Saving Seafood

ASMFC Atlantic Menhaden Board Approves TAC for 2021-2022

October 21, 2020 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Atlantic Menhaden Management Board (Board) approved a total allowable catch (TAC) of 194,400 metric tons (mt) for the 2021 and 2022 fishing seasons, which represents a 10% reduction from the 2018-2020 TAC level. The 2021-2022 TAC was set based on the ecological reference points (ERPs) approved by the Board in August, and reaffirms the Board’s commitment to manage the fishery in a way that accounts for the species role as a forage fish.

“This TAC represents a measured and deliberate way for this Board to move into the realm of ecosystem-based management,” said Board Chair Spud Woodward of Georgia. “The TAC strikes a balance between stakeholder interests to maintain harvest on menhaden at recent levels, while also allowing the ERP models to do what they are intended to do.”

Based on projections, the TAC is estimated to have a 58.5% and 52.5% probability of exceeding the ERP fishing mortality (F) target in the first and second year, respectively. The TAC will be made available to the states based on the state-by-state allocation established by Amendment 3 (see accompanying table for 2021 and 2022 based on a TAC of 194,400 mt).

In determining which level to set the TAC, the Board also considered recent updates to the fecundity (FEC) reference points, and current stock condition. According to the latest assessment results, the 2017 estimate of fecundity, a measure of reproductive potential, was above both the ERP FEC target and threshold, indicating the stock was not overfished. A stock assessment update is scheduled for 2022 which will inform the TAC for 2023 and beyond.

For more information, please contact Max Appelman, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator, or Toni Kerns, ISFMP Director, at mappelman@asmfc.org or tkerns@asmfc.org, respectively.

Recreational red snapper season uncertain for 2020

March 5, 2020 — There won’t be a red snapper season for recreational fishers this year in federal waters off the Georgia coast unless an amendment under consideration moves with the necessary quickness.

The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council, which manages fisheries in federal waters from North Carolina to the Florida Keys, is in its annual March meetings on Jekyll Island. The SAFMC committee on snapper and grouper aired a fair amount of vexation Wednesday as it came to red snapper and plans to speed up a planned stock assessment.

“There’s obviously a lot of sources of frustration about the situation we’ve got with red snapper,” said Spud Woodward, a fisheries biologist and former director of the state Department Natural Resources’ Coastal Resources Division. He said it can be hard to know where to focus efforts in this sort of situation.

“Concerns about the quality of the data that we use to estimate the catch, which will ultimately drive the next stock assessment, which is a whole other issue,” Woodward said.

One thing Woodward said concerns him is that discussions tend to come back around to the inadequacy of the data. He said they’ve got to work on the foundations of the ability to manage the fisheries. There was some talk among snapper/grouper committee members that there would always be a significant amount of problems with recreational reporting, because it’s would take too much money and too much effort to put into effect the sort of policies that would come close to guaranteeing reliable numbers.

Read the full story at The Brunswick News