Effects of Fishing Gear Area Restriction and Catch Share Programs on Effort Distribution in Pulley Ridge, Eastern Gulf of Mexico
Effects of Fishing Gear Area Restriction and Catch Share Programs on Effort Distribution in Pulley Ridge, Eastern Gulf of Mexico

Author: Emily Starnes

Publisher:

Published: 2017

Total Pages:

ISBN-13:

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Pulley Ridge, located in the Gulf of Mexico on the West Florida Shelf, contains a rare and ecologically valuable mesophotic coral reef ecosystem that provides essential fish habitat for many commercially and recreationally important fish species. The area is currently protected by a Habitat Area of Particular Concern (HAPC), a marine protected area established in 2005 that covers part of the Pulley Ridge area and mandates several fishing gear restrictions. The HAPC prohibits the most environmentally destructive gear types; however, these protections are somewhat limited because they do not encompass the entire Pulley Ridge area, and because they do not impose any no-take areas for commercial fisheries or protect from any non-fishing activities. In addition to the HAPC, commercial fishing catch throughout the Gulf of Mexico (including the Pulley Ridge area) is managed using an Individual Fishing Quota program which was implemented in 2010. The objective of this Master of Science (M.S.) thesis is to assess changes in fishing effort for the commercial reef fish fishery in the Pulley Ridge area, before and after the implementation of the HAPC and the Gulf of Mexico catch share programs. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries Logbook Data are used to test hypotheses regarding commercial fishing effort for reef fish in the areas that include Pulley Ridge and the HAPC. It is necessary to assess the status of economically and ecologically important fishery species and fishing effort distributions in the Pulley Ridge area. Furthering scientific understanding in this area will help to inform management actions in order to increase the efficacy of marine resource management strategies for Pulley Ridge and the West Florida Shelf region.

Sharing the Fish
Sharing the Fish

Author: National Research Council

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 1999-06-09

Total Pages: 436

ISBN-13: 0309173477

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Most U.S. fish stocks are fully or over-exploited, and harvesting in many fisheries far exceeds sustainable levels. The individual fishing quota (IFQ) is a relatively new instrument under which harvesting privileges are allocated to individual fishermenâ€"innovative yet controversial for its feared effect on fishing communities and individual fishermen. Based on testimony from fishermen, regulators, environmentalists, and others, Sharing the Fish explores how IFQs might address the serious social, economic, and biologic issues raised by depleted fish stocks. In their approach to a national policy on IFQs, the panel makes direct recommendations to Congress, the Secretary of Commerce, the National Marine Fisheries Service, regional fishery management councils, state authorities, and others. This book provides definitions and examples, reviews legislation and regulations, and includes lessons learned from fisheries on the U.S. East Coast and in Alaska, and in Iceland, New Zealand, and other nations. The committee discusses the public trust doctrine, management of common-pool resources, alternative and complementary approaches to the IFQ, and more. Sharing the Fish provides straightforward answers that will be important to fishery policymakers and regulators, natural resource economists, fishery managers, environmental advocates, and concerned fishermen and their communities.

U. S. Catch Share Programs
U. S. Catch Share Programs

Author: Alfred G. Solomon

Publisher:

Published: 2014-01-01

Total Pages: 183

ISBN-13: 9781633216402

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Catch share programs are a fishery management tool that dedicates a secure share of quota allowing individual fishermen, fishing cooperatives, fishing communities, or other entities to harvest a fixed amount of fish. With clearly defined fishing privileges, fishermen no longer need to "race to fish," but instead can make harvest decisions based upon market conditions, improving economic performance, and weather conditions, which improves crew safety. These incentives can reduce the cost of taking conservation actions and can encourage individual fishing choices that are more consistent with sustainable fishing practices such as reducing low-value or undersized catch that is discarded at sea but is frequently associated with high mortality rates. The ability to align fishermen's economic incentives with the long-term biological health of the fishery singularly distinguishes catch share programs from traditional fishery management strategies (i.e., trip limits, gear restrictions, etc.). Nationwide, there are 15 catch share programs currently in operation. This book provides basic information on the economic performance of U.S. catch share programs using a standard set of indicators that are uniformly applied across these highly diverse programs.

