifications

  • Review SSC, Monitoring Committee, Advisory Panel, and staff recommendations regarding 2018 – 2019 specifications
  • Adopt recommendations for 2018 – 2019

12:30 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. Lunch

1:30 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. A Review of Potential Approaches for Managing Marine Fisheries in a Changing Climate – Presentation, NMFS SF representative

2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. Hudson Canyon Sanctuary Proposal

  • Presentation, discussion and comment

3:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. Update on Standardized Bycatch Reporting Methodology, Jon Hare – NEFSC

  • Challenges faced in 2016-2017 and plans for 2017-2018

3:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. Industry Funded Monitoring (IFM) Amendment

  • Consider previous action on IFM Amendment
  • Possible adoption of IFM Amendment

Thursday, April 13th

9:00 a.m. Council Convenes

9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. Business Session

  • Committee Reports
    • River Herring & Shad
    • Ecosystem & Ocean Planning
    • Highly Migratory Species/Law Enforcement
      • Adopt recommendations for HMS permit/reporting issues
  • Executive Director’s Report, Chris Moore
  • Science Report, Rich Seagraves
  • Organization Reports
    • NMFS Greater Atlantic Regional Office
    • NMFS Northeast Fisheries Science Center
    • NOAA Office of General Counsel
    • Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission
  • Liaison Reports
    • New England Council
    • South Atlantic Council
    • Regional Planning Body
  • Continuing and New Business

Winter storm could pack powerful seas

March 14, 2017 — Well, Tuesday’s forecast does not include fishing, unless all weather models are off.

On top of the predicted snow, NOAA’s coastal marine forecast is calling for 30 to 40 knot winds, with gusts up to 55 knots, out of the north. The seas are expected to increase in height and reach peaks of 12 to 17 feet.

It’s not the kind of conditions for a mariner to be out on the water.

Hopefully, this time next week the Shore will be out of the grips of winter weather. The first actual day of spring is Monday.

Read the full story at the Asbury Park Press

Volunteers meet goal to remove 1,000 derelict crab pots from the Barnegat Bay within 2 years

March 9, 2017 — A conservation organization has met its goal to remove 1,000 derelict crab pots from the Barnegat Bay within two years.

The Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey (CWF) says its “derelict crab pot teams were out in full force” last weekend, removing 69 from the water and bringing the current total to 1,045. CWF, with state and federal assistance, previously mapped the locations using side scan sonar.

According to CWF, derelict crab pots “ghost fish,” unnecessarily trapping marine life. The program is also helping the organization to understand how much gear is lost annually by recreational and commercial crab fishermen, according to a NOAA release.

Fishing for Energy, a public-private effort that provides commercial fishermen a no-cost solution to recycle old and unusable fishing gear, is partnering with CWF to recycle the materials. Collection bins are situated at the ports in Waretown and Mantoloking.

Read the full story at NewsWorks

NEW JERSEY: Fluke situation looking better

March 6, 2017 — The new Secretary of Commerce, Wilbur Ross, has been confirmed — and the path to a fluke season during which the public will have a reasonable chance at catching a legal fish seems a little clearer.

The following release from the governor’s office emphasizes the Christie administration’s commitment to maintaining status quo regulations rather then the 19-inch minimum which the ASMFC has imposed:

“The Christie Administration has formally requested the new U.S. Secretary of Commerce, Wilbur Ross, to put a hold on severe restrictions on recreational summer flounder fishing adopted recently by a regional fisheries commission, a move that would effectively cripple the state’s fishing industry and have far-reaching impacts on the shore tourism economy, Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Bob Martin announced today.

Read the full story at NJ.com

NEW JERSEY: Cape fishermen chase scallops despite risks, trade-offs

March 3, 2017 — Scallops caught by boats based in southern Cape May County may end up on your plate at a local restaurant, or in the frozen foods section of a Wal-Mart or Costco, or even in foreign countries like France.

But before the delicious white mollusks end up frozen in a chain store or fresh at a restaurant, commercial fishermen have to scrape them from the bottom of the ocean floor.

It’s a fairly lucrative business that fuels a commercial fishing industry worth tens of millions of dollars each year. But the job takes an emotional toll on the fishermen who must leave their families for up to two weeks at a time to go to sea.

Tom McNulty Jr.’s wife, Mandy, gave birth Feb. 16 to a daughter. Zoe McNulty was born at 7 pounds, 12 ounces, the proud father announced recently. But with scallop season quickly approaching, he’s going to have to leave them to go make a living.

“I’m not looking forward to that day when I have to leave,” said McNulty, 35, of Middle Township, who captains two scallop boats and also has a 6-year-old son. “You can’t wait to come back and see your family.”

