Framework Adjustment 46 to the Northeast Multispecies FMP Including an Environmental Assessment Regulatory Impact Review Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis Prepared by the New England Fishery Management Council In consultation with the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council National Marine Fisheries Service Initial Framework Meeting: January 26, 2011 Final Framework Meeting: April 28, 2011 Date Submitted: May 13, 2011 Date Resubmitted: June 17, 2011 Executive Summary Intentionally Blank Framework Adjustment 46 2 Executive Summary 1.0 Executive Summary Background In New England, the New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC) is charged with developing management plans that meet the requirements of the Magnuson-Stevens Act (M-S Act). The Northeast Multispecies Fishery Management Plan (FMP) specifies the management measures for thirteen groundfish species (cod, haddock, yellowtail flounder, pollock, plaice, witch flounder, white hake, windowpane flounder, Atlantic halibut, winter flounder, redfish, Atlantic wolffish, and ocean pout) off the New England and Mid-Atlantic coasts. The FMP has been updated through a series of amendments and framework adjustments. The most recent multispecies amendment, published as Amendment 16, was submitted for review by the National Marine Fisheries Service in October 2009 and became effective on May 1, 2010. This amendment adopted a broad suite of management measures in order to achieve fishing mortality targets and meet other requirements of the M-S Act. The amendment allowed vessels with groundfish permits to either fish under the days-at-sea (DAS) effort control system or to join sectors, which are small groups of self-selected fishermen that receive an allocation of annual catch entitlement (ACE) based upon the catch history of each member. Included in Amendment 16 was a process for setting specifications for the fishery and updating measures through framework actions. Framework 44 and Framework 45 to the FMP set specifications for fishing years 2010-2012 and made other minor adjustments to the management program. The NEFMC also manages the Atlantic herring fishery. The Atlantic herring FMP was implemented January 10, 2001. The FMP adopted a program of quotas for the fishery, managed through the use of four management areas. The FMP has been modified through four amendments and one framework action. Framework 1 (2002) implemented a split-season quota in the management area in the inshore Gulf of Maine. Amendment 1 to the FMP adopted a limited access program in 2007 as well as seasonal gear restrictions. Amendment 2 (2008) adopted the Standardized Bycatch Reporting Methodology while Amendment 3 is under development as part of the Essential Fish Habitat Omnibus amendment. Amendment 4 was submitted in April 2010, and proposes annual catch limit (ACL) provisions for the FMP. Work is proceeding on Amendment 5, which will propose numerous changes to the FMP that address reporting and monitoring requirements, river herring bycatch, midwater trawl access to groundfish closed areas, and other issues in the fishery. Other requirements have been imposed on the fishery in response to a court-approved motion to stay pending litigation over management of the fishery. The multispecies and herring fisheries take place in the same areas and seasons. Throughout the recent history of these two fisheries concerns have been raised that herring fishing vessels may catch groundfish species and that these catches may affect the rebuilding of overfished groundfish stocks. As a result, herring vessels were prohibited from catching groundfish when the Northeast Multispecies FMP was amended in 1996. There were also concerns that measures designed to reduce catches of groundfish by the herring fishery reduced the ability of the herring fishery to achieve optimum yield. These concerns led to herring vessels being allowed to fish in multispecies closed areas because the gear was not expected to catch groundfish. These two competing issues came to a head in 2005 when herring midwater trawl vessels caught haddock from a large haddock year class on George Bank. This led to the adoption of Framework Adjustment 43 to the Northeast Multispecies FMP in 2006. FW 43 modified the restrictions for herring vessels so that herring fishing could continue on Georges Bank. This framework prohibited certain herring vessels from discarding haddock and limited possession of other Framework Adjustment 46 3 Executive Summary groundfish to small amounts. It also adopted a cap on the amount of haddock that could be caught by certain herring vessels. The cap was set at 0.2 percent of the combined GB and GOM haddock target total allowable catch (TTAC). When the cap was reached, catches of herring from a large part of the GOM and GB areas were limited to 2,000 pounds per trip for all herring vessels. Purpose and Need