Council Actions

December 23, 2014 — The following was released by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

The December 2014 Council Meeting Report is now available on the Council's website at http://www.mafmc.org/newsfeed/december-2014-council-meeting-report.
 
Issues Addressed:

– Comprehensive Summer Flounder Amendment
– Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass 2015 Recreational Management Measures
– Forage Fish Management
– Habitat Projects
– GARFO Strategic Plan
– Tilefish White Paper
– 2015 Implementation Plan
​
Briefing materials, presentations, and webinar recordings from the meeting are available on the December 2014 Council Meeting page.

 

December 17, 2014 — The followng was released by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council voted at its meeting last week to initiate an action that would protect unmanaged species of forage fish in the Mid-Atlantic. This action would place restrictions on the development or expansion of directed fisheries on these fish.
 
Forage fish are small, low trophic level fish that play a central role in the marine food chain. These species facilitate the transfer of energy to higher trophic levels by consuming very small prey, such as zooplankton, and then being eaten by larger predator fish and other marine animals. Forage fish also serve a broader role in sustaining the productivity and structure of marine ecosystems.
 
Given the importance of forage fisheries to the productivity of many commercially and recreationally valuable species, the Council has become increasingly interested in management options to protect unmanaged forage species. “The Northeast region has previously experienced rapid expansions, and subsequent collapses, of fisheries that were not managed or assessed,” said the Council’s Chairman, Rick Robins. “In some cases this resulted in a suite of economic, social, and ecological consequences.”
 
As part of the Council’s ongoing development of a Guidance Document to support Ecosystem Approaches to Fisheries Management (EAFM) the Council is preparing a series of policy white papers on a range of issues. The Council has identified forage species and their management as a key area of focus, and during last week’s meeting the Council received a presentation on forage species and recommendations on management approaches that the Council could consider.
 
After extensive discussion, the Council voted unanimously to initiate a regulatory action to prohibit the development of new, or expansion of existing, directed fisheries on unmanaged forage species until adequate scientific information is available to promote ecosystem sustainability.
 
“This initiative recognizes that forage species play a uniquely important role in marine ecosystems,” said Chairman Robins. “We recognize that the potential development of fisheries for forage species will require a proactive and orderly management approach to ensure the sustainability of these ecologically important species.”

 

NEW BEDFORD, Mass. — December 17, 2014 — Fishermen spoke up against additional habitat protection options presented by the New England Fishery Management Council to update its fishery management plans during a hearing at the Fairfield Inn & Suites on Tuesday to solicit comments on its Draft Omnibus Habitat Amendment 2, including its Draft Environmental Impact Statement.

Coordinator Michelle Bachman presented a number of options and combinations for habitat areas in the Gulf of Maine, Great South Channel and Georges Bank and asked the public to choose.

“I’m against any new closures for any fisheries anywhere,” said Scott Nolan, owner of a sea clammer. “Everyone in this room is already struggling to survive.”

Joseph Gilbert, a sea scalloper, said most of the options “create too many negative impacts with too few benefits.”

“The Council needs to balance the needs of habitat protection and restoration with the preservation of access to fishing grounds vital for the future of fishing communities,” said Mayor Jon Mitchell.

Read the full story from the New Bedford Standard-Times

 

December 14, 2014 — The New England Fishery Management Council is conducting a series of public hearings to solicit comments on a draft Omnibus Habitat protection amendment, with one of the hearings planned for Cruiseport Gloucester Wednesday night from 6 to 8 p.m.

The hearing here is one of 10 scheduled from Maine to Virginia over the proposed Omnibus Habitat Amendment 2, which would provide additional protections for the marine habitat off Massachusetts and in other areas of the Northeast groundfishery.

The Wednesday hearing here is one of just two, however, in Massachusetts, with the other to be held Tuesday night in New Bedford at the Fairfield Inn & Suites hotel.

Read the full story from The Gloucester Daily Times

December 12, 2014 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC):

Dear Council Members and Interested Parties:

This is a reminder that there are still five Omnibus Habitat Amendment 2 public hearings scheduled before the comment period for this action ends on January 8, 2015. The remaining hearings will be held in New Bedford and Gloucester, MA, Newport News, VA, and in Brewer and Portland, ME. A webinar is scheduled for Monday, January 5, for those who cannot attend any of the hearings.
 
Details about the hearings and webinar are available here REVhabitat.mtg_notice.pdf. Again, please note the Gloucester hearing has been moved to a new location. That information is highlighted in the notice.
 
