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In this Issue...
Vol. 13, Issue 1
May 2008
Forage FishUpdate
~~~~~~The Marine Fish Conserva-
tion Network (Network) is a
coalition of more than 200
environmental organizations,
commercial and recreational
fishing associations, and
marine science groups that
advocates national policies to
achieve healthy oceans and
productive fisheries. Please
visit:
www.conservefish.org
The Network has been hard at work advocat-
ing for the little fish in our oceans. Known asforage fish, these mostly small and short-lived
species like sardines, squid, anchovies, and
menhaden are crucial species to healthy ocean
ecosystems. Forage fish take up nutrients such
as plankton and make that energy available to
upper level predators like birds, predator fish
such as striped bass and salmon, and marine
mammals. Without this crucial link connecting
the primary productivity of sunlight-generated
energy to higher trophic level animals, we wont
have bigger fish or fishing opportunities.
But an antiquated management system and
increasing pressure on forage fish from industrial
fisheries are threatening the health of forage
fish stocks nationally and globally. The exist-
ing management system in the U.S. pressures
managers to reduce fish populations to forty
percent of their unfished biomass; when they do
so for forage fish management this significantly
reduces the amount of forage available to marine
birds, fish and mammals. A sharp increase in
industrial fishing fishing on forage fish species
is also underway for what are called reduc-
tion fisheries. These fisheries employ massivenets to catch hundreds of millions of pounds of
forage fish and then grind them up for use in
industrial production of cattle, pigs, chickens and
increasingly, for salmon, tuna and other preda-
tor fish. Aquaculture, in particular, is a highly
inefficient use of this valuable natural resource,
requiring between three and ten pounds of forage
fish to produce only one pound of farm-raised
fish.
Since early 2007, the Network has focused its
efforts on reforming national policy and examin-
ing key regional forage fish issues to promote anecosystem-based fishery management that puts
conservative management policies first and fore-
most. We are convinced that in order to ensure
the health of forage fish populations, catch levels
should be based on what is necessary to satisfy
the needs of predation.
At the national level, the Network has targeted
the federal governments revision of National
Standard 1, a set of regulatory guidelines that
federal fishery managers use to set catch levels
for U.S. fish populations. The passage of the
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Reauthorization Act in 2006
required fishery managers to rethink how to set
catch levels to prevent overfishing and ensure
sustainable fish populations. The Network sub-
mitted a detailed proposal to the National MarinFisheries Service-the agency responsible for
writing the revised guidelines-outlining exactly
how the agency could modify its guidelines to
enact conservative management of forage fish
populations. Following that, the Network coor
dinated a scientist sign-on letter to the agency
backing the Networks call for more conservati
management. Ninety-two scientists nationwide
signed on to that letter. Those efforts resulted i
a meeting with fisheries service staff earlier this
year where the Network detailed in-person its
outline for management reform. A revised set oguidelines is expected in May and the Network
will be writing detailed comments and generati
public response to the agency.
At the regional level, the Network has held
four public education workshops on forage
fish. These workshops were designed to edu-
cate Network members and others interested in
ocean health and fisheries management and mo
importantly, to solicit feedback from the broad
range of Network members with respect to re-
gional forage fish advocacy. The results of thos
workshops are very exciting to report.
In the Gulf of Mexico, regional representative
Tom Wheatley held a workshop in November
2007 in New Orleans, bringing together environ
mental groups, fishing groups and marine scien
tists. That meeting focused on Gulf menhaden,
species under pressure due to poor managemen
practices, namely that no allowable catch level
is set, no bycatch minimization measures are in
place, and no analysis of the safe level of catch
to protect ecosystem functions has been coordi-
nated. Since that time, Tom has worked closely
with the (Network member group) Gulf Res-toration Network to create a broad coalition of
environmental groups, fishing groups and marin
scientists in Texas to successfully convince the
Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission to modif
its regulations for fishing on menhaden in Texa
state waters.
