Pacific halibut blog

Request for Nominations: At-Large Position on the Scientific and Statistical Committee

Thursday, January 12th, 2012

Request for Nominations for an At-Large Position on the Scientific and Statistical Committee

The Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) is seeking qualified candidates to consider for an at-large position on its Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC). The successful candidate will serve out the remainder of the 2010-2012 Council advisory body term. Please see the Council’s Advisory Body Vacancies webpage for all the specifics. The deadline to submit nominations is February 8, 2012.

Posted in Coastal Pelagic Species, Ecosystem-based management, Groundfish, Habitat and communities, Highly migratory species, Pacific halibut, Salmon

Winter Newsletter Now Available

Thursday, December 8th, 2011

The Winter issue of the Pacific Council News is now available. Please visit the Council’s Newsletters webpage for details.

Posted in Coastal Pelagic Species, Ecosystem-based management, Groundfish, Habitat and communities, Highly migratory species, Hot topics, Pacific halibut, Salmon

Northwest and Southwest Stakeholder Conference Call on NOAA’s Draft Enforcement Priorities

Tuesday, December 6th, 2011

Special Agents in Charge Vicki Nomura and Don Masters of NOAA Office of Law Enforcement’s Northwest and Southwest Divisions, respectively, would like to invite you to participate in a conference call on Monday, December 12, 2011 to outline NOAA’s Draft Enforcement Priorities, which are open for public comment through January 9, 2012. The draft priorities document identifies the national priorities for Fiscal Year 2012 and gives examples of regional priorities that support those national priorities.

Conference Call Date and Time:

Monday, December 12, 2011
11 a.m. Pacific Standard Time
Dial-in: 888-469-2087
Verbal passcode: ENFORCEMENT WEST COAST

The document — as well as guidelines for commenting by the deadline via email, fax and mail — can be found on the NOAA OLE Enforcement Priorities website.

NOAA’s Draft Enforcement Priorities reflect extensive input and guidance from those of you who submitted comments last year as we began the process of identifying our national priorities. Regional priorities vary with the specific resources, activities, and threats across the country. What may be a high priority in one region may not be a priority in another. Equally, fish stocks, fishing gear, and management programs are not identical across the country. Thus, NOAA Office of Law Enforcement must tailor our priorities appropriately.

NOAA OLE looks forward to your participation in this conference call specifically for the Northwest and Southwest Divisions.

For further information, please contact:

Lesli Bales-Sherrod, Communications specialist
Lesli.Bales-Sherrod@noaa.gov
NOAA Office of Law Enforcement
8484 Georgia Ave., Suite 415
Silver Spring, MD 20910
Phone: 301-427-2300 ext. 103

**This information has been posted as a courtesy to the Pacific Fishery Management Council family and constituents.**

Posted in Coastal Pelagic Species, Ecosystem-based management, Groundfish, Highly migratory species, Pacific halibut, Salmon

NOAA Seeks Input on Enforcement Priorities

Tuesday, November 29th, 2011

On November 8, 2011, NOAA released a draft of its enforcement priorities and invited the public to submit comments through January 9, 2012 (midnight, Eastern Standard Time). To view the priorities, and how to comment, please see the following NOAA Office of Law Enforcement webpage.

Posted in Groundfish, Highly migratory species, Pacific halibut, Salmon

November 1-7, 2011 Council Meeting Notice and Agenda Available

Tuesday, October 11th, 2011

The Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) and its advisory bodies will meet November 1-7, 2011 in Costa Mesa, California to address issues related to salmon, Pacific halibut, groundfish, coastal pelagic species, highly migratory species, habitat matters, and ecosystem based management. Please visit the “Current Council Meeting” webpage for the meeting notice and agenda details.

Posted in Council Meetings, Ecosystem-based management, Groundfish, Groundfish, Habitat and communities, Highly migratory species, Hot topics, Pacific halibut, Salmon

Council, States Seek Public Input on Proposed Changes to Pacific Halibut Catch Sharing Plan

Tuesday, September 27th, 2011

Each September, the Council considers proposed changes to the halibut regulations in order to adjust regulations for the Area 2A Catch Sharing Plan.

The Council and the States are seeking public input on the Proposed Changes to the Pacific Halibut Sharing Plan and 2012 Regulations.

