Groundfish FMP Amendment 26: Allocation of harvest opportunity between sectors of blackgill rockfish and other species managed in the slope rockfish complex south of 40°10′ N latitude

In November 2015, the Council took final action to remove blackgill rockfish from the Slope Rockfish complex south of 40⁰ 10’ N. latitude and reallocate blackgill rockfish and the remaining species in the southern Slope Rockfish complex to trawl and non-trawl sectors as follows: Blackgill sector allocations: 41% to limited entry trawl and 59% to […]

Groundfish FMP Amendment 26: Blackgill rockfish

Allocation of harvest opportunity between sectors of the Pacific Coast groundfish fishery Amendment 26 would have removed blackgill rockfish from the Slope Rockfish complex south of 40⁰ 10’ N. latitude and reallocated blackgill rockfish and the remaining species in the southern Slope Rockfish complex among the trawl and non-trawl sectors . However, in April 2019 the […]

HMS FMP Amendment 4: Housekeeping changes and stock status determination criteria

In March 2017, the Council was presented with proposed changes to the HMS FMP as Amendment 4.  These proposed changes originated from a 2016 recommendation from the HMS Management Team (HMSMT) for housekeeping changes that would revise dated and inaccurate text.  At its June 2017 meeting the Council adopted for public review proposed these changes to […]

Gear switching and trawl allocation attainment

Based on issues identified in its first review of the trawl catch share program (review of Amendment 20 to the FMP), the Council undertook a number of follow-on actions (see Section 5.0 of the review document, completed in November 2017).  One of these issues was related to gear switching in the shoreside individual fishing quoa […]

CPS FMP Amendment 16: Describe minor directed fisheries

CPS Amendment 16 adds a description to the CPS FMP of a very small sector of the CPS fishery that is not part of the primary commercial directed fishery and harvests minor amounts of CPS finfish.  The intent of Amendment 16 is to allow this sector to continue targeting CPS finfish after a directed fishery […]

HMS FMP Amendment 5: Create a Federal limited entry permit for the California large mesh drift gillnet (DGN) fishery

In March 2017 the Council took final action to adopt Amendment 5 to the Fishery Management Plan for West U.S. Coast Fisheries for Highly Migratory Species (HMS FMP).  This amendment would create a Federal limited entry permit for the California large mesh drift gillnet (DGN) fishery. Upon publication of NMFS’s final rule to establish the […]

Groundfish FMP Amendment 27: Changes related to the 2017-2018 biennial management process

FMP changes related to the biennial management process Amendment 27 to the Groundfish FMP was developed as part of the 2017-2018 harvest specifications and management measures process. It reclassified big skate from an ecosystem component species to “in the fishery,” listed deacon rockfish as a management unit species, and added a description of a new […]

Groundfish FMP Amendment 25: Unfished and unmanaged forage fish protections

In September 2015, the Council approved new protections for forage fish species that are currently unfished and unmanaged. The purpose of the action is to prohibit new directed commercial fishing in Federal waters on unmanaged, unfished forage fish species until the Council has had an adequate opportunity to both assess the scientific information relating to […]

Amendment 19: Unfished and unmanaged forage fish protections

In September 2015, the Council approved new protections for forage fish species that are currently unfished and unmanaged. The purpose of the action is to prohibit new directed commercial fishing in Federal waters on unmanaged, unfished forage fish species until the Council has had an adequate opportunity to both assess the scientific information relating to […]

CPS FMP Amendment 15: Unfished and unmanaged forage fish protections

Amendment 15 was approved in 2015 and added a suite of lower trophic level species to the FMP’s list of ecosystem component (EC) species. Consistent with the objectives of the Council’s FMPs and its Fishery Ecosystem Plan.  Amendment 15 prohibits future development of commercial fisheries for the suite of EC species shared between all four […]