Fisheries Management & Legislative Report

The summer flounder debate continues hot and heavy. Congressman Frank Pallone is requesting a Congressional Hearing on the controversies surrounding stock assessment and targets. There will be some organizations that will be pushing for NMFS to support the quota suggested by the monitoring committee regardless of the hearing or any outside peer review. I believe these organizations misinterpret Magnuson Stevens Act. Magnuson/Stevens Act require that quotas do not exceed the recommendations of the Science & Statistical Committee (SSC) Committee. The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council does have an SSC Committee and they have never used this committee to make recommendations for a summer flounder quota. This year JCAA and our Congressmen demanded an SSC review of the Monitoring Committee and it was never done. The membership of the Monitoring Committee and the SSC are entirely different and would bring different perspectives to the discussion. The quota of 15.77 million pounds was approved by both ASMFC and MAMF. In August 2006 ASMFC and MAFMC requested an outside peer review of the model and the targets that NMFS uses for summer flounder. NMFS has given nothing but excuses for their inaction on this request. Numerous Congressmen, Senators and Governors have also requested this review. ASMFC is equal partners in this plan and each state is represented on ASMFC. Those state agencies have turned to their Governors and have questioned the science used by NMFS. JCAA published a letter from Governor Corzine requesting this peer review. This request has been echoed by other Governors and various state agencies.

JCAA is an environmental group and I am reluctant to place the blame broadly on all environmental groups which include other recreational anglers. However, there are some NGO’s who don’t all include representation from the fishing public and the fishing industry. They are the ones calling on NMFS to support the lower quota. They have not a clue about the science or the 17-year history of this plan. They simply take NMFS science without question and react. They are very quick to excuse NMFS for not following the rules in determining the quota without going to the SSC’s and ignoring the requirements for providing a study of the economic and social impacts. They blatantly ignore that this study is also required under NEPA rules. They can’t have it both ways. Either we follow Magnuson Stevens to the letter or we ignore it altogether.

JCAA understands we need to rebuild stocks, even if the process is painful. However, summer flounder is not a collapsed stock. It is a stock that has been rebuilding since 1990. The stock has gone from SSBMSY a 1994 spawning stock biomass (SSBMSY) of 22 million pounds to a 2007 estimate of between 80 – 109 million pounds. This means the spawning stock biomass has increased by 4 – 5 times in the last 13 years. It also means that we could be at half of the total of the proposed SSBMSY and then overfishing would not be taken place and the quota recommendations would be much higher. There is a very good distribution of older year class fish. If you compared to other species, summer flounder has 80% of a fully recovered stock for older year class fish. We have discussed the problem of flat line or below average recruitment for the last five years in numerous articles in the JCAA newspaper. Please read those articles for the information you need. Remember, recreationally we are not harvesting any summer flounder until they have spawned 3 – 4 times. Summer flounder spawns at 13 inches and New York is fishing at a 19 ˝ inch fish recreationally.

I pulled the following from NMFS' SARC Documents (all numbers in pounds):

What I find the most discouraging is the people at these NGO groups will actually ask and get increased funding because things look bad. It makes me wonder if they don’t create “bad” to prove they are doing something and they need more money. They don’t seem to care who it hurts. The people who depend on the commercial or recreational fishing industry won’t get increased funding – they’ll just go out of business. Look around. There are tackle stores going out of business and charter and party boat owners laying off staff and failing to make their loan payments. I attended a meeting in Florida with the tackle manufacturers and their sales are way down on the east coast. These are not corporations like General Motors that can sustain years of loss. These businesses just go bankrupt and people lose their homes, boats and hope. No one at NMFS or the lobbyists at the NGO’s won’t lose their jobs or their homes. They keep promising if we wait, we will see the benefits. I can’t imagine who will still be in business to reap those promised benefits. And, finally, the quality of life issue is really important. For many anglers, this is their recreation, not golf, just fishing. Summer flounder is the fish sought out by most recreational anglers to take home and eat. The point is there is no point. All of this is needless if rebuilding summer flounder is your goal.