On the Pacific, regional representative Julie She
man partnered with the Point Reyes Bird Obser
vatory to hold a very well attended workshop in
Continued on pag
Network News
Letter from the
Executive Director
2
NOAAs Fiscal
Year 2009
3
Pacific Update 4
Gulf of Mexico
Update
4
Mid-Atlantic
Update
5
South Atlantic
Update
5
New Network Staff 6
Initiatives in Shark
Management
6
New Network
Members
7
Calendar 8
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A Letter from the Executive Director
2
MARINE FISH CONSERVATION NETWORK
As many of you know, we are currently celebrating the 15th year
since the founding of the Marine Fish Conservation Network.
Since I am relatively new to the Network, I am just now learning
the full scope of your accomplishments over these years, which
includes some amazing successes. When the Network comes
together on June 3 at our Annual Member Meeting in Washington
DC, I urge each of you to tell me your memories and assessment of
these events. I also want to use this history as a starting point for
considering a fundamental question:
What should the Marine Fish Conservation Networkdo and how should it be structured for the future?
Now is the time to begin a conversation with you on this question
and begin to frame the answers. I want to start at this years An-
nual Meeting and then work towards concrete conclusions at the
semi-annual Advisor meeting and strategic planning session in the
fall. I am eager to hear your ideas for what the Network could and
should become.
Since the reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Act in January
2007 there have been many changes and accomplishments here
at the Network: development of a strategic plan, staff transitions,
funding challenges, and even a new director. Along with these
changes, in the past six months you and the Network staff have ac-
complished a great deal. Please allow me to briefly remind you of
our accomplishments and encourage you to celebrate them:
Promoting Implementation of theMagnuson-Stevens Act.Although draft rules have yet to be published by National Marine
Fisheries Service for guidelines on annual catch limits, environ-mental review and limited access privilege programs, the Network
has been hard at work advocating for implementation of the newly
reauthorized laws provisions to designed to set science-based
catch levels, end overfishing and protect family fishermen from
consolidation, along with existing requirements to restore over-
fished populations, protect habitat and minimize bycatch. Since the
fall of 2007, we have published several reports detailing the need
for the fisheries service to prepare strong rules and have worked
with Network members to submit a series of detailed comments to
help the fisheries service prepare strong rules.
For the fish and fishermen,
Bruce J. Stedman
Promoting Forage Fish Conservation.As a number of the articles in this newsletter attest, we have done
extensive work on forage fish conservation as the first step to-
wards ecosystem based fisheries management: we produced a new
website (www.foragefish.org); conducted four regional workshop
developed a major scientist-sign-on letter and met with NMFS to
encourage including forage fish in new NS1 guidelines.
Regional Advocacy on Fisheries Management.Our four regional representatives produced detailed reports analy
ing regional council management performance in the Mid-Atlanti
South Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico and Pacific regions. In addition
to watch-dogging these councils for implementation of the Mag-
nuson-Stevens Act, the representatives coordinated with regional
Network member groups to advocate for proper implementation o
the Act, kicked off campaigns to secure conservative managemen
of forage fish populations, and continued to strengthen the Netwo
by reaching out to environmental, fishing and science groups.
Working toward Finding More Funds forFishery Data Collection.We began conducting some foundation-setting work which yielde
two major fact sheets used for Hill education on appropriations.
Strengthening the Networks
Organizational Structure.The Network recently acquired five new members, expanded our
Board of Directors to seven, and elected a new Co-Chair (Linda
Paul).
Upgrading Our Infrastructure.Thanks to dedicated grants from Munson, Oak, and Ocean Found
tions, we have installed a new phone system and begun an overha
of our website.
We trust that these efforts meet with your approval. If you have
ideas, concerns, or questions about the work we conduct on your
behalf, please let me know anytime by phone (202-543-5509 x6),
email (bstedman@conservefish.org) or in person when we meet o
June 3.
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MARINE FISH CONSERVATION NETWORK
NOAAs Fiscal Year (FY) 2009 budget request for NMFS
3
In February, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA), the parent agency of the National
Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), submitted its budget request
for Fiscal Year 2009. Under that proposal, the FY 2009 budgetfor the fisheries service would be about six percent less than the
enacted FY 2008 budget. NOAAs budget request for NMFS
does include increased funding of $31.8 million for activities
related to implementation of the new mandates and requirements
of the Magnuson-Stevens Reauthorization Act (MSRA), but
these gains have been purchased largely at the expense of
budget cuts in other fisheries and management programs.
