Gulf Council Update - April 2010

 

  1. The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council is considering a regulatory framework action to the Reef Fish Fishery Management Plan that could result in a recreational season change for greater amberjack.

  2.     The intent of the framework action is to avoid in-season quota closures during peak economic fishing months. The amendment also aims to maximize social and economic benefits, and potentially provide biological benefits by protecting the stock during peak spawning.

  3.     Last year the recreational season for greater amberjack closed October 24, after its quota of 1.368 million pounds was exceeded. As a result, the 2009 season was shortened by 69 days.

  4.     While the greater amberjack rebuilding plan includes a scheduled increase in the recreational annual catch limit from 1.368 million pounds to 2.547 million pounds for 2011, that increase will occur only if the stock assessment update scheduled for later this year shows that the stock is indeed rebuilding.

  5.     The same would hold true for the commercial sector, whose annual catch limit would increase from 503 thousand pounds to 938 thousand pounds in 2011 if the stock assessment update shows rebuilding is on target.

Artwork by Diane Rome Peebles

  1.    Management alternatives under consideration include:

  2. BulletNo action - the season would remain the  same and the in-season accountability measure would close the recreational sector when the quota is reached. Additionally, any overage in harvest would be subtracted from the next year’s quota.

  3. BulletClose the recreational fishing season from March 1 - April 30. The 61 day closure would provide anglers an estimated 304 total fishing days.

  4. BulletClose the recreational fishing season June 1 - July 31. The 61 day closure would provide anglers an estimated 304 total fishing days.

  5. BulletClose the recreational fishing season May 1 - June 30. The 61 day closure would provide anglers an estimated 304 total fishing days.

  6. BulletClose the recreational fishing season March 1 - May 31, parallel to the commercial closure.

    The Council has not yet chosen a preferred alternative, but is expected to take final action in June.   

     Public comments on the proposed regulatory framework action will be accepted via email, fax, and US mail until June 10, 2010. Comments may also be given during the public comment portion of the June Council meeting in Gulfport, Mississippi.

    To download a copy of the amendment, visit www.gulfcouncil.org or click here. For more information, please call the Council toll free at 888-833-1844. 

With the Gulf gag stock designated as overfished, the Council is working on developing a slate of management actions to end overfishing and rebuild the stock within ten years. And while red grouper is neither overfished or undergoing overfishing, the stock has declined.

     “The decline in both the gag and red grouper stocks is likely due to extensive red tide episodes of 2005,” said Dr. Steve Bortone, Executive Director of the Gulf Council.  

     Reef Fish Amendment 32 is under development to address the status of both gag and red grouper.

     Management actions under consideration include:

  1. Bulleta rebuilding plan for gag

  2. Bulletannual catch limits and annual catch targets for gag and red grouper

  3. Bulletgrouper accountability measures

  4. Bulletrecreational bag limits, size limits, and closed seasons for gag and red grouper

  5. Bulletbycatch issues

  6. Bullettime and area closures

     In April, the Council continued to refine the options paper for Reef Fish Amendment 32. A draft amendment will be evaluated by the Council in June, with public hearings to follow later this summer. But interim measures may be necessary, and the Council will also discuss in June an interim rule to address gag, and a draft regulatory amendment that will adjust the 2011 total allowable catch for red grouper.

     To download a copy of the amendment, visit www.gulfcouncil.org or click here. For more information, please call the Council toll free at 888-833-1844.

The Council has expressed the need for more and better data, particularly from the for-hire sector. Consequently, the Council has made several requests of NOAA Fisheries Service with regard to data collection. The Council requested that NOAA Fisheries:

  1. Bulletin consultation with the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission, define data standards and operating requirements for an integrated, mandatory electronic reporting system for the federally permitted Gulf of Mexico for-hire sector by June 2010

  2. Bulletimplement a trial electronic reporting system for the federally permitted Gulf of Mexico for-hire sector, using existing authority under 50 CFR 622, by August 2010.

  3. Bulletwork with the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission to begin an education system for a mandatory electronic reporting system for the federally permitted Gulf of Mexico for-hire sector by June 2010

  4. Bulletdevelop a system for at-sea and shore-side validation of fishing effort, landings, and discards by January 2011

  5. Bulletimplement, using existing authority under 50 CFR 622, a mandatory, enforceable, and validatable electronic reporting system for the federally permitted Gulf of Mexico for-hire sector by January 2011; and

  6. Bulletimplement a mandatory electronic reporting system for federally permitted dealers by January 2011.

     The Council also agreed to send a request to the Southeast Fisheries Science Center to make fishery independent data collection for the red snapper and other reef fish species in the Gulf of Mexico the highest priority.

     “This is a positive step in the right direction by the recreational sector to be responsible for the fishery by participating in the data collection process,” said Council member Harlon Pearce. 

     “The recreational sector is asking us to enforce electronic logbooks in the for-hire sector immediately. Collecting data electronically expedites the process and will help eliminate the notion that the fisheries data used to assess our stocks is no good,” Pearce added.

     The Council will convene its Ad Hoc Data Collection Advisory Panel again to begin discussions on how to better collect data for the private recreational sector. Meeting date and location will be announced in the near future.

During its April meeting in Galveston, Texas, the Gulf Council modified its definition of buoy gear. The current definition is vague and could potentially allow gear that has hundreds of hooks and miles of line.

     After considerable discussion and input from the public, the Council adopted the following revised definition for buoy gear:

  1. “Buoy gear means fishing gear intended to fish vertically in the water column that consists of a single drop line suspended from a float, with a terminal weight that is no more than 10 pounds.  The drop line can be rope (hemp, nylon, polypropylene, spectra or other synthetic material) or monofilament.  The gear is free-floating and not connected to other gear or the vessel.  The drop line must be no greater than 2 times the depth of the water being fished.  No more than 10 hooks can be connected to the drop line between the buoy and the weighted terminal end.  All hooks must be attached to the drop line no more than 30 feet from the weighted terminal end.  These hooks may be attached directly to the drop line, attached as snoods (defined as an offshoot line that is directly spliced, tied or otherwise connected to the drop line), where each snood has a single terminal hook, or as gangions (defined as an offshoot line connected to the drop line with some type of detachable clip), where each gangion has a single terminal hook.”   

     The Council is also recommending that buoy fishing gear be marked with the vessel registration number.

     NOAA Fisheries Service will publish a proposed rule for the new definition before implementing a final rule.