Saving Seafood

North Carolina Fisheries Association Weekly Update for October 13, 2017

October 13, 2017 — The following was released by the North Carolina Fisheries Association:

HAPPY FRIDAY THE 13th!!!

OCTOBER IS SEAFOOD MONTH!

Seafood month got a great kickoff in North Carolina with last Saturday’s Fisherman’s Village on the Morehead City waterfront, and on Sunday morning at the Blessing of the Fleet.

For a message from Chris Oliver, Assistant Administrator for NOAA Fisheries, or NMFS, click the link below.
Message from Chris Oliver about Seafood Month

FROM THE DIVISION OF MARINE FISHERIES:

Advisory committee meetings to focus on cobia management measures – Three advisory committees to the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission will meet on separate dates in October to discuss issues related to the cobia fishery.

The advisory committees will be asked to provide input to the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission on management measures contained in the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission Draft Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Migratory Group Cobia (Georgia to New York). The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s South Atlantic State/Federal Fisheries Management Board will meet Oct. 19 to vote on this plan.

The draft plan includes size, bag and vessel limits to complement federal measures. Most notably, the draft plan includes several proposed options for state-specific recreational harvest targets that will give individual states more flexibility in developing management measures to best suit their needs.

Currently, the recreational annual catch limit for Georgia to New York is managed on a coastwide basis. This has resulted in federal closures and significant overages, disrupting fishing opportunities and jeopardizing the health of the stock.

The N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission will discuss North Carolina’s recreational cobia management measures at its Nov. 15-16 meeting at the Doubletree by Hilton Garden Inn Outer Banks in Kitty Hawk.

For more information, contact Steve Poland, cobia staff lead with the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries, at 252-808-8159 or Steve.Poland@ncdenr.gov.

CALENDAR

Oct 15 – 19; ASMFC Annual Meeting; Waterside Marriott; Norfolk, VA

Oct 24; 6:00pm MFC Northern Advisory Committee; Dare County Complex; Manteo, NC

Oct 25; 6:00pm MFC Southern Advisory Committee; Cardinal Drive; Wilmington, NC

Oct 26; 6:00pm MFC Finfish Advisory Committee; DMF District Office; Morehead City, NC

Nov 8; Noon; NCFA Board of Directors; Civic Center; Washington, NC

Nov 15-16; NC Marine Fisheries Commission; Kitty Hawk

Dec 4 – 8; South Atlantic Council; Doubletree; Atlantic Beach, NC

Dec 6; Noon; NCFA Board of Directors; Civic Center, Washington, NC

Dec 11 – 14; Mid Atlantic Council; Westin Annapolis; Annapolis, MD

Commercial Closure for Vermilion Snapper in South Atlantic Federal Waters on October 17, 2017

October 13, 2017 — The following was released by the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

WHAT/WHEN:

The commercial harvest of vermilion snapper in South Atlantic federal waters will close at 12:01 a.m. on October 17, 2017. During the commercial closure, harvest or possession of vermilion snapper in or from federal waters is limited to the recreational bag and possession limits when the recreational fishery is open.

WHY THIS CLOSURE IS HAPPENING:

  • The 2017 July-December commercial catch limit is 431,460 pounds whole weight. In addition, the unused portion of the January 1 through June 30, 2017, commercial catch limit was added to the July 1 through December 31, 2017, commercial catch limit. Commercial landings are projected to reach the July-December commercial catch limit by October 17, 2017.  According to the accountability measure, harvest should close to prevent the catch limit from being exceeded.

AFTER THE CLOSURE:

  • The closure applies in both state and federal waters for vessels that have a federal commercial permit for South Atlantic Snapper-Grouper.
  • The prohibition on sale or purchase during a closure for vermilion snapper does not apply to fish that were harvested, landed ashore, and sold prior to 12:01 a.m. on October 17, 2017, and were held in cold storage by a dealer or processor.

This bulletin provides only a summary of the existing regulations. Full regulations can be found in the Federal Register or at https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=383bc195ccbeab4fd6bec1c24905df34&node=sp50.12.622.i&rgn=div6#se50.12.622_1190.