Overall, the budget trend for NMFS over the last seven budget
cycles is flat.
These trends underscore the key point of recent annual reports
of the Joint Ocean Commission Initiative (JOCI), which assess
the nations progress toward implementing the recommendations
of the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy (USCOP 2004) and
the Pew Oceans Commission (POC 2003). The JOCI reports
conclude that chronic under-funding for ocean programs is
hindering significant progress in addressing the crises facing our oceans.1
To address shortfalls in funding for fisheries management, the Network has circulated recommendations for increased investment in
NMFS fisheries program areas related to expanding data collection and observer coverage, expanding stock assessments, reducing
bycatch, protecting habitat, and advancing ecosystem-based initiatives.
The word on Capitol Hill, however, is that Congress is unlikely to act on the FY 2009 budget until after elections in the fall. Meanwhile
the Network will continue to work with interested member groups to advocate greater funding through Congressional appropriations as
well as alternative sources of funding that are not tied to the appropriations process, such as a national trust fund.
1Joint Ocean Commission Initiative (JOCI), 2006-2007. U.S. Ocean Policy Report Card 2006 and 2007. See: www.jointoceancommission.org.
San Francisco in December 2007, bringing together fifty people
representing environmental, fishing and science groups along the
west coast. A day-long set of presentations from scientists covered
the multitude of Pacific coast issues surrounding ecosystem-based
fishery management and forage fish. The workshop provided Julie
with a solid basis for assessing the various options for forage fish
advocacy on the west coast, and she spent much of the winter vet-
ting various proposals with west coast Network members and is
currently preparing a campaign plan.
Building on the successful Forage First campaign by one of our
members-National Coalition for Marine Conservation (NCMC)-the
Network and NCMC in March co-hosted a workshop in Annapolis
that was led by regional representative Brooks Mountcastle. The
workshop featured a keynote from Dick Russell and had presenta-
tions on herring, menhaden and ecosystem-based fishery manage-
ment in the Mid-Atlantic. Representatives from conservation
organizations, recreational fishing organizations, state and federal
governments, an aquarium, and academia, heard how forage fish
are important for the marine environment and how better science
needed to address uncertainties in forage fish dynamics and preda
tor needs. Commercial menhaden fishing to support the fish oil a
agricultural industries is leading to localized depletion of menha-
den along the Atlantic Coast similar to what occurred in the Gulf
of Maine before closures were imposed on mid-water trawling fo
Atlantic Herring during certain months.
Finally, South Atlantic regional representative Sera Harold held a
workshop on April 18th in North Carolina. The workshop feature
a keynote from noted author H. Bruce Franklin whose recent book
The Most Important Fish in the Sea, details the history offishing
menhaden in both the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico. Here too, man
needed next steps were identified by the participants about legisla
tive initiatives, partnerships and advocacy approaches the Networ
should consider.
Continued from front cover - Forage Fish Update
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MARINE FISH CONSERVATION NETWORK
Pacific Update
Gulf of Mexico Update
Cap on Gulf Menhaden
Fishing - Victory in TexasA strong coalition offishermen an
conservation groups headed by the
Marine Fish Conservation Network
the Gulf Restoration Network,
and the Recreational Fishing
Alliance recently helped advance
the protection of Gulf menhaden in
Texas state waters. Common from
Florida to Texas, Gulf menhaden
(Brevoortia patronus) are one of th
most significant food sources for
predators such as sharks, pelicans, dolphins, and many sportfi
sh.Unfortunately this crucial link in the food chain is highly exploite
by an industrial fishery that catches on average more than 1 billio
pounds annually to grind and process into fish oil and fish meal.
The Save the Bait coalition in Texas-consisting of environment
and fishing organizations and local businesses-urged the Texas
Parks and Wildlife Department to cap the amount offish caught in
state waters, require observers on the menhaden boats to documen
the species composition and amount of bycatch, and advocate for
regional management. On Thursday, March 27, the Commission
voted to cap the catch and made clear its desire to keep working o
this issue to make further conservation improvements.
