[PBangler]

They're working out the kinks of how to shut down recreational fluke (as well as other recreational species) for the near future as we speak.

Excerpts from the MAFMC – Summer Flounder Committee Discussion – July, 2009

RED MUNDEN: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

I have a question for Mike relative to the accountability measures being automatic. Could you do something like an in-season closure and give the Regional Administrator the authority to implement that rather than the following year?

MICHAEL PENTONY: Yes.

JACK TRAVELSTEAD: How would you do that in-season? How would you?

MICHAEL PENTONY: How? In the specifics say of the summer flounder recreational fishery, I think you could say that if the – if knowing the performance of the -- of the modes over time, you could see that in years, say, in years in which more than 60 percent of the recreational allocation was landed prior to the end of, say, Wave 3, then if you reach that -- if you hit that signal, then you would give the Regional Administrator the authority to take action in say Wave 4 or 5.

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FYI, Wave 3 is May & June - Wave 4 is July & Aug - Wave 5 is Sept & Oct