Access this and other Fishery Bulletins from NOAA Fisheries Southeast Regional Office by clicking here.

Sen. Warren: New Bedford should keep Rafael’s fishing permits

October 10, 2017 — And another voice enters the fray.

Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren has weighed in on the debate over the ultimate fate of Carlos Rafael’s seized commercial fishing permits, saying in a letter to NOAA Fisheries the permits should remain in New Bedford.

“It has been reported that (Rafael’s) fishing permits may be cancelled or seized by the federal government and I am urging you to do everything possible to ensure that those permits stay in the port of New Bedford,” Warren wrote to Chris Oliver, NOAA Fisheries’ assistant administrator for fisheries. “Not doing so has the potential to devastate the local economy and effectively punish numerous innocent workers and businesses in New Bedford for Mr. Rafael’s crimes.”

Warren’s position aligns her with New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell, who has led the campaign to keep Rafael’s permits in New Bedford. Other public officials, such as Gov. Charlie Baker, have called for the seized Rafael permits to be redistributed to Massachusetts fishermen.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Times

NOAA Fisheries Seeks Comments on Notice of Availability for the New England Fishery Management Council’s Omnibus Essential Fish Habitat Amendment 2

October 6, 2017 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Today, we published a Notice of Availability for the New England Fishery Management Council’s Omnibus Essential Fish Habitat Amendment 2.

We are seeking public comment on an action that would:

  • Revise the essential fish habitat designations for all New England Fishery Management Council-managed species and life stages;
  • Add Habitat Areas of Particular Concern to highlight especially important habitat areas;
  • Revise the spatial management system within the Gulf of Maine, Georges Bank, and the southern New England area;
  • Establish two Dedicated Habitat Research Areas;
  • Revise or implement seasonal spawning protection measures; and
  • Add system for reviewing and updating the proposed measures.

Read the Notice as published in the Federal Register, and submit your comments through the online portal. You may also submit comments through regular mail to: John Bullard, Regional Administrator, Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office, 55 Great Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930.

The comment period is open through December 5, 2017.

ASMFC August/September 2017 issue of Fisheries Focus Now Available

October 6, 2017 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The August/September 2017 issue of ASMFC Fisheries Focus is now available at http://www.asmfc.org/uploads/file/59d79752FishFocusAugustSept2017.pdf.

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Upcoming Meetings

page 2

From the Executive Director’s Desk

ASMFC Discusses Next Steps in State/Federal Management

page 3

Species Profile

Spot

page 4

Fishery Management Actions

American Lobster

Scup

page 7

Proposed Management Actions

Atlantic Menhaden

Cobia

page 9 

Science Highlight

ASMFC Releases Stock Assessment Updates for Atlantic Menhaden and River Herring

page 11

ACCSP

ACCSP Submits Regional Recreational Implementation Plan to NOAA Fisheries MRIP

page 12

Comings & Goings
page 14

Employees of the Quarter Named

page 16

Past issues of Fisheries Focus can be found here – http://www.asmfc.org/search/%20/%20/Fishery-Focus.

Copepods: Cows of the Sea

October 6, 2017 — If you look very closely at a glassful of water from a bay or the ocean, you would probably be surprised by the life inside. You might see miniature crustaceans the size of the period at the end of this sentence or baby crabs and fish that spend only a short span of their lives this small. These creatures are zooplankton, aquatic animals that drift with the currents.

It’s the Little Things 

These tiny animals form the basis of the food web of estuaries, coastal waters, and oceans. Zooplankton feed on microscopic plant-like organisms called phytoplankton, which get their energy from the sun. Tiny crustacean zooplankton called “copepods” are like cows of the sea, eating the phytoplankton and converting the sun’s energy into food for higher trophic levels in the food web. Copepods are some of the most abundant animals on the planet.

Fish such as anchovies cruise through the water with their mouths wide open, filtering copepods and other zooplankton from the water. Anchovies and other planktivores (plankton-eaters) are prey for bigger animals, like tuna, sharks, marine mammals, and seabirds.

