Mid-Atlantic Council to Meet in Philly to Set 2011 QuotasRecreational Fishing Alliance 8/10/1010 New Gretna, NJ - The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council (MAFMC) is set to meet in Philadelphia from August 16-19. On the agenda is the 2011 quota setting process for black sea bass, bluefish, scup and summer flounder. Additionally, the MAFMC will also be considering final action on the Annual Catch Limit (ACL)/Accountability Measures (AM) Omnibus Amendment.
As of today, fishermen are expecting some good news next week following recent meetings of the Council's Science and Statistical Committee (SSC) and Monitoring Committee (MC). At those meetings, the SSC and MC recommended that summer flounder total allowable catch quotas could be set in the 32 to 34 million-pound range, representing a 30% increase over the 2010 quota while providing for a landings level amongst the highest allowed in the past 20 years. Scup, also known locally as porgies, could see an even larger increase, with the SSC and MC offering recommendations of increases in allowable catch from 15% to near 200%. Status quo was the consensus recommendation for black sea bass, while bluefish quota is poised to drop slightly.
"This is good, potentially great news for anglers," said Capt. Adam Nowalsky, the Recreational Fishing Alliance's New Jersey (RFA-NJ) Chapter Chairman, who attended the meetings. "Industry and public involvement by groups such as the Save the Summer Flounder Fishery Fund (SSFFF) and constant lobbying by the RFA have made the case for increasing quotas as stock biomass grows, and the regulatory process is responding in a positive manner."
Increases in quota should provide the opportunity for less restrictive regulations in 2011, but recreational landings in 2010 based on the MRFSS system could mitigate or eliminate entirely those potential improvements to size, season and possession limits. "We won't know what potential regulations we will be facing until November and December when those specifications are set," explained Capt. Tony Bogan of United Boatmen and a member of RFA-NJ Board of Directors.
MRFSS, or the Marine Recreational Fisheries Statistics Survey, has come under heavy scrutiny in recent years after having been labeled "fatally flawed" by the National Academy of Sciences' National Research Council (NRC). When the Magnuson Stevens Act was reauthorized by Congress in 2006, strict mandates requiring NMFS to replace MRFSS with a more effective recreational harvest survey program were to have been met within two years of the signing of the law. However, only limited improvements have been made.
"The MRFSS survey has statistically high percentages of error and continues to be used by the federal fisheries service to collect hard landings numbers for recreational fisheries," Nowalsky said, adding "it was never designed nor intended to be used for that purpose, and that's why Congress mandated the change." According to the RFA, a random survey program known as MRIP (Marine Recreational Information Program) has potential for improvement, but is still being developed. According to requirements contained within the Magnuson Stevens Act, it's almost two full years behind schedule, which Bogan says is having a grave impact on the recreational business community.
"Our recreational anglers continue to be penalized with more restrictive regulations based on MRFSS, despite increases in allowable catch. Something's got to give, but mostly it's been the recreational sector giving the most," Bogan said.
Equally important for anglers with respect to available quotas in upcoming seasons will be the MAFMC discussions next week of the ACL/AM Omnibus Amendment. Designed to bring Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Plans into compliance with the revised Magnuson Stevens Act, provisions of the new amendment could penalize recreational anglers by reducing allowable catch quotas based on MRFSS estimated landings. "Overwhelming public comment against the use of MRFSS in the manner prescribed by the Omnibus led to some important modifications at the June MAFMC meeting," explained Capt. Nowalsky.
"Some troubling aspects concerning the use of MRFSS remain, particularly recreational paybacks," he added. According to Nowalsky, MAFMC members representing New Jersey including Erling Berg, Peter Himchak (from the state's Marine Fisheries Administration) and Chris Zeman were unanimous in opposing the use of MRFSS for prescriptive in-season closures. The NMFS Regional Administrator may still have authority to close fisheries based on MRFSS. An RFA lawsuit is presently ongoing challenging this authority.
The Omnibus Amendment is on the agenda for Tuesday, August 17, while quotas will be set on Wednesday, August 18. The Council meeting is open to the public, and more information about the meeting location and times can be found on the RFA-NJ website at
www.rfanj.org. (Click the Council Meeting link under Upcoming Events.)
In other regulatory news, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (Commission) met in Alexandria, VA the week of August 2. The Commission's Tautog Management Board was convened for the first time in over two years, meeting to discuss current issues in the tautog fishery, including the illegal harvest of tautog. The Commission voted to initiate the development of an addendum to reduce illegal harvest of tautog for the live market, which includes several strategies designed to help curb poaching.
New Jersey's anglers should also be happy to hear that the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection has completed the process of adopting amendments to N.J.A.C 7:25-18 concerning the recreational and commercial fisheries for Atlantic coastal sharks. This brings to a close a multi-year regulatory update process that threatened NJ with a closed shark season in 2010. Updated 2010 shark and other recreational fishing regulations in NJ can be found online at
www.njfishandwildlife.com/digmar10.htm with shark regulations specifically detailed on pages 15 and 18.
"Many thanks go out to the state for getting this done and keeping the fishery open," said Capt. Nowalsky, "especially Marine Fisheries Administration staff." In recognizing the $1.6 billion industry that is recreational fishing in this state, Capt. Nowalsky added, "RFA-NJ looks forward to continue working with the state on ongoing fisheries issues."
