Old Mud
Well-Known Angler
US Government Shutdown and the Bluefin Tuna Fishery
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Jan 24 at 12:46 PM
The US Government shutdown and the Bluefin Tuna fishery
On January 18, 2019, ABTA wrote to NOAA leadership as well as leadership of the Highly Migratory Species Management Division of NOAA, asking if there was a contingency plan in place for monitoring bluefin tuna landings during the Winter Fishery, while the Government is shut down. Accurate monitoring of landings on a daily basis for the bluefin tuna fishery is critically important to ensure strict compliance with sub quotas. ABTA has been advised that landings are being monitored during the shutdown. Therefore, there is a contingency plan in place for NOAA to perform vital functions during the shutdown.
The first bluefin to be landed off the Hatteras Point/Wanchese/Oregon Inlet area this year occurred in the middle of January. The quota available for this subquota period is 49 mt. The winter fishery (which is open to all General Category permit holders and Charter/Headboat permit holders with a commercial endorsement regardless of their location) will close on March 31 or when the subquota has been caught, whichever occurs first. Daily retention is limited to one bluefin tuna greater than 73” per day.
However, the shutdown has deeply affected NOAA’s operations. NOAA employees have not been paid in a very long time. The phones are not being answered. There is a mountain of work for the HMS Management Division that is piling up and growing in size as the shutdown drags on. Normal preparations for the upcoming spring Highly Migratory Species Advisory Panel meeting are not taking place. Any upcoming meetings that require the presence of NOAA employees will have to be cancelled until Government employees return to work.
On January 19, an article in the Washington Post quoted a NOAA spokesperson, responding to a question regarding the status of NOAA’s operations during the shutdown: “NOAA continues to conduct enforcement activities for the protection of marine fisheries including quota monitoring, observer activities, and regulatory actions to prevent overfishing,” she said. A similar statement is found posted on the U.S. Department of Commerce’s website (https://www.noaa.gov). NMFS/NOAA is a part of the Department of Commerce. Of the 11,328 NOAA employees (as of 11/2018), 5,453 are considered critical during a shutdown as they are necessary for performing activities authorized/implied by law.
American Bluefin Tuna Association
On January 18, 2019, ABTA wrote to NOAA leadership as well as leadership of the Highly Migratory Species Management Division of NOAA, asking if there was a contingency plan in place for monitoring bluefin tuna landings during the Winter Fishery, while the Government is shut down. Accurate monitoring of landings on a daily basis for the bluefin tuna fishery is critically important to ensure strict compliance with sub quotas. ABTA has been advised that landings are being monitored during the shutdown. Therefore, there is a contingency plan in place for NOAA to perform vital functions during the shutdown.
The first bluefin to be landed off the Hatteras Point/Wanchese/Oregon Inlet area this year occurred in the middle of January. The quota available for this subquota period is 49 mt. The winter fishery (which is open to all General Category permit holders and Charter/Headboat permit holders with a commercial endorsement regardless of their location) will close on March 31 or when the subquota has been caught, whichever occurs first. Daily retention is limited to one bluefin tuna greater than 73” per day.
However, the shutdown has deeply affected NOAA’s operations. NOAA employees have not been paid in a very long time. The phones are not being answered. There is a mountain of work for the HMS Management Division that is piling up and growing in size as the shutdown drags on. Normal preparations for the upcoming spring Highly Migratory Species Advisory Panel meeting are not taking place. Any upcoming meetings that require the presence of NOAA employees will have to be cancelled until Government employees return to work.
On January 19, an article in the Washington Post quoted a NOAA spokesperson, responding to a question regarding the status of NOAA’s operations during the shutdown: “NOAA continues to conduct enforcement activities for the protection of marine fisheries including quota monitoring