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	update_08_16_07
	update_08_31_07

April 2010

February 24th Rally in Washington D.C.
Garden State Seafood Association played a pivotal role in the “Fix Magnuson Now” rally and web-based petition drive that brought thousands of disgruntled commercial, recreational and party/charter boat fishermen to the US Capitol in Washington on February 24. GSSA staff members were involved in organizing the rally, in developing and operating the web petition, and GSSA President Jeff Reichle, Executive Director Greg DiDomenico and Communications Director Nils Stolpe all addressed the assembled fishermen. Our colleagues in the Recreational Fishing Alliance handled the logistics seamlessly, over two dozen Senate and House Members spoke, and they all repeated the same message: fisheries management under the current regime was failing fishermen in every sector and drastic change was needed immediately. New Jersey's Congressmen Pallone and LoBiondo both spoke.
As a follow-up, GSSA and the other fishing organizations that were involved in the rally are in the process of forming a new national organization of fishermen, Keep Fishermen Fishing and Working, which will continue to work towards restoring the Magnuson Act to its original purpose; allowing US fishermen to sustainably harvest the rich bounty of our coastal and ocean waters. The Keep Fishermen Fishing website is at http://www.keepfishermenfishing.com/.

National Catch Shares Policy
NOAA released a draft national policy on December 10, 2009 encouraging the use of catch share programs around the country. GSSA staff is fully engaged in this process since the beginning and will continue to advocate for flexibility for the harvesters and protection of shore-based investment. We attended a workshop conducted by Mid Atlantic Fishery Management Council and we were joined by several GSSA members. Our participation will continue at the MAFMC. The draft policy is available at http://www.nmfs.gov/catchshares and comments will be accepted through April 10, 2010. The GSSA will be submitting comments.

National Ocean Policy Initiative
The Administration’s efforts to implement a new National Ocean Policy are in full swing. The NOAA leadership is working on a two-pronged approach to the policy – creation of a broad national ocean policy and more targeted marine spatial planning component. GSSA staff are actively engaged in this process. The first component, an “Interim Report of the Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force” was published on September 10, 2009 and is now available at www.whitehouse.gov/oceans. The second issue regarding development of a national framework for marine spatial planning (MSP) is also under construction and GSSA filed comments with CEQ in February 2010 on the “Interim Framework for Effective Coastal and Marine Spatial Planning” which is available at www.whitehouse.gov/oceans.

July 2010

Commercial Fisherman Retains 3 Year Appointment on Mid Atlantic Council

On July 23, the US Department of Commerce announced the 2010 appointments to the regional fishery management councils. We are pleased to report the reappointment of Mr. Erling Berg from Cape May, New Jersey for another 3-year term on the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council. GSSA staff worked diligently for many months to take the necessary steps to insure Erling’s reappointment.

We could not have been successful without the support of New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and the leadership of members of the NJ Congressional Delegation -- specifically Senators Frank Lautenberg and Robert Menendez, Congressmen Frank Pallone and Frank LoBiondo. We extend our thanks to all of them for their continuing interest in and support of New Jersey’s fishing community, and we thank the many commercial, recreational and party/charter fishermen in and outside New Jersey who supported this critical reappointment.

Catch Shares in Mid Atlantic Fisheries
The Mid Atlantic Fishery Management Council during their June Meeting agreed that it would undertake a catch share “visioning process” prior to considering catch shares in the squid fisheries, or in any other MAFMC fishery. This visioning process was identified as one of the next steps following the Council’s March 16-18 Catch Share Workshop.
The “visioning process” will create a sub-committee to look at FMPs and determine which stocks appear suitable for catch share programs, conduct surveys to fishery participants about the problems they see in their fisheries and possibly address latent effort and inactive permits before designing any catch share programs. GSSA staff and industry members provided written comments in opposition of catch shares in these fisheries and will continue to play an active role in the “visioning process”.
Spiny Dogfish TAC increased
Following an assessment this past spring the National Marine Fisheries Service determined that the spiny dogfish stock was rebuilt and selected an intermediate harvest level of 15 million pounds for the next fishing year. This conservative quota represents a 25% increase over the current quota. The trip limits in the directed fishery will still be maintained at 3,000 pounds. GSSA staff members have been fully and effectively engaged in the dogfish assessment and management process and will continue their participation as the dogfish stock continues to flourish.

