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Updates
Industry Update - July 31, 2007
We are seeking your input on the following current and upcoming issues. Your perspective will allow us to understand their impact more completely, and allow us to more effectively represent the interests of the New Jersey commercial fishing industry. We thank you in advance for your assistance and support.
Greg DiDomenico, GSSA, Executive Director
MID ATLANTIC FISHERY MANAGEMENT COUNCIL: The MAFMC will be meeting in Port Jefferson, NY on August 6-9, at Danford's on the Sound, 25 East Broadway, Port Jefferson, NY 11777 (telephone 631-928-5200). On Monday, August 6, from 9:00 - 5:30 p.m. the Squid, Mackerel, Butterfish Committee will review and discuss issues related to Amendment 10. This amendment will address butterfish discards in the loligo fishery and will include those options from Amendment 9 dealing with those issues. Amendment 9 will be voted on for submittal to Secretary of Commerce. During this meeting the MAFMC will recommend total allowable landings for fluke, scup, black sea bass and bluefish. If you would like the full Agenda, please let me know.
NEW JERSEY MARINE FISHERIES COUNCIL: Both the Artificial Reef Committee and the Spiny Dogfish Committee will meet on August 1st at 7:00 PM at the Nacote Creek office. GSSA staff will be attending both meetings. We are hopeful that we can resolve some administrative issues involving the opening of the spring dogfish fishery on May 1st 2008. The meeting will also address possible management actions on NJ artificial reefs. Those actions include a possible May 1st to October 31st pot/trap prohibition, as well as new marking requirements and the mandatory use of sinking groundlines for pots/traps. GSSA plans to make several suggestions to limit the impact on the pot/trap fishermen while addressing the issue of user conflicts around the reefs. Due to possible further reductions in our fluke and black sea bass quota we will be forced to make changes to our season and possession limits in these fisheries. We look forward to suggestions from the industry to allow for the best use of quota while accommodating the fishing industry. We will request a fluke and or black sea bass Committee Meeting as soon as possible.
MAGNUSON-STEVENS ACT (M-SA) REAUTHORIZATION IMPACTS ~ ANNUAL CATCH LIMITS (ACLs) & ACCOUNTABILITY MEASURES (AMs) IN NATIONAL STANDARD ONE GUIDELINES: The M-SA reauthorization of 2006 established new requirements to end and prevent overfishing through the use of annual catch limits (ACLs) and accountability measures (AMs). Federal fishery management plans must establish mechanisms for ACLs and AMs by 2010 for stocks subject to overfishing and by 2011 for all others. On February 14, 2007, NMFS announced in the Federal Register a proposal to develop guidelines for these new requirements. This will assist regional management councils and NMFS in developing ACLs and AMs to end and prevent overfishing in all U.S. commercial and recreational fisheries. GSSA, the Associated Fisheries of Maine and the West Coast Seafood Processors to submitted comments. Comments may be viewed in detail at NMFS’ new M-SA website: WWW.NMFS.NOAA.GOV/MSA2007.
THE BIG OCEAN BILL, a.k.a. “BOB”, a.k.a. H.R. 21: Rep Sam Farr (D-CA) and 21 co-sponsors (17 Democrats and 4 Republicans, including Reps. Saxton and Gilchrest) introduced the “Oceans Conservation, Education, and National Strategy for the 21st Century Act” also known at OCEANS-21 or “BOB”. The bill contains sweeping ocean governance provisions taken mostly from two sources: the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy report (2004) and the Pew Ocean Commission report (2003). The legislation establishes among other things, a national ocean policy, implements the “NOAA Organic Act” to reorganize the department, a system to advise the President on ocean issues, national/regional ocean leadership and coordination programs including ecosystem planning. The House Natural Resources Subcommittee held a hearing on the 124 page bill on April 26, 2007.
FY2008 FEDERAL APPROPRIATIONS: To date we are having mixed success regarding GSSA appropriations requests for federal funding in FY2008. The Senate Committee-passed version of the Commerce-Justice-State appropriations bill provides a total of $1.5M for the Atlantic Monkfish & Migratory Finfish Trawl Surveys – the only fish-related NJ earmark in the CJS bill. This is due to the diligent efforts of Senators Lautenberg and Menendez and their staff members. Considerable work remains to be done to maintain the funding level through the appropriations process this fall. Acomprehensive dogfish research program has not yet been funded as the House continues to develop CJS legislation.
