Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act Provisions; Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Annual Catch Limits and Accountability Measures

Zusammenfassung

NMFS proposes to implement an Omnibus Amendment to all Mid- Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) fishery management plans (FMPs) in order to bring all Council FMPs into compliance with the requirements of the Magnuson-Stevens Act (MSA), as amended by the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Reauthorization Act of 2006 (MSRA), which requires establishment of Annual Catch Limits (ACLs) and Accountability Measures (AMs) for stocks not subject to the annual life cycle or other exemptions. There are multiple intended effects of the Omnibus Amendment: To establish a comprehensive framework for all Council FMPs that is compliant with the MSA requirements and consistent with the National Standard 1 guidelines issued by NMFS; to implement a process that more formally utilizes scientific recommendations in the establishment of annual catch levels; to establish a framework to derive ACLs with AM backstops from that scientific advice; and to establish processes for revisiting and modifying the measures that would be established by the respective FMP amendments so that overfishing is prevented, stocks are rebuilt as needed, and Optimum Yield (OY) may be achieved for all