Page 12. MAINE COASTAL NEWS December 2015 ASMFC Atlantic Herring Section


Commercial Fishing News MISCELLANEOUS COMMERCIAL FISHING NEWS


Approves Public Hearing Document on Draft


Amendment 3 for Public Comment


St. Augustine, FL – The Commission’s At- lantic Herring Section approved the Public Hearing Document for Draft Amendment 3 to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for Atlantic Herring for public com- ment. Draft Amendment 3 was initiated to strengthen spawning protections in Area 1A (inshore


Gulf of Maine) and address concerns


raised by the commercial fi shing industry. The Public Hearing Document proposes (1) alternatives to the spawning monitoring program (protocol, default start dates, area boundaries, and length of the closure peri- od); (2) removing the fi xed gear set aside rollover provision, and (3) requiring a ves- sel’s fi sh hold to be emptied before leaving on a fi shing trip. Today’s rebuilt herring population is


comprised of a broader range of age classes with older and larger fi sh compared to the population during overfi shed conditions. Analysis of more than a decade’s worth of data suggests larger herring spawn fi rst and the timing of the start of spawning varies from year-to-year. Proposed alternatives to the current spawning monitoring program address inter-annual differences and provide additional measures to more adequately protect spawning fi sh in the areas where they spawn.


At the request of the fi shing industry,


the Public Hearing Document includes an option to adjust the fi xed gear set-aside rollover provision. Currently, the set-aside of 295 mt is available to fi xed gear fi sher- men through November 1, after which the remaining set-aside becomes available to the


rest of the Area 1A fi shery. The November 1 date was set because, typically, herring have migrated out of the Gulf of Maine by that time. Anecdotal evidence suggests herring are in the Gulf of Maine after November 1, therefore, fi xed gear fi shermen requested the set-aside be made available to them for the remainder of the calendar year. Members of industry also suggested a


requirement for fi sh holds to be empty of fi sh prior to trip departures. This provision would allow for full accountability and encourage less wasteful fi shing practices by creating an incentive to catch herring to meet market demands. The New England Fishery Management Council included a complementary provision in its Framework Adjustment 4 to the Federal Atlantic Herring FMP.


The states will be conducting public


hearings on the Public Hearing Document this winter. Fishermen and other interested groups are encouraged to provide input on the Public Hearing Document either by attending state public hearings or provid- ing written comment. A subsequent press release will announce the availability of the Public Hearing Document, details of the scheduled hearings, as well as the deadline for the submission of public comment. For more information, please contact, Ashton Harp, FMP Coordinator, at aharp@asmfc. org or 703.842.0740.


ASMFC American Lobster Board Initi- ates Addendum to Jonah Crab FMP


Draft Addendum to Consider Changes to Non-trap Bycatch Limit


St. Augustine, FL – The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s American Lobster Management Board initiated Ad- dendum I to the Jonah Crab Fishery Man-


agement Plan (FMP) to consider changes the incidental bycatch limit for non-trap gear. The FMP currently prescribes a 200 crabs per calendar day/500 crabs per trip incidental bycatch limit; however, concerns were expressed over the appropriateness of these limits. Data submitted by the New England Fishery Management Council and NOAA Fisheries illustrated while 97-99% of trips from 2010 through 2014 have been within the current limit, there were a num- ber of trips above the limit. Furthermore, current bycatch landings are suffi ciently low, accounting for approximately 1% of total landings.


Given a goal of the Jonah Crab FMP is to prevent expansion of the fi shery while including all current participants, the Board has initiated an addendum to consider alter- ing the incidental bycatch limit with options to increase the limit to 1000 crabs per trip or eliminate the bycatch limit for non-trap gear. Draft Addendum I will be presented to the Board in February. If approved, the Board would release the Draft Addendum for public comment and will consider fi nal approval of the addendum at the Commis- sion’s Spring Meeting in May. For more information, please contact Megan Ware, FMP Coordinator, at mware@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740.


