Mid-Atlantic stakeholders may be interested in attending the November 9 workshop in Montauk, NY.
Mid-Atlantic Council Seeks Stakeholder Input on Summer Flounder Recreational Management
NOAA Fisheries Proposes Atlantic Chub Mackerel Measures
NOAA Fisheries has announced proposed measures adopted by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council as part of Amendment 21 to the Atlantic Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish Fishery Management Plan to manage chub mackerel.
Because a directed fishery for Atlantic chub mackerel recently emerged in the Mid-Atlantic, in 2017 the Mid-Atlantic Council implemented initial measures to maintain existing catch levels while it developed a long-term management approach. In the intervening three years, the Council has collected more detailed information on chub mackerel and has developed management measures to help achieve and maintain the sustainability of the chub mackerel resource.
This action would designate essential fish habitat; set catch limits for 2020-2022; and implement an annual catch limit, accountability measures, possession limits, permitting and reporting requirements, and other administrative measures for Atlantic chub mackerel caught from Maine through North Carolina.
Proposed 2020 and Projected 2021-2022 Atlantic Chub Mackerel Specifications
For more details, please read the rule as published in the Federal Register. Supporting analysis for this rule is available on the Council’s website.
The comments due date is April 8, 2020. To submit comments, please use the Federal e-rulemaking portal, or send comments by regular mail to Michael Pentony, Regional Administrator, National Marine Fisheries Service, 55 Great Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA, 01930. Please mark the outside of the envelope, "Comments on the Comments on Chub Mackerel Proposed Rule."
Questions?
Fishermen: Contact Doug Christel, Regional Office, 978-281-9141
Media: Contact Jennifer Goebel, Regional Office, 978-281-9175
Council Approves Chub Mackerel Management Measures
The Mid-Atlantic Council approved a suite of management measures for chub mackerel in federal waters from Maine through North Carolina, including a total allowable landings limit, permit requirements, and other measures. If approved by the Secretary of Commerce, the Chub Mackerel Amendment will add chub mackerel to the Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish Fishery Management Plan.
Last Call for Public Comments on Chub Mackerel Amendment
Mid-Atlantic Council Solicits Public Input on Chub Mackerel Amendment
Scientific and Statistical Committee to Meet March 13-14, 2018
The Council’s SSC will meet March 13-14, 2018 in Baltimore, Maryland. Topics to be discussed include blueline and golden tilefish specifications, NEFSC clam dredge survey redesign, NEFSC State of the Ecosystem Report, and a discussion paper on coefficients of variation for estimates of the overfishing limit.
Council Seeks Contractor to Assess the Importance of Atlantic Chub Mackerel to the Diets of Recreationally-Important Highly Migratory Species
October 2017 Council Meeting Summary
The following summary highlights actions taken and issues considered at the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council’s October 2017 meeting in Riverhead, NY. Presentations, briefing materials, and webinar recordings are available on the Council website at http://www.mafmc.org/briefing/october-2017.
Mid-Atlantic Council to Hold Scoping Hearings for Chub Mackerel Amendment
Request for Proposals: Atlantic Chub Mackerel Stock Assessment
Mid-Atlantic Council Approves Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries Management (EAFM) Guidance Document
Publication: A Framework for Incorporating Species, Fleet, Habitat, and Climate Interactions into Fishery Management
The following article was published in Frontiers in Marine Science, section Marine Ecosystem Ecology.
A Framework for Incorporating Species, Fleet, Habitat, and Climate Interactions into Fishery Management
Sarah K. Gaichas, Richard J. Seagraves, Jessica M. Coakley, Geret S. DePiper, Vincent G. Guida, Jonathan A. Hare, Paul J. Rago, and Michael J. Wilberg.
Abstract
Marine ecosystems are characterized by many complex interactions. Fisheries managers face the challenge of maintaining or restoring sustainability for individual living resources which are affected by both ecological and economic interactions with other species, through processes like predation and fishing fleet interactions. These species interactions are further complicated by interactions with habitats that are changing due to both human activities and climate change. Often, fishery management systems designed to promote sustainability of individual resources have few tools or processes that also address interactions between species, fleets, habitat, and climate. Here, we review existing and potential fishery assessment and management information and tools, and we develop a potential framework for addressing interactions in management at the request of the U.S. Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council. The structured framework can be used to first prioritize interactions, second specify key questions regarding high priority interactions, and third tailor appropriate analyses to address them. The primary tools for the initial steps in the framework are risk assessment and Management Strategy Evaluation (MSE). Finally, implemented management would be evaluated to ensure that objectives are being met, or to adjust measures as conditions change. In the final section, we outline an example to illustrate how a structured decision making process within the framework could work.
Full Article:
October 2015 Council Meeting Summary
June 2015 Council Meeting Summary
April 2015 Council Meeting Summary
Mid-Atlantic Council to Hold Hearings on Deep Sea Corals Amendment
The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council will hold six public hearings in January to gather public comments on the Deep Sea Corals Amendment to the Atlantic Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish Fishery Management Plan (FMP). Hearings will be held January 12 – 20, 2015, and written comments will be accepted until January 28, 2015.
Mid-Atlantic Council Initiates Action to Protect Unmanaged Forage Species
December 10 Listening Session: Deep Sea Corals in the Mid-Atlantic
October 2014 Council Meeting Report
The following summary highlights Council actions and issues considered at the October 2014 Council Meeting held in Philadelphia, PA on October 7-9.