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Commercial Fisheries News
Volume 34 Number 1
September 2006
Herring boats granted haddock bycatch allowance
GLOUCESTER, MA – Category 1 herring vessels are now allowed to possess incidentally caught haddock under Framework Adjustment 43 to the groundfish plan.
The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) implemented Framework 43 on Aug. 15. The framework allows Category 1 herring boats that aren’t working under a groundfish day-at-sea to possess and land unlimited amounts of haddock up to a fleet-wide bycatch “cap.”
The cap equals 0.2% of the combined target total allowable catch for Gulf of Maine and Georges Bank cod as calculated for each May 1-April 30 groundfish fishing year. For 2006, the cap is 161,377 pounds.
Category 1 vessels also are allowed to possess up to 100 pounds of other groundfish regulated species.
Framework 43 also created a new Gulf of Maine/Georges Bank Exemption Area that covers both geographic areas. Once the haddock bycatch cap is reached, Category 1 vessels and other herring vessels will be prohibited from fishing for, possessing, or landing any herring in excess of 2,000 pounds per trip from the exemption area.
Vessels may continue to target herring outside the area and then transit home with gear properly stowed. The 2,000-pound limit would not apply only if all herring onboard was caught outside of the Gulf of Maine/Georges Bank Exemption Area.
Bait use
Category 1 vessels are exempt from minimum size restrictions for haddock and other groundfish species but cannot sell any groundfish species for human consumption – only for bait.
NMFS said the bait allowance was made because “herring catches landed for use as bait are generally offloaded by pumping the fish from the vessel hold into tanker trucks,” and “some haddock and other regulated multispecies could remain mixed in with the herring catch.”
Category 1 vessels are prohibited from discarding haddock “that has been brought on the deck or pumped into the hold.”
Vessel also must notify NMFS by VMS at least six hours in advance of their intent to land a trip “to facilitate the enforcement and monitoring of the haddock catch cap.”
Dealers and processors that sort herring must “separate out, report, retain, and make available for inspection for 12 hours all haddock landed” by Category 1 vessels. The sale of culled haddock – for any purpose – is prohibited.
For more information call NMFS at (978) 281-9315. /cfn/
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