On Tuesday, September 24, the New England Fishery Management Council began the first of three days of full Council meetings.
Saving Seafood covered the first two of those three days. Day 1 of the meeting including discussions of topics ranging from possible procedural mishaps and assessment uncertainties, to questions regarding the accuracy of incidental mortality and discard figures. Day 2 of the NEFMC's full Council meeting focused on the Council's Scallop and Grounfish Committees. The Committees discussed the use of modified fishing gear as a way of reducing groundfish bycatch within the groundfish and scallop fisheries, and voted to give NOAA's Northeast Regional Administrator the authority to facilitate transboundary trades of groundfish quota between the United States and Canada. The measures discussed and voted on by the Groundfish Committee were selected for inclusion in Framework Adjustment 51 to the Groundfish Fishery Management Plan (FMP), while the Scallop Committee's measures pertained to the Scallop FMP's Framework 25.
Please click here for detailed coverage of Day 1 of the NEFMC's September full Council meeting
Please click here for detailed coverage of Day 2 of the NEFMC's September full Council meeting