Our third request to maintain the loan ceiling for traditional federal loans in NOAA’s Fisheries Finance Program (FFP) at the current level of $59.0M has not fared well so far. The traditional loan authority was not included in the Senate CJS bill. There is no indication from staff why this occurred. Traditional FFP loans are used to upgrade shore side facilities and improve vessel safety and gear without contributing to industry overcapitalization.
MONKFISH: Just prior to final publication of Framework 4 and start of the new fishing year in May 2007, the NMFS HQ staff pulled the joint council-approved action and substituted an interim rule in the southern area effectively reducing the DAS allocation to 12 (from 23) and removing the 10-day carry over provision from the prior year’s DAS allocation. The move was unprecedented, unanticipated, and quite possibly illegal.
The agency conducted a monkfish stock assessment review in early July to determine the status of the monkfish stock. Preliminary indications are positive regarding stock condition relative to the overfished/overfishing criteria. Based on the preliminary assessment results and our concern for the integrity of the management process, the Monkfish Defense Fund and GSSA staff met with high ranking NMFS officials to discuss how to move forward with new 2007 regulations in a timely manner and how to improve and continue cooperative research efforts. We remain hopeful for a management correction in the near term and we will continue to work for relief in 2007.
TILEFISH: The MAFMC is developing a hearing document for Amendment #1 to the Tilefish FMP. The objective of the amendment is to institute limited access privileges in the fishery. GSSA staff attended the MAFMC meeting in May to argue for fair allocations for NJ fishermen. GSSA secured a letter from Rep. Saxton (R-NJ) to the U.S. Attorney General formally requesting an examination of potentially unfair geographic concentration by fishermen from the State of New York.
MARINE MAMMALS: GSSA staffers are heavily engaged on several fronts related to marine mammal conservation. Greg DiDomenico and Rick Marks continue to argue against the agency’s actions prohibiting all gillnet fishing in a specified area in the South Atlantic region based on an alleged right whale interaction. GSSA should be wary of similar conservation efforts spilling over into the Mid-Atlantic region.
GSSA staffers continue to aggressively represent GSSA trawl and gillnet fishermen on three (i.e. Bottlenose Dolphin, Harbor Porpoise and Atlantic Trawl) MMPA “Take Reduction Teams” (TRT). A TRT meeting is scheduled for later this year to discuss harbor porpoise-gillnet interactions in the Mid-Atlantic region.
VESSEL SAFETY REQUIREMENTS: The House Transportation Committee recently approved USCG reauthorization legislation that includes several new provisions regarding commercial fishing vessel safety. Rep. LoBiondo (R-NJ) and his staff, working closely with GSSA staff, secured the only safety-related amendment by requiring the USCG to provide for an alternative safety compliance program (i.e. an option other than the ABS requirement currently mandated in the bill) for vessels > 25 years of age. Other provisions of the legislation that passed include but are not limited to mandatory safety drills and vessel inspection, maintenance of logs, a captain training program, stability requirements for new vessels or those recently altered, a retraction of the “Boundary Line”, and life raft requirements for all vessels regardless of where they fish. GSSA staff has contacted several Senate offices to ensure that the industry has the opportunity to be included in the legislative development process.
EARLY WARNING ~ POTENTIAL CLEAN WATER ACT REGULATIONS: The EPA announced its intent to conduct an exploratory effort designed to gather information in advance of a future rulemaking for possible changes to its permitting process for water-borne vessels. The EPA, operating well in advance of a final decision by the appeals court, has indicated it will consider requiring National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits pursuant to the Clean Water Act for commercial fishing vessels. GSSA staff will continue to track this issue.
FOREIGN SEAFOOD SAFETY ACT: Rep. Walter Jones (R-NC) introduced H.R. 3077 on July 18, 2007. The legislation is a response to recent problems with tainted aquacultured products imported from China. The bill amends the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act to ensure the safety of imported seafood by requiring that seafood products come only from countries certified by the U.S. The approach is somewhat analogous to the State Dept’s annual import certification program to ensure turtle-safe shrimp harvest. The bill was introduced with no co-sponsors but Rep. Jones’ staff is working to garner support for the legislation.
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