June NMFS Address 11, 2014 (NOAA): Council Address. Dover, DE 19901

Transcription

1 BLACK SEA BASS SEASON OPENING FRAMEWORK ADJUSTMENT Discussion Document and Background June 2014 Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council in cooperation with the National Marine Fisheriess Service (NMFS) Council Address Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council 800 North State Street, Suite 201 Dover, DE NMFS Address NMFS Northeast Regional Office 55 Great Republic Drive Gloucester, MA First Framework Meeting: June 11, 2014 Second Framework Meeting: August Final approved by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA): 1

2 Purpose of June 2014 Meeting: Review purpose and need, timeline, direction of alternative development, etc. Initiate framework if appropriate. Framework Purpose and Need This action is necessary to address two issues that have been identified with recreational black sea bass seasons: 1. Closing Wave 1 (Jan-Feb) to black sea bass fishing means that one of the few recreational fisheries that could be available in January-February is not. Access to black sea bass in Wave 1 could be important for the overall business survival of some for-hire operations. From the 2013 Advisory Panel Fishery Performance Report: "The advisors would like to see the fishery open in wave 1 in 2015, and stated that they should not be penalized because NMFS does not have MRIP sampling during wave 1. [Vessel Trip Reports (VTRs)] are completed by party/charter vessels and can and should be used to account for landings during this time. Alternatively, NMFS should produce estimates for wave 1." 2. Opening the black sea bass fishery on May 1 versus the middle of May could be important for private and for-hire fishermen alike, as well as the businesses that service those potential fishermen. Early May is a time of the year when not too many other fisheries are open and/or available, and there could be socio-economic benefits to opening the black sea bass fishery on May 1 versus later in May. Due to the timing of the current specifications and rulemaking process, a framework adjustment would be needed in order to implement either of these adjustments for the 2015 fishing year. Typically, the final rule for recreational measures does not publish until late May or June, meaning that the normal specifications process would not allow either of these modifications to be implemented in time for the 2015 season. If no adjustments to the opening dates are desired for the 2015 fishing year, adjustments for 2016 could be made through the specifications process in late Timeline - Note: This is a feasible but aggressive timeline. June 11, 2014: Framework Meeting 1 - The Council initiates the framework if desired and directs staff regarding alternative development. August 2014: The Council approves alternatives at Framework Meeting 2 to recommend to NMFS. August 2014: Council staff submits Environmental Assessment September 2014: Review of Environmental Assessment, document perfection. October 2014: Proposed Rule publishes December 1, 2014: Final Rule publishes January 1, 2015: Final Rule effective 2

3 Relevant Motions From December 2013 Meeting Move that for 2015 there be consideration of a wave 1 fishery in federal waters contingent upon additional reporting including VTR data. Council: O Reilly/Zeman (16/2/0) Motion carries Move that the possession limit be 15 fish during wave 1, Council: O Reilly/DiLernia (15/1/0) Motion carries Alternative Set 1 Approaches Alternative 1a: Open Wave 1 for for-hire operators that agree to submit electronic logbooks on a weekly basis via one of the electronic logbook packages that are approved by NMFS: Vessels would have to apply for participation in this program. Any vessel that fails to report in an accurate and/or timely manner will lose the opportunity to fish in Wave 1. Several Size/Trip limit options will be analyzed, including 15 fish per the above motion. Several options to account for/balance increased Wave 1 catch will be developed. Electronic logbook data for black sea bass landings could be used to produce estimates of catch and landings that would be counted against the annual harvest and catch limits. Alternative Set 2 Approaches Alternative 2a: Open Black Sea Bass fishing in federal waters on May 1, Several options to account for increased Wave 3 (May-Jun) catch will be developed since opening the season earlier would require some other form of catch reduction to maintain the same overall catch. 3

