Correspondence/Amendment 5 Comments - New England Fishery ...

New England Fishery Management Council
50 wATER sTREET I NEWBURveoRT, MASSACHUSETTS 019s0 | nnorue 97s 46s o+sz I
John Pappalardo, Chairman I Paul J. Howard, Executive Director
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation
Fisheries Innovation Fund Proposal Reviewers
1133 Fifteenth Street, N.W., Suite 1100
\Mashington, DC 20005
rnx 978 465 31 16
January 28,2011
RE: Support for FIF Proposal to Develop a River Herring Stock Assessment and Bycatch Cap
for the Atlantic Herring Fishery
To Whom It May Concern:
I am writing to support the proposal for the research project, "Meeting Science Needs for a River Herring
Bycatch Catch Share System in the Atlantic Herring Fishery," from the NFWF Fisheries Innovation Fund.
This project proposes to develop information to support a coast-wide stock assessment of river herring,
evaluate the needs and limitations for monitoring a river herring catch cap in the Atlantic herring fishery,
and engage stakeholders in the process. The results will help to support future management of the
Atlantic herring fishery.
Significant concerns about bycatch of river herring species in the Atlantic herring fishery have been
expressed by a number of stakeholders, and the New England Fishery Management Council is currently
deveioping Amendment 5 to the Atlantic Herring Fishery Management Plan (FMP), which is considering
measures to increase monitoring in the Atlantic herring fishery and address river herring bycatch.
Amendment 5 v¡ill include a placeholder for a river herring catch cap to be implemented in the herring
fishery once a stock assessment for river herring can be completed. Therefore, the Council supports
research effiorts to better characterize the status of the river herring resource as well as the nature and
extent of river herring bycatch. To the extent that the proposed project can evaluate the potential for
applying and monitoring catch caps as effective bycatch reduction strategies, there will be long-term
benefits related to the management of the Atlantic herring fishery and the health of the river herring
resource.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.
cc: Council members
Sincerely,
/4/-.'-/
Paul Howard
Executive Director