“It’s hard on your family,” he added. “You miss birthdays. You miss graduations.”

Read the full story at the Press of Atlantic City

New Jersey asks new Commerce boss to stop fluke cut

March 3, 2017 — Wilbur Ross meet New Jersey’s summer flounder fishermen.

Ross is the newly appointed U.S. Secretary of Commerce. As the department’s boss, he oversees management of fisheries through its Fisheries Office and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service.

He’s the person the Christie Administration, and state delegates are now trying to hook, and win over to their side on the summer flounder issue.

They wasted no time to petition Ross this week and ask him to put a hold on the new summer flounder regulations approved by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission on Feb. 2.

The regulations call for a 30-percent reduction in the coastwide harvest of summer flounder on the Atlantic Coast. The regs were voted on after federal regulators reported the coastwide summer flounder population from Maine to North Carolina declined and fishermen overfished their quota last year.

Read the full story at the Asbury Park Press

New Jersey lawmakers ask Trump’s new Commerce secretary to stop flounder cuts

March 2, 2017 — It’s not clear how much Wilbur L. Ross Jr. knows about fishing or the complex world of marine regulations.

But members of New Jersey’s congressional delegation hope Ross, who was sworn in as secretary of commerce Tuesday, will step into an intense fight over summer flounder catch guidelines.

The delegation wasted no time in appealing to Ross, who now oversees the agencies tasked with regulating the fishing industry. A bipartisan letter sent Tuesday and signed by 12 New Jersey lawmakers, including both U.S. senators and U.S. Rep. Frank LoBiondo, R-2nd, asked the former billionaire businessman to considering putting approved flounder reductions on hold.

Last month, a federal regulatory commission voted in favor of an option to cut fluke limits for recreational and commercial fishermen by 28 percent to 32 percent for 2017.

Example measures presented in the approved document suggest recreational limits for keepers could be set to three fish at 19 inches in the Atlantic Ocean and three at 18 inches in the Delaware Bay for a 128-day season.

 Read the full story at the Press of Atlantic City

New Jersey lawmakers: Drop limits on how many fish you can catch off Atlantic Coast

February 27, 2017 — Two New Jersey lawmakers are trying to block the federal government from setting lower quotas for summer flounder off the Atlantic Coast.

Reps. Frank LoBiondo (R-2nd Dist.) and Frank Pallone Jr. (D-9th Dist.) said their bill would prevent the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration from reducing the fishing quota.

Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission said it would limit those who fish to just three summer flounders at least 19 inches long, compared with the 2016 limits of five fish at least 18 inches in length.

“These cuts are a body blow to the recreational fishing industry in New Jersey and that is why Congress needs to take action,” Pallone said. “The cuts for New Jersey are greater than what NOAA had required for the region, and too many anglers and their families are going to suffer because of them.”

Read the full story at NJ.com

NEW JERSEY: LoBiondo, Pallone announce legislation to prevent tougher summer flounder quotas

February 24, 2017 — Reps. Frank LoBiondo and Frank Pallone on Thursday, Feb. 23 announced plans to introduce new legislation to prevent the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 2017 and 2018 summer flounder quotas for recreational and commercial fishing from going into effect.

In a press release, Pallone and LoBiondo said the rules would do damage to the economies of coastal communities and the state.

Under the NOAA quotas, the allowed summer flounder catch for recreational and commercial fishing were both reduced by approximately 30 percent in 2017 and 16 percent in 2018.

The Pallone-LoBiondo legislation would maintain the 2016 quota levels and require that NOAA conduct a new assessment before issuing new quotas.

Last month, Pallone and LoBiondo and a bipartisan group from the New Jersey congressional delegation sent a letter to then-U.S. Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker asking her to prevent rule making that would reduce the summer flounder quotas for recreational and commercial fishing from going into effect. The letter asked the secretary to direct NOAA Fisheries to reexamine its methodologies and conduct a new benchmark summer flounder assessment before making any decision to reduce summer flounder quotas.

Read the full story at Shore News Today

New Jersey fishermen united against 2017 flounder regulations

February 21, 2017 — That Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission winter meeting this month was surely a bummer for summer flounder fans.

The delegates went through hours of sometimes confusing debate and somehow authorized an unpopular reduction in daily possession limit and an increase in size minimum for a keeper to help achieve a 28 percent to 32 percent cut in in the flounder quota along the Atlantic Coast.

The New Jersey presence was strong at the flounder, sea bass and scup board meeting Tuesday morning at The Westin in Alexandria, Virginia.

Adam Nowalsky headed a three-man delegation that voted in opposition to the measure — Option 5 if anybody is counting — that passed by a 7-3 vote. He also spoke in favor of delaying adoption of any restrictive measures.

Read the full story at the Press of Atlantic City