4 Description of the Relevant Fisheries Table 1 summarizes black sea bass catch by wave (Wave 1 = Jan-Feb; Wave 2 = Mar- Apr; Wave 3 = May-Jun; Wave 4 = Jul-Aug; Wave 5 = Sept-Oct; Wave 6 = Nov-Dec). There is no Wave 1 sampling/estimation north of North Carolina. Tables 2 and 3 summarize recent black sea bass specifications and state management measures. Black sea bass remains an important component of the recreational fishery. Estimation of primary species sought as reported by anglers in recent intercept surveys from Maine through North Carolina indicates that black sea bass trips increased from a low of 0.14 million trips in 1999 to a high of 0.42 million trips in 2010 (Table 4). In 2013, the number of recreational fishing trips reported by anglers targeting black sea bass was 0.24 million trips. Approximately 73 percent of the black sea bass landed recreationally are by private fishermen or fishermen with boat rentals, followed by 26 percent in the party/charter mode, and 1 percent by shore-based fishermen from 2009 to 2013 (Table 5). Table 6 lists the relative contribution of the states to total black sea bass landings in 2012 and Recent years have seen a shift in the location of black sea bass landings from waters more than 3 miles from shore to waters less than 3 miles from shore (Table 7). The black sea bass recreational fishery was open during Wave Available VTR data indicate that an estimated 69,686 lb of black sea bass were landed during that time period (Table 8). Note that this VTR data does not include private fishing or for-hire vessels fishing in state waters without a federal permit. Staff Recommendations None at this time other than that staff will develop analyses if the framework is initiated. If the Council has specific alternatives that it would like analyzed, identifying them will guide staff appropriately. 4

5 Table1. a) Average percent of black sea bass landed (in number) by wave, , based on MRIP landings data, and b) projected reduction in black sea bass landings (in number) associated with closing one day per wave, based on MRIP landings data. a. State Wave 1 Wave 2 Wave 3 Wave 4 Wave 5 Wave 6 MA RI CT NY NJ DE MD VA NC a Coast a North of Hatteras. b. State Wave 1 Wave 2 Wave 3 Wave 4 Wave 5 Wave 6 MA RI CT NY NJ DE MD VA NC a Coast a North of Hatteras. 5

6 Table 2. Summary of management measures for the black sea bass recreational fishery, Measure Harvest Limit (m lb) Landings (m lb) a Possession Limit b - b - b Size Limit (TL in) Open Season 1/1-12/31 1/1-12/31 1/1-7/30 and 8/16-12/31 1/1-12/31 1/1-12/31 6 1/1-2/28 and 5/10-12/31 1/1-12/31 1/1-9/1 and 9/16-11/30 Measure Harvest Limit (m lb) 1/1-9/7 and 9/22-11/ Landings (m lb) a d - - Possession Limit or Size Limit (TL in) Open Season 1/1-12/31 1/1-12/31 1/1-12/31 1/1-12/31 1/1-10/5 5/22-10/1 and 11/1-12/31 1/1-2/29, 5/19-10/14, and 11/1-12/31 5/19-10/14, and 11/1-12/31 1/1-9/7 and 9/22-11/ c - - a For data are MRFSS, are MRIP. b There was no Federal possession limit but some states implemented a 20 fish possession limit in these years. c Council-preferred; pending implementation by NMFS. d Projected using average proportion from MRIP wave 6, and 2013 MRIP wave 1-5 data (Source: Pers. Comm. with the National Marine Fisheries Service, Fisheries Statistics Division, January 6, 2013).

7 Table 3. Black sea bass recreational management measures by state, State Minimum Size (inches) Possession Limit Open Season New Hampshire fish January 1-December 31 Massachusetts (Private and For-hire) Massachusetts (For-hire with Letter of Authorization from MA DMF) 14 8 fish May 17- September Rhode Island 13 Connecticut (Private and Shore) CT Authorized Party/Charter Monitoring Program Vessels 13 8 fish May 17- May fish September 1- September 30 3 fish June 29- August 31 7 fish September 1- December 31 3 fish June 21- August 31 8 fish September 1- December 31 8 fish June 21-December 31 New York 13 8 fish July 15- December 31 New Jersey fish July 1- August 31 May 19- June 30; 15 fish September1- September 6; October 18- December 31 Delaware fish May 19 - September 18 and October 18 - December 31 Maryland fish May 19 - September 18 and October 18 - December 31 PRFC fish May 19 - September 18 and October 18 - December 31 Virginia fish May 19 - September 18 and October 18 - December 31 North Carolina (North of Cape Hatteras N Latitude) fish May 19 - September 18 and October 18 - December 31 7

