November 7, 2013 — The best available science provides compelling justification for the catch limits that were set by the New England Fishery Management Council and approved by federal fisheries officials. The number of Atlantic cod on Georges Bank, for example, is roughly 8 percent of what a healthy, sustainable population should be. Rebuilding this extremely overfished stock is difficult but important.
There is no strict requirement in federal fisheries law that all stocks must be rebuilt within 10 years. The law allows flexibility for species whose biology or circumstances require more time to recover. Four of the rebuilding plans for overfished New England fish populations, for example, are based on schedules longer than 10 years, including Georges Bank cod, which has a 22-year plan.
The National Research Council report, which the column references, does not say that the current approach to rebuilding overfished stocks is all wrong. In fact, the report says that the current rebuilding approach has "demonstrated successes in "¦ rebuilding overfished stocks" and that "the long-term net economic benefits" have been "positive."
Read the full letter at the New Bedford Standard-Times