ALEXANDRIA, Virginia – MAY 8, 2012 — Dr. John Sweka with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service was presented the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission's Technical Achievement Award in recognition for his work in advancing the assessment and management of several Commission-managed species.
"On behalf of our Commissioners, I would like to commend Dr. Sweka for his keen technical and analytical support to our American Eel, Atlantic Striped Bass, and River Herring Stock Assessment Subcommittees as well as the Horseshoe Crab Adaptive Resource Management Subcommittee. His efforts and leadership have contributed to improved stock assessments and the use of innovative management tools," stated ASMFC Executive Director John V. O'Shea.
As Chair of the River Herring Stock Assessment Subcommittee, Dr. Sweka provided strong leadership in the development of the 2012 benchmark stock assessment for river herring. The assessment, endorsed for management use by an independent panel of scientists this May, analyzed and determined stock status for 52 river-specific populations of river herring.
In addition, Dr. Sweka played a key role in furthering horseshoe crab management by aiding in the development of the Adaptive Resource Management framework, incorporating both shorebird and horseshoe crab abundance levels to set horseshoe crab management measures for the Delaware Bay area. As a result of his efforts, horseshoe crab will be the first interstate fisheries management program to explicitly address multispecies objectives.