The California Current Ecosystem (which extends from the southern tip of the Baja Peninsula up to waters off Vancouver Island) supports the economies and social fabric of at least 125 communities in California, Oregon and Washington. As fish populations and the ecosystems that sustain them change in response to climate shifts, there may be profound […]
Amendment 17 to the coastal pelagic species (CPS) fishery management plan was approved by the Council in November 2018 and by the Secretary of Commerce in June 2019. Amendment 17 eliminates the predetermined incidental catch allowance in the live bait fishery when a CPS stock is overfished, and instead requires the Council to determine appropriate […]
Final Chinook rebuilding plans Klamath River Fall Chinook Salmon Rebuilding Plan; Regulatory Identifier Number 0648-BI04 (July 2019) Sacramento River Fall Chinook Salmon Rebuilding Plan; Regulatory Identifier Number 0648-BI04 (July 2019) Proposed rule February 4, 2020
The Council began scoping the authorization deep-set buoy gear (DSBG) to target swordfish in March 2016. It adopted a range of alternatives, including a preliminary preferred alternative in November 2018 and took final action to identify its preferred alternative in September 2019. During review of the Council final action NMFS identified several elements of the […]
The current salmon season (May 1, 2019-April 30, 2020 management measures are available in Preseason Report III: Council-Adopted Management Measures and Environmental Assessment Part 3 for 2019 Ocean Salmon Fishery Regulations. The links below provide access to the management measures for specific sectors. Commercial troll management measures Tribal management measures Recreational management measures Other sources of […]
In 2019, the Council decided to move forward with the transition of management authority of the Area 2A Non-Indian Commercial Directed Pacific Halibut Fishery (directed fishery) fishery from IPHC to the Council and National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). In April 2019 the Council was provided with a scoping report that outlined tasks and considerations that […]
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: No changes were recommended to the accumulation limit for these species. […]
The Council recommended a number of changes during the development of the 2019-2020 harvest specifications and management measures. Regulatory amendments were made to change the default harvest control rules for lingcod north and south of 40°10’ N lat., California scorpionfish south of Pt. Conception at 34°27’ N lat., and yelloweye rockfish. New management measures include: new salmon […]
In March 2016, the Council recommended that trawl gear regulations be updated to reflect the individual accountability provided by the trawl catch share program. Specifically, the Council recommended: allowing vessels to carry and use multiple trawl gears types on a single trip (fish caught using different gears must be stowed separately) eliminating minimum mesh size […]
Amendment 18 was developed at the same time as Amendment 19. Amendment 18: Requires the use of current bycatch minimization measures. Fully describes the current standardized bycatch reporting methodology. Incorporates the Groundfish Strategic Plan goal of reducing overcapacity in all commercial fisheries. Implements a sector-specific bycatch accounting methodology. Supports the future use of individual fishing quota […]