Fisheries Management & Legislative Report

The Partnership for the Mid-Atlantic Fisheries Science, Incorporated (PMAFS) has received an appropriation of $1,000,000 to do scientific research. The first thing we need to do is thank Senator Lautenberg, Senator Menendez, Congressman Pallone, Congressman Adler and Congressman LoBiondo for their support in obtaining this money for research. Of course, this money will go through NOAA and NMFS and they will, as usual, siphon off as much as possible and do something totally different with their “cut”. The partnership is a coalition of groups formed to procure research money for summer flounder and other species. The Board of Directors includes Garden State Seafood Association, JCAA, United Boatmen of New York, United Boatmen of New Jersey, and Save Our Summer Flounder Fund. The RFA is also part of this coalition. This coalition funded scientists to attend the summer flounder stock assessment.

No money has been received yet and we will need to develop a grant process to award this research grant money to universities. Rutgers University provided a vehicle for this type of research for striped bass and bluefish when Congress appropriated the money in the 1990’s and 2000’s. JCAA and United Boatmen were instrumental in getting that money appropriated for bluefish and striped bass. Sharon McKenna, our operations manager, did that job for Rutgers University and will be instrumental in helping us set the criteria and monitoring for the grants. Hopefully some of these grants will be awarded before the end of the year so we can begin to see the results in the near future. I went to Washington DC on March 23 to make sure these funds are available for the 2010/2011 grant cycle. These are the benefits we reap when both commercial and recreational anglers, representing different groups and perspectives, work together.

The Partnership for the Mid-Atlantic Fisheries Science, Incorporated (PMAFS) has received an appropriation of $1,000,000 to do scientific research. The first thing we need to do is thank Senator Lautenberg, Senator Menendez, Congressman Pallone, Congressman Adler and Congressman LoBiondo for their support in obtaining this money for research. Of course, this money will go through NOAA and NMFS and they will, as usual, siphon off as much as possible and do something totally different with their “cut”. The partnership is a coalition of groups formed to procure research money for summer flounder and other species. The Board of Directors includes Garden State Seafood Association, JCAA, United Boatmen of New York, United Boatmen of New Jersey, and Save Our Summer Flounder Fund. The RFA is also part of this coalition. This coalition funded scientists to attend the summer flounder stock assessment.

I pointed out last month that winter flounder situation has not gotten any better coastwide. The Winter Flounder Management Board decided not to in place an emergency action that would have closed the fishery down for 2009. Instead they decided to go out with an amendment or addendum to the plan. I was hoping by the time I wrote this article I would have an idea on what it looked like. The ASMFC postponed the conference call to discuss this until the end of March. I will have a good idea at the March 31st JCAA General meeting. The tentative date for this hearing is April 16th. The proposals that will be submitted to this meeting will likely include a moratorium or great reductions in the winter flounder inshore fishery for next year. ASMFC only controls the inshore fishery and a majority of the catch is offshore. I am waiting to see what happens with New England’s groundfish plan. If history repeats itself, the groundfish plan will not set a quota for the winter flounder stocks and TAC (total allowable catch). They will do something with days at sea or some other management regime and could have no reduction in the winter flounder catch. This is totally unacceptable. Since most of the recreational catch in made in state waters, and we are only a small percentage of the total catch, we will feel the brunt of the regulations even though we don’t cause the problem.

Last month, we discussed the illegal fishery that was prevalent in Maryland and Virginia that was discovered by the Federal/State sting. Some of these fishermen have already pleaded guilty. The problem is there is no consequence to the states that allow this illegal fishery to exist. Those states’ fishermen over harvested their quotas because of the illegal fishery. Law enforcement has some estimates of the over harvest through illegal fisheries. Why aren’t these states being forced to pay back that overage? There has always been an excuse that you can only go back one year. As always, it is the legal fishermen who are penalized. I just spent two days at a show and that was one of the major questions asked. “What will it cost the states that allowed this illegal fishery?” If history repeats itself, nothing! This is different than unintentional overages by either the recreational or commercial communities and should be treated in a more punitive way.

Many of us feel this is only the tip of the ice berg. We believe the illegal fishery is much larger than currently acknowledged. The stories come out of North Carolina, New York, Massachusetts and other states. It is not just striped bass. Any fishery that is poorly monitored is a good target for this type of illegal catch. It is black fish (tautog) in New Jersey. The states need to do a better job of monitoring the quotas. I always laugh when the commercial community complains about our minute recreational overages when some of them are illegally fishing in far greater numbers on many species. The ASMFC and NMFS need to get serious with funding the necessary law enforcement and encouraging appropriate penalties that set serious consequences. We need judges to stop giving law breakers a slap on the hand because they don’t understand the consequences of illegal fisheries. This illegal fishery has a tremendous impact on the quality of life and economic health of the commercial and recreational fishing industries.

