The Pacific Fishery Management Council’s ad hoc Sablefish Management and Trawl Allocation Attainment Committee (SaMTAAC) met, October 9-10, 2019 in Portland, Oregon. This announcement published in the Federal Register on 09/12/2019
At its meeting, the SaMTAAC continued their work to develop alternatives that address obstacles to achieving the goals and objectives of the groundfish trawl catch share plan related to under-attainment of non-sablefish shorebased trawl allocations. The SaMTAAC’s work on alternatives was presented at the November 2019 Pacific Council meeting.
Meeting documents
Based on its proceedings at this meeting, the SaMTAAC provided a progress report to the Council (Agenda Item H.7.a, SaMTAAC Report 1; November 2019 briefing book).
At the September 2019 Council meeting the SSC will review two indicators included in the 2019 Report, “stoplight” summary of ecosystem factors affecting salmon abundance and and one candidate a spatial indicator of bottom contact by trawl gear. The SSC will also review an ongoing ecosystem research leading to forecasts of albacore distribution and abundance in the California Current.
The Pacific Fishery Management Council’s Salmon Advisory Subpanel (SAS) will hold a meeting to discuss and make recommendations on issues on the Council’s September 2019 meeting agenda. This meeting will be held via webinar, which is open to the public. The webinar will be held on Wednesday, August 14, 2019, at 2 p.m. (Pacific Time) and will end when business is completed for the day.
Purpose of the Webinar
Major topics include, but are not limited to Salmon related topics: Salmon Methodology Review, Salmon Rebuilding Plans – final action for Coho and the report on the Sacramento River fall Chinook harvest model development, Southern Resident Killer Whale Endangered Species Act consultation: Risk analysis review, and review of the annual salmon management cycle. Pacific halibut related topics include: 2A Catch Sharing Plan preliminary changes for 2020, and commercial directed halibut fishery regulations for 2020.
The group may also address one or more of the Council’s scheduled administrative matters, legislative matters, habitat issues, ecosystem topics, groundfish topics, and future workload planning. Public comments during the webinar will be received from attendees at the discretion of the SAS Chair.
Please enter your name and email address (required)
You must use your telephone for the audio portion of the meeting by dialing this TOLL number (1-646-749-3122)
Enter the Attendee phone audio access code (565-431-373)
NOTE: We have disabled Mic/Speakers as on option and require all participants to use a telephone or cell phone to participate.
Technical Information
System Requirements
PC-based attendees: Required: Windows® 7, Vista, or XP
Mac®-based attendees: Required: Mac OS® X 10.5 or newer
Mobile attendees: Required: iPhone®, iPad®, Android™ phone or Android tablet (GoToMeeting Webinar Apps)
You may send an email to Kris Kleinschmidt or contact him at 503-820-2280, extension 412 for technical assistance.
Public Listening Station
A public listening station will also be provided at the Council office.
Pacific Fishery Management Council 7700 NE Ambassador Place, Suite 101 Portland, OR 97220-1384 503-820-2280 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 Kris Kleinschmidt at 503-820-2412 at least ten days prior to the meeting date.
If you have additional questions regarding the webinar, please contact Robin Ehlke at 503-820-2410; toll-free 1-866-806-7204, extension 410.
The Pacific Fishery Management Council’s Salmon Technical Team (STT) and Model Evaluation Workgroup (MEW) will hold a joint meeting to discuss and make recommendations on issues on the Council’s September 2019 meeting agenda. This meeting will be held via webinar, which is open to the public. The webinar will be held on Thursday, August 29, 2019, at 9 a.m. (Pacific Time) and will end when business is completed for the day.
Purpose of the Webinar
Major topics include, but are not limited to Salmon related topics: Salmon Methodology Review, Salmon Rebuilding Plans – final action for Coho and the report on the Sacramento River fall Chinook harvest model development, Southern Resident Killer Whale Endangered Species Act consultation, risk analysis review, and review of the annual salmon management cycle. Pacific halibut related topics include: 2A Catch Sharing Plan preliminary changes for 2020, and commercial directed halibut fishery regulations for 2020.