Bycatch is a major problem for the menhaden industry. Estimate
to be only 1 percent of the catch, it does not sound too bad; but
1 percent of a 1 billion pound catch is 10 million pounds of dead
sea life annually. The Save the Bait coalition is going to keep
working to get industry funded and government trained observers
on the menhaden boats for the 2009 fishing season. The Network
is also working with its partners in Louisiana and Mississippi to
ensure that enough menhaden are left in their state waters to fulfil
their crucial role in the ecosystem and to reduce the amount of
waste generated by this industry.
Council proposals counterlegal directive to minimizebycatch
The Magnuson-Stevens Act requires
fishery managers to minimize
bycatch. Despite this directive, the
Pacific Fishery Management Council
is currently working to initiate
a swordfish fishery that would
instead increase bycatch. Although
the councils stated approach is to
reduce bycatch by guiding a
transition of the existing drift gillnet
fishery to a longline fishery, the council has not proposed retiring
existing gillnet permits in exchange for the longline permits.
Instead, the council is proposing to increase the total fishing effort
and to allow bycatch. The council has rejected calls from fishermen
and conservationists to promote a U.S. West Coast swordfish
fishery that will not increase the bycatch of tunas, marlins, marinemammals, seabirds, and endangered sea turtles by analyzing a
broader range of gear alternatives including harpoon fishing. The
current proposal represents a huge step backwards in council
efforts to minimize bycatch.
In one very unfortunate example, although Pacific leatherback
sea turtle populations remain in critical condition, the council is
poised to continue approval an experimental fishing permit that
allows longlining for swordfish within the leatherback sea turtle
conservation area. The experiment will not yield statistically
significant results, but government scientists project it will cause
harm to endangered leatherback sea turtles.
Council seeks to increase knowledgeof managed species
The council recently gave preliminary approval for newassessments on a few of the 71% of its managed fish stocks whose
population status remains unknown, including the spiny dogfish,
a small shark endangered in other parts of its range, and the
bronzespotted rockfish, a long-lived, slow-reproducing species that
scientists warn may be declining. The council will also develop
assessments for complexes of multiple rockfish species of unknown
population status. The Network applauds the councils proposal
to assess little-studied species to determine their population status,
and encourages additional assessments of unstudied species as soonas feasible.
Proposed limited access privilege program skirts keystandards
At recent meetings the council continues to advance a limited
access privilege program (LAPP) for the groundfish trawl fishery
that does not comply with the Magnuson-Stevens Acts ten year
term limit on privilege permits. The proposed LAPP does not
have clear measures to ensure conservation, reduce bycatch, and
preserve fishing opportunities for new entrants, small vessel owner-
operators, and family fishermen. As required by the reauthorized
Magnuson-Stevens Act, the council is hoping to deliver a proposa
to Congress by January 2009.
Poor environmental analysis, limited options onallocation amendment
A Network review of a recent council proposal to revisit its
allocation in the groundfish fishery indicates that the proposal lacksufficient environmental analysis and provides limited options
for managers or the public to consider. Nor does the proposal
address the legal requirement to minimize bycatch or quickly
restore overfished populations. The Network joined a group of
environmental groups and fishing groups urging the council to
revisit the proposal.
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MARINE FISH CONSERVATION NETWORK
South Atlantic Update
Mid-Atlantic Update
Council begins usingprecautionary managementafter courts force the issue
Amendment 13C to the Snapper
Grouper Fishery Management
Plan enacted in 2006 addressed
overfishing in snowy grouper,
golden tilefish, black sea bass and
vermilion snapper. Challenged in
the courts by a commercial fishing
association, a federal judge required
the council to write new amendmen
to end overfishing of these species
immediately and set reasonable rebuilding periods. The Networkapplauds the council for taking a positive step forward by
implementing the new legal requirement to set annual catch limits
for these and other species. Notably, the council is poised to set
catch levels below the overfishing threshold, decreasing the chanc
that overfishing will occur. The council still has nine species that
are undergoing overfishing and/or are overfished, so there is a lon
ways to go to get the regions stocks to healthy levels.