In the next few months you will see more information available on the JCAA webpage. We have made some major changes with how we handle the webpage and we hope this will be more user friendly. There will definitely be more information available. We realize that newspapers are providing less fishing and outdoor coverage and we hope to pick up the slack. Hopefully, the newspapers will eventually come to their senses. Stay tuned and let us know how you like the new format. Suggestions are welcome.

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May 4, 2009
9:00 AM - Noon   Winter Flounder Management Board 
1:15 PM - 3:15 PM   Atlantic Striped Bass Management Board 
3:30 PM - 6:00 PM   Horseshoe Crab Management Board

May 5, 2009
8:00 AM - 9:30 AM   South Atlantic State-Federal Fisheries Management Board
9:45 AM - 10:45 AM   Atlantic Menhaden Management Board
11:00 AM - 12:30 PM Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Management Board
Noon - 5:00 PM Law Enforcement Committee
1:45 PM - 2:45 PM Commissioner Workshop: Length-based Stock Assessment Models 101
3:00 PM - 6:00 PM American Lobster Management Board
6:30 PM - 8:00 PM Annual Awards of Excellence Reception 

May 6, 2009
8:30 AM - 11:30 AM   Shad & River Herring Management Board
1:00 PM - 3:00 PM Spiny Dogfish & Coastal Sharks Management Board
3:15 PM - 5:45 PM   ISFMP Policy Board 

May 7, 2009
8:00 AM - 10:30 AM   Executive Committee 
10:45 AM - 11:15 AM   ISFMP Policy Board (continued)
11:30 AM - Noon   Business Session 
Noon   Lunch for Commissioners & Proxies 
12:30 PM - 2:30 PM   Atlantic Coastal Cooperative Statistics Program Coordinating Council
                        

by Scott Fallon - Staff Writer, NorthJersey.com, 3/13/2009

The long-awaited dredging of more than 200,000 cubic yards of PCBs from the Hudson River will begin in May, federal officials said.

General Electric Co., whose plants pumped 1.3 million pounds of the toxic chemical into the river, will begin the massive project north of Albany, but the effects will be felt all the way down to North Jersey. About 500 pounds of PCBs flow over the Troy Dam and into the lower Hudson every year.

The PCBs are a major reason why there are restrictions on eating fish caught off towns along the Hudson, including Alpine, Englewood Cliffs, Fort Lee and Edgewater. "The upriver work will help prevent PCBs from migrating down here," said Robert Goldstein, general counsel for the Hudson Riverkeeper environmental group.

GE dumped the oily lubricant from its plant in Fort Edward, N.Y., beginning in 1947 and later from a plant in Hudson Falls, N.Y.. GE stopped using PCBs in 1977, when the federal government banned the chemical after it was suspected to cause cancer. The company had fought the project for years, arguing dredging would release PCBs safely buried in the riverbed. But the Environmental Protection Agency has said PCBs are continually whipped up into the water by river flows and erosion. Contained dredging will not cause more chemicals to spread throughout the river, the EPA says.

Environmentalists hope the $750 million, six-year project will allow them to end the restrictions on eating fish.

The project will target a 40-mile stretch of river north of Albany that has the highest concentrations of PCBs. Before work can start, a number of smaller projects must be completed.

GE is building a processing plant in upstate New York to filter the PCBs. The chemical would then be shipped via rail to a disposal facility in Andrews, Texas.

In addition to the plant, New York officials have to open up locks on the Hudson to allow the dredging machines and barges to head upriver, said David Kluesner, an EPA spokesman. "We don’t have a specific date, but we are on target for May," he said.

Even though the project has been delayed in the past, Goldstein believes the start date will hold. "Eternally the optimist, I think it will start in May," he said

Press of Atlantic City, 3/15/2009

Generating power to run our energy-dependent world is not going to happen without some effect on the environment. Even the cleanest, greenest methods of mass generation aren't going to occur in a hermetically sealed bubble. Manufacturing solar cells requires nasty chemicals. Nuclear power produces radioactive waste.

And windmills kill some birds. And some bats. They may disrupt some fish. Such impacts should be minimized when possible. But the real question always needs to be this: What's the impact of the alternative?

A 312-page, preliminary study by the state Department of Environmental Protection on the potential environmental impact of 300 windmills planned off the coast of southern New Jersey is stirring some controversy and producing (pardon the expression) some spin by two environmental groups - one in favor of the offshore wind project, one generally opposed.

The report says that previous studies show an offshore wind turbine averages only one or two bird strikes a year. But it also points out that the noise and the electrical current running through the underwater lines could disturb marine life. The report says construction of the wind turbines could destroy fish habitats - but once the turbines are up and running, they could also provide artificial habitat for fish.

The final DEP report is expected out in December.

The American Littoral Society - which has not supported the wind-power project - says the preliminary study shows many negative effects off offshore wind farms on many natural resources: "Caution is being thrown to the wind" by the Corzine administration, said spokesman Tim Dillingham.