The groups may also address one or more of the Council’s scheduled administrative matters, legislative matters, habitat issues, ecosystem topics, groundfish topics and future workload planning. Public comments during the webinar will be received from attendees at the discretion of the STT and MEW Chairs.
Please enter your name and email address (required)
You must use your telephone for the audio portion of the meeting by dialing this TOLL number (1-646-749-3122)
Enter the Attendee phone audio access code (565-431-373)
NOTE: We have disabled Mic/Speakers as on option and require all participants to use a telephone or cell phone to participate.
Technical Information
System Requirements
PC-based attendees: Required: Windows® 7, Vista, or XP
Mac®-based attendees: Required: Mac OS® X 10.5 or newer
Mobile attendees: Required: iPhone®, iPad®, Android™ phone or Android tablet (GoToMeeting Webinar Apps)
You may send an email to Kris Kleinschmidt or contact him at 503-820-2280, extension 412 for technical assistance.
Public Listening Station
A public listening station will also be provided at the Council office.
Pacific Fishery Management Council 7700 NE Ambassador Place, Suite 101 Portland, OR 97220-1384 503-820-2280 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 Kris Kleinschmidt at 503-820-2412 at least ten days prior to the meeting date.
If you have additional questions regarding the webinar, please contact Robin Ehlke at 503-820-2410; toll-free 1-866-806-7204, extension 410.
Coast Guard gives annual report on West Coast activities
U.S. Coast Guard crew, Golden Gate Division, train in massive waves off the coast of San Francisco in 2018.
The U.S. Coast Guard’s Thirteenth and Eleventh Districts gave their annual presentation to the Council in June. Some highlights are provided below; see the full report.
In 2018, there were 877 fisheries boardings and 11 significant fisheries violations in West Coast waters. About a third of the boardings were on commercial fishing vessels, while the rest were on recreational and charter boats. Specific examples include a commercial fishing boat operating illegally in the Cape Perpetua Marine Protected Area, a crab boat deploying gear before the official start of the season, eight halibut aboard a vessel without a commercial fishing license, a tuna troller refusing to respond to the Coast Guard, a salmon troller retaining 18 salmon during a closed season, and an assault on a female crewmember while under the influence.
Many of the Coast Guard’s most effective efforts are the result of working collaboratively with partners from NOAA Office of Law Enforcement, Treaty Tribes, and California, Oregon, and Washington state fisheries enforcement personnel. For example, in May, seven Coast Guard Patrol Boats along with NOAA Law Enforcement, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, and Oregon State Police conducted an interagency operation focused on the salmon opener, boarding 92 commercial and recreational boats.
In addition to fisheries enforcement, the Coast Guard has an active Marine Protected Species protection program. In 2018, Districts 11 and 13 participated in 12 marine protected species response operations, including locating and helping to free entangled whales and responding to Marine Mammal Protection Act violations. The Coast Guard also participated in efforts to protect southern resident killer whales, review stranding protocols, and provide outreach to the public on interacting with Puget Sound killer whales.
One of the Coast Guard’s primary objectives in working with the Council is to identify ways to improve the safety of all fishing activity. In 2018, four lives were lost from West Coast commercial fishing vessels. This is lower than the average from the preceding ten-year period (6 lives lost per year).
In February 2018, a 48’ wood crab vessel with three people on board, fishing 8 nautical miles (nm) off Humboldt Bay, had two crewmen on deck fall overboard. One person was retrieved quickly and brought back onboard by the master. Despite exhaustive search efforts, the other person was not located and the search was suspended.
In May 2018, a crabber’s family reported his vessel overdue from a fishing trip off the southern Washington coast. The Coast Guard conducted multiple air, surface, and shore searches, eventually locating a sheen in the water inside Willapa Bay. While the Coast Guard continued to search for the crabber, the Pacific and Clark County Sheriff’s searched the Bay with divers and sonar, locating the submerged vessel. The search was suspended.
