IGFA Issues Comment on the National Marine Fisheries Service’s Draft Catch Shares Policy

IGFA Issues Comment on the National Marine Fisheries Service’s Draft Catch Shares Policy

In the ongoing debate regarding the National Marine Fisheries Service’s Draft Catch Share Policy, recreational fishing and environmental organizations recently addressed a letter to NOAA’s Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere, Dr. Jane Lubchenco, to discuss the recreational fishing community’s concerns regarding reallocation and inter-sector trading:

 “Recently a group of recreational angler and environmental conservation organizations came together to discuss a variety of issues of common interest and concern, including the draft NOAA catch share policy. While the groups could not come to a universal position on the draft catch share policy as a whole, there was general agreement on the need for the policy to be comprehensive, providing guidance to the Fishery Management Councils on key issues that should be considered during the design and approval of new catch share plans. Two important issues that NOAA should evaluate as part of this process concern inter-sector allocations and inter-sector trading.

Catch share plans are adopted as major amendments to Fishery Management Plans, and like all major amendments, they should be based on the best biological and economic information available. Major amendments of this sort also provide an opportunity to review and update as necessary the key underlying management assumptions and past management decisions concerning the affected fishery, thereby insuring that the next generation of Management Plans will not be premised upon outdated management strategies or stale statistics and analyses.”

To read the full text, click here: Fish Collaborative Letter on Reallocation in the Catch Shares Policy.pdf (38.54 kb)