Vote Status Quo for Mehaden

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RFA Urges ASMFC to Maintain Status Quo for Menhaden
Commercial Industry Pushing Hard for 40% Increase



New Gretna, NJ - The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries (ASMFC) Atlantic Menhaden Management Board is set to meet on Wednesday, August 3 to among other things, set the 2017 menhaden specifications. In a letter submitted to the ASMFC today, the RFA Executive Director Jim Donofrio urges commissioners to vote tomorrow to maintain the 2017 total allowable catch at 187,880 metric tons. Earlier this year, the ASMFC Technical Committee developed a range of options with regards to the TAC that included status quo to a 40% increase which would equate to roughly 176,320,000 increase. The commercial fishing industry is lobbying very hard for the maximum increase which would allow for a commercial harvest close to 3/4 of a billion pounds of menhaden from a relatively small geographic area.



In providing justification for maintaining the status quo, RFA points out that menhaden is still managed under a single-species approach and its ecological role is not taken into consideration when setting quotas. RFA also points out that an assessment update is scheduled for 2017 in addition to the development of Amendment 3 to the Atlantic Menhaden Fishery Management Plan which will incorporate ecological reference points in the fishery. Furthermore, the current quota provides more than ample poundage to meet the commercial and recreational bait needs. Any increase in quota would only benefit Omega Protein executives, lobbyists, and shareholders. Setting the 2017 total allowable catch above the current level of 187,880 metric tons would be inappropriate and unjustified.


RFA is encouraging all fishermen to contact their commissioners and ask them to vote for status quo tomorrow. Note that each state has three commissioners; a Governor's appointee, a Legislative appointee and a representative of the state's marine fisheries department, but each state only gets one vote. The three commissioners caucus among themselves and determine how the state will vote. It is imperative that each state must have at least two commissioner in support of status quo in order to prevent a quota increase tomorrow. Take the time to call your commissioners today. Many of our most important fisheries such as striped bass, summer flounder and bluefish depend on tomorrow's vote.

http://www.asmfc.org/about-us/commissioners
Click Here to Find Your Commissioners

Here is a link to the actual RFA Letter sent in: http://files.ctctcdn.com/74c262f9001...fb9c2545e9.pdf