May 13, 2020 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Atlantic Herring Management Board members from Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts set the effort control measures for the 2020 Area 1A (inshore Gulf of Maine) fishery for Season 1 (June-September).
The Area 1A sub-annual catch limit (ACL) is 2,957 metric tons (mt) after adjusting for the research set-aside, the 30 mt fixed gear set-aside, and the fact that Area 1A closes at 92% of the sub-ACL. In October 2019, the Atlantic Herring Management Board implemented seasonal allocations for the 2020 fishery which allocates the Area 1A sub-ACL between June-September (72.8%) and October-December (27.2%).
Days Out of the Fishery
- Landing days will be set at zero from June 1 until the start of the fishery on July 19 in Maine and July 20 in New Hampshire and Massachusetts.
- Vessels with an Atlantic herring Limited Access Category A permit that have declared into the Area 1A fishery may land herring four (4) consecutive days a week. One landing per 24 hour period. Vessels are prohibited from landing or possessing herring caught from Area 1A during a day out of the fishery.
- Landings days in Maine begin on Sunday of each week at 6:00 p.m. starting July 19.
- Landing days in New Hampshire and Massachusetts begin on Monday of each week at 12:01 a.m. starting July 20.
- Small mesh bottom trawl vessels with an Atlantic herring Limited Access Category C or Open Access D permit that have declared into the fishery may land herring five (5) consecutive days a week.
Weekly Landing Limit
- Vessels with an Atlantic herring Category A permit may harvest up to 240,000 lbs. (6 trucks) per harvester vessel, per week starting July 19 in Maine and July 20 in New Hampshire and Massachusetts
At-Sea Transfer and Carrier Restrictions
The following applies to harvester vessels with an Atlantic herring Category A permit and carrier vessels landing herring caught in Area 1A to a Maine, New Hampshire, or Massachusetts port.
- A harvester vessel may transfer herring at-sea to another harvester vessel.
- A harvester vessel may not make any at-sea transfers to a carrier vessel.
- Carrier vessels may not receive at-sea transfers from a harvester vessel.
Fishermen are prohibited from landing more than 2,000 pounds of Atlantic herring per trip from Area 1A until July 19 or 20, 2020, depending on the state. Landings will be closely monitored and the fishery will be adjusted to zero landing days when the seasonal period quota is projected to be reached.
For more information, please contact Max Appelman, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator, at mappelman@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740.
The announcement, including motions from yesterday’s days out meeting, can be found here –http://www.asmfc.org/uploads/file/5ebc0a0eAtlHerringDaysOutMeasures_May2020.pdf