Observer data needed for snapper-grouper fishery
The snapper grouper fishery in the south Atlantic is in dire need o
a program to record catches. There are many ways to accomplish
this coverage (e.g. electronic log books, video monitoring, full
retention programs, or traditional observers) but the critical elemeis federal funding for these programs. In many cases the boats in
question are very small and operating at such low profit levels tha
any additional cost to fishers is prohibitive.
Council moving ahead with fishery ecosystem plan
The Network applauds the council moving ahead with its attempt
to institute ecosystem-based management. The Fishery Ecosystem
Plan has established several marine protected areas (MPAs) in
the region and more are being contemplated. While MPAs are
certainly a form of ecosystem-based management, the Fishery
Continued Inaction by Council on Gag Grouper
The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council did not take
action at its April 2008 meeting to end overfishing of gag grouper
(Mycteroperca microlepis), a popular recreational angling fish.
In October 2006, the National Marine Fisheries Service notified
the Gulf Council that overfishing was occurring. It has now been
well past the year allowed by Magnuson Stevens Act, as written
in October 2006, to end overfi
shing. After encouraging action onred snapper in 2007, it is discouraging to see the Gulf Council fall
back into its old ways of waiting and hoping for better news and
delaying action that insures sustainable fisheries.
Proposal to define
excessive shares stirs
controversy
Since December 2002, theGovernment Accountability
Office (GAO), the investiga-
tive arm of Congress, has
issued numerous reports on
how to improve individual
fishing quota programs (now known as limited access privilege
programs). In March 2007, NMFS issued a memo telling GAO
that they would respond to the recommendations by April 2009.
One of GAOs key recommendations was to require regional fish-
ery management councils to set a definition of excessive shares
in any existing programs. This idea is reinforced in National
Standard 4 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act (MSA). It is further
reinforced in recent amendments to the MSA which require manag-
ers to prevent excessive consolidation. Excessive shares have the
potential to artificially manipulate the market or disenfranchise
smaller fishing operations and fishing communities.
The MSA requires that allocation shall be carried out in such
manner that no particular individual, corporation, or other entity
acquires an excessive share of such privileges. Unfortunately,
excessive shares are not defined in the existing surfclam/ocean qua-
hog fishery, nor does the council even know who owns the clams
that are harvested!
How this issue is resolved will have far reaching impacts on otherfisheries. The council is considering such a program for the tilefish
fishery, which has brought formal concern from Representative Jim
Saxton (R-NJ), especially regarding the tilefish industry in Barne-
gat Light, NJ, and other smaller communities. Saxton noted in his
letter to the Assistant Attorney General that improvements to MSA
were supposed to address excessive consolidation, and anti-
competitive activities.
Report highlights poor management
in 2006 and 2007
In March, the Network released its annual report evaluating the
Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Councils performance betwee
June 2006 and August 2007. The report highlights the councils
failure to follow scientific recommendations when setting catch
levels, a requirement of the Magnuson-Stevens Reauthorization A
of 2006. Of the eleven species over which the council has exclu-
sive management authority, three are either overfished or subject
overfishing.
In August 2006, the council set catch levels for fish species that arimportant to the economy of the Mid-Atlantic: summer flounder,
scup, and black sea bass. In each case, scientists recommended
lower catch levels, but the council disregarded that advice and se-
lected a higher catch level, leaving the council with no other choic
but to support a lower catch level the following year because the
stocks were not recovering sufficiently.
Our report is available at www.conservefish.org.
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MARINE FISH CONSERVATION NETWORK
New Network Staff
Sera Harold, South Atlantic
Regional Representative
In October of 2007 Sera started as the
South Atlantic Regional Organizer for theNetwork. She is a graduate of Cornell,
and holds a Masters of Environmental
Management from Duke University.
