2022 Summer Flounder Options and 4/7 Meeting

[Gerry Zagorski]

The NJMFC webinar/meeting is scheduled on Thursday 4/7 @ 5PM to decide on NJ Summer Flounder regulations and take public comments.

If you'd like to attend the webinar and make comments you need to register here https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/5755298379829224715
The options up for comment are as follows and right now the preferred option from the council's perspective is option 1
1) May 21 - Sep 23.... 3 fish @ 17.5 or greater
2) May 2 - Sep 27 .... 2 slots between 17 and 17.99 and 1 over 18
3) May 27 - Oct 2 ..... 2 slots between 16.5 and 17.99 and 1 over 18
4) May 1 - Sep 30 ..... 3 fish @ 18 or greater
5) May 24 - Sep 10 .... 1 slot between 16.5 and 17.99 and 2 over 18

This document discusses the options in more detail and the reason the council choose 1 as the their preferred option. https://www.nj.gov/dep/fgw/pdf/2022/minutes/reports/mfc22/njmfc-sf-rec-report033122.pdf

I think the NJ Council and the staff at NJDEP did a great job working behind the scenes at the regional and federal level making a consideration for slots for the first time ever.

Feel free to comment here and take the poll above. I hope you all take the time to attend the webinar and make your opinions heard at the meeting.

[frugalfisherman]

I was the first to see this so I voted #4. One other vote so I guess Gerry you voted #3.

[Gerry Zagorski]

I was the first to see this so I voted #4. One other vote so I guess Gerry you voted #3.

I'll keep my opinions to myself since they're based on my personal preferences, how and when I fish and I don't want to influence others opinions :D

[hartattack]

Link above not working

[Dclark2]

Mix would be hard on the party boats trying to enforce different size limits..

[Gerry Zagorski]

Link above not working

Thanks Larry links are fixed!

[frugalfisherman]

Mix would be hard on the party boats trying to enforce different size limits..

It's not up to the party boat to "enforce" size limits. What's in your cooler is on you not them. Here's something else for you "slot" guys. Catch a "legal" 17 1/4 inch fluke on an Atlantic Highlands party boat first thing in the morning and by the time you get back to dock it could shrink to 16 and change. Oh!oh! it's ticket time. If you don't believe me try measuring some time. They shrink! An 18 inch fluke can be 17 if you keep it on ice in your cooler and go to fillet the next morning. Having said that if you want your two 17.00 to 17.99's you may have to catch 2 a little over 18 and do some fancy calculating. Like I've said before " Be careful what you ask for you just might get it"!!!!

[Luckyduck]

Very true I’ve noticed them shrinking about 3/8

[TwoDDs]

The NJMFC webinar/meeting is scheduled on Thursday 4/7 @ 5PM to decide on NJ Summer Flounder regulations and take public comments.

If you'd like to attend the webinar and make comments you need to register here https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/5755298379829224715
The options up for comment are as follows and right now the preferred option from the council's perspective is option 1
1) May 21 - Sep 23.... 3 fish @ 17.5 or greater
2) May 2 - Sep 27 .... 2 slots between 17 and 17.99 and 1 over 18
3) May 27 - Oct 2 ..... 2 slots between 16.5 and 17.99 and 1 over 18
4) May 1 - Sep 30 ..... 3 fish @ 18 or greater
5) May 24 - Sep 10 .... 1 slot between 16.5 and 17.99 and 2 over 18

This document discusses the options in more detail and the reason the council choose 1 as the their preferred option. https://www.nj.gov/dep/fgw/pdf/2022/minutes/reports/mfc22/njmfc-sf-rec-report033122.pdf

I think the NJ Council and the staff at NJDEP did a great job working behind the scenes at the regional and federal level making a consideration for slots for the first time ever.

Feel free to comment here and take the poll above. I hope you all take the time to attend the webinar and make your opinions heard at the meeting.

Seems odd, that we're offered 3@18" for 153 days and to get a single slot, we need to give up 43 days. But to get two slots, we only need to give up 24 days. That makes no sense.

Personally, I like Option 1.
Having .01 inches determining possession just seems ridiculous to me. The lines on my boat measure are thicker than that.

[Gerry Zagorski]

No option is perfect and is going to please everyone.. Some will trade a longer season for larger fish and others the opposite. Some want slots and others don't. Some strictly fish the ocean and typically catch larger fish while others fish the bay and get smaller fish. The good news is at least this year we have a lot of options, bad news is only one can be chosen.

The other wild card in this ongoing process is this year the theoretical science/MRIP numbers from last year which were low worked in our favor in the case of Summer Flounder. This allowed for some liberalization regardless of stock status and that allowed for more options but what about next year and the years after?

The process and data we use to manage the fisheries and set regulations needs to change and the reason we need recreational reform. To prove that point just look at Seabass ... A fishery that is totally rebuilt but because of last years theoretical high MRIP/landing assumptions, we're looking at a 20% reduction on a very healthy fishery... This could happen next year to Fluke if the process does not change.

[Gerry Zagorski]

Seems odd, that we're offered 3@18" for 153 days and to get a single slot, we need to give up 43 days. But to get two slots, we only need to give up 24 days. That makes no sense.

Personally, I like Option 1.
Having .01 inches determining possession just seems ridiculous to me. The lines on my boat measure are thicker than that.

I don't know for sure but I think the reasoning might be 2 fold
1) Filling 2 slots is more difficult then filling one so less fish will be kept
2) The narrower the slot size the harder it will be to fill your slot

[TwoDDs]

I understand your first point, but to your second point, I was looking at Option 3 and Option 5, where both slot sizes are the same.

[hammer4reel]

If I was king for a day . Wanted vest for fishery and best for fishing it would be .

Split season
Bays / tributaries may 1 to sept 1

Ocean June 1 to October 1

Four month season both areas .
17” size limit (3) fish .

Slots being offered will increase mortality too high as they are too tight .
And Oceanside mortality throwing lots of fish back would kill that fishery too .

.

[Merle31483]

Seems odd, that we're offered 3@18" for 153 days and to get a single slot, we need to give up 43 days. But to get two slots, we only need to give up 24 days. That makes no sense.

Personally, I like Option 1.
Having .01 inches determining possession just seems ridiculous to me. The lines on my boat measure are thicker than that.

Exactly since in reality all the party boats out there with the exception of very few will strictly be targeting see bass till that season closes in June so what's the difference in opening the season May 1st anyway

[Gerry Zagorski]

I understand your first point, but to your second point, I was looking at Option 3 and Option 5, where both slot sizes are the same.

3) May 27 - Oct 2 ..... 2 slots between 16.5 and 17.99 and 1 over 18
5) May 24 - Sep 10 .... 1 slot between 16.5 and 17.99 and 2 over 18

Once again not 100% sure but I think it would be harder to fill 2 slots in option three then it is to fill 1 slot in option five so less fish are taken in option 3 and it gets a longer season.

As a side, I know our NJ State marine biologist had to submit all the different options to be reviewed by the federal scientists. All the options were fed into a model that predicts landings based on variables like size, season length, slot, no slot, how many slots and what the slot sizes were. The model predicts landings based on those variables and no options that were approved where the predicted landings would have exceed our states quotas.
There is a lot more that goes into that so it's my simple minded understanding.

This is however a great conversation, it really is their sandbox and if we want to play in it we need to understand what the rules are so we can try and intelligently influence it.

Now my head hurts and yours probably does too .... I need a beer :D