Final Amendment 31 to the Fishery Management Plan for Reef Fish Resources in the Gulf of Mexico
Final Amendment 31 to the Fishery Management Plan for Reef Fish Resources in the Gulf of Mexico

Author:

Publisher:

Published: 2010

Total Pages: 289

ISBN-13:

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"National standard 9 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSFCMA) requires that the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) minimize bycatch and bycatch mortality to the extent practicable. Additionally, the Endangered Species Act (ESA) requires that the federal government protect and conserve species and populations that are endangered or threatened with extinction, and conserve the ecosystems on which these species depend. A recent observer study by the Southeast Fisheries Science Center estimated hardshell sea turtle takes by the commercial bottom longline component of the Gulf of Mexico reef fish fishery have exceeded the three-year anticipated take levels in the 2005 Biological Opinion. Therefore, the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (Council) and NMFS developed management measures to reduce hardshell sea turtle takes by the bottom longline component of the reef fish fishery. Actions in this amendment that address ways to reduce hardshell sea turtle interactions with bottom longline gear include: 1) modifying bait; 2) area, depth, and season restrictions; 3) reducing effort through a longline endorsement program; and 4) modifying fishing gear to reduce effort"--Abstract (p. v).

The Gulf of Mexico Red Snapper Individual Fishing Quota Program
The Gulf of Mexico Red Snapper Individual Fishing Quota Program

Author: Nathan Miller

Publisher:

Published: 2010

Total Pages:

ISBN-13:

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ABSTRACT: In January 2007, the Gulf of Mexico red snapper fishery took a step toward sustainability and began management under an individual fishing quota (IFQ) system. The hope is that direct ownership stakes by fishers brings more direct involvement on behalf of the boat owners and fishermen as well as more responsible and sustainable fishing practices on depressed fish populations. The research was conducted in order to study the welfare of local fishing communities as well as the effects on the red snapper fishery itself. Traditional fisheries and economic data were analyzed. In addition a Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) of the Florida Gulf Coast communities involved in the red snapper fishery was performed to compare to the analysis of fishing communities prepared by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). Finally, online and phone surveys of fishermen involved in the red snapper fishery were performed to gauge their responses to the change in management. The study reveals a strong correlation between the DEA analysis of fishing communities affected and the analysis performed by NMFS, and reinforces DEA as a method of determining involvement in a fishery. Additionally, the thesis indicates the red snapper IFQ has performed as expected in some areas by its supporters - an average gulf-wide ex-vessel price per pound increase of 10% in just three years; elimination of the rush to fish due to guaranteed quota; and a shift in fleet composition as the number of share owners owning less than 2.00% have dwindled, and the number of shareholders possessing greater than 2.00% of the quota has increased gulf-wide by 50%. However, in other areas such as effort reduction and bycatch rates, the IFQ appears to have mixed results. A reported decline in effort is likely attributable to a reduction in the overall gulf-wide red snapper quota between 2007 and 2008 rather than the IFQ, and even NMFS doubts the bycatch data that are being reported by fishermen. Most importantly, current IFQ shareholders were surveyed via phone and internet revealing not only an overall disapproval by most fishers of the IFQ design process, but also effects contrary to those publicized by IFQ supporters, and a general distrust in fisheries management.

Modifications to the Commercial Individual Fishing Quota Programs
Modifications to the Commercial Individual Fishing Quota Programs

Author: Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council

Publisher:

Published: 2017

Total Pages: 198

ISBN-13:

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"Currently, there are two commercial individual fishing quota (IFQ) programs in the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf). Amendment 261 (GMFMC 2006) established the red snapper IFQ (RS-IFQ) program, and Amendment 292 (GMFMC 2008a) established the grouper and tilefish IFQ (GT-IFQ) program. The RS-IFQ program began on January 1, 2007 and the GT-IFQ program began on January 1, 2010. As mandated by the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) and by Amendment 26, the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (Council) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) collaboratively conducted a 5-year review of the RS-IFQ program (GMFMC and NMFS 2013), which was formally approved at the April 2013 Council meeting. The conclusions of the report are provided in Appendix B. The Council proceeded to appoint an Ad Hoc Red Snapper IFQ Advisory Panel to assist in recommending improvements to the program by identifying potential changes to the RS-IFQ program (Appendix C). The Council discussed a list of issues as potential modifications to the program at its February and April 2014 meetings and made modifications to the list. At its August 2014 meeting, the Council requested development of a scoping document to begin considering potential modifications to improve the performance of the RS-IFQ program. Scoping workshops were held in March 2015 (Appendix D). At its January 2016 meeting, the Council decided to further evaluate the items under consideration in the scoping document in separate amendments (36A and 36B), and expanded the scope to apply the proposed actions to both the RS-IFQ and GT-IFQ programs. Amendment 36A addresses advanced landing notification (also known as a "hail-in") requirements for all commercial reef fish trips to enhance enforcement, returning shares held in non-activated accounts to NMFS to be distributed at a later date, and giving NMFS the authority to withhold IFQ allocation before an expected quota reduction. Amendment 36B addresses the remaining items, as well as the method for distributing the shares held in non-activated accounts. The 5-year review of the GT-IFQ program is currently underway and the Council is expected to review a draft of the 5-year review at a meeting later in 2017"--Introduction.