NEWS RELEASERELEASE: AS APPROPRIATE
CONTACT: WAYNE E. SWINGLE (813) 228-2815
This is a publication of the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council pursuant to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Award No. NA97FC0010.
NEWS RELEASE
RELEASE: AS APPROPRIATE
CONTACT: WAYNE E. SWINGLE (813) 228-2815
COUNCIL TO SET TAC FOR MACKERELS
Tampa, Florida - April 19, 1999 - The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (Council) will set total allowable catch (TAC) for king and Spanish mackerels for the 1999-2000 season at its May 10-13, 1999 meeting at the Omni Austin Hotel in Austin, Texas. Public testimony on the TACs, and associated management measures is scheduled on Wednesday, May 12, beginning at 8:45 a.m. Persons who will testify must turn in their registration card before the start of the testimony period. The Council will also hear a report on completion of the federal Billfish Amendment and Highly Migratory Species Fishery Management Plan.
The Mackerel Management Committee will meet beginning at 8:00 a.m. on Tuesday, May 11, to review stock assessment and socioeconomic information and to develop their TAC recommendations to the Council, which can include bag limits, size limits, trip limits, and seasons. The committee will also approve Draft Mackerel Amendment 12 for public hearings to be held in June. The amendment proposes to extend the moratorium on issuance of commercial king mackerel vessel permits.
The Shrimp Management Committee will meet beginning at 12:00 noon on Monday, May 10, to review a draft amendment options paper addressing reduction of shrimp trawl bycatch in the eastern Gulf of Mexico. The options paper will be revised into a draft amendment at a subsequent Council meeting and be presented at public hearings in the late summer or fall.
At a joint meeting of the Shrimp and Reef Fish Management Committees, beginning at 1:30 p.m. on Monday, May 10, NMFS scientists will present the results of their study on the effectiveness of BRDs in reducing the bycatch of juvenile red snapper in shrimp trawls.
The Reef Fish Management Committee will meet beginning at 3:00 p.m. on Monday, May 10, to approve Draft Reef Fish Amendment 17 for public hearings that will be held in June. The amendment proposes to extend the moratorium on issuance of commercial reef fish vessel permits. The committee will hear and may act on a report on the recommendations of the red snapper recreational workshop participants on actions that could be taken to extend the recreational red snapper season. The committee will also hear and may act on a NMFS report on the status of approval of the Council’s regulatory amendment to set red snapper TAC for 1999.
The Ad Hoc Marine Reserves Committee will meet Tuesday, May 11, at 1:00 p.m., to review a draft scoping document that will be presented at workshops in the fall. The Administrative Policy Committee will follow this meeting (3:00 p.m.) and will consider amendments to the Magnuson-Stevens Act.
Notice:
The General Accounting Office (GAO) is currently reviewing implementation of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act. As part of this effort, two GAO staff will be attending the Council meeting the week of May 10th and will be available to talk to anyone who wishes to provide information or examples on the subjects detailed below.
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act
Senate Report 105-235 mandates that GAO review National Marine Fisheries Service compliance with the national standards to base conservation and management measures on the best scientific information available and that suchmeasures take into account the importance of fishery resources to fishing communities. The report also mandates that GAO review NMFS’ implementation of the essential fish habitat provisions. GAO is interested in interviewing anyone who wishes to provide information or examples with respect to these three areas.
The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council is 1 of 8 regional fishery management councils that were established by the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976. The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council prepares fishery management plans that are designed to manage fishery resources in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of the U.S. Gulf of Mexico.
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