September 19, 2022 — The following was released by Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council:

The Council’s Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) concluded its three-day meeting today that emphasized the importance of rigorous scientific analysis, good data and consideration of human communities to inform ecosystem-based fisheries management (EBFM) for fisheries across Hawai‘i, American Samoa, Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands.  

The SSC reviewed a Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC) analysis evaluating the effects of a triggered area closure called the Southern Exclusion Zone. The SEZ was established under the National Marine Fisheries Service’s False Killer Whale Take Reduction Plan as part of a suite of measures intended to reduce impacts to these large-toothed whales. The analysis confirmed the Hawai‘i longline fishing effort shifted to areas immediately south and east of the closure area during SEZ closures (July-December 2018; and February 2019-August 2020). 

“There are tradeoffs to the closure,” said SSC member Steve Martell. “In areas outside the SEZ, fishermen have higher chances of interacting with other protected species like oceanic whitetip sharks and giant manta rays. Fishermen may also have more competition with foreign fishing boats in the area.” The SSC recognized that while these exchanges are likely happening, the current analysis did not quantify the extent to which other species of concern may have been negatively affected by the false killer whale measure. The SSC recommended further analyses to evaluate these effects. 

The SSC also emphasized the need for a comprehensive approach to address potential cross-species conflicts and tradeoffs of species-specific bycatch mitigation measures in the Hawai‘i longline fishery. Many of the existing conservation measures implemented in the fishery have been developed to reduce impacts to one species or species group, such as sea turtles, seabirds or sharks. 

The SSC reviewed new data from a recent PIFSC study supporting the benefit to Endangered Species Act-listed oceanic whitetip sharks from the Hawai‘i deep-set longline fishery’s transition from wire leaders to monofilament nylon leaders earlier this year. Sharks can bite through nylon leaders easier than wire and have a higher chance of freeing themselves. The same study highlighted the downside of this strategy. The slower degradation rate of monofilament line in the ocean means that trailing line left on the shark may have greater consequences than wire leaders that were shown to start breaking off after 2 months. Hawai‘i’s longline fishermen are also required to cut the line as close to the hook as possible when releasing oceanic whitetip sharks. This comes with crew safety issues due to flyback caused by the required use of weights close to the hook to reduce interactions with Laysan and black-footed albatrosses. 

To better communicate these complex multi-species considerations, the SSC recommended the Council develop an infographic on the potential effects of several management measures on various species. 

These conversations about managing broader ecosystem impacts as part of fishery management in a changing environment are increasing across the eight regional fishery management councils established under the Magnuson-Stevens Act. It was the focus of a national meeting of the SSCs from the eight regions that convened in Sitka, Alaska in August.

“There will be ‘winners’ and ‘losers’ in terms of species and fisheries as ecosystem changes become an increasingly important concern in our region,” said Frank Camacho, SSC member from Guam, reporting on the discussions from the meeting. “We need to develop tools to handle changes in species abundances that are expected to happen in response to changing environmental conditions.” The SSC recommended prioritizing the development of these tools, and conducting scenario planning for extreme environmental events to assist with economic and social resilience of fishing communities. 

While the Council has incorporated ecosystem-based considerations into its fishery management plans since the mid-2000s, methods to quantify the point at which a fish or habitat cannot recover are still evolving. The SSC discussed a PIFSC project that is the first step towards developing EBFM frameworks applicable to management. Utilizing existing data sets, the project identified threshold relationships between ecosystem indicators and environmental drivers and estimated thresholds for coral reef ecosystem species. SSC members provided feedback on statistical methods and future directions noting an interest in how the project will inform management targets.

Moving forward, Council, PIFSC and Pacific Islands Regional Office staffs will host a workshop in October 2022 to streamline EBFM priorities in the Pacific Islands region. The workshop goal is to develop a region-wide road map with actionable EBFM items to be addressed in the short- and long-term (5 and 10+ years). Following this, the Council and NMFS will likely hold a series of public workshops to engage stakeholders in the region on EBFM approaches.

September 15, 2022 — The following was released by the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council:

The Council’s Scientific and Statistical Committee heard a presentation by Bob Richmond, University of Hawai‘i professor and coauthor on the proposal to expand the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument, on the scientific merits of the proposed expansion. The SSC members noted in their discussion the overwhelming lack of data to support theorized benefits and an analytical framework to assemble data in the proposal evaluation.