Posted in Pacific halibut

September Council Meeting to be Streamed Live on Internet

Thursday, September 8th, 2011

The September 12-19, 2011 meeting of the Pacific Fishery Management Council will be streamed live on the internet. The live audio will be broadcast starting with the “Open Session” scheduled to start Wednesday, September 14 at 9:30 a.m. Pacific time. Get the September meeting agenda.

To Listen to the Meeting

To listen and view the powerpoint presentations, go to the PFMC Live Meeting link. Please note that your name and email address will be required to join the meeting.

Alternate Instructions to Join the Meeting

If you are unable to join the meeting through the above link, then please follow these steps:

Copy this address and paste it into your web browser:
https://www.livemeeting.com/cc/pacificfishery/join (This Will Launch the “launch.rtc” file)
Enter the Following Information:

Meeting ID: BD7K3S
Entry Code: (Leave This Field Blank)
Location: Choose the following:
https://www.livemeeting.com/cc/pacificfishery

Choose “Join”

Technical Contact

For more information on how to use the Microsoft Live Meeting live streaming service, please see the Quick Reference Guide. You may also send an email to Sandra for additional assistance.

For MacIntosh — If you have never installed the “Live Meeting Web Access Client” on your workstation, please email Sandra.Krause@noaa.gov for those instructions. Please note, the “Live Meeting Web Access Client” does not provide for audio, but you may view the PowerPoint presentations and the agenda flow of the meeting.

Meeting and Content Expiration

After this meeting is over, you may revisit the meeting (“join the meeting”) to listen to the recordings and view the PowerPoint documents presented during the meeting. All Recordings and PowerPoint documents will be deleted from the meeting on December 18, 2011. (Maximum amount of time allowed by Microsoft Live Meeting Service).

If you need your own personal audio copies of recorded Council meeting CDs (MP3 or WAV formats), please contact our recorder, Mr. Craig Hess, Martin Enterprises, phone (360) 425-7507.

Posted in Council Meetings, Groundfish, Habitat and communities, Highly migratory species, Pacific halibut, Salmon

September 2011 Briefing Book Available on Website

Wednesday, August 31st, 2011

The Briefing Book for the September 2011 Council meeting has been posted to the Council’s website on the “Current Briefing Book” webpage. The Briefing Book contains “situation summaries” (brief summaries that provide background for each agenda item), reports and materials for each agenda item, and written public comment.

Posted in Council Meetings, Groundfish, Highly migratory species, Hot topics, Pacific halibut, Salmon

Ecosystem Plan Development Team to Hold a Work Session via Conference Call on the Schedule and Plans for Developing a Fishery Ecosystem Plan

Monday, August 29th, 2011

The Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) will convene a meeting via conference call of the Ecosystem Plan Development Team (EPDT) that is open to the public. Please note, this is not a public hearing; it is a work session for the primary purpose of drafting a report and recommendations to the Council on the Schedule and Plans for Developing a Fishery Ecosystem Plan (FEP).

The EPDT will meet on Wednesday, September 21, 2011 and Thursday, September 22, 2011 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. each day, or when business for each day is completed.

Public listening stations will be available at the following locations:

Pacific Fishery Management Council
Small Conference Room
7700 NE Ambassador Place, Suite 101
Portland, Oregon 97220
503-820-2280
OR toll free at 866-806-7204
Driving Directions

National Marine Fisheries Service
Southwest Fisheries Science Center
Conference Room
110 Shaffer Road
Santa Cruz, CA 95060
831-420-3900

Driving Directions

The EPDT will primarily address Council requests from the June 2011 Council meeting where the Council approved a draft purpose and need statement and moved to develop an ecosystem plan that is primarily advisory in nature with the potential for expanding the plan to include regulatory authority in the future. The Council recommended continued management of fisheries through existing fishery management plans (FMPs), including potential future management measures for forage fish species. The Council also tasked the EPDT with developing a list of West Coast species that are not currently included in any FMP, that are not under State management, are not listed under the Endangered Species Act, or are species that could be the target of future fishery exploitation.

The meeting is physically accessible to people with disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aids should be directed to Mr. Kris Kleinschmidt at 503-820-2280, at least five days prior to the meeting date.

For further information, please contact Mr. Mike Burner at (503) 820-2280 ext. 414.

Posted in Aquaculture, Coastal Pelagic Species, Ecosystem-based management, Ecosystem-based management, Groundfish, Habitat and communities, Highly migratory species, Meetings and Events, Pacific halibut, Salmon