After her Masters degree Sera worked
for NOAA at the Florida Keys National
Marine Sanctuary in the public outreach
department, and in private consulting, coordinating the environ-
mental permitting for government and private enterprise in the
Florida Keys. Sera grew up in the U.S. Virgin Islands and held
positions as a sea turtle researcher for the Nature Conservancy and
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service before going into the Peace Corps in
Panama as a Community Environmental Education Volunteer. In
Panama, Sera worked with a local cooperative of sea turtle poach-ers to build community consensus and draft a sea turtle manage-
ment plan. She recently published a sea turtle outreach book that is
in every school in the Wider Caribbean. Based out of Wilmington,
North Carolina, Sera religiously fishes for bluefish with her father
off the Outer Banks of North Carolina.
Carolina Gou-Leonhardt,
Administrative &
Fundraising Assistant
The Networks new Administrative and
Fundraising Assistant, Carolina is a re-
cent graduate of American University in
Washington D.C., with a degree in Inter-
national Relations and a concentration in
Environmental Policy. Carolina was born
in Venezuela and has spent a majority of
her free time traveling and volunteering internationally. She studied
abroad in New Zealand during her junior year where she experi-
enced the unique ecology and learned about innovative conserva-
tion methods. It was then that her interest in marine conservation
began and was further developed during her internship with the
Oceans Team at Greenpeace. Carolina has also recently taken up
scuba diving and is planning to dive as often as possible. Her future
Hilary Goodwin,Special Projects Intern
The Networks new Special Projects
Intern, Hilary Goodwin, started with usin December. Hilary is from Richmond,
Virginia and graduated in May 2005 fro
the College of William and Mary with a
B.A. in International Relations and Env
ronmental Studies. In her senior year, sh
was selected to participate in the NOAA
Population Dynamics Workshop (held through Virginia Tech in th
Florida Keys) where she studied the models necessary to assess fi
stocks. After college, she worked at an environmental consulting
firm, Geo-Marine, Inc., where she helped marine scientists condu
literature research for Marine Resource Assessments for the U.S.
Navy. After leaving GMI, she participated in the Oceanic Society
Marine Mammal Workshop in Belize. The volunteer work she is
most proud of is when she assisted the Virginia Institute of Marin
Science (VIMS) with their Annual Shark Longline Survey in the
Chesapeake Bay in 2006. She is an advanced NAUI diver who
loves to travel to Central America. Shark conservation is one of h
lifelong passions and she plans on obtaining her masters in Marin
Affairs in the future.
Initiatives for Shark Conservation at theFederal and State Level
Between 1950 and 2000 there was a more than a fourfold increas
(+220%) in the reported catch of sharks worldwide, not including
discards1. Scientists estimate 73 million sharks are killed every
year2. Of the catches reported, only 15% are recorded by spe-
cies; this low level of species identification is a major obstacle to
assessment of trends and status relative to overfishing criteria. As
of 2006, 20% of the 547 species of sharks were threatened with
extinction3. Scientists at Dalhousie University estimate that in the
Northwest Atlantic, all recorded shark species with the exception
makos have decreased by more than 50% in the past 8 to 15 years
Growing concerns about the deteriorating status of sharks have
prompted calls for international action to conserve sharks by rein-
ing in the lucrative trade in sharkfinning, reducing fishing pres-
sure, and implementing effective management regimes. Sharks
have evolved as apex predators and as such they are not adapted t
withstand high levels of predation in the form offishing. Life his-
tory characteristics such as slow growth, late sexual maturity and
low reproductive potential all make sharks extremely vulnerable t
overfishing.
There has been intense fishing pressure on sharks that has sky-
rocketed in the U.S. since the 1970s.5 An increase in demand for
sharkfins, resulting from an increase affluence of the middle class
in China, is believed to explain this exponential increase in shark
plans are to continue her education and obtain a graduate degree i
Marine Affairs. Her intention is to help the Network meet its goal
and learn what she can from this experience.
Ecosystem Plan itself is more like an encyclopedia of the South
Atlantic marine ecosystems. Hopefully the plan is a first step
toward ecosystem-based management of our fisheries. The
council will need to consider ecosystem-based management to deal
with forage fish and trophic interactions, as well as high levels
of bycatch in the snapper grouper fishery. Warsaw grouper, for
example, is under consideration for the endangered species list.
