April 24, 2015 — The emergency cod measures NOAA instituted in the Gulf of Maine last November will lapse on the eve of the 2015 fishing season and the management policies included in Framework 53 will govern fishing in the Northeast multispecies groundfish fishery throughout the next year.
NOAA Regional Administrator John K. Bullard announced the regulatory changing of the guard late Thursday at the very end of the New England Fishery Management Council’s contentious three-day habitat amendment meetings in Mystic, Conn.
This morning, Bullard said NOAA Fisheries has fully approved the council’s Framework 53 and the new rule has been posted in the Federal Register.
“Framework 53 takes effect on Friday, May 1,” Bullard said, alluding to the day the 2015 season begins
While not as suffocating, many of the management measures contained in Framework 53 closely mirror the objectives and practical applications of the emergency measures NOAA instituted last fall in its belief the Gulf of Maine cod stock required extraordinarily protective measures to halt a further decline of the iconic fish stock.
Under Framework 53, the entire quota for Gulf of Maine cod in 2015 will be slashed another 75 percent to approximately 386 metric tons, with about 200 metric tons of that expected to be portioned to commercial fishing enterprises.
Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times