Page 12. MAINE COASTAL NEWS September 2014
Commercial Fishing News ASMFC American Lobster Board Ap-
proves Habitat Addendum and Initiates Development of Management Plan for Cancer Crabs
ALEXANDRIA, VA – The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s American Lobster Management Board approved
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Addendum XXIII to Amendment 3 to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for American Lobster. The Addendum updates Amendment 3’s habitat section to include information on the habitat require- ments and tolerances of American lobster by life stage. The Addendum focuses on habitat components that play a vital role in the reproduction, growth, and the sus- tainability of commercial and recreational fisheries by providing shelter, feeding, spawning and nursery grounds for lobsters to survive. While the Addendum does not implement any changes to the lobster man- agement program, it is intended to advance our understanding of the habitat needs and requirements of American lobster and pro- vides the most current information to inform management decisions.
The Board also approved the Public Information Document (PID) for Cancer Crabs for public comment. The PID was initiated in response to concern about in- creasing targeted fi shing pressure for Jonah crab and rock crab (collectively referred to as cancer crabs). Both species have long been considered a bycatch in the lobster fi shery, however, growing market demand has doubled landings in the past seven years. Landings of both species in 2012 was over 12 million pounds and estimated to be worth over $9 million. Given the absence of state and federal management programs and stock assessments for cancer crabs, there is concern the current harvest may compro- mise the sustainability of the resource. As the fi rst step in the development of
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a FMP, the PID seeks public input on in- formation concerning cancer crab fi sheries, including the identifi cation of major issues and options relative to the management of these species. It is anticipated that several
states will be conducting public hearings on the PID; a subsequent press release will announce the details of those hearings once they become fi nalized.
Fishermen and other interested groups are encouraged to provide input on the PID either by attending state public hearings or providing written comment. The PID will be available on the Commission website (www.
asmfc.org) under Public Input by August 18, 2104. Public comment will be accepted until 5:00 PM (EST) on October 3, 2014 and should be forwarded to Kate Taylor, Senior FMP Coordinator, 1050 N. High- land St, Suite A-N, Arlington, VA 22201; 703.842.0741 (FAX) or at ktaylor@asmfc. org (Subject line: Cancer Crabs). For more information, please contact Kate Taylor, at
ktaylor@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740.
ASMFC Spiny Dogfi sh Board Approves Draft Addendum V for Public Comment The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries
Commission’s Spiny Dogfi sh Board ap- proved Draft Addendum V to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for Spiny Dogfi sh for public comment. The Draft Addendum proposes requiring fi ns remain naturally attached to spiny dogfi sh through landing in order to ensure consistency with the Shark Conservation Act of 2010. The Act was signed into law to close loopholes in the U.S. shark fi nning regulations. Specifi cally, the Act prohibits the removal of any fi ns of the shark (including the tail) while at sea (with an exemption for smooth dogfi sh). Fins must remain naturally attached to the corresponding carcass through landing of the fi sh (including while aboard a fi shing vessel or transferred at sea from one vessel to another). Currently, the Interstate FMP allows
removal of the fi ns of spiny dogfi sh at-sea as long as the corresponding carcass is retained. The wet weight of fi ns on-board may not exceed 5% of the dressed weight of carcasses on-board (a 5-to-95 fi n-to-carcass ratio). Maine, New Jersey, Delaware, Vir- ginia, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida already require fi ns to remain naturally at- tached to the fi sh through landing. The Board will review and consider fi nal approval of the Draft Addendum at the Commission’s Annual Meeting in October 2014. The Board also approved increasing the commercial possession limit from 4,000 to 5,000 pounds for the northern region (Maine to Connecticut) for the 2014/2015 spiny dogfi sh fi shing season. This action will be effective beginning September 8, 2014 and is consistent with recently adopted measures for federal waters.
It is anticipated that several states will be conducting public hearings on the Draft Addendum; information on those hear- ings will be released when it is fi nalized. Fishermen and other interested groups are encouraged to provide input on the Draft Addendum either by attending state public hearings or providing written comment. The Draft Addendum will be available on the Commission website (
wwww.asmfc.org) under Public Input by August 18, 2014. Pub- lic comment will be accepted until 5:00 PM (EST) on September 30, 2014 and should be forwarded to Marin Hawk, Fishery Manage- ment Plan Coordinator, at 1050 N. Highland St., Suite 200 A-N, Arlington, VA 22201; 703.842.0741 (FAX) or comments@asmfc. org (Subject line: Spiny Dogfi sh Draft Ad- dendum V). For more information, please contact Marin Hawk, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator, at
mhawk@asmfc.org.
ASMFC Atlantic Striped Bass Board Approves Draft Addendum IV for Pub- lic Comment
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries
Commission’s Atlantic Striped Bass Man- agement Board approved Draft Addendum IV for Public Comment to Amendment 6 to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Striped Bass. The Draft Addendum proposes new fi shing mortality (F) reference points, as recommended by the 2013 bench- mark stock assessment, and associated man- agement measures to reduce F to a level at or below the proposed target within one or three years.
The Draft Addendum responds to results of the 2013 Atlantic striped bass benchmark assessment indicating F in 2012 was above the proposed F target, and female spawning stock biomass (SSB) has been steadily declining below the target since 2006. This means even though the stock is not overfi shed and overfi shing is not oc- curring, SSB is approaching its overfi shed threshold and stock projections show SSB will likely fall below the threshold in the coming years. In addition, a similar decline has been observed in total harvest. In re- sponse to these factors, the Draft Addendum proposes management options to reduce fi shing mortality to the target level. The Draft Addendum includes a suite of management options to reduce recreational and commercial harvest along the coast and in the Chesapeake Bay under three reduction timeframes. The timeframes include (1) reducing F to its target in one year with a 25% reduction in 2013 harvest in 2015 (2) reducing F to its target within three years with a 17% reduction in 2013 harvest in 2015, and (3) reducing F to its target within three years with a 7% sequential reduction in harvest for three consecutive years starting in 2015. Specifi c options to be considered include bag, size, slot and trophy size limits
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