In September 2018, a 32’ fiberglass troller with two persons on board had one person fall overboard 3 nm off Bodega Bay. Despite an extensive search, the crewmember was not found.
In October 2018, a 40’ fiberglass troller in Dana Point was found with the master onboard deceased due to natural causes.
In addition to these losses of life, further examples of significant safety incidents on commercial fishing vessels are summarized below.
In addition to these four lives lost, there were four fires, 19 vessel floodings or sinkings, 11 medical incidents, 12 groundings, four collisions, and 60 incidents of loss of propulsion:
In April 2018, a 48’ steel crab vessel 5 nm off Trinidad had a fire in crew berthing due to an unknown cause that quickly spread to the pilothouse. All five crewmembers abandoned ship into the vessel’s life raft and were rescued with no injuries. Vessel was salvaged.
In February 2018, a 36’ wood troller began taking on water from loose planks 3 nm west of Mendocino. The vessel’s pumps were unable to keep up with flooding, and the two persons onboard abandoned ship to a Coast Guard motor lifeboat. The vessel sank.
In June 2018, a 28’ salmon troller suffered an engine casualty while passing outbound across the Coos Bay Bar and subsequently grounded on the North Spit. The owner was able to safely get off his boat, and the troller refloated at the next high tide.
In August 2018, a 56’ fiberglass vessel with one man and a dog ran aground off Santa Cruz in Monterey Marine Sanctuary. The man and his dog made it safely ashore with no injuries. The vessel broke up in the surf and was a total loss.
In November 2018, a 36’ fiberglass crabber had a crewmember hit in the head with a crab pot 7 nm off the Golden Gate Bridge. The crewmember was transferred to a patrol boat and then to awaiting paramedics on shore.
In August 2018, a Canadian tuna troller and a U.S. tuna troller collided more than 100 nm west of Newport, OR. Both vessels were able to proceed under their own power to Newport, where the Coast Guard boarded both vessels.
In February 2018, during the first month of Dungeness crab season, Coast Guard units in Washington and Oregon responded to 28 incidents of vessels losing propulsion, steering, or other casualties. Many of these responses involved crossing hazardous breaking bars and required the use of the specialized 52’ motor lifeboats located at Grays Harbor and the Columbia River in Washington, and Newport and Coos Bay in Oregon. These aging vessels are more than 60 years old, but continue to be maintained in the inventory because the capability they bring is essential to Search and Rescue operations on coastal Washington and Oregon Bars.
These incidents from 2018, as well as past incidents involving vessel losses and losses of life in commercial fisheries, make clear the hazards in the fishing industry are not isolated to a particular fishery or gear type or a specific geographic area or time of year. The USCG is constantly working to identify trends and take preventive actions in fisheries where incidents occur more frequently; as well as taking steps to attempt to improve the overall safety of the industry.
Mandatory dockside safety examinations are required for certain commercial fishing vessels, including vessels operating outside 3 nautical miles from the baseline, vessels carrying more than 16 individuals on board regardless of where the vessel is operating, and vessels engaged in the Aleutian Trade. These regulations require a USCG commercial fishing vessel safety examination to be completed at least once every 5 years. Having a current safety examination may reduce the extent and time boarding officers will examine safety and survival equipment at-sea. However, successful completion of an exam will not exempt vessels from boardings.
Further details, as well as updates on the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act rulemaking and other important commercial fishing vessel safety information are available at: www.fishsafewest.info.
In June the Council has received a request from Senator Maria Cantwell for comment on HR 2236, the Forage Fish Conservation Act. The Council responded with a letter emphasizing the actions that the Council has already taken to protect forage fish species. HR 2236 would amend the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA) to require Scientific and Statistical Committees to provide scientific advice on maintaining a sufficient abundance of forage fish populations; add forage fish populations and distribution as a research priority; require Councils to develop lists of unmanaged forage fish species and prohibit development of new fisheries; and require Councils to reduce annual catch limits for forage fish fisheries according to the dietary needs of fish species and other marine wildlife. The Council has already take several of these steps.