for Action Given the current large biomass of haddock on GB, the current fixed 0.2% cap on haddock catch by the herring fleet (adopted in FW 43) risks creating a gross constraint on herring catch despite the fact that overall haddock catches are far below the ABC for that stock. The overarching need for this framework is because unless action is taken to modify the provisions adopted in FW 43 to reflect current conditions in the fishery, it appears likely that herring midwater trawl vessels may be prevented from fishing on GB for a large portion of the year after the cap is reached. Specifically, this action is needed because such an interruption in the herring fishery would have negative impacts on the fishery participants and it is necessary to avoid potential impacts to the supply of herring used as bait for the lobster fishery. It is also needed to avoid reducing opportunities for the herring TAC in Area 3 (and OY) to be fully utilized. Perhaps most importantly, it is needed because reduced fishing effort in the Area 3 herring fishery may result in a shift of effort into Area 1A during the summer and fall, exacerbating concerns about the inshore GOM component of the resource and the impacts of concentrated midwater trawl fishing effort in this area (Table 3). The Council adopted the following objectives (purpose) for this action: 1) To maximize the chance for Georges Bank (Area 3) herring TAC to be caught; 2) To provide incentives to fish offshore; 3) To provide incentives to fish in a manner, at times, and in areas when and where haddock bycatch is none to low; and 4) To reduce the impact of a haddock cap on the entire herring fishery. Proposed Action/Preferred Alternative The Proposed Action is identified in the document as Option 2. It is the preferred alternative. The Proposed Action would change the catch cap provisions adopted in FW 43. The haddock catch cap provisions would apply only to midwater trawl vessels with a herring permit because these vessels catch nearly all of the haddock caught by the herring fishery. Catches of haddock by midwater trawl vessels fishing in Herring Management Areas 1A, 1B, and 3 that are documented by at-sea observers would be extrapolated to an estimate of the total catch of haddock. Individual estimates would be developed for each haddock stock (GOM and GB haddock). The cap is applied based on the multispecies fishing year (May 1 through April 30). The catch cap would be 1 percent of the Acceptable Biological Catch (ABC) of each stock. If the haddock catch estimate extrapolated from observer reports exceeds a stock-specific cap, midwater trawl vessels would be limited to catching 2,000 pounds of Atlantic herring in a relevant area (see Figure 11). If there is an overage of the cap, the cap for the following year would be reduced by the amount of the overage. In order to monitor the cap there would be changes to the reporting requirements for MWT vessels. In addition to the existing requirement to report herring catches by herring management area, MWT vessels fishing in Herring Management Areas 1A, 1B, and 3 would be required to Framework Adjustment 46 4 Executive Summary report total kept catch by haddock stock area and gear used. This information would be needed to extrapolate observer information to an estimate of total haddock catch. If this measure is adopted in the middle of the groundfish fishing year, the measure would be applied retroactively. That is, catches of haddock would be estimated based on observer reports form the beginning of the fishing year and a determination made as to whether the cap was exceeded. If the cap was exceeded, MWT vessels would be limited to 2,000 pounds of herring in the appropriate area(s). If the cap was not exceeded, herring fishing would not be restricted or, if previously limited by the FW 43 provisions, the restrictions would be removed. Implementation of the cap in the middle of the fishing year will also reduce sector haddock Annual Catch Entitlements (ACE) by about one percent. Alternatives to the Proposed Action Two alternatives to the Proposed Action were considered. These alternatives are not preferred. Option 1/No Action: This option would maintain the haddock catch cap provisions adopted by FW 43. Under this option, the haddock catch cap would be 0.2 percent of the combined GOM and GB haddock ABC. Catches of haddock by herring vessels with a Category A or B herring permit count against the cap. Only catches that are documented by observers, dealer reports, or NMFS enforcement activities are counted against the cap (observer reports are not extrapolated to an estimate of total catch). If the cap is reached, all vessels issued a herring permit are prohibited from landing herring in excess of 2,000 pounds per trip from the GOM/GB Herring Exemption Area (see Figure 6). Option 3/Other Sub-Components: This option would eliminate the catch cap for the herring fishery.