The Garden State Seafood Association is awarded federal grant

The GSSA will be working with Rutgers University scientists to provide technical assistance in close coordination with the Northeast Fisheries Science Center Cooperative Research Program. The research will focus on bycatch issues in the directed Loligo squid fishery and assist with data analysis of the cooperative monkfish trawl survey. After research is completed GSSA will conduct constituent workshops held in Massachusetts and New Jersey. GSSA will organize the workshops and disseminate project results to the fishing industry in close coordination with the NEFSC Cooperative Research Program.

Appropriation Request for Fiscal Year 2010

GSSA submitted a FY2009 CJS appropriations request to several NJ Congressional offices for the Fisheries Finance Program (FFP). The FFP is a long-term, loan program managed by the NMFS and made available to US commercial fishing vessel owners, shore side seafood processors, and aquaculture operations. The Traditional Loan component of the FFP, funded at $59.0M for 2008, allows commercial participants to refurbish fishing vessels and improve shore side plant facilities and to finance aquaculture operations. Several NJ-based fishing operations utilize this loan program. The FFP is a successful loan program, not a subsidy, which generates money for the US Treasury.

NMFS opens federal waters to a limited spiny dogfish fishery

Following rapidly on the heels of a Dogfish Forum that GSSA members and other groups held in Philadelphia (the proceedings are linked to the Fishnet USA website at http://www.fishnet-usa.org), federal waters were once again opened to a limited directed dogfish fishery. The trip limit is 3,000 pounds and the commercial quota is 12 million pounds, divided into two seasons. While the stock could support a much larger fishery, these new regulations will once again allow fishermen and processors to profitably work on dogfish and reestablish the export markets. Additionally, any significant reduction in the size of the dogfish stock will benefit just about every other fishery in the mid-Atlantic and Southern New England.

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GSSA Efforts on Summer Flounder

 

GSSA has been part of the collective efforts to address the stock assessment issues for fluke, attending numerous workshops leading up to the final stock assessment, giving written and public testimony and providing essential funds for the scientists we are working with. We were encouraged that our efforts produced positive results, including an increase in the overall quota resulting in an increase of over 200,000 pounds of quota for New Jersey commercial fishermen. We have received generous support from several fish houses. Our efforts could not have happened and cannot continue without your support. This year will require continued efforts on fluke and a completely new initiative for black sea bass. We are in the process of preparing to address these issues and will be asking all of you for your assistance and financial support.

1) Summer Flounder Assessment: GSSA's staff continues to play an important role in this issue and has organized the ongoing efforts of several scientists to participate and offer their individual expertise throughout the entire assessment review process. We have attended every stock assessment workshop thus far and will be at the May 20th workshop in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. The assessment will be finalized in June and we will continue to advocate for adequate science, a sustainable fishery, realistic rebuilding goals and a stable fishery. A summary of the May workshop might provide with possible range of next years quota and preliminary status report for the fishery.

2) Squid, Mackerel and Butterfish Fishery Management Plan: GSSA has been following all management issue concerning these very important fisheries. On May 22nd we will be attending the Monitoring Committee Meeting that is being held in Providence RI. The Monitoring Committee will be setting the specifications for these fisheries for the 2009 fishing year.

Amendment 9 to the SMB Fishery Management Plan: Throughout the entire amendment process GSSA has provided written and public testimony on this issue and will be submitting final comments to the proposed rule. This amendment has been reduced from its original form and will implement a continued moratorium on illex pernits, designate Essential Fish Habitat for Loligo squid eggs, prohibit bottom trawling in Oceanographer and Lydonia Canyons, allow for the setting of multi-year specifications and revise the biological reference points. If you would like a copy of our comments please let me know and I can send them to you.