Kelly Ames (NMFS) provided an overview of the Modern Fish Act, which became law on December 31, 2018. The Act aims to “expand recreational fishing opportunities through enhanced marine fishery conservation and management.” It defines management measures for recreational fisheries, creates recreational registry and data collection programs, and requires several new reports and studies. Specifically, Councils may “use fishery management measures in a recreational fishery… such as extraction rates, fishing mortality targets, harvest control rules, or traditional or cultural practices of native communities.” The reports required of the Pacific Council and NMFS West Coast Region relate to cooperative data collection, the Marine Recreational Information Program, and state recreational data collection. The Act also reaffirms existing requirements under the MSA related to overfishing.
In other legislative news, Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Seth Moulton (D-WA) have introduced a bill that would amend the MSA to provide fisheries disaster relief for commercial fishery failures that are due to increases in duties on any United States seafood or fish products; and on June 27, the Columbia River In-Lieu and Treaty Fishing Access Sites Improvement Act, introduced by Jeff Merkley (D-OR), passed the House. This Act authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to assess and improve sanitation and safety conditions at Bureau of Indian Affairs facilities that were constructed to provide affected Columbia River Treaty tribes access to traditional fishing grounds.
Appointments
The Council re-elected Phil Anderson as Council Chair and Marc Gorelnik as Council Vice-Chair for the 2019-2020 term. In addition, Jessica Watson was appointed to the vacant Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife positions on the Highly Migratory Species Management Team and the ad hoc Ecosystem Workgroup, Bob Dooley was appointed to the Council Coordination Committee’s Council Member Ongoing Development Subcommittee, and Christa Svensson will shadow U.S. Commissioner Dorothy Lowman, the Council’s representative to the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission, as a means of building understanding and international working relationships.
Allocation review procedures adopted
The Council adopted as final Council Operating Procedure 27, which specifies the triggers the Council will use to determine when intersector allocations should be reviewed.
The Council will consider either public interest or the passage of a specific time period as a potential trigger to determine whether an allocation should be reviewed. Once a trigger is met, and the Council identifies a schedule and resources for the review, the next step would be a preliminary evaluation of whether a change to the allocation should be considered. If so, the next step would be to develop alternatives and a complete analysis for Council consideration.
In July the Council sent a letter to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on the proposed Jordan Cove Liquified Natural Gas Terminal and Pipeline, which would transport liquified natural gas (LNG) 229 miles from near Klamath Falls, Oregon to the coastal export terminal in Coos Bay, Oregon for shipping across the Pacific. The Coos Bay project includes two storage tanks, five liquefaction processing structures, vessel loading facilities, a large deepwater vessel slip, LNG carrier vessels, a marine access channel, and supporting infrastructure. On March 29th, FERC issued a Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the project.
The proposed pipeline would cross or otherwise impact 352 water bodies, including water bodies that are known to support salmon and other Council-managed stocks. In addition to environmental impacts, a security zone 500 meters wide–equal to the width of the existing navigation channel–will be required around LNG carrier vessels. This could impact all other vessel traffic while carrier vessels are present. FERC estimates 120 carrier vessels will transit the area each year.
Construction will require large-scale channel modification and continuous dredging, and will impact estuarine habitats that are important to several Council-managed species (Chinook and coho salmon, sardine, herring, Pacific sanddabs, English sole, starry flounder, lingcod, and rockfishes), and their prey.
Fishermen and processors believe that the proposed project is likely to disrupt fishing-related business and offloading activities in the vicinity of the terminal site at Coos Bay. Recreational fishing will also be disrupted in the estuary and streams.
An analysis of the social and economic impacts to Council-managed fisheries due to loss of productive habitats, direct mortality on fish species and prey, disruption of fishing activities and port deliveries has not been conducted, but impacts are likely to be significant.
National Marine Fisheries Service has not yet undertaken an essential fish habitat consultation or developed conservation recommendations for the project. For more details, see the Council letter and the related Oregonian article.
