Saving Seafood

Virginia: Proposal for tighter oversight of recreational striped bass catch dies

May 9, 2018 — Commercial fishermen asked state regulators Tuesday night to make recreational fishermen tag their striped bass the way commercial operators do, to make sure they’re not taking too many fish.

But the idea died when Doug Jenkins, president of the Twin Rivers Watermen’s group, in Warsaw, outlined his proposal to the Virginia Marine Resources Commission’s finfish management advisory committee.

“We’re losing our rockfish (striped bass) quota and losing our crab industry,” Jenkins told the committee.

He said the 20 percent cut in striped bass quotas imposed three years ago have hit commercial fishermen hard.

Jenkins said there are enough striped bass to allow commercial fishermen to catch more, and that striped bass preying on crabs is one reason why crab populations are down.

But the request comes at a bad time, when nobody seems to know for certain what the real state of the striped bass stock is, said Jeff Deem, chairman of the advisory committee.

Read the full story at the Daily Press

 

Atlantic Striped Bass Benchmark Stock Assessment Modeling Workshop Scheduled for May 15-17, 2018 in Providence, RI

March 14, 2018 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Atlantic Striped Bass Stock Assessment Modeling Workshop will be conducted May 15-17, 2018 at the Renaissance Providence-Downtown, in Providence, Rhode Island. The assessment will evaluate the condition of Atlantic striped bass stocks from Maine to North Carolina and inform management of those stocks. The workshop is open to the public, with the exception of discussion of confidential data when the public will be asked to leave the room.

For alternate models to be considered, the model description, model input, and complete source code must be provided to Dr. Katie Drew, Stock Assessment Team Leader, at kdrew@asmfc.org by April 30, 2018. Any models submitted without complete, editable source code and input files will not be considered.
 
The benchmark stock assessment is scheduled for peer-review at the Northeast Fisheries Science Center’s 66th Stock Assessment Workshop (SAW/SARC), November 27-30, 2018. For more information about the assessment, or the submission and presentation of materials at the Modeling Workshop, please contact Max Appelman, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator, at mappelman@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740.

ASMFC Atlantic Striped Bass Board approves Option B

February 21, 2018 — On Feb. 7, the Atlantic Striped Bass Management Board of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission met to approve Option B in Maryland’s Conservation Equivalency Proposal for the summer/fall recreational striped bass fishery in the Chesapeake Bay.

The motion passed unanimously with one abstention.

The ASMFC acknowledges for stock assessment purposes that the mortality rate of fish that are released after being caught is about 9 percent, but many fishermen and scientists contend that the number is much higher in the summer months when hot temperatures affect survival.

At a fishing symposium I attended this past November, one Department of Natural Resources official said that while the accepted mortality rate is 9 out of every 100 released rockfish, the number could be as high as 30.

“We don’t really know,” said Mike Luisi, Estuarine and Marine Fisheries Division manager for DNR.

Both the Technical Committee and Law Enforcement Committee of the ASMFC did not endorse the mandatory use of circle hooks, but with pressure from stakeholders, the Advisory Panel decided that “the conservation benefits” outweigh any concerns and Maryland will be instituting the mandatory use of circle hooks with non-artificial bait and lures.

Back in 1999, Maryland’s DNR performed a study comparing the mortality of rockfish caught on conventional hooks versus circle hooks. The results are hard to argue with.

When air temperatures were below 95 degrees Fahrenheit, 0.8 percent of rockfish caught on non-offset circle hooks died compared to 9.1 percent of rockfish caught on standard J hooks.

Additionally, the minimum size for keepers will be reduced to 19 inches from May 16 to Dec. 15.

Read the full story at the Calvert Recorder

 

Virginia: Time for bill runs out, higher menhaden quota remains

February 13, 2018 — A multi-state body says Virginians must catch fewer menhaden from the bay, but Virginia’s General Assembly didn’t listen — or, to be exact, didn’t really get a chance to hear.

A bill to bring Virginia’s quota in line with a steep cut demanded by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission has languished for more than a month in the House Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources Committee.

The committee won’t meet again before Tuesday’s midnight deadline for the House of Delegates to act on bills sponsored by House members. Without a committee’s vote to recommend a bill, it couldn’t make it to the floor for all the delegates to consider.

And that means that the higher quota applies for the only fishery — Virginia’s biggest — that the General Assembly regulates.

