Management of menhaden is changing, which is the best news for that fishery in many years.
That's what Richen Brame, the Coastal Conservation Association's representative to the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) told the CCA Maryland Executive Board at its August meeting.
Brame reported that now is the first time in his lifetime there is a chance to manage the menhaden fishery correctly. His assessment was based on the ASMFC adopting Draft Addendum V in August, which proposes new reference points for managing the stock. Menhaden, which are filter feeders and an important source of food for larger fish, are at an all-time low in abundance, creating problems throughout our coastal ecosystems.
According to a letter from the Maryland Saltwater Sportfishermen's Association, one of the options the ASMFC is considering would mean little change to the overall management of menhaden. The MSSA is recommending a 15 percent threshold on the fish's spawning potential and a 40 percent target, as well as a hard cap coast-wide, including the EEZ, as the best management options.
The ASFMC is hosting a number of public hearings to receive comments on Draft Addendum V to the Interstate Fishery Management for Atlantic Menhaden. The Maryland hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 12, at 7 p.m. in DNR's Tawes State Office Building in Annapolis.
Read the full article at the Star Democrat.
Analysis: The article asserts that the current menhaden management plan has resulted in a fishery that is not "managed correctly." However, the ASMFC's stock assessment does not show signs of the fishery being overexploited or undermanaged. There was slight overfishing in 2008, only a few tenths of a percentage above the mortality rate. However, the stock abundance is at target levels and the fishery was judged to not be overfished. 2008 is unusual in that it is the only year in the last ten years where overfishing was judged to have occured.