There is no directed fishery allowed for Warsaw grouper, but it is
caught by fishermen who target snowy grouper. When these deepwater groupers are brought to the boat, their death rate is almost
100% and this bycatch is underreported and difficult to account for.
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MARINE FISH CONSERVATION NETWORK
Welcome New Network Members
Florida Keys Commercial
Fishermens Association (FKCFA)P.O. Box 501404
Marathon, FL 33050
(305) 619-0039
www.fkcfa.org
With 360 federally permitted fishing boats, the Florida Keys are home to the
largest commercial fleet from Texas to North Carolina. The mission of FKCFA
is to organize the Florida Keys fishermen into an effective lobby to protect and
promote the fishing industry while supporting laws that encourage sustain-
ability.
St. Croix Womens Dive AssociationP.O. Box 1628Kingshill, VI 00851
(340) 332-7583
www.scubadivestcroix.com
St. Croix Womens Dive Association gets together weekly to dive around the
Virgin Islands. As women who enjoy the underwater sea life, they are commit-
ted to educating the public, especially children, about marine conservation.
Shark Research InstituteP.O. Box 40
Princeton, NJ 08540
(609) 921-3522
Fax (609) 921-1505
www.sharks.org
SRI conducts high-quality, solution-oriented scientific research needed for ef-
fective conservation of sharks. SRI promotes biodiversity and an understandingof shark behavior, and advocates worldwide protective measures for sharks.
The Society for Ocean Sciences10142 Shelldrake Circle
Damascus, MD 20872
(301) 717-6175
www.societyforoceansciences.org
The primary mission of The Society for Ocean Sciences is to inform the public
of the delicate relationship between humans and the worlds oceans. The
Society aims to instill a deeper understanding of the current issues affecting our
oceans and marine resources.
WIDECAST: Wider CaribbeanSea Turtle Conservation Network
135 Duke Marine Lab Rd
Beaufort, NC 28557
(252) 727-1600
Fax (252) 504-7648
www.widecast.org
WIDECAST is an international scientific network founded in Santo Domingo
(Dominican Republic) in 1981 to ensure the survival of six species of Carib-
bean sea turtle. The network is comprised of Country Coordinators in more
than 40 Caribbean nations and territories.
catch. In 2004, the average price per pound for shark meat was
$0.17 while today a bowl of sharkfin soup can go for over $100.6
Sharks caught incidentally in other fisheries (bycatch) compounds
the pressure on shark populations, with the swordfish and tuna bot-
tom longline industry as the major culprit. An estimated 11 to 13
million sharks are caught as bycatch every year. 7
In July 2007, the U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS)
responded to quota overages in 2006 by proposing Amendment 2 tothe Consolidated Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Fishery
Management Plant (FMP). The Gulf of Mexico went over their
quota for Large Coastal Sharks (LCS) by 300% in the first trimester
last year and by 608% in the second trimester. Due to continued
overfishing, the LCS complex is closed to commercial fishing for
both the first and second trimester of 2008.
The final environmental impact statement (FEIS) for Amendment
2 was published for comment in April 2008 with comments due by
May 19th. The final rule is due in June. Amendment 2 examines
different management alternatives to rebuild the badly depleted
sandbar, dusky, and porbeagle sharks, requiring all sharks landed to
have fins attached at the dock, reducing the number of large coastal
sharks commercial fishermen can possess, and modifying the
species that can be landed by recreational fishermen8. Mandating
that fins be attached will make it easier to identify landings by
species which will in turn result in species specific data which is
sorely needed.
In parallel with the proposed action by NMFS, in October 2007, the
Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) published
the Draft Interstate Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for Atlantic
Coastal Sharks in an attempt to make state regulations complemen-
tary to those of the federal government. Protection of nursery areas
is mainly within state jurisdiction, which makes these regulationsespecially important for shark conservation. A final version is ex-
pected sometime in May or June.
Congress is also weighing in with proposed legislation to strength-
en the enforcement of the Shark Finning Prohibition Act of 2000.
On April 16th, there was a public hearing regarding H.R. 5741,
The Shark Conservation Act of 2008. It eliminates a loophole by
making all vessels subject to the act, not just fishing vessels. Ap-
proximately 64,695 pounds of sharkfins were seized by the U.S.