Del. Barry Knight, R-Virginia Beach, wanted the General Assembly to agree to the cut in Virginia landings of menhaden from 87,216 metric tons to 51,000 tons that was approved in November by the regional fisheries commission.

That 41.5 percent cut came as the commission approved an 8 percent increase in the coastwide quota set by the commission.

The proposed quota cut is meant to protect a major nursery for menhaden and the striped bass that feed on them, said Chris Moore, senior regional ecosystem scientist at the Chesapeake Bay Foundation.

While menhaden aren’t sold for human food, they are processed for fish oil, in food supplements, and for fishmeal, an important ingredient in livestock feed, as well as in pet food and to nourish farm-grown fish and seafood.

The striped bass that eat menhaden, on the other hand, have become an important food fish, as well as popular catch for recreational fishermen. Menhaden are also a vital food for marine mammals and osprey.

Moore said not enacting the regional commission quota puts Virginia, and the fishing crews and processing plant workers who depend on menhaden, at risk of sanctions.

That’s a big business. Omega Protein, the Texas-based fish oil and fishmeal producer whose Reedville operation, supplied by seven ships, is the fifth-largest U.S. port for fish landings, with 321 million pounds, worth $31 million, in 2016.

Read the full story at the Daily Press

ASMFC 2018 Winter Meeting Supplemental Materials Now Available

January 31, 2018 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Council: 

Supplemental meeting materials for the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s 2018 Winter Meeting have been posted at http://www.asmfc.org/home/2018-winter-meeting for the following Boards/Sections (click on “Supplemental” following each relevant committee header to access the information). For ease of access, supplemental meeting materials have combined into one PDF – http://www.asmfc.org/files/Meetings/2018WinterMeeting/CombinedSupplementalFiles_Winter2018.pdf.

American Lobster Management Board – Draft Addendum XXVI/III Public Comment; Southern New England memo: Goals and Objectives (revised)

Atlantic Herring Section – Technical Committee Review of Current Spawning Closure Procedure

American Eel Management Board – Draft Addendum V; Stock Assessment Committee Call Summary; 2017 FMP Review

Weakfish Management Board – 2017 FMP Review

South Atlantic State/Federal Fisheries Management Board –  Cobia FMP State Implementation Plans; 2017 FMP Reviews for Spot and Spanish Mackerel

Atlantic Striped Bass Management Board – Submitted Public Comment

Risk and Uncertainty Workshop – Decision Tree

ISFMP Policy Board – 2017 Commissioner Survey Results; Submitted Public Comment on Virginia Appeal to Atlantic Menhaden Amendment 3

Summer Flounder, Scup and Black Sea Bass Management Board – Revised Agenda and Meeting Overview; Draft Addendum XXX, Public Hearing Summaries, Submitted Public Comment and Advisory Panel Report

As a reminder, Board meeting proceedings will be broadcast daily via webinar beginning February 6th at 9:30 a.m. and continuing daily until the conclusion of the meeting (expected to be 5 p.m.) on Thursday, February 8th. The webinar will allow registrants to listen to board/section deliberations and view presentations and motions as they occur. No comments or questions will be accepted via the webinar. Should technical difficulties arise while streaming the broadcast the boards/sections will continue their deliberations without interruption. We will attempt to resume the broadcast as soon as possible.

Learn more about the ASMFC by visiting their site here.

 

MASSACHUSETTS: Legislation would take striped bass off the menu

January 22, 2018 — NORTH EASTHAM, Mass. — The sacred cod hangs over the heads of legislators in the Massachusetts House of Representatives, but on Mac’s Seafood website it’s a striped bass.

The fish is held by an employee staring into the camera, its houndstooth flanks glistening, mouth open, looking as if you could drop it back into the sea and it would be off, chasing mackerel and herring through the surf.

“There’s a large demand for it in season. That is the fish people come in to buy — not cod, but striped bass,” said Jason Putrell, assistant manager at Mac’s Market and Kitchen in North Eastham.

With the inshore stocks of many of the bread-and-butter staples like cod and flounders fished out, striped bass is one species that restaurants and fish markets can offer that is guaranteed to be freshly caught and local.

But two bills currently before the state Legislature would take striped bass out of display cases and off menus forever as they seek to end the commercial fishery in Massachusetts. Both bills have the same language, one on the House side presented by state Rep. Thomas Stanley, D-Waltham, and one in the Senate from former Sen. James Timilty, D-Walpole, who retired in 2017.

