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John T. Koegler
(from Jersey Coast Anglers Association November 2003 Newsletter)
US HMS fish are managed under ICCAT. Harks are managed domestically by NMFS. Internationally, US fishermen have been HMS regulated since 1976. The other 25 ICCAT nations have generally ignored the rules they approved and agreed to observe. These other countries keep fishing without any regard for quotas, size limits or any other ICCAT rule.
Since the regulations from ICCAT are self-imposed by each nation, there are only a limited number of options that the US regulators can employ to achieve any control. Recently, US trade representatives have served notice on the European Union that they and others were not following the rules and that the US was very displeased and wanted correction. Some progress was made but it was limited.
Meanwhile, US HMS fishermen catch fewer fish each year and our strict conservation has produced no recovery. Now our fishermen’s ability to land even their small ICCAT quota allocation has failed. This is because the Atlantic’s HMS stocks have continued to decline. What this proves is that unilateral US conservation of an HMS species does not work. Where we go from here is unknown. Anglers are entering a management period with new rules being proposed that are absurd. In fact, you will label the new rules as they emerge from the NMFS process later this year and next as insane.
The eco-system conservation terrorists are having a field day! They are pushing NMFS to the point where both recreational and commercial fisheries in the future will be totally shut down. Landings that produce hundreds of billions of dollars of recreational and commercial spending plus tens of thousands of jobs will disappear. The entire supporting recreational and commercial HMS infrastructure required to allow an HMS fishery to exist will collapse. And still there will be no HMS recovery.
A review of NMFS Giant and Large medium 2003 General Category rules for 2003
June- July- August General Category limit of one
bluefin per trip.
September - Two bluefin tuna per trip
October - Three bluefin tuna per trip
November- Closed the first two weeks
New rules under amendment #1 were reviewed at the September 30 meeting of the
ICCAT Advisory Panel. Last year, the most commercially valuable Coastal shark species, the sandbar shark, was declared by NMFS to not be overfished. They did this despite their previous report which found this shark’s population had collapsed. NMFS used new science to make this determination. Naturally, the angler rule of one shark per trip will not change.
MFS held hearings on new rules for these species during October. None were held locally. NMFS proposed new rules that would increase the recreational minimum size for landings of Atlantic and Blue Marlin when 80% of the quota was landed. The US White Marlin limit is 250 landed fish per year. NMFS now would close the Marlin fishery for the balance of the year including catch and release when the quotas were projected to be exceeded.
If you believe the above is absurd, read the October 7 report from RFA’s Herb Moore.
“The Center for Biological Diversity, (Denver, CO) and the Turtle Island Restoration Network have filed a 60-day notice of intent to sue the NMFS if the agency does not list the Atlantic white marlin as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act. The notice follows NMFS decision last year that listing white marlin under the ESA is not warranted” (at that time).
“Under the language of the ESA, if white marlin is listed as threatened or endangered and critical habitat is established for the species, NMFS would have the discretion to prohibit sport fishing for white marlin by regulation, even catch and release. Such listing could have ramifications for sport fishermen targeting other species such as blue marlin, bigeye and Yellowfin as well, because they share the white marlin’s habitat.”
“The environmental groups claim that NMFS decision to not list the white marlin last year was arbitrary and capricious in violation of the ESA and the Administrative Procedures Act.”
“Additional conservation measures for white marlin are absolutely necessary but the ESA is positively not the answer,” said Jim Donofrio the RFA’s Executive Director. “Not when recreational fishermen are releasing 98% of the white marlin we catch.”
Halloween is here; maybe a spell will happen that will make this insanity disappear.
Squid is a key forage species for HMS fish. Squid is also a very popular food offered as calamari. Major commercial fishing effort is directed at squid to satisfy this demand.
The Mid-Atlantic $500,000 White Marlin tournament held in Cape May each August provided a major squid surprise. The White Marlin’s favorite food is squid. Past studies indicated that between 40 to 70 percent of the White Marlin’s diet is squid. The scientist checking this tournament’s landed White Marlin found no squid. Only bullet tuna were found in the White Marlin’s stomachs that were checked. How can there be any HMS recovery when this key HMS forage species’ abundance is so low that White Marlin can not find ANY squid to eat? A complete report on this issue will be in next month’s newspaper.
JCAA HMS Advisory Board members wanted.
JCAA is seeking to increase their HMS advisory board size and add new members to control NMFS rule-making insanity. Anyone interested, please send their name and phone number by e-mail to JTKoegler@juno.com .