A public hearing document, which contains a summary of the Council’s proposals, NEFMC_Habitatpublichearing doc.pdf, has been prepared to assist with the development of any comments you may wish to provide, either at the hearings or in written form. Please use the following information to send in written comments. 
 
MAIL: John Bullard, Regional Administrator National Marine Fisheries Service
Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office
55 Great Republic Drive
Gloucester, MA 01930
Subject line: “OA2 DEIS Comments”
 
FAX: National Marine Fisheries Service
(978) 281-9135
Subject line: “OA2 DEIS Comments”
 
EMAIL: Send to nmfs.gar.OA2.DEIS@noaa.gov
Subject line: “OA2 DEIS Comments”

Please let me know if I can answer any general questions about these meetings.
Regards, Pat

December 12, 2014 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC):

Dear Interested Parties:
 
Meeting: The public is invited to listen in to the December 17, 2014 Observer Policy Committee Meeting . It is scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m. at the Sheraton Colonial, One Audubon Road, in Wakefield, MA.
 
Location: For further information about the venue – http://www.sheratoncolonial.com/

Webinar Registration: For online access to the meeting – https://www3.gotomeeting.com/join/738348646 .

The webinar will be activated beginning at 9:00 a.m. and end at approximately 6:00 p.m. EST.
 
Charges for Listening: There are no charges if you access the webinar via your computer. If dialing in, your normal phone charges will apply.
 
Dial in number: Toll: +1 (646) 749-3112
Access Code: 738-348-646
 
Meeting Materials: Please consult the Council’s website – December 17, 2014 . You will find an agenda and copies of the materials to be considered.
 
Questions: If you have questions prior to or during the meeting, feel free to call Pat Fiorelli the Council office at
(978) 465-0492 ext. 106, or otherwise send her an email at pfiorelli@nefmc.org.

PORTLAND, Maine — December 10, 2014 — A federal regulatory board is discussing parameters for next year's recreational black sea bass fisheries in Maine and New Hampshire.

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council is taking up the issue at a meeting in Baltimore on Wednesday. The two states have expressed interest in developing black sea bass fisheries as more of the fish have appeared off their coasts.

Read the full story from The Associated Press at the Daily Journal

December 9, 2014 — With ocean policymakers mulling new protections for deep-sea canyons off the East Coast, a new report portrays them as vulnerable "treasure troves" of marine life at risk from fishing trawlers.

Drawing on a series of exploratory scientific cruises the past few years, the Natural Resources Defense Council says more than 40 different species of corals, at least three newly discovered, have been found in the submarine canyons cut into the continental shelf 100 miles off the Mid-Atlantic coast.

"These canyons are treasure troves of discovery," said Brad Sewell, the NRDC's fisherires policy director.

Besides the corals, scientists on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration cruises have glimpsed a bonanza of other creatures in the canyons, including the elusive Greenland shark, endangered fin and sperm whales, lobsters and such exotic species as whiplash squid, dumbo octopus, sea butterfly, sea toad and tonguefish.

Read the full story at the Baltimore Sun

December 10, 2014 — The New England Fishery Management Council has 16 vacancies on its advisory panels, the council announced Tuesday.

The panels, limited to 15 members, provide information and guidance to council committees and recommendations during development of fishery management plans. The current vacancies include committees on habitat, recreational groundfish fishing, whiting, enforcement, skate and groundfish.

Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times

CHATHAM, Mass. — December 8, 2014 — In August, Tom Dempsey was reappointed by Gov. Deval Patrick to his second three-year term on the regional fishery management council. But in October, Dempsey, the Cape Cod Commercial Fishermen’s Alliance policy director, resigned from the New England Fishery Management Council because he had taken a job as senior fisheries policy director with The Nature Conservancy in Monterey, California.

“He was an innovative thinker who was very appreciated for that, not just in this office, but in the greater (fishing) community,” said John Pappalardo, CEO of the alliance, who has now submitted the paperwork to replace Dempsey for the remainder of his expired term. He praised Dempsey’s diplomatic approach as well as his principles. “He was very bright and he didn’t go in there (to the council) to make friends.

"He went in to make a difference,” said Pappalardo.

The New England Fishery Management Council is one of eight regional councils nationwide responsible for plans to manage commercial and recreational fishing. The New England council has 18 voting members, including state and federal fisheries officials, fishermen, fishing industry representatives, environmentalists and the occasional scientist.

Read the full story from the Cape Cod Times