Update on the 2017 Atlantic Menhaden Fishing Season

Transcription

1 Update on the 2017 Atlantic Menhaden Fishing Season Sustainable Fisheries Branch NMFS Beaufort Laboratory Beaufort, NC GSMFC Spring Meeting Panama City, FL March 13, 2018

2 2017 Landings for Reduction One factory on Atlantic coast at Reedville, VA, since 2005 Coastwide Total Allowable Catch limit (TAC) raised (200,000 metric tons) 152,112 mt allocated for reduction Landings for 2017 reduction fishery: 128,923 mt (or 424 million standard fish) Decreased 6.2% from 2016 (160,524 mt) Decreased 8.4% from previous 5-yr average (145,345 mt) U.S. Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NOAA Fisheries Page 2

3 Vessel Participation for Omega Protein vessels unloaded Atlantic menhaden for reduction in 2017 at Reedville 1 VA snapper-rig boat (bait vessel) also unloaded for reduction at Omega One landed for bait only ~4 purse-seiners reported catch for bait in Atlantic U.S. Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NOAA Fisheries Page 3

4 Coastwide Stock Second year in a row of large menhaden landings in Northeast Episodic Event declared for bait fishing Bait fisheries New Jersey: closed in July, re-opened in August New York, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Maine participated in the episodic event this season Very wet and windy start to the season in May Hyper-Active Tropical Cyclone Season Not quite as affected as the Gulf U.S. Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NOAA Fisheries Page 4

5 Reduction Landings and Nominal Fishing Effort Atlantic menhaden landings (1,000 metric tons) Nominal fishing effort (1,000 vessel-weeks) ,000 Metric Tons ,000 Vessel-Weeks U.S. Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NOAA Fisheries Page 5

6 2017 Landings by Month 1,000 Metric Tons Year Average 5 0 April May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec U.S. Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NOAA Fisheries Page 6

7 Age Compositions in 2017 by Fishing Area from preliminary catch-at-age matrix U.S. Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NOAA Fisheries Page 7

8 Coastwide Stock 2014 benchmark assessment Stock is not overfished and overfishing not occurring U.S. Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NOAA Fisheries Page 8

9 Coastwide Stock 2014 benchmark assessment Stock is not overfished and overfishing not occurring Atlantic Menhaden Management Board 2012 Established an 170,800 mt coastwide Total Allowable Catch 2015 increase in TAC (187,880 mt) 2017 TAC increased to (200,000 mt) Subject to the same allocation plan as described in Amendment 2 U.S. Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NOAA Fisheries Page 9

10 Coastwide Stock 2014 benchmark assessment Stock is not overfished and overfishing not occurring Atlantic Menhaden Management Board 2012 Established an 170,800 mt coastwide Total Allowable Catch 2015 increase in TAC (187,880 mt) 2017 TAC increased to (200,000 mt) Subject to the same allocation plan as described in Amendment 2 Amendment 3 to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan Raised the TAC to 216,000 mt Adjusted allocation of landings Lowered the Chesapeake Bay catch limit U.S. Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NOAA Fisheries Page 10

11 2017 Atlantic Menhaden TAC, by allocation unit Unit Percent of TAC 2017 (1,000 Metric Tons) ME 0.04% 78 NH <0.01% 0.06 MA 0.8% 1,660 RI 0.02% 35 CT 0.02% 34 NY 0.06% 110 NJ 11% 22,160 DE 0.01% 26 MD 1.4% 2,718 Potomac River 0.6% 1,229 VA (Reduction) 76% 152,112 VA (Bait) 8.5% 16,826 NC 0.5% 976 SC GA FL 0.02% 36 Total 1, ,000* * Does not include the 1% episodic set-aside U.S. Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NOAA Fisheries Page 11

12 2018 Atlantic Menhaden TAC, by allocation unit Unit 2018 Percent of TAC 2018 (1,000 Metric Tons) 2017 (1,000 Metric Tons) ME 0.52% 1, NH 0.5% 1, MA 1.27% 2,725 1,660 RI 0.52% 1, CT 0.52% 1, NY 0.69% 1, NJ 10.9% 23,250 2,718 PA 0.5% 1,069 1,229 DE 0.51% 1, ,112 MD 1.89% 4,038 16,826 Potomac River 1.07% 2, VA 78.7% 168,213 NC 0.96% 2,044 SC 0.5% 1, GA 0.5% 1, FL 0.52% 1,108 Total 2, ,840* 198,000* * Does not include the 1% episodic set-aside U.S. Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NOAA Fisheries Page 12