Forest Service standards
In a related matter, the Habitat Committee discussed the U.S. Forest Service’s forest plan standards, which would need to be amended to accommodate the Jordan Cove pipeline. The standards affect rare species and riparian zones, which are also designated as essential fish habitat. The Council directed the Habitat Committee to draft a letter to the Forest Service on this subject for the September briefing book.
California offshore renewable energy
Chris Potter from the California Natural Resource Agency/Ocean Protection Council gave a presentation to the Habitat Committee on California offshore renewable energy lease efforts. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has issued a call for information and nomination for three potential offshore energy leasing areas near Humboldt Bay, Morro Bay, and Diablo Canyon, California. The latter two are understood to be in conflict with Department of Defense operations, but political pressure is being applied to move projects forward despite Defense objections. Currently 14 companies have submitted indications of interest to obtain a commercial lease for a wind energy project.
Coastal sediment management
Rising sea levels mean more coastal erosion, which means that beaches need to be restored to protect habitats for many species. These include species that spawn on the beach, such as sand lance, surf smelt, and grunion. In June, the Habitat Committee heard a presentation on sediment management and beach nourishment in California and Washington. In California, the Coastal Sediment Management Workgroup is a collaborative state and Federal effort that has helped develop 14 regional sediment management plans covering the California coast.
In Washington, beach nourishment is being used to restore beaches that are lacking natural sediment. Ninety percent of Puget Sound’s beaches are fed by sediment from eroding bluffs, and a third of these bluffs have shoreline armoring that prevents sediment from moving naturally to the beach. In beach restoration, sediment is placed above the water level on beaches to protect benthic organisms and to allow the sediment to be distributed by coastal processes. At the same time, shoreline armoring is often removed, and large woody debris is added. These efforts can restore surf smelt and sand lance spawning habitat, both of which are prey species for Council-managed species.
Klamath issues
Since April 1, the Bureau of Reclamation has been operating the Klamath Project under a new Biological Opinion (BiOp), which has caused some issues with water management given the mid-year switch. For example, below-average discharge from Iron Gate Dam has left the Klamath with drought-like flows, while every stream around it has above-average discharge. The Yurok Tribe is suing Reclamation over its methods for calculating the block of environmental water (all water not allocated for agriculture).
The levels of Ceratomyxa shasta, a parasite that contributes to fish kills in the Klamath, started climbing in May. A pulse flow was released to flush the spores from the river and to help ensure hatchery fish survival. Initially, only 65 percent of the Iron Gate Hatchery fall Chinook were going to be released, but because of mortality concerns and to capitalize on the pulse flow, California Department of Fish and Wildlife decided to release the last of the Chinook during this pulse as well, despite the fact that the fish were undersized and only 7 percent were marked with coded wire tags, rather than the typical 25 percent.
Deep-set buoy gear: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) presented an analysis of the biological impacts of a deep-set buoy gear fishery in June. The data comes from observer records and logbooks for deep-set buoy gear exempted fishing permit activity from 2015 through early 2019, and shows how many targeted and non-targeted species were caught with deep-set buoy gear during that period (see Table 1). The Council plans to choose a final preferred alternative on deep-set buoy gear in September. It has identified potential socioeconomic effects stemming from the number of permits that would be issued to fish in the Southern California Bight under the Council’s proposed limited entry program. An analysis of these potential effects would help the Council decide in September how many limited entry permits should be issued for this new fishery, assuming it moves forward.
Final rule on commercial Pacific bluefin tuna: On May 2, 2019, NMFS published a final rule implementing Inter-American Tropical Tuna Committee resolutions on Pacific bluefin tuna. The final rule includes catch limits for U.S. commercial vessels that fish for Pacific bluefin tuna in the eastern Pacific Ocean during 2019 and 2020. The rule implements a 630 metric ton (mt) catch limit for both years combined, with catch not to exceed 425 mt in a single year, and establishes a trip limit of 15 mt until catch is within 50 mt of the catch limit, and a 2 mt trip limit when catch is within 50 mt of the catch limit.
