The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) will hold
a 3-day meeting from Tuesday through Thursday, April 24-April 26, 2012,
to consider actions affecting New England fisheries in the exclusive
economic zone (EEZ).
DATES: The meeting will be held on Tuesday, April 24th, Wednesday,
April 25th and Thursday, April 26th beginning at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, and
8:30 a.m. on Wednesday and Thursday.
ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at the Hilton Hotel, 20 Coogan
Boulevard, Mystic, CT 06355-1900; telephone: (860) 572-0731; fax: (860)
572-0328.
Council address: New England Fishery Management Council, 50 Water
Street, Mill 2, Newburyport, MA 01950; telephone: (978) 465-0492.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul J. Howard, Executive Director,
New England Fishery Management Council; telephone: (978) 465-0492.
For agenda and more details
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Following introductions and any announcements, brief reports will
be presented by the Council Chairman and Executive Director, NOAA
Fisheries Regional Administrator (Northeast Region), Northeast
Fisheries Science Center and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council
liaisons, as well as NOAA General Counsel, representatives of the U.S.
Coast Guard and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, and
staff from the Vessel Monitoring Systems Operations and NOAA's Law
Enforcement offices. During this period, the Council will receive an
overview of activities related to the development of a Standard Bycatch
Reporting Methodology amendment and the possible establishment of a
joint Mid-Atlantic and New England Council Committee. That discussion
will be followed by a review of any experimental fishery permit
applications that have been made available since the January 2012
Council meeting.
Prior to a lunch break, the Council will discuss revising its list
of management priorities for 2012 in the context of an Endangered
Species Act listing for Atlantic sturgeon and the Council resources
that may be required to address that issue.
Following a lunch break, the Council may revise its policies
concerning procedures for advisory panel and plan development team
operations. The Sea Scallop Committee will ask for approval of research
priorities to be used in soliciting proposals funded through the
NEFMC's sea scallop research set-aside program. During this report, the
Northeast Fisheries Science Center will present information about
future plans for the federal sea scallop survey, including the
integration of Habcam (towed underwater camera) results with existing
survey technologies. The Enforcement Committee will provide
recommendations and ask for approval of comments related to: Amendment
5 to the Atlantic Herring Fishery Management Plan (FMP), NOAA's revised
enforcement priorities, issues related to coral reef protection, sector
landings monitoring and correspondence to the Secretary of Commerce
requesting NOAA General Counsel/Northeast participation in NEFMC Enforcement Committee meetings and the continuation of efforts to
address the case backlog in New England. The day will conclude with a
public listening session during which the Council will hold an informal
question and answer session for stakeholders and the public. There also
will be an opportunity for anyone to briefly comment on items relevant
to Council business that is not otherwise listed on the agenda.
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
The second day of the meeting will begin with an overview of the
status of Atlantic sturgeon and the implications of its Endangered
Species Act listing for NEFMC fishery management plans, as well as
other protected species-related updates. The Monkfish Committee will
report next and summarize its discussions about potential remedies to
the bycatch of Atlantic sturgeon in the monkfish fishery. There also
will be an update on progress to develop Amendment 6 to the Monkfish
FMP, an action that will include a catch share management alternative.
Prior to a lunch break, representatives of the Northeast Fisheries
Science Center will summarize the recent assessment and data updates to
13 Northeast groundfish stocks. The Council's Scientific and
Statistical Committee will add to this information by reporting on its
review of additional information relating to the status of Gulf of
Maine cod. The committee also will provide recommendations for fishing
year 2013 Acceptable Biological Catches for a number of stocks in the
multispecies complex. The day will conclude with a report from the
Groundfish Committee. That group will continue discussions about the
management of Gulf of Maine cod, provide an update on the committee's
efforts to develop a number of solutions and remedies concerning the
sector management program and update the Council about other committee
activities.
Thursday, February 2, 2012
The final day of the Council meeting will begin with a report from
the Whiting Committee. It will review the recent public hearing
comments and then approve final action on the management measures to be
included in Amendment 19 to the Northeast Multispecies FMP. The action
would establish annual catch limits and accountability measures for
stocks of red hake, silver hake and offshore hake. The Habitat
Committee will ask for approval of deep sea coral management
alternatives to be analyzed further for potential inclusion in
Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) Omnibus 2. Following a lunch break, there
will be a report on the Spiny Dogfish Fishery Management Plan during
which the Council will be asked to approve a range of alternatives for
inclusion in the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for Amendment 3
to the plan. The document will be the subject of public review and
further decision-making by the Mid-Atlantic and New England Councils.
The day will conclude with an update on the development of Draft
Amendment 5 to the Herring FMP and its Draft Environmental l Impact
Statement including a review of comments received during the Amendment
5 public hearings held in March, 2012 and the Amendment 5 timeline and
schedule for completion. The Council also may address any other
outstanding business that related to this agenda.