These bills ban the commercial sale and harvesting of striped bass except for commercial fishermen who can demonstrate they averaged more than 1,000 pounds a year in landings for the preceding five years. But those would be phased out when the permit-holders either die or stop fishing. The permits couldn’t be transferred or sold.

Read the full story from the Cape Cod Times at the New Bedford Standard-Times

 

Atlantic Menhaden Board Meeting Added to ASMFC 2018 Winter Meeting Preliminary Agenda

January 11, 2018 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Comission:

Please note there are two changes to the ASMFC Winter Meeting preliminary agenda: (1) an agenda item has been added to the ISFMP Policy Board (i.e., Consider the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Atlantic Menhaden Amendment 3 Appeal); and (2) the Atlantic Menhaden Management Board has been added to the agenda and will meet on Thursday, February 8 from 1:45 – 2:45 p.m. There has been shift in meeting times that day to accommodate the added meeting.  The agenda can also be found on the ASMFC website at http://www.asmfc.org/home/2018-winter-meeting.

Revised Preliminary Agenda

The agenda is subject to change. Bulleted items represent the anticipated major issues to be discussed or acted upon at the meeting. The final agenda will include additional items and may revise the bulleted items provided below. The agenda reflects the current estimate of time required for scheduled Board meetings. The Commission may adjust this agenda in accordance with the actual duration of Board meetings. Interested parties should anticipate Boards starting earlier or later than indicated herein.

Tuesday, February 6

9:30 a.m. – Noon                    American Lobster Management Board

  • Consider American Lobster Addendum XXVI and Jonah Crab Addendum III for Final Approval
  • Subgroup Report on Goals and Objectives for Management of the Southern New England Stock
  • Consider 2020 American Lobster Benchmark Stock Assessment Terms of Reference
  • Elect Vice-chair

1:00 – 2:00 p.m.                        Atlantic Herring Section

  • Review Technical Committee Report on Effectiveness of Current Spawning Closure Procedure
  • Elect Chair and Vice-chair

2:15 – 4:15 p.m.                        Winter Flounder Management Board

  • Review Results of the 2017 Groundfish Operational Stock Assessment for Gulf of Maine and Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic Winter Flounder Stocks
  • Discuss Potential Management Response
  • Consider Specifications for 2018 Fishing Year
  • Consider Approval of Fishery Management Plan Review for 2016-2017 Fishing Year
  • Elect Chair and Vice-chair

4:30 – 6:00 p.m.                        American Eel Management Board

  • Consider Approval of Draft Addendum V for Public Comment
  • Consider Approval of 2016 Fishery Management Plan Review and State Compliance Reports

Wednesday, February 7

8:00 – 9:30 a.m.                         Executive Committee

(A portion of this meeting may be a closed session for Committee members and Commissioners only)

  • ACCSP Program Update
  • Discuss ASMFC Leadership Nomination Process
  • Discuss Updating Appeals Process
  • Discuss Updating Conservation Equivalency Guidelines

9:45 – 11:15 a.m.                      Strategic Planning Workshop

  • Review Annual Commissioner Survey Results
  • Discuss Next Steps in Developing 2019-2023 Strategic Plan

11:30 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.          Weakfish Management Board

  • Consider Approval of 2017 Fishery Management Plan Review and State Compliance Reports
  • Consider the Use of Fishery-independent Samples in Fulfilling Biological Sampling Requirements of the Fishery Management Plan

12:45 – 2:45 p.m.                      South Atlantic State/Federal Fisheries Management Board

  • Review Technical Committee Report on State Implementation Plans for the Interstate Cobia Fishery Management Plan
  • Consider Approval of Draft Addendum I to the Black Drum Fishery Management Plan for Public Comment
  • Review Technical Committee/Plan Review Team Report on Recommended Updates to the Annual Traffic Light Analyses for Atlantic Croaker and Spot
  • Consider Approval of 2017 Fishery Management Plan Reviews and State Compliance Reports for Spanish Mackerel and Spot

3:00 – 4:30 p.m.                        Atlantic Striped Bass Management Board

  • Review and Consider Maryland Conservation Equivalency Proposal
  • Update on Process and Timeline Regarding Board Guidance on Benchmark Stock Assessment