Gov. Jon S. Corzine wants the wind farms to supply 1,000 megawatts of electricity by 2012.

The New Jersey Sierra Club, which has supported Corzine's policy, sees it differently. The Sierra Club points to the parts of the report that show less wildlife is affected the farther out to sea the wind farms are constructed.

Meanwhile, the New Jersey Audubon Society is doing its own study of the effects of the Atlantic City Utilities Authority's on-shore wind farm. Midway through the study, the society has found the windmills kill more bats than birds - 30 birds and 60 bats over 18 months of observation.

Of course, these deaths should be minimized. The ACUA commendably said it is willing to shut off the turbines during key times when bats seem to be in the area.

But both these reports, when finished and finalized, should be kept in perspective and weighed against the cost of not building the wind farm.

The fossil-fuel emissions from existing power plants are exacerbating a global warming trend that could raise ocean levels, wipe out the coasts and cause widespread species loss.

They are not without their own health and environmental effects - on birds, critters and humans.

by John Reitmeyer, Star Ledger, 3/15/2009

Cuts to property tax rebates are getting most of the attention, but Gov. Jon Corzine's proposed budget includes other "revenue solutions" that could have residents and businesses paying more.

Anyone planning to register a motorcycle, obtain a commercial driver's license or conduct other business with the state Motor Vehicle Commission is facing fee increases that Corzine wants to deploy in the new budget.

Men who receive erectile dysfunction drugs through Medicaid or the state Pharmaceutical Assistance to the Aged and Disabled program would no longer have their prescriptions covered.

And businesses are being asked to contribute more in payroll taxes to replenish an unemployment benefits fund that has been depleted as jobless lines grow.

Such changes are inevitable because New Jersey is dealing with a national recession that is crippling state revenue collections, the governor said while presenting his $29.8 billion spending plan to the Legislature last week.

Spending for the next fiscal year, which begins July 1, would have to go up $7 billion to maintain all programs and services without any changes, he said. The state instead will reduce spending by about $3 billion.

Some budget proposals, including eliminating rebates for homeowners who make more than $75,000 and are not senior citizens or disabled, were outlined by Corzine last week. The others are detailed in a lengthy budget document released by the state Treasury Department.

They include the proposal to save $3.3 million by ending Medicaid and state coverage for erectile dysfunction drugs, something the federal government stopped doing in 2005. It's unclear how many residents this would affect.

An additional $1.4 million would come from new co-payments charged to 7,500 AIDS/HIV patients who receive free medication through a state program for people who make too much money to qualify for Medicaid or other assistance.

"In terms of how individuals would be affected, Governor Corzine has made it clear that despite the $7 billion shortfall, the administration would make every effort to protect the most vulnerable," said Donna Leusner, a spokeswoman for the state health department, which administers the AIDS/HIV program. "He has also made it clear that this is a crisis that affects all citizens, and that while we seek to minimize the burden on the most vulnerable through this budget, all citizens must share some responsibility for balancing our finances."

COSTLIER TITLES

Residents who pay for Motor Vehicle Commission services also would contribute more. The budget is counting on using $20 million from proposed fee hikes to pay for other state services. The increased fees would apply to vehicle and boat titles, motorcycle registrations, commercial driver's license permits and driver-improvement programs.

The commission, which had planned to use that $20 million for its own operations, will try maintain its services, said agency spokesman Mike Horan. Last year the MVC eliminated evening customer-service hours in response to a budget cut.

The business community is getting hit with a payroll tax increase that will cost about $80 a year for each employee. Last year Corzine used $150 million from the budget to prevent the tax hike, but he said he can't do that again.

The higher tax could force companies to reduce salaries or cut employees -- putting them in line for the same unemployment benefits the tax supports, business leaders say.

"Businesses must operate profitably in order to survive, whether that means additional job cuts or pressure on other costs," said John Galandak, president of the Commerce and Industry Association of New Jersey.

The budget also cuts a $1.5 million subsidy that pays for programs primarily supported by hunting and fishing license fees.

The direct state funding is being reduced because license sales are generating enough to fund the programs, Treasury spokesman Tom Bell said.

Hunters, anglers and trappers -- a group that totals at least 650,000, according to the New Jersey Outdoor Alliance -- are growing frustrated by program cuts and by the diversion of millions of dollars in sales tax revenue from their equipment purchases, said Anthony Mauro Sr., the alliance chairman.

Sportsmen fear more increases in license fees or cuts to programs they count on. "It's just an issue that's adding to a powder keg," Mauro said. "That's how I see it."

There are no plans to close state parks -- something Corzine proposed last year -- despite new cuts planned for the state Department of Environmental Protection, spokeswoman Elaine Makatura said.

But Jeff Tittel, director of the New Jersey Sierra Club, said it will be hard to avoid closing parks and historic sites given the size of the budget cut. "There will be real consequences if the governor goes through with this budget," Tittel said.