8 Table 4. Number of black sea bass recreational fishing trips, recreational harvest limit, recreational landings, and historical performance from 1994 to Year Number of Fishing Trips a Recreational Harvest Limit (million lb) Recreational Landings of Black Sea Bass (million lb) c Overage (+%)/ Underage (-%) ,888 None 3.05 None ,537 None 6.34 None ,090 None 3.99 None ,898 None 4.26 None , % , % , % , % , b % , b % , b % , b % , b % , b % , b % , b % , b % , b % , b % ,828 d 2.26 b 2.46 e +9% 2014 NA 2.26 b,f NA NA a Estimated number of recreational fishing trips (expanded) where the primary target species was summer flounder, Maine through North Carolina. Source: Scott Steinback, NMFS/NER/NEFSC. b Recreational harvest limits from are adjusted for research set-aside. c From Maine through Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. d Estimated from preliminary 2013 MRIP data. e Projected using average proportion from MRIP data (due to recreational closure in wave 6 of 2012) and 2013 MRIP wave 1-5 data (Source: Pers. Comm. with the National Marine Fisheries Service, Fisheries Statistics Division, January 6, 2013). f Council-preferred, pending implementation. NA = Data not available 8

9 Table 5. The number of black sea bass landed from Maine through North Carolina by mode, Source: Personal communication from the National Marine Fisheries Service, Fisheries Statistics and Economics Division (MRIP: May 2014). Year Shore Party/Charter Private/Rental ,103 1,440, , ,445 8,104,204 2,063, ,012 4,005,707 1,403, ,227 1,128,294 1,264, ,448 2,393,049 1,659, ,021,525 16,695,387 4,187, ,956 1,157,243 2,238, ,754 1,691,300 2,227, ,970 1,991,672 2,419, ,378 2,268,915 1,710, ,675 2,586,145 2,621, ,369 2,043,190 1,780, ,676 4,579,662 1,562, ,347 2,005,883 1,321, ,982 5,197,231 1,413, ,523 2,631,733 1,062, ,337 3,950, , , , , , , , ,489 1,797,702 1,780, ,035 1,826,852 1,164, ,618 2,066,232 1,338, ,760 2,073,132 1,308, , ,453 1,217, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,107 1,442, , ,529 1,809, , , , , ,777 1,237, , ,574 1,035,530 % of total, % 60% 37% % of total, % 26% 73% 9

10 Table 6. State contribution (as a percentage) to total recreational landings of black sea bass (MRIP Type A+B1 in number of fish), from Maine through North Carolina, 2012 and State Maine New Hampshire Massachusetts Rhode Island Connecticut New York New Jersey Delaware Maryland Virginia North Carolina Total 100% 100% Source: Personal communication from the National Marine Fisheries Service, Fisheries Statistics and Economics Division (August 2013). 10

11 Table 7. Percentage of black sea bass recreational landings (MRIP Type A+B1 in number of fish) by year and area, Maine through North Carolina, These area information are self-reported based on the area where the majority of fishing activity occurred per angler trip. Year State <= 3 mi EEZ > 3 mi % 74.4% % 70.1% % 65.1% % 65.2% % 39.7% % 32.5% % 27.9% % 36.2% % 27.4% % 31.2% Avg Avg % 47.0% 68.4% 31.6% Table 8: January/February 2013 VTR results for black sea bass (kept and discarded lb). Note that vessels fishing in state waters without a federal permit are not required to submit a VTR. Source: Personal communication, Gary Shepherd, NEFSC. Sum of kept lb Sum of disc. lb DE MD NJ NY RI 26 VA SUM 69,686 26,415 THIS PAGE IS THE FINAL PAGE OF THIS DOCUMENT. 11