Thursday, February 8

8:00 – 10:00 a.m.                      Risk and Uncertainty Policy Workshop

10:15 a.m. — 1:15 p.m. Interstate Management Program Policy Board

  • Consider the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Atlantic Menhaden Amendment 3 Appeal
  • Consider Approval of Climate Change and Fisheries Management Policy
  • Review Shad Benchmark Stock Assessment Timeline and Consider Terms of Reference
  • Habitat Committee Report
  • NOAA Fisheries Overview of Right Whale Issue

1:15 – 1:30 p.m.                        Business Session

  • Consider Noncompliance Recommendations (If Necessary)

1:45 — 2:45 p.m. Atlantic Menhaden Management Board

  • Consider ISFMP Policy Board Recommendation Regarding the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Atlantic Menhaden Amendment 3 Appeal (If Necessary)

3:00 — 5:00 p.m. Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Management Board

  • Consider Black Sea Bass Addendum XXX for Final Approval
  • Finalize Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Recreational Measures

Learn more about the ASMFC by visiting their site here.

 

Gloucester Times: Leave striped bass management to the experts

December 6, 2017 — The return to health of the striped bass has been one of the great conservation success stories of recent decades. On the brink of extinction in the 1970s and 1980s, the popular sport fish was brought back to health by sound management.

Lawmakers would be wise to leave that management to the experts and not back a renewed push to manage the fishery through legislation.

The Legislature’s Committee on the Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture heard testimony on two such proposals last week.

One, from former state Sen. James Timilty, a Walpole Democrat, would limit commercial access to fishermen who can prove they have caught and sold 1,000 pounds of striper a year for the past five years.

And a plan by state Rep. Thomas Stanley, D-Waltham, would completely end commercial fishing for striped bass by 2025.

Read the full editorial at the Gloucester Times 

 

Striped bass reproduction in Bay a bit above average, surveys show

November 12, 2017 — Striped bass reproduction in the Chesapeake Bay slightly exceeded the long-term average this year, annual surveys show, offering hope that the population is rebounding from low levels that led to coastwide fishing restrictions three years ago.

In Maryland — where reproduction has historically been an accurate predictor of future coastwide populations — the annual juvenile index has been above average for two of the past three years.

That’s an improvement from the previous seven-year span when the index had been below average in all but one year. That reproductive drought spurred the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, which regulates the harvest of migratory fish, to impose a coastwide catch reduction in 2014, including a 20 percent cut in the Chesapeake.

Striped bass start reaching legally fishable sizes after three to four years, so the recent improvements in reproduction seen by surveys in Maryland and Virginia should be reflected in the numbers of catchable-size fish in the next few years.

Dave Blazer, director of fishing and boating services with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, called the recent uptick “an encouraging sign for the coastal population and future fishing opportunities.”

In Maryland, this year’s young-of-year index was 13.2, which was above the 64-year average of 11.7. It follows an index of 24.2 in 2015, which was more than twice the long-term average.

Read the full story at the Bay Journal

 

Atlantic Striped Bass Stock Assessment Data Workshop Scheduled for September 26-29, 2017 in Arlington, VA

June 21, 2017 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Atlantic Striped Bass Stock Assessment Data Workshop will be conducted September 26-29, 2017 at the Westin Crystal City, 1800 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, VA. The Data Workshop is the first in a series of workshops to develop the next striped bass benchmark stock assessment. The assessment will evaluate the condition of Atlantic striped bass stocks from Maine to North Carolina and inform management of those stocks. The workshop will review all available data sources for Atlantic striped bass and identify data sets that will be incorporated in the stock assessment.  The Workshop is open to the public, with the exception of discussions of confidential data, when the public will be asked to leave the room.  

For data sets to be considered at the workshop, data must be sent in with accompanying methods description to Dr. Katie Drew (kdrew@asmfc.org) by September 1, 2017. Data sources include, but are not limited to, data on recreational and commercial landings and discards, catch per unit effort, biological samples (age, length, and/or sex), and life history information (growth, maturity, fecundity, spawning stock biomass weights, natural mortality).  All available data will be reviewed and vetted by members of the Atlantic Striped Bass Stock Assessment Subcommittee for possible use in the assessment. 

It is anticipated that there will be two Stock Assessment Workshops – one in late 2017 and another in the summer of 2018. The benchmark stock assessment will be peer reviewed in the winter of 2018. The details of the assessment workshops and peer review will be released as they become available.

For more information on submitting data, including the appropriate format, and/or attending the Data Workshop (space is limited), please contact Max Appelman, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator, at mappelman@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740.