The bill (S 2635) that would rid New Jersey artificial reefs of pots that interfere with drifting, anchoring and even additional reef-building passed through the Senate Environmental Committee on Thursday, October 18th. JCAA would like to thank Senator Robert Smith, chairman of the Environmental Committee for holding a special hearing on this bill and for all of his support. Other Senators who supported this bill are Senators Adler, Sweeney, and McNamara. We would also like to thank Senate President Codey for allowing this special hearing. His continued support is needed to get this bill posted and passed by the full Senate. We also need Assembly Speaker Joseph Roberts to post this bill for passage by the Assembly. Please Governor Corzine, Senate President Codey and Assembly Speaker Joseph Roberts know how important this bill is to you. We want this bill posted during the session following the November election. There is no reason to begin this process again in the next legislature to reach the same outcome. Call or write them now. Included below are articles from the Star Ledger and the Asbury Park Press. A special thanks to Bill Figley for his terrific testimony and all his hard work. Many members from JCAA also attended the hearing.

JCAA, NJSFSC and I have been working hard to get S138/A636 Hooked on Fishing-Not on Drugs Bill passed. It was heard by the Senate Environmental Committee on Monday, September 17 and was moved out of committee. JCAA would like to thank Senator Robert Smith, Chairman of the Senate Environmental Committee for posting this bill for hearing. We would like to thank Senator John Adler and Senator Andy Ciesla for their support. This bill has already passed the Assembly Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee with a unanimous vote. We now need to work on getting the Assembly Appropriations Committee and Senate Appropriations Committee to hear the bill after the elections and then get the bill passed by the full Assembly and Senate.

Assemblyman Herb Conaway is a co-sponsor and a member of the Assembly Appropriations Committee. In the Senate there are two members of the Senate Appropriations Committee who are co-sponsors, Senator Barbara Buono and Senator Nick Asselta. We will need their help to get this bill posted for a vote and out of the Appropriations Committee in their houses. These are the committee members that we need to contact to have the next hearing on S138/A636.

Assembly Appropriations Committee Members
Nellie Pou – Chair, Joseph Cryan, - Vice-Chair
Herb Conaway, Michael J. Doherty, Robert Gordon, Louis Greenwald, Reed Gusciora, Marcia A. Karrow, Richard A. Merkt, Joseph Pennacchio, Valerie Huttle Vainieri, John S. Wisniewski.

Senate Budget and Appropriations
Bernard F. Kenny – Chair, Sharpe James - Vice-Chair
Nicholas Asselta, Martha W Bark, Anthony R. Bucco, Barbara Buono, Joseph Coniglio, Joseph V. Doria, Walter J Kavanaugh,. Leonard Lance, Robert E Littell, Paul A. Sarlo, Stephen M. Sweeney, Shirley K. Turner, Joseph F. Vitale.

The key is also to get the leadership to make sure the Assembly Appropriations Committee and the Senate Appropriations Committee hear and pass these bills. Senate President Richard Codey and Assembly Speaker Joseph Roberts need to make sure this happens and that the bills are posted for a vote by the full Senate and Assembly. To make sure this happens we need to get a commitment from them before the elections to post and pass the bill. Here is their contact information.

Senate President Richard Codey 449 Mount Pleasant Ave.
West Orange, NJ 07052 
Phone Number: (973) 731-6770 
Fax Number 973-731-0647

Assemblyman Speaker Joseph J. Roberts Jr Brooklawn Shopping Plaza, 
Route 130 & Browning Rd, 
Brooklawn, NJ 08030  
Phone Number: (856) 742-7600
Fax Number 856-742-1831