Read the full story at NOAA Fisheries GARFO

High court declines to hear fishing monitor case

Fisherman: Justices ruled on technicalities, not merits

October 3, 2017 — The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear New Hampshire fisherman David Goethel’s case that challenged the federal government’s ability to force commercial fishermen to pay the costs of at-sea monitoring.

The rejection by the Supreme Court is the third defeat suffered by Goethel and co-plaintiff South Dartmouth-based Northeast Fishing Sector XIII since they first sued NOAA Fisheries and other federal officials in December 2015 in U.S. District Court in New Hampshire.

The court’s rejection closes the door on this particular legal challenge of the government’s right to impose the cost of at-sea monitoring on commercial fishermen, as the Supreme Court also declined to remand the case back to a lower court.

“The Supreme Court was our last judicial hope to save the centuries-old New England industry,” Goethel said in a statement.

Later, in an interview, Goethel let loose against what he said is the “stacked deck” of standing up to regulators, as well as his frustration with the justice system.

“We had three chances and not once was our case decided on the merits,” Goethel said. “I’m bitterly disappointed with the government and I’m bitterly disappointed with the justice system. At each step of the way, our fate was decided by a technicality without ever having a hearing on the merits of the case.”

Read the full story at the Gloucester Times

ALASKA: NOAA proposes compensated reallocation program between halibut commercial and charter sectors

October 3, 2017 — NOAA Fisheries is proposing to authorize formation of a recreational quota entity (RQE), which could purchase and hold commercial halibut quota shares for use by charter anglers in International Pacific Halibut Commission (IPHC) regulatory Areas 2C (Southeast Alaska) and 3A (Southcentral Alaska).

The proposed regulatory amendment would allow one non-profit RQE to obtain a limited amount of commercial halibut quota shares under a willing buyer-willing seller model. The harvest pounds associated with the quota shares would become recreational fishing quota (RFQ) that could be used to augment the amount of halibut available for harvest in the charter halibut fishery annually under the halibut catch sharing plan.

In recent years, restrictions on charter anglers have become more stringent as halibut abundance has dropped and catch limits have been reduced. Typical restrictions include daily and annual limits on the number of fish retained, fish size limits, and closures on specific days of the week.

If the RQE obtains enough quota share, restrictions on halibut size and bag limits could be relaxed for charter anglers in years of low abundance, up to a point where charter anglers could potentially retain up to the daily limit for unguided anglers-currently two fish of any size per day.

Read the full story at Alaska Native News

Fish council to NOAA: Punish Rafael’s sector

October 2, 2017 — The New England Fishery Management Council wrapped up its three days of meetings in Gloucester last week, but not without sending a message to NOAA Fisheries that it’s time to consider possible enforcement actions against the New Bedford fishing sector that allowed Carlos Rafael to operate illegally over a four-year period.

The council voted 13-1, with two abstentions, on Wednesday to request NOAA’s Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office immediately enforce sector regulations governing Northeast Fishing Sector IX’s operation plan. The sector, according to members supporting the motion, failed in its responsibility to ensure Rafael and other members played by the catch-share rules.

The question is how to get the sector to compensate the fishery for the more than 780,000 pounds of illegally landed or labeled fish that went misreported or unreported by Rafael. One suggestion was the sector be forced to buy additional quota commensurate with the overages, assuming enough quota exists for the species in question.

Read the full column at the Gloucester Times

Federal Managers Continue to Address Snapper Grouper Management

Council Votes to Allow for Red Snapper Seasons in 2017 and 2018

October 2, 2017 — CHARLESTON, S.C. — The following was released by the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council began their week-long September Meeting with a Full Council Session to discuss red snapper management in the South Atlantic. The Council voted to request a 2017 Red Snapper Emergency Action, which would allow for recreational and commercial harvest this year. The request was sent to NOAA Fisheries and then on to the Secretary of Commerce. A decision is expected in the coming weeks and will be announced by NOAA Fisheries. For more details about the 2017 Emergency Action request, please refer to the Council’s earlier news release from September 25 and see the Council’s Story Map:

https://www.arcgis.com/apps/MapJournal/index.html?appid=8928fd890b6841949238a2390ef0b27c.