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Douglas Grout Elected ASMFC Chair St. Augustine, FL – Today, member states of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission acknowledged the many ac- complishments of outgoing Chair, Dr. Louis B. Daniel of North Carolina and elected Douglas Grout as its new Chair. In assuming the chairmanship, Mr. Grout spoke enthusiastically about his new position, “I am honored to be elected by my colleagues from the 15 Atlantic coast states, and pledge to uphold the trust they have placed in me as I serve my term chairing the Commission. Under my watch, I will work to lead the Commission responsibly through the many challenges inherent in managing our nation’s coastal fi sheries. I look forward to working closely with the Commission’s management partners and will ensure the voices of our many stakeholders are heard.” “My predecessor, Louis Daniel, has cemented his legacy as a champion of marine fi sheries and a role model to those they support by guiding the Commission through two productive years that included major management decisions for two of the Atlantic coast’s most iconic species, Atlantic striped bass and Atlantic menha- den. Evidenced by the fact that a record number of Commission-managed fi sheries are thriving, Louis never backed away from making tough decisions and always did what he believed to be the right thing. Under his leadership, the Commission transitioned smoothly through a period of major staff turnover, avoided an Endangered Species Act listing of American eel, and completed numerous benchmark stock assessments. In a tough fi scal environment, he also fought to provide the states with the resources they needed to get the job done.” Mr. Grout currently serves as the Chief of the Marine Fisheries Division of the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department where he has worked for over 30 years. He has been actively involved in the Com- mission process for many years, beginning in 1988 serving on the Management and Science Committee and numerous species technical committees. He received the Commission’s Award of Excellence in the Scientifi c/Technical/Advisory category in 2005. As a Commissioner, he has chaired the Northern Shrimp Section, the Ameri- can Lobster Board, and most recently, the


Atlantic Striped Bass Board. Mr. Grout received his M.S. and B.S. in Zoology from the University of New Hampshire and is an American Fisheries Society Certifi ed Fish- eries Scientist.


The Commission also elected James Gilmore from New York as its Vice-Chair.


ASMFC Summer Flounder, Scup and Black Sea Bass Board Revises 2016 Black Sea Bass Specifi cations & Initiates Draft Addendum for Regional Manage- ment of 2016 Summer Flounder and Black Sea Bass Recreational Fisheries


St. Augustine, FL – The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Summer Flounder, Scup and Black Sea Bass Man- agement Board approved increases to the 2016 black sea bass commercial quota and recreational harvest limit (RHL), with the commercial quota now being set at 2.71 million pounds and the RHL at 2.88 million pounds. These increases are consistent with actions taken by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council in October. The in- creased quota for black sea bass was based on updated catch and survey information. A black sea bass benchmark stock assessment is underway for completion in December 2016.


The Board initiated development of


Draft Addendum XXVII to the Summer Flounder and Black Sea Bass Fishery Man- agement Plans (FMP) to consider extending use of regional management approaches for the 2016 recreational summer fl ounder fi sh- ery, including an option that would allow for a Delaware Bay specifi c region. The Draft Addendum also will propose extending use of ad-hoc regional management approaches for black sea bass recreational fi sheries in 2016 and 2017. In the event the options in Draft Addendum XXVII are not approved for management, the Board extended the current summer fl ounder regional manage- ment approach for use in 2016. In 2014, the Board approved Adden-


dum XXV to shift away from traditional use of state-by-state harvest targets under conservation equivalency to use of an alter- native regional strategy for managing sum- mer fl ounder recreational fi sheries. Based on its success in keeping recreational har- vest within the RHL and providing greater regulatory consistency among neighboring states, this strategy was extended for use in 2015. State-by-state harvest targets pre- viously utilized under conservation equiv- alency created diffi culties for some states as overages occurred due largely to state shares and limits not refl ecting local summer fl ounder abundance and its availability to recreational fi shermen. In 2014 and 2015 management regions were the following: Massachusetts; Rhode Island; Connecti- cut-New Jersey; Delaware-Virginia; and North Carolina. The Draft Addendum also will propose the continued use of regional management for the 2016 black sea bass recreational fi sh- ery with a northern (Massachusetts – New Jersey) and southern region (Delaware – North Carolina). The regional management approach has been used since 2011 and of- fers advantages over coastwide regulations by addressing geographic differences in the stock (size, abundance and seasonality) while maintaining the consistent application of management measures by neighboring states.


Draft Addendum XXVII will be pre- sented to the Board for its consideration and approval for public comment at its joint meeting with the Council in December. At the December meeting, the Board and Council also will consider black sea bass and scup federal management measures for


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