I was invited by the President to witness this signing of an Executive Order but could not make it. JCAA has been working on striped bass no sale for over 20 years and I have been working on it for over 30 years. It is nice to see that President Bush recognizes the importance of conserving striped bass and red drum and protecting the recreational community that depends on these fish. The EEZ is currently closed for striped bass fishing so there is no real impact there. The Executive Order and the press release are below the Executive Order that was signed by President George Bush on Saturday, October 20th. It directs the revision of current regulations, as appropriate, to include prohibiting the sale of striped bass and red drum caught within the Exclusive Economic Zone of the United States off the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico and the sale of striped bass and red drum from the EEZ. However, this Executive Order also recommends that the states consider no sale status for these two fish. It will be interesting to see how the states and ASMFC react. There is also a bill sponsored by Congressman Frank Pallone with many cosponsors including Congressman Thomas Allen from Maine that would make striped bass a gamefish (no-sale) by Federal Legislation. The value of Federal Legislation is that the solution is more lasting and less dependent on the current President. It would also address state waters. It will be interesting to see if this Executive Order provides any motivation to move this bill. The Executive Order and the press release are below.

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, to assist in ensuring faithful execution of the Magnuson Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, the Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Cooperative Management Act, and the Atlantic Striped Bass Conservation Act (chapters 38, 71, and 71A of title 16, United States Code), and to conserve striped bass and red drum fish, it is hereby ordered as follows:

Sec. 1. Policy. It shall be the policy of the United States to conserve striped bass and red drum for the recreational, economic, and environmental benefit of the present and future generations of Americans, based on sound science and in cooperation with State, territorial, local, and tribal governments, the private sector, and others, as appropriate.

Sec. 2. Implementation.

(a) To carry out the policy set forth in section 1, the Secretary of Commerce shall:

(i) encourage, as appropriate, management under Federal, State, territorial, tribal, and local laws that supports the policy of conserving striped bass and red drum, including State designation as gamefish where the State determines appropriate under applicable law;

(ii) revise current regulations, as appropriate, to include prohibiting the sale of striped bass and red drum caught within the Exclusive Economic Zone of the United States off the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico;

(iii) periodically review the status of the striped bass and red drum populations within waters subject to the jurisdiction of the United States and:

(A) take such actions within the authority of the Secretary of Commerce as may be appropriate to carry out the policy set forth in section 1 of this order; and

(B) recommend to the President such actions as the Secretary may deem appropriate to advance the policy set forth in section 1 that are not within the authority of the Secretary.

(b) Nothing in this order shall preclude or restrict the production, possession, or sale of striped bass or red drum fish that have been produced by aquaculture.

(c) The Secretary of Commerce shall implement subsections 2(a)(i) and (iii), insofar as they relate to Atlantic striped bass, jointly with the Secretary of the Interior, as appropriate.

Sec. 3. Definitions. As used in this order:

(a) "Exclusive Economic Zone of the United States" means the marine area of the United States as defined in Presidential Proclamation 5030 of March 10, 1983, with, for purposes of this order, the inner boundary of that zone being a line coterminous with the seaward boundary of each of the coastal States;

(b) "red drum" means the species Sciaenops ocellatus; and

(c) "striped bass" means the species Morone saxatilis.

Sec. 4. General Provisions.

(a) This order shall be implemented in a manner consistent with applicable law (including but not limited to interstate compacts to which the United States has consented by law, treaties and other international agreements to which the United States is a party, treaties to which the United States and an Indian tribe are parties, and laws of the United States conferring rights on Indian tribes) and subject to the availability of appropriations.

(b) Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budget, administrative, and legislative proposals.

(c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by a party against the United States, its departments, agencies, instrumentalities, entities, officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.

Fact Sheet:  Guarding Against Over-Fishing Through Cooperative Conservation

White House News:  President Bush Signs Executive Order to Protect Striped Bass and Red Drum Fish Populations

President Bush Signs Executive Order Encouraging Conservation Of Two Of America's Most Popular Recreational Fish.

On Saturday, October 20, President Bush visited the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum in St. Michaels, Maryland, to sign an Executive Order to protect America's striped bass and red drum fish populations. Recreational fishing is important to sportsmen and women, to America's families, and to our economy recreational fishers spend more than $40 billion a year. Striped bass and red drum are two of our Nation's most popular recreational fish; yet while they were once abundant in America's waters, they have been over-fished.

