Amendment 7 to the Bluefish Fishery Management Plan
Photo Credit: Richard Ling / www.rling.com
Overview
The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) initiated this amendment to address an array of management issues in the Atlantic bluefish fishery. This action also includes rebuilding plan options and considers revisions to the FMP goals and objectives.
Amendment Status
On November 24, 2021, NOAA Fisheries published a final rule implementing the amendment Amendment 7 to the Bluefish Fishery Management Plan. The amendment was implemented on January 1, 2022.
Amendment 7 implements the following management measures for the Atlantic bluefish fishery:
Revision and update of the Bluefish FMP goals and objectives to reflect the current needs of the fishery. The revisions were developed with input from the public and fishery stakeholders and focus on conservation of the resource, equitable access for all user groups, and effective coordination of management;
Re-allocation of the annual bluefish quota between the commercial and recreational fishery sectors to better represent current catch and landings trends. This action allocates 14 percent of the fishery annual catch limit to the commercial fishery and 86 percent to the recreational fishery, which is a 3-percentage point shift to the recreational sector from the prior allocations;
Re-allocation of the annual bluefish commercial quota among the states within the management unit (Maine to Florida) to better represent current landings trends in the fishery (Table 1). This action is intended to reduce the need for inseason state-to-state quota transfers, and includes a 0.1-percent minimum default allocation to ensure that no state is excluded from the fishery entirely. To allow industry and states to adjust to these changes more easily, the changes in allocation will be phased in equally over a period of seven years;
A 7-year rebuilding plan using a constant fishing mortality model to rebuild the overfished bluefish stock;
Revision of the sector quota transfer provisions to allow quota to be transferred in either direction (from commercial to recreational sector or vice versa), with a revised maximum transfer cap of 10-percent of the acceptable biological catch; and
Revision of the specifications process to account for sources of management uncertainty separately between the commercial and recreational fishery sectors.
This action was developed through the Council rulemaking process, using the best available science and with many opportunities for public comment, including multiple scoping and public hearings. These new management measures were used to develop specifications for the 2022 fishing year, beginning on January 1, 2022. Therefore, 2022 will be the first year of the phase-in period for commercial quota reallocation to the states, as well as the first year of the rebuilding plan.
Amendment Development Timeline
June/July 2018: The Council and ASMFC held a first round of scoping hearings and collected written comments on the range of issues and information to be considered.
October 2019: The Council and Bluefish Board affirmed the list of five issues previously identified for consideration in the amendment and agreed to also incorporate development and implementation of a rebuilding plan.
February/March 2020: Because the addition of rebuilding modified the scope of the amendment, the Council held additional scoping hearings and collected written comments in early 2020.
May 2020: The Council and Board reviewed scoping comments and identified the scope of issues be considered for further development.
June - October 2020: The Council and Board revised the draft range of alternatives.
February 2021: The Council and Board approved a public hearing document and final range of alternatives during a joint meeting on February 10, 2021.
March-April 2021: The Council and Board held five virtual public hearings between March 24 and April 8, 2021 and collected written comments until April 23, 2021.
June 2021: The Council and Board reviewed public comments and recommended approval of the amendment during the June 2021 Council Meeting.
September 13, 2021: NOAA Fisheries published a proposed rule to implement the measures contained in the Bluefish Allocation and Rebuilding Amendment.
November 24, 2021: NOAA Fisheries published a final rule implementing the amendment, now titled Amendment 7 to the Bluefish Fishery Management Plan.
Document Archive
December 2017: Joint Council/Board Meeting (Amendment Initiation)
June/July 2018: Scoping Hearings (Round 1)
August 2018: Joint Council/Board Meeting (Review Scoping Comments)
January-March 2020: Supplemental Scoping Hearings
May 2020: Joint Council/Board Meeting (Review Supplemental Scoping Comments)
June 2020: Joint Council/Board Meeting (Review Draft Range of Alternatives)
October 2020 Joint Council/Board Meeting (Finalize Range of Alternatives)
February 2021: Public Hearings
Public Hearing Document - Original (note: this document was revised in May 2021)
ASMFC Draft Amendment - Original (note: this document was revised in May 2021)
Alternatives Reference Guide - Original (note: this document was revised in May 2021)
June 2021: Final Action
Recordings:
September 2021: Proposed Rule
November 2021: Final Rule