Tag Archives: Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission
With the Menhaden Stock Status Still Unknown, Industry Leaders Request Better Science
WASHINGTON — April 1, 2013 — In the wake of a deeply flawed 2012 stock assessment that has prevented the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) from determining the status of Atlantic menhaden, members of the bait and reduction fisheries have written to the ASMFC calling for updated science and better data collection for the menhaden assessment. continued For more information on the stock status see: “Menhaden are Overfished” Reports Turn Out Premature
heating up – Passamaquoddys to hold press conference on elver fishing controversy
The press conference is being held in response to a statement Friday by Maine Department of Marine Resources Commissioner Patrick Keliher that the tribe had put the state out of compliance with fishing restrictions imposed by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission by issuing more than twice the number of elver licenses it should have. Keliher said that by issuing 575, the tribe has put Maine out of compliance with elver regulations. continued
Officials: Elver eel season stunted by low temperatures, prices – Fishery in the government crosshairs!
ELLSWORTH, Maine — The 2013 elver fishing season in Maine has begun with cooler temperatures and cooler prices, according to a state official. “They’re a little bit on the spotty side,” Separate from the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission process, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service is considering listing American eels under the federal Endangered Species Act, which could result in a ban on all American eel fishing. continue reading
Hearings next month on eel fishery rules – Three Maine hearings will be held in April on proposed catch regulations.
The proposed regulations are the result of a stock assessment that concluded the American eel population is technically depleted, likely due to a combination of overfishing, habitat loss, predation, environmental changes, disease, toxins and contaminants, food web alterations and turbine mortality. continue reading
Northern Shrimp Shrimping hours expanded, season end date set for April 12, 2013
Due to low catches of northern shrimp, which officials say may be a result of relatively warm water temperatures in the Gulf of Maine, hours in the fishery are being expanded, according to officials. The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission also set a season end date of April 12 and, for the trap fishery, decided to remove the daily limit of 500 pounds, the Maine Department of Marine Resources said. Read more
Maine’s shrimp fishing days and limit expanded
Maine’s shrimp fishing will be expanded to seven days a week until April 12 due to the low catch rates so far this season, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission said on Friday. Read more
New Jersey may get some reprieve on reduced flounder catch
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, a compact of East Coast states that regulates migratory fish, is considering an addendum to the fishery management plan to allow sharing between states. Such a management technique has been used on commercial fisheries but never for the recreational sector, said Interstate Fisheries Management Plan Director Toni Kerns of the ASMFC. Read more
Maine’s shrimp fishing days increased
The number of days for shrimp harvesting was doubled to four days a week due to the weak catch since the season started last month. The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Northern Shrimp Season voted to double the fishing days on Thursday afternoon. Read more here
Reminder — Gillnet Bycatch Workshop in Ocean City, Maryland — on January 22 and 23 — You can join via webinar!
Jan 22, 2013 12:30 PM – 6:00 PM EST
Jan 23, 2013 10:30 AM – 1:00 PM EST
Register Now at: https://www3.gotomeeting.com/
Rhode Island PolitiFact Meter Shows The Pew Environment Group “Facts” are MOSTLY FALSE!
“In recent years, menhaden numbers along our coast have plummeted by 90 percent.”
Pew Environment Group on Tuesday, December 11th, 2012 in a newspaper advertisement
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission is scheduled to vote today, Dec. 14, on whether to cut the catch limit for Atlantic menhaden.
Environmentalists say the menhaden population, a crucial part of the Atlantic ecosystem, has dropped to dangerous levels. Menhaden are an important food source for tuna, cod, striped bass, whales, dolphins, ospreys and eagles.
“Governor Chafee: When this little fish disappears we’re in big trouble.”
Our ruling
The Pew Environment Group said that “in recent years, menhaden numbers along our coasts have plummeted by 90 percent,” a very specific number. It says overfishing must be halted to rebuild the population.
The estimated number of menhaden is clearly well below the estimated population for the late 1980s. But it’s currently at levels seen in the 1960s.
If you want to claim a 90-percent drop, you have to compare the 2008 population to a very specific — and very exceptional — year, 1982.
We don’t consider a 30-year-old benchmark to be “recent.”
Because the statement contains some element of truth but ignores critical facts that would give a different impression, we rate it Mostly False.
http://www.politifact.com/rhode-island/statements/2012/dec/14/pew-environment-group/pew-environment-group-says-atlantic-menhaden-popul/ About PolitiFact Rhode Island
Maine shrimp industry in such dire straits season might be called off this year
PORTLAND, Maine — Maine’s Gulf of Maine boats traditionally take to the waters of the Gulf of Maine the first week of December. But not this year. And not last year. In fact, the Northern Shrimp Technical Committee of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission recommends that there not be a shrimp season at all this year.
EDITORIAL: Menhaden oversight getting serious [The Virginian-Pilot]
Members of the General Assembly have persistently rejected measures turning authority over to the Virginia Marine Resources Commission, which is charged with regulating all other fisheries. An amendment pending approval by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission next month might be enough, however, to lead lawmakers to finally recognize their own limitations. The commission, composed of the 15 Atlantic coast states, coordinates conservation and management of fisheries because, according to its website, “fish do not adhere to political boundaries.” http://www.equities.com/news/headline-story?dt=2012-11-26&val=753162&cat=material
Robert E. Beal Named ASMFC Executive Director
In accepting the position, Mr. Beal stated, “I am honored and privileged to serve as the Commission’s Executive Director and work for people I admire and for a cause I feel so strongly about. It’s been nearly 20 years since passage of the Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Cooperative Management Act and the states, through the Commission, have achieved many impressive accomplishments from species rebuilding, improved data collection, to sound stock assessments for data poor species such as American eel and shad and river herring. I am excited about the opportunity to work with the states, in concert with our federal partners, to build upon these successes and address the challenges that are ahead.”
http://www.savingseafood.org/council-actions/robert-e.-beal-named-asmfc-executive-director-3.html
71st Annual Meeting – Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission – Radisson Plaza-Warwick Hotel – Philadelphia, PA
FINAL AGENDAPlease Note: The following changes have been made to the Preliminary Agenda: (1) the Atlantic Menhaden Board, originally scheduled for October 23 from 12:30 – 1:30 PM, has been canceled (the Board will meet next in December to consider approval of Amendment 2); (2) The Weakfish Board, originally scheduled for October 25 from 10:45 – 11:45 AM, has been moved to October 23 from 12:30 – 1:30 PM; (3) for October 25, the Spiny Dogfish and Coastal Sharks Board will meet at 10:45 AM – 12:45 PM, the Summer Flounder, Scup and Black Sea Bass Board will meet at 1:15 – 3:15 PM, with the ISFMP Policy Board and Business to meet at 3:15 PM and 3:45 PM, respectively. http://www.asmfc.org/71stAnnualMeeting.htm
Maine Shrimpers Face Big Changes Under Upcoming Regulations
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) has scheduled three meetings in Maine next week to take comments on a proposed amendment, known as “Draft Addendum 1,” to the current Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Northern shrimp.http://fenceviewer.com/site/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=77091:shrimpers-face-big-changes-under-upcoming-regulations&Itemid=938