“The SSC promotes developing marine protected areas based on scientific evidence,” said SSC member David Itano. “It is important to understand the biology and fish stock dynamics, as well as how they interact with fisheries. If we are going to preserve U.S. fisheries that are accepted as the world’s best-managed, we have to stop taking away their garden.” Another SSC member said tropical tuna stocks that inhabit proposed expansion waters are not considered overfished nor experiencing overfishing based on internationally accepted best available science and that U.S. fisheries constitute a small portion of total fishing pressure. 

SSC members raised several concerns including that data streams from human activities (such as fishing) that would be used for monitoring ecosystem health would cease to exist with the formation of more closed areas. 

The SSC asserted that indigenous cultural and environmental justice issues were not taken into account. “Our actions are part of the ecosystem, therefore we are the stewards,” said SSC member Jason Biggs from Guam, noting natives never remove themselves completely from an area they manage. Domingo Ochavillo from American Samoa pointed out the disproportionate impact the monument expansion would have on the territory’s economy, which is dependent on fish delivered to the StarKist cannery. Purse seine vessels that fish in the potentially closed areas would then fish in the area of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission and offload in Ecuador.

The SSC also discussed alternatives for fishing regulations in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, forming a working group to discuss the definition of “subsistence fishing.” The group developed several variations with or without customary exchange and cost recovery and will provide options for the Council’s consideration at its meeting next week.

September 12, 2022 — The following was released by Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council:

Scientists from throughout the Western Pacific Region will meet Sept. 13 to 15, 2022, to provide advice and comments to the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council on the fishing regulations in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (NWHI), a false killer whale (FKW) analysis, uku essential fish habitat studies, American Samoa longline fishery performance and other topics.  

Public attendance for the Council’s Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) meeting will be limited to web conference only. The full agenda, background documents and instructions for connecting to the meeting and providing oral public comments are available

Fishing Regulations in the NWHI 

At its 192nd meeting in September, the Council will consider taking action on fishing regulations in the NWHI Monument Expansion Area. The SSC will consider the alternatives presented and may provide advice and recommendations on the definitions for non-commercial and subsistence fishing, as well as limits on fishing and any equity and environmental justice impacts.

 FKW Interaction and Depredation Analysis

The SSC will discuss its input for an ongoing NOAA analysis evaluating how changes to fishing effort distribution during Southern Exclusion Zone closures may have affected the patterns in FKW interaction and depredation. The Council recommended this study at its March 2022 meeting to inform further Council discussion on managing FKW impacts from the Hawai‘i deep-set longline fishery.

 Uku Essential Fish Habitat

The SSC will hear a report on the external independent review of essential fish habitat (EFH) models for uku (Aprion virescens, grey snapper, green jobfish) in the main Hawaiian Islands. Under the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the Council must describe EFH and provide maps of the geographic locations or define boundaries within which EFH is found. The independent reviewers analyzed two studies that were a great improvement over the existing literature-based description of uku EFH. The SSC will discuss if these products are the best scientific information available to delineate uku EFH.

American Samoa Longline Fishery Performance 

The SSC will discuss fishery performance of all pelagic vessels fishing and reporting catch in American Samoa, including “large” longline vessels more than 50 feet long. In 2002, the Council developed a Large Vessel Prohibited Area (LVPA) to minimize competition between the large-vessel longline fleet and smaller longlining alia (traditional double-hulled catamaran) boats in American Samoa. The LVPA excluded large vessels from waters 0 to 50 nautical miles seaward of Tutulia, Swains and Manu‘a Islands. 

Due to declining fishery performance of the American Samoa Longline fishery following establishment of the LVPA, the Council had recommended allowing some American Samoa longline vessels an exemption to fish waters beyond 12 nm within the LVPA. Litigation between the American Samoa government and the National Marine Fisheries Service led to a 2017 court order to halt these exemptions. In 2020, federal courts reversed the 2017 decision. The exemption to the LVPA was reinstated in July 2021 to allow certain U.S. longline vessels 50 feet and longer to fish in portions of the LVPA. This exemption included a provision for the Council to annually review the impacts of the exemption on catch rates and small vessel participation.

The SSC will evaluate fishery changes due to the LVPA and the 2021 reinstatement of the exemption.

Other agenda topics include discussing the scientific justification for the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument expansion proposal, and reviewing the alternatives for establishing an Aquaculture Management Framework in the Western Pacific. The SSC may provide advice on potential environmental impacts from aquaculture to the Council before it takes final action at its September meeting.

 Recommendations made by the SSC on these and other matters will be considered by the Council when it meets Sept. 20-22, 2022 in-person at the Hilton Hawaiian Village. Instructions on connecting to the web conference, agendas and briefing documents are posted at www.wpcouncil.org/event/192nd-council-meeting-virtual.