The Executive Order the President signed sets a policy to conserve striped bass and red drum fish for the recreational, economic, and environmental benefit of present and future generations of Americans. The Executive Order:

1. Moves to prohibit the sale of striped bass and red drum caught in Federal waters. The Order directs the Departments of Commerce and Interior to work with Federal and State officials on our fishery management councils and commissions to prohibit the sale of striped bass and red drum caught in Federal waters.
2. Promotes more accurate scientific records about fish population levels. The Order encourages the periodic Federal review of the status of striped bass and red drum populations to ensure that we have the most up-to-date information for determining whether breeding stocks are attaining healthy numbers and size in Federal waters. To improve the quality of our data, we are building a recreational saltwater registry that will collect information from sportsmen about local fish stocks, which will help us better protect striped bass, red drum, and all our fisheries.
3. Helps the Federal government work with State and local officials to find innovative ways to conserve these species for future generations. The President is directing Federal agencies to work with State officials, while respecting the States' role in the management of the natural resources under their care, to find innovative ways to help conserve striped bass and red drum populations, including the use of the State designation of "gamefish," where appropriate, to prohibit commercial sales of the fish.

The Executive Order is based on the Administration's policies of cooperative conservation and responsible stewardship. To meet the environmental challenges of the 21st century, the President believes we must bring together conservationists, sportsmen, local leaders, and Federal, State, and tribal officials in a spirit of cooperation to protect and preserve our Nation's natural heritage.

Saturday's Action Will Advance The Administration's Efforts To End Over-Fishing In America, Replenish Our Nation's Fish Stocks, And Advance Cooperative Conservation And Responsible Stewardship

In 2004, the President released his Ocean Action Plan to promote responsible use and stewardship of our ocean and coastal resources. The plan focused on making our oceans, coasts, and Great Lakes cleaner, healthier, and more productive.

In 2006, the President signed an Executive Order establishing the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. This action created the largest conservation area in the history of our Nation, and the largest protected marine area in the world.

In January, the President signed the Magnuson-Stevens Fisheries Conservation and Management Act. This legislation has set a deadline to end over-fishing in America, which occurs when we catch fish from a species at a rate faster than they are reproducing, by 2011, and has authorized "limited access privilege programs" to set market-based incentives to help replenish our fish stocks. In 2005 the President set a goal to double the number of these programs by 2010, and we are on target to meet that goal.

In February, the President released his 2008 Budget, which included a $143 million Oceans Initiative to support the Ocean Action Plan priorities. The Oceans Initiative provided $38 million to protect and restore coastal and marine areas, including $8 million for the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument; $25 million to end over-fishing and ensure sustainable use of ocean resources, including $6 million to implement Limited Access Privilege Programs; and $80 million to advance ocean science and research.

Major improvements have been made in the management of our Nation's marine fisheries. Important stocks such as Atlantic sea scallops and swordfish have been returned to productive levels. Since 2001, 29 stocks have been removed from the over-fished list, and rebuilding plans are in place for the more than 90 percent of the remaining over-fished stocks. In addition to these efforts to end over-fishing, we are implementing a strategy to improve, restore, and replace three million acres of wetlands. These wetlands act as "nature's nurseries" by helping small fish survive and grow before they head to deeper waters.

We are working in our coastal areas to tackle the problem of marine debris, such as abandoned nets, which can destroy fish habitat. Next month we will announce a new strategy to deal with marine debris. We will: Work with the private sector to clean up marine debris.

Educate the public on what they can do to prevent its spread.

Work with our partners in the international community to help stop marine debris from being dumped into oceans and waterways in the first place.

We are encouraging other nations to follow our lead and end destructive fishing practices such as bottom trawling on coral reefs and the use of explosives and chemicals.

By Al Ristori, The Star Ledger 10/19/2007

The bill (S 2635) that would rid New Jersey artificial reefs of pots that interfere with drifting, anchoring and even additional reef-building passed through the Senate Environmental Committee yesterday at its meeting in Trenton.

