Updates

March 2020 Council meeting internet live stream

The March 2020 Council meeting will be live‐streamed on the internet during the following hours:

  • Wednesday, March 4, 2020: beginning at approximately 9:00 AM Pacific Time, ending at approximately 6:00 PM PT or when business for the day is complete
  • Thursday, March 5, 2020 through Monday, March 9, 2020: 8:00 AM Pacific Time, ending daily at approximately 6:00 PM PT or when business for the day is complete

Only the audio portion and presentations displayed on the screen at the Council meeting will be broadcast. The audio portion is listen‐only; you will be unable to speak to the Council via the broadcast.

For agenda item topics and meeting information, please see the March 2020 Council meeting webpage.

Please Note: The GotoMeeting broadcast is not a substitute for attending the Council meeting in-person. We strive to make this service fully available, but due to unforeseen technical issues (internet/power outages, GoToMeeting service issues, etc), this service may not be available during portions of the Council meeting.

Instructions to join the meeting in “listen-only” mode

  1. http://www.gotomeeting.com/online/webinar/join-webinar
  2. Enter the Webinar ID: 752-427-619
  3. Please enter your email address (required)

This is a “listen only” broadcast, you may use your computer speakers or headset to listen.

If you do not have a headset or computer speakers, you may use your telephone to listen to the meeting by dialing this TOLL number +1 (562) 247-8422 (not a toll-free number); enter the phone attendee audio access code: 771-083-667; then enter the Audio Pin: Shown after joining the webinar. The webinar is broadcast in “listen only” mode.

Technical Information

System Requirements

  • PC-based attendees: Required: Windows® 7, 8, 10, Vista, or XP
  • Mac®-based attendees: Required: Mac OS® X 10.5 or newer
  • Mobile attendees: Required: iPhone®, iPad®, Android™ phone or Android tablet (See the GoToMeeting Webinar Apps)

You may send an email to Kris Kleinschmidt for technical assistance.

MP3 Audio Files

Approximately five business days after the meeting has ended, you may visit the “Previous Meetings” webpage where you will find links to the MP3 files.

NMFS publishes final rule and requests comments; protected species hard caps for the California/Oregon large-mesh drift gillnet fishery

NMFS is publishing regulations under the authority of Section 303(b) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA) to implement an immediate closure of the California/Oregon drift gillnet (DGN) fishery for swordfish and thresher shark (14 inch (36 cm) minimum mesh size) if a hard cap (i.e., limit) on mortality/injury is met or exceeded for certain protected species during a rolling 2-year period.

The final rule is effective March 9, 2020.  Comments on the final rule and supporting documents must be submitted in writing by March 23, 2020.

Please see the Federal Register notice dated February 7, 2020 for the final rule and instructions on how to comment.

If you have additional questions, please contact ontacting Lyle Enriquez, NMFS West Coast Region, 501 W. Ocean Boulevard, Suite 4200, Long Beach, CA 90802-4213, or Lyle.Enriquez@noaa.gov.

Notice of availability: proposed rule for the 2020 Pacific Halibut Catch Sharing Plan

NOAA Fisheries has issued a proposed rule for the Pacific halibut Catch Sharing Plan and annual management measures for Area 2A off Washington, Oregon, and California.  Comments on the proposed changes to the Catch Sharing Plan and domestic Area 2A Pacific halibut management measures must be received by March 9, 2020. Please see the Federal Register notice dated February 6, 2020 to view the proposed rule and instructions on how to comment.

For further information, please contact Kathryn Blair, NOAA Fisheries West Coast Region; phone: 503-231-6858, fax: 503-231-6893, or e-mail: kathryn.blair@noaa.gov.

NMFS proposes to approve and implement rebuilding plans recommended by the Council for two overfished salmon stocks

National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is requesting comments on the proposed rule to implement rebuilding plans recommended by the Pacific Fishery Management Council for two overfished stocks: Klamath River fall-run Chinook salmon and Sacramento River fall-run Chinook salmon. The proposed rule was published in the Federal Register on February 4, 2020.

NMFS is requesting comments by March 5, 2020. Please see the proposed rule for instructions on how to comment.

For further information, please contact Peggy Mundy at 206-526-4323; NMFS West Coast Region, Sustainable Fisheries Division 7600 Sand Point Way NE, Seattle, WA 98115.

Public review draft of FEP Chapters 1 & 2

Consistent with Section 1.3 in the FEP in September 2018 the Council initiated a review to consider updates to the document. The Council directed its Ecosystem Work Group (EWG) to revise and update the goals and objectives in the FEP Chapter 2 and develop an outline of FEP revisions to reflect updated science and results of both completed and candidate initiatives.

In March 2019 the Council directed the EWG to submit, for the September 2019 advanced briefing book, alternative descriptions of the FEP Vision (including purpose, goals, and objectives), taking into account public and advisory body comments. Based on EWG recommendations (see Agenda Item E.1.a, EWG Report 1, September 2019), the Council adopted changes to Chapters 1 and 2 for public review. In March 2020 the Council will finalize revisions to FEP chapters 1 and 2, including the vision statement and goals and objectives.

View the public review draft of Chapter 1 and 2 revisions.

Pacific Sardine Stock Assessment Review Panel meeting to be held February 24-27 in La Jolla, CA

The Pacific Fishery Management Council (Pacific Council) will convene a Stock Assessment Review (STAR) Panel meeting to review the 2020 Pacific sardine stock assessment.  The meeting will be held Monday, February 24, 2020 through Thursday, February 27, 2020.  The meeting will start at 1 p.m. Pacific Standard Time on February 24, and 8:30 a.m. on each subsequent day.  The meeting will continue until 5 p.m. each day or when business for the day has been completed.

Meeting purpose

The primary purpose of the meeting is to review the 2020 benchmark stock assessment for Pacific sardine, which will be used to set annual harvest specifications and management measures for the fishing year beginning July 1, 2020 through June 30, 2021. The review panel will consist of three members of the Pacific Council’s Scientific and Statistical Committee’s Subcommittee on Coastal Pelagic Species (CPS), and two independent experts.  Representatives of the Pacific Council’s CPS Management Team and the CPS Advisory Subpanel will also participate in the review as advisers.

As a courtesy, the meeting will be broadcast via Webex in listen-only mode.  Login information will be available in advance of the meeting on the Pacific Council website or by contacting Kerry Griffin (kerry.griffin@noaa.gov; 503-820-2409).

Meeting location

The meetings will be held at the following location:

NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center
Pacific Room
8901 La Jolla Shores Drive
La Jolla, California 92037
Telephone: 858-546-7000
Driving Directions

Additional information

This meeting is physically accessible to people with disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aids should be directed to Mr. Dale Sweetnam at dale.sweetnam@noaa.gov at least ten business days prior to the meeting date.

If you have additional questions regarding the meetings, please contact Mr. Kerry Griffin at 503-820-2409; or toll free 1-866-806-7204.