Amendment 10 the SMB Fishery Management Plan: This amendment will be addressing the bycatch issues that occur in the Loligo fishery, specifically butterfish discards. Many of the management actions contained in the amendment could have a serious negative impact on the Loligo fishery, including increased mesh size for the Loligo squid fisher, gear restricted areas, butterfish bycatch cap and industry funded observer coverage. As soon as I can I will provide you with the alternatives and obtain your advice on the specific options. Please be advised that a public hearing will take place on this issue on Monday, June 9th at 7:00 PM at the Sheraton Convention Center in Atlantic City. Before the hearing occurs will do my best to communicate the most important issues to all of you and formulate a position for those issues. It is very important that you all attend this meeting.

Squid, Mackerel and Butterfish Quotas for 2009: The Monitoring Committee recommended an 1800 metric ton increase in the Loligo quid quota. All other quotas will remain at the same level for 2009. The Mid Atlantic Fishery Management Council will be discussing the specifications during its June meeting in Atlantic City. Here is a link to the MAFMC where you can find the Agenda for the meeting. http://www.mafmc.org/mid-atlantic/press/press.htm

3) Omnibus Appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2008: Due to the efforts of NJ Senators Lautenberg and Menendez, Congress made available $1.339M in federal funding for the purposes of conducting an industry-NMFS cooperative trawl survey ($1.25M) targeting monkfish from Maine to North Carolina in 2008. The 2008 survey will be the 3rd and final cooperative survey conducted during the past 9. The information from these cooperative surveys provides estimates of total monkfish stock biomass and fishing mortality rates and is used directly in the stock assessment process. The remaining portion of the funding ($89,000) will be awarded to GSSA and Rutgers staff to assist the research efforts are to provide technical support to complete cruise analysis.

4) Dogfish: At a workshop held in at the University of New England in Beddeford, Maine on March 29, NMFS officials reportedly appeared to be fully committed to their course of continuing to “rebuild” the spiny dogfish stocks which are having severe negative impacts on the fish and the fisheries in New England and the Mid-Atlantic. At this point trying to address this situation through the severely compromised federal fisheries management process is futile. Therefore GSSA staff will be meeting with affected recreational and commercial fishermen to spearhead an effort to have legislation introduced in Washington that will increase the harvest - and decrease the numbers – of these voracious predators.

5) Monkfish: Representatives of the Garden State Seafood Association and the Monkfish Defense Fund have been deeply involved in monkfish management for the past six years. In that time, in very large part due to their efforts, the fishery has progressed from being poised on the brink of a total closure to the point where it is recognized today as not being overfished. It has taken a concerted effort on the art of the GSSA and the MDF, focused on a series of cooperative trawl surveys and working with the managers to complete a new stock assessment (in the summer of 2007) to accomplish this, but our efforts have been rewarded with an open fishery and with stocks which are now recognized to be in as good shape as the fishermen have been assuring the managers they were in initially. With our urging, both the Mid-Atlantic Council and the New England Council voted at their meetings last month to do away with the backstop provision in the Monkfish FMP that would have closed this year’s directed fishery if last year’s landings had exceeded the target TAC by over 30% (they did in the Southern Management Area.)

6) Abandoned Vessels: Both Houses of the NJ Legislature have passed legislation to address abandoned vessel in NJ waterways and marinas.The bill is head to the Governor's desk where he is expected to sign the legislation.

7) National Pollutant Discharge Elimination Permits (NPDES): GSSA staff has been working diligently to gain support from the New Jersey delegation and secure federal legislation that would provide exemptions for certain size vessels and provide for a two years study to determine if discharge permits are needed at all. We have been communicating with industry members from all coastal states for support and urging them to voice their concerns with elected officials from their regions. Unfortunately yesterday the Senate Committee approved a bill (2766) that would only exempt recreational vessels. As this issue develops we will keep you posted and will continue to pursue exemptions for commercial fishing vessels.