Sen. James McCullough (R-Atlantic) was on hand to testify for the bill that he and Senator Nicholas Asselta cosponsored, and it was passed 4-0 with Committee Chairman Bob Smith plus Vice Chairman Stephen Sweeney, and Sens. Henry McNamara and John Adler in favor.

Tom Fote of the Jersey Coast Anglers Association said commercial fishermen did show up in force to oppose the bill, but organizations such as the JCAA and RFA ensured there was also a good showing of anglers and divers to emphasize that the reefs were built for recreational use and have been almost entirely funded by contributions from sportsmen. Though only reefs in state waters are affected, the bill also asks the DEP commissioner to petition the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council to gain similar protection for New Jersey reefs in federal waters.

By John Geiser, Asbury Park Press 10/20/07

This could be the last year that commercial lobster and fish pots inhibit recreational fishing on the two artificial reefs in state waters. The state Senate Environment Committee decided unanimously Thursday to send bill S-2635, which would ban the fixed gear on the reefs, to the full Senate for a vote.

The Assembly version of the legislation — A-3986 — was passed out of that body's Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee by a 4-1 vote May 21, and is set to be voted on by the Assembly.

James A. Donofrio, executive director of the Recreational Fishing Alliance, said he was pleased at the Senate committee action, and hopes that the measure can be voted on in both houses in November or early December. "Prohibiting the fixed gear on the artificial reefs is something that has been needed for a long time, and I applaud the legislators for their appreciation of this need and especially for the bipartisan effort," he said. "This is an example of lawmakers of both parties working together to help the recreational fishing community," he said. "So many people today don't realize how far recreational fishing has slipped in the last 10 years," he said. "It's because of regulation. Our backs are to the wall.

"Fisheries management has taken away our winter flounder fishery, ruined our blackfish fishery, destroyed our tuna fishery, and they are prepared to end our summer flounder fishery," he said. "This hurts not only our own food supply and recreation, but the economy of our entire state. "Now the state Legislature is doing something to help us without hurting the commercial fishing industry," he said. "We're only talking about 5.4 square miles out of about 350 square miles of ocean. "The benefit to the recreational sector is enormous — more and more recreational fishing is done on artificial reefs — and this bill will help anglers, party and charter boat owners and the boating industry," he said.

Thomas P. Fote, legislative chairman of the Jersey Coast Anglers Association, said the fishing public should appreciate the efforts of more than 20 anglers who drove to Trenton and testified at the Senate hearing. "They say that 14 percent of the New Jersey public fishes recreationally, but this also affects their families and friends," he said. "I'll bet 30 percent of the people of New Jersey either participate or benefit from the recreational fishery. "This is also a matter of dollars and cents," he said. "When you think of how much money is spent on recreational fishing and the taxes — excise taxes on tackle, sales taxes, fuel taxes — this is important to the state's economy. "I'm hoping we can get votes on this as soon as possible, and make this a law," he added. "Hopefully, this can be done before the end of the year."

Bill Figley, former head of the state's artificial reef program and now retired, spoke in favor of the bill at the Senate hearing. He maintained that the reef program was designed to "create fishing grounds for anglers and underwater structure for divers."

John DePersenaire, research specialist with the RFA, said that organization's membership was virtually unanimous in support of prohibiting commercial gear on the state's reefs. "The objectives and goals of the artificial reef program, approved by the Department of Environmental Protection in 2005, are clear in that the program will provide and enhance marine habitat, improve biodiversity and provide recreational opportunities for hook and line fishermen and divers," he told the committee. "The benefits of the reef program are to be spread among as many people as possible," he added. "Having 40 to 50 potters dominate our reefs completely disregards the spirit and intent of the reef plan."

The recreational groups that spearheaded the effort to get the commercial gear off the reefs included, besides the Recreational Fishing Alliance and Jersey Coast Anglers Association, the New Jersey Council of Diving Clubs and Reef Rescue.

Further, organizations, such as the American Littoral Society, weighed in in favor of the legislation.

Assemblyman Sean Kean, R-Monmouth, introduced the Assembly bill during the winter, and he said at a recent hearing in Belmar that he was pleased at the bipartisan support the legislation has received.