The Pew Environment Group has called upon the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council to diligently implement important new federal requirements designed to prevent overfishing and rebuild depleted fish populations.
The council is currently developing plans to apply the new federal rules, which became effective on 17 February. These rules correspond to 2006 congressional amendments to the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the nation’s primary law governing management of US fish populations.
In a letter sent to the Mid-Atlantic Council, Pew invoked new federal requirements that regional fishery management plans to include by 2011 annual catch limits and accountability measures designed to prevent overfishing and rebuild depleted fishing populations Other key provisions of these rules strengthen the role of science in fisheries management decisions and require that depleted fish populations are rebuilt as soon as possible.
The letter urges the Mid-Atlantic Council to:
• Set effective catch limits that reflect conservative scientific and management estimates
• Establish accountability measures to help ensure annual catch limits are not exceeded and that there are consequences if they are
• Ensure that regional fish populations are rebuilt by legally mandated dates
• Require adequate monitoring and enforcement
Popular Mid-Atlantic recreational and commercial species subject to the new requirements include black sea bass, summer flounder (fluke) and scup.