Coast Guard from the King Diamond II, a U.S. vessel chartered by
a Hong Kong company. A recent decision by the 9th U.S. Circuit
Court of Appeals to reverse the forfeiture prompted Congresswom-
an Bordallo (D-Guam) to introduce this bill.
The year of 2008 is a promising time for shark conservation. Public
support is needed to push through these new shark regulations in
order to give shark populations a chance of recovering. The U.S. is
a leader in shark management and continued improvement and new
initiatives should encourage other countries to follow suit. For such
highly migratory species, international cooperation is essential.
1TRAFFIC. 2006. Lack, Mary & Glenn Sant. World Shark Catch, Production & Trade 1990-
2003.2Clarke, S.C., M.K. McAllister, E.J. Milner-Gulland, G.P. Kirkwood, C.G.J. Michielsens, D.J.
Agnew, E.K. Pikitch, H. Nakano, M.S. Shivji. 2006. Global estimates of shark catches using
trade records from commercial markets. Ecology Letters 9(10):1115-1126.3http://www.iucn.org
4Baum, J.K., R.A. Myers, D.G. Kehler, B. Worm, S.J. Harley, P.A. Doherty. 2003. Collapse an
conservation of shark populations in the Northwest Atlantic. Science 299:389-392.5http://www.fao.org6WPRFMC (Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council). 2007. Shark Depredation and Unwante
Bycatch in Pelagic Longline Fisheries: Industry Practices and Attitudes, and Shark Avoidance Strategies.
Honolulu, HI.7Science Daily. April 22, 2008. Can Certain Metals Repel Sharks from Fishing Gear?8NMFS (National Marine Fisheries Service). 2007. Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; Atlantic Shark Manag
ment Measures. Federal Register 72(144): 41392-41412.
8/14/2019 MFCN Spring 2008
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MARINE FISH CONSERVATION NETWORK
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Calendar of Events
May 21-24
58th International Tuna
Conference
Lake Arrowhead, CA
May 22
NMFS Shark ID Workshop
NE Regional Library, 9:30 am-3pm
Wilmington, NC
http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/sfa/hms/
workshops/
Management Council meeting
Hilton Garden Inn
Kitty Hawk, NC
http://www.mafmc.org
June 2-5
Gulf Council Meeting
Houston, TX
http://www.gmfmc.org
June 3-5
New England Council
Meeting
Portland, ME
http://www.nefmc.org
June 3-5
Capitol Hill Ocean Week
Washington, DC
June 5Marine Fish Conservation Network
Fish Fest
Washington, DC
http://www.conservefish.org
June 8-13
South Atlantic Council Meeting
St.Thomas, USVI
http://www.safmc.net
June 10-12
Mid-Atlantic Council Meeting
Atlantic City, NJ
http://www.mafmc.org
June 10-12Western Pacific Fishery Management
Council 98th SSC Meeting
Honolulu, HI
http://www.wpcouncil.org
June-11
NOAA Fish Fry
Washington, DC
June 16-20
142nd Council Meeting
Honolulu, HI
June 16-27Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commis-
sion Annual Meeting
Panama
http://www.iattc.org
June 19
NMFS Shark ID Workshop
Rosedale Library, 10 am-3:30 pm
Jefferson, LA
http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/sfa/hms/
workshops/
July 7-11
11th International Coral Reef Sympo-
sium
Ft. Lauderdale, FL
http://www.nova.edu/ncri/11icrs/
July 28 - August 1
8th International Fish Congress
Portland, OR
http://www.fishbiologycongress8.usgs.
gov/
August 11-22
Western and Central Pacific Fisher-
ies Commission Science Committee
Meeting
Port Moresby, Papua New Guineahttp://www.wcpfc.int
August 12-14
Mid-Atlantic Council Meeting
Philadelphia, PA
http://www.mafmc.org
August 8-21
Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Com
mission Meeting
Alexandria, VA
http://www.asmfc.org
August 25-30
U.S. Coral Reef Task Force Meeting
Kona, Hawaiihttp://www.coralreef.gov/taskforce/
meetings.html