New Survey Method

Data, Data, Data has been my comment for the last few years at public hearings, Council and Commission meetings. I have complained of the total lack of credible data that has been used to manage our fisheries.

Well, I decided to put my money where my mouth is. I conducted my own survey of the Sunshine Foundation Fluke and Weakfish Tournament, which was held on July 14th. I’ll report those results in a future newsletter.

In addition, I paid for my plane ticket to attend a workshop held by NOAA on August 7-9 in St. Pete Beach, Florida to start implementing the recommendations of the National Research Council in an effort to improve the Recreational Survey Methods. The effort called the Marine Recreational Information Initiative is made up of teams to work on various aspects of the problem.

Dr. John Boreman, the head of the Executive Steering Committee, set the stage for the workshop in his opening remarks. He began by saying that 80 people had been invited to sit on the teams and only two had declined. Interestingly no one from New Jersey government was asked to participate. The only NJ invitee was Jim Donofrio who was asked to sit on the Registry Group. I was hoping to talk to Jim but he did not attend this workshop. Dr. Boreman talked about credibility being a key component of the new survey. A Communications and Education Team will be tasked with this effort. He also said that he was thinking in terms of $50,000,000 per year to conduct surveys. This may sound like a lot of money but the surveys need to be conducted from Maine to Alaska and Hawaii.

I was a little concerned at the beginning of the workshop when everyone was handed “A Layman’s Guide to Recreational Data Collection” which stated that collecting recreational fishing data was similar to a political poll. Nothing could be further from the truth. Political polls are simple. Collecting recreational fishing data is far more complex than simply asking whom you will vote for. There are so many variables that need to be considered. Items like weather and location alone have a tremendous impact on the success of individual fishermen.

Toyo Shimano presented the keynote address on the challenges the group will face and gave a perspective on how a successful business would attack the problem. Teamwork is a key component and listening to the end user. You can build a great fishing rod but if it is wrong for the end use you can’t sell it. He gave the example where the technical team builds this great rod, which would have been great for a Texas Bass fisherman, but it was supposed to be a surf rod. They ended up with a large inventory and no sales.

I worked as a product development chemist before I retired. We would face the challenge of developing a new product by telling the marketing team that we could make any product they wanted. They could have the new product fast, good and cheap. Which two did they want?

The recreational survey has a tight timeline for completion. My hope is that they opt for good as the second component. It remains to be seen if $50,000,000 is too cheap to get the job done right.

Preston Pate, recently retired as the North Carolina Director of Marine Fisheries, is the Chair of the Operations Team, which oversees the activities of all the other work groups. The teams were composed of mostly Federal and State Employees with most Teams having some recreational representatives.

Since I was not one of the invitees I had the choice of which team to sit with. I chose the Analysis Team, which is working on how the collected data will be examined. I was very pleased with the reception I received. My comments were considered and incorporated into the work product for further deliberation. There were three other recreational representatives on the team. The comments from the recreational sector were well received and my expectation is that they will all be incorporated into the final document. The timeline is optimistic. All the groups are expected to have the high priority projects started by 6/1/2008.

During the wrap-up session time was allocated for public comment and questions. I was surprised that I was the only person who provided comments. I stated that I was very happy with the process and the results so far. As I listened to the Team reports, I was pleased that my concerns seemed to have been addressed even by the teams that I did not participate in. For example, the use of logbooks to estimate discard rates is a possibility.

The one overriding factor in improving the survey will be the substantial and continuing source of funding that will be needed to do it correctly. Additional and more detailed surveys will be required and more staff will be required to properly analyze the increased volume of data. The sample size needs to be carefully calculated to ensure that the numerous variables are covered in the appropriate detail to maximize credibility.

A unique opportunity exists to think outside the box to incorporate new technology that was not available in the past. For instance, satellite pictures could show how many boats are fishing in the canyons, along the beach and even in the bays on a particular day.

The Internet is now available. Volunteer angler surveys could be developed to capture catch vs. effort and discard information in a timely, cost effective manner. Why wait? Start a pilot project now.

I understand that the final project will require time to reach completion but I challenged the group to take the low hanging fruit immediately and not wait. For instance, one of the complaints from the charter and party boats holding federal permits is that they are required to submit logbook information. This information goes virtually unused. This information is, in effect, a census and not a survey. As good as surveys and statistics are they will never be as good as a census in the minds of the average fisherman. For instance, the work group looking at Highly Migratory Species reported they needed a survey to determine the level of fishing effort and catch results. That team did not appear to know that this information was already available in the form of a logbook census. Allowing the NJ Tuna fleet to submit their reports on line would make the information instantly available. Don’t wait, start this immediately. It will go a long way toward building credibility which is an integral part of this project.

This is what we are dealing with, constituent perception and credibility. These must be earned. Credibility in the eyes of recreational anglers will depend on this perception. The survey results must reflect what anglers are experiencing on the water. Reality checks must be done so that reports don’t come out showing that huge numbers of fish are caught during a hurricane. Weather is a huge factor in the success of recreational anglers. Location of intercept sites is also a huge factor. A distance of 20 miles can mean a significant difference in the catch on a particular day. Anyone who has fished knows that off the spot by just a few feet can make all the difference. So expansion of data must be carefully considered. The skill of individual anglers varies greatly. 10% of the anglers will catch 80% of the fish. Anyone who has ever fished on a party boat will recognize this as fact. Of 50 anglers on the boat there will be five who are constantly catching fish while the person next to them goes fishless.

One concern that did arise during the wrap-up session was that the registry team was looking at exempting seniors and those under 16 years old. This seems to miss the whole purpose of the registry. If the registry is to establish a database of anglers to improve the telephone survey, then a significant number of anglers will be excluded. A few recreational members of the audience challenged this comment. A means to capture these anglers must be included or the credibility will remain in jeopardy. The registry will be in place by January of 2009.

I would like to form a JCAA committee to examine the work of the Marine Recreational Information Initiative and would ask any club interested in participating to contact me at 732-267-6451 or drop me an email at toms6363@comcast.net.

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