In addition to the 2017 Emergency Action request for red snapper, the Council continued to move forward with changes to red snapper management for 2018 with the approval of Snapper Grouper Regulatory Amendment 43 for formal review by the Secretary of Commerce. The amendment follows the same actions outlined in the 2017 Emergency Action request, setting a total annual catch limit of 42,510 fish to be harvested in 2018. If approved, the amendment is expected to go into effect in the summer of 2018 with the recreational fishery opening the second Friday in July (July 13, 2018) and the commercial fishery opening the second Monday in July (July 9, 2018).

Vision Blueprint Recreational Amendment

The Council continued development of Vision Blueprint Recreational Regulatory Amendment 26, an amendment born from stakeholder guidance during the Council’s visioning process and workshops. After much discussion, the Council agreed on restructuring the approach to the amendment to reflect how the fishery currently operates, consider predictable seasons, and simplify regulations. Under this new approach, the recreational aggregates would be divided into three groups – deep-water species; shallow-water groupers; and other shallow-water species. Alternatives include options for modifications to bag limits, seasons for deep-water species and shallow-water groupers, and size limits for deep-water species and triggerfish that would help streamline the regulations for anglers, law enforcement, and managers. Council provided further guidance to staff and development of the amendment will continue at the December Council Meeting.

Atlantic Cobia Management

Discussion on the future of cobia management in the South Atlantic continued this week through the development of Coastal Migratory Pelagics (CMP) Amendment 31. The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) is currently holding public hearings to gather input from stakeholders about the Draft Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Migratory Group Cobia (GA-NY), a plan that complements federal regulations already in effect in the South Atlantic. Since drafting this plan, ASMFC has requested that the Council consider removing Atlantic Migratory Group Cobia from the federal Fishery Management Plan and transferring total management jurisdiction to the ASMFC. Fishermen from all corners of the region have expressed concerns about the current recreational cobia closure in federal waters. To address public concerns, the Council began work on CMP Amendment 31, which proposes alternatives for a total transfer of jurisdiction or complementary management with ASMFC. The Council approved the alternatives in the document for further development and will continue to discuss the federal role in cobia management at the December meeting in Atlantic Beach, North Carolina.

Magnuson-Stevens Act Revision Discussion

The Council reviewed and approved modifications to the Council Coordinating Committee Working Paper that outlines the views of all 8 Councils on issues related to MSA Reauthorization. Impacts of various MSA-related senate and house bills were also reviewed. Topics include rebuilding timelines, annual catch limits, experimental fishing permits, recreational/commercial data needs, and many others. The Council expressed support for exploring ways to obtain more flexibility in managing recreational fisheries.

Election of New Chair and Vice Chair

During the full Council session on Thursday, Council members, staff, and audience members applauded Dr. Michelle Duval’s time as Chair of the South Atlantic Council. Dr. Duval, as noted by her peers, has proven to be a dedicated and driven leader. Council members and staff remain grateful that she will continue to offer her profound guidance and support as North Carolina’s state agency representative. Vice-Chair Charlie Phillips, the commercial representative from Georgia, was elected as the new Chair and South Carolina’s recreational representative, Mark Brown, will serve as the Vice-Chair. Chair Charlie Phillips expressed his gratitude and said, “I look forward to keeping the Council on track and to following up on the needs of stakeholders. Considering we have such great Council members and staff, there is no reason we cannot do that.” The Council is pleased to have these two career fishermen at the helm and looks forward to their leadership in the coming years.

The next meeting of the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council will be held December 4-8, 2017 in Atlantic Beach, North Carolina. Additional information about this week’s meeting, including an interactive story map, meeting report and summary reports from each committee are available from the Council’s website at: http://safmc.net/safmc-meetings/council-meetings/.