The final rule also creates reporting requirements. When the trip limit is 15 mt, purse seine vessel owners or operators must submit a pre-trip notification to NMFS 24 hours before starting a trip that will result in landing more than 2 mt of Pacific bluefin tuna (in other words, more than 2 mt of Pacific bluefin tuna may not be landed unless NMFS received a pre-trip notification). The rule also implements new procedures for taking inseason action. Legal notices for inseason actions will be posted on the NOAA Fisheries website, which will be followed up by radio call broadcasted by the U.S. Coast Guard.
In addition, as of July 1, 2019, fish buyers will be required to submit electronic landings receipts with Pacific bluefin tuna landings in California ports using the “E-tix” system within 24 hours of landing.
West Coast bluefin tuna harvest strategy: In 2018, the Council directed its advisory bodies to bring forward ideas for a long-term harvest strategy for Pacific bluefin tuna, and in May, NMFS hosted a meeting with stakeholders to discuss the future of the bluefin commercial fishery on the west coast. This NMFS report includes a summary of discussions at the meeting along with a process to allow the Council to contribute to future Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC) Pacific bluefin tuna resolutions.
Sea turtle bycatch: The United States plans to submit a proposal to strengthen the IATTC’s existing sea turtle bycatch resolution (C-07-03), recognizing that this would require foreign fleets to take measures that are similar to those currently required by U.S. pelagic longline vessels, such as use of circle hooks and finfish bait.
Management strategy evaluations: The International Scientific Committee for Tuna and Tuna-Like Species in the North Pacific Ocean is conducting management strategy evaluations for North Pacific albacore and Pacific bluefin tuna. In June the Council reiterated its support of U.S. stakeholder participation in these processes.
Bluefin tuna meetings. The Council agreed to fund travel costs for two Highly Migratory Species Management Team members and four Highly Migratory Species Advisory Subpanel members to attend the Pacific bluefin IATTC-Northern Committee Joint Working Group and Northern Committee meetings during the week of September 2, 2019 in Portland, Oregon. This will allow advisory bodies to better understand the regional fishery management organization process and communicate those lessons to the Council.
Drift gillnet performance. Each June, the Council receives a report from its Highly Migratory Species Management Team (HMSMT) comparing estimated bycatch of prohibited species in the large mesh drift gillnet fishery against historical benchmark levels. According to the latest report, in 2016, take of northern right whale dolphins slightly exceeded the benchmark level, while in 2017 take of risso’s dolphin and sperm whale exceeded the benchmark. In its report the HMSMT also described an alternative way to assess bycatch in the fishery. This method, which was reviewed by the Scientific and Statistical Committee in 2018, will be used at the June 2020 Council meeting.
Yellowfin tuna regulations discussed
Additional yellowfin tuna regulations are not needed at this time, the Council concluded in June. In 2018 NMFS notified the Council that the Eastern Pacific Ocean stock of yellowfin tuna was subject to overfishing, and that the Council must make recommendations by November 2018 to address the problem. The overfishing determination was based on a 2018 IATTC stock assessment which found that the fishing level was just barely over the level that defines this condition. The IATTC completed a new assessment in 2019, but there are major uncertainties about the results, meaning that NMFS is unlikely to consider it the “best scientific information available.”
Because West Coast catch of yellowfin is a tiny proportion of total eastern Pacific Ocean catch, the Council concluded that additional constraints in West Coast fisheries aren’t needed now. In terms of international action, the Council focused its recommendations on efforts to make sure next year’s IATTC “benchmark” assessment produces reliable results. To that end the Council’s Scientific and Statistical Committee met with the IATTC staff scientists who worked on the assessment to identify potential improvements.
Seventeen exempted fishing permits forwarded
The Council reviewed 18 deep-set buoy gear exempted fishing permit (EFP) applications submitted for the June Council meeting and forwarded 17 applications to NMFS for issuance. It also preliminarily approved an EFP for night-set buoy gear under 100 percent observer coverage, with a final recommendation coming in September.
Beyond considering these new applications, the Council recommended that NMFS renew the current twenty-one standard deep-set buoy gear and ten linked deep-set buoy gear EFPs for 2020. Since many previously reviewed and recommended permit applications haven’t been issued, the Council asked NMFS to put the current batch of applications at the head of the line.
Other EFPs reviewed in 2017 and 2018 haven’t been issued because the applicant hasn’t followed through on steps needed for NMFS to issue a permit. For that reason, the Council recommended that NMFS stop considering these applications if the applicant hasn’t followed through by the end of this year.
Proposed sardine rules: On July 1, NMFS published harvest specifications and management measures for the 2019-2020 Pacific sardine fishing year based on Council recommendations at the April 2019 meeting. The biomass estimate of 27,547 metric tons (mt) places sardine in the “overfished” category, meaning the Council and NMFS must develop a rebuilding plan within two years after the “overfished” declaration is published by NMFS (July 9, 2019). This is the fifth year biomass was below the 150,000 mt cutoff value, meaning that directed commercial fishing will remain closed for the fifth straight year. The live bait fishery will be allowed to target sardines until 2,500 mt have been landed, at which point a 1-mt landing cap will apply. Once the annual catch target of 4,000 mt is attained, all fisheries will be limited to a 1-mt incidental landing allowance.
Category change: The “active” and “monitored” categories currently used in the Coastal Pelagic Species Management Plan will be eliminated and replaced with individual descriptions of the management approach for each stock, as directed by the Council in June. The Coastal Pelagic Species Management Team and Council staff are expected to produce a draft revised fishery management plan for consideration at the June 2020 Council meeting.
New prioritization process: A new process for prioritizing coastal pelagic species stock assessments will begin in November 2020, to inform stock assessment priorities beginning in 2022. This biennial process will allow for revisions in intervening years based on new information, and will help with data review and research planning. Pacific sardine will undergo a benchmark assessment in 2020, and the central subpopulation of northern anchovy will be assessed in 2021.
Central Subpopulation of Northern Anchovy harvest specifications: On May 31, NMFS published a final rule establishing a new overfishing limit, acceptable biological catch, and annual catch limit for the central subpopulation of northern anchovy. The finalized reference points include an overfishing limit of 94,290 mt, and an annual catch limit of 23,573 mt (down from the 25,000 mt in recent years). The harvest specifications are effective July 1 for the remainder of the January 1 through December 31 fishing year.
Final action on Pacific mackerel assessment, harvest specifications, and management
In June the Council adopted the 2019 Pacific mackerel stock assessment, reference points and management measures for 2019-2020 and the 2020-2021 fisheries. These include the specifications in the table below, and the following management measures: if the directed fishery reaches the annual catch target, it will close and shift to an incidental-only fishery for the remainder of the fishing year, with a 45 percent incidental landing allowance when Pacific mackerel are landed with other coastal pelagic species (CPS); in non-CPS fisheries, up to 3 mt of Pacific mackerel per landing may be landed.
Proposed 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 Pacific Mackerel Harvest Specifications
Transfer of halibut management authority moves forward
Plans to transfer management of the non-Indian commercial directed halibut fishery from the International Pacific Halibut Commission (IPHC) to the Council are moving forward. In June, the Council committed to working closely with the IPHC and stakeholders on transitioning the management of this fishery, and outlined the Council’s intentions for the fishery in the near future.
The Council asked that IPHC continue to issue licenses for the 2A halibut fisheries, including the directed commercial halibut fishery for 2020 and 2021, to provide time to develop and enact a new regulatory framework. The Council will also ask IPHC to enter into a data sharing arrangement for the IPHC 2A halibut licensing system and the commercial directed halibut fishery logbook data.
For the next few years the Council will focus on a smooth transfer of management authority for the commercial directed fishery, and will not be considering any major changes to the current fishery structure. That said, the Council will consider changes to the fishery within the existing structure (i.e., an open access fishery managed by fishing periods and vessel limits) beginning in 2019 for 2020 regulations.
Beginning in 2019, the Council will use the September and November meetings (concurrent with the halibut Catch Sharing Plan process) to set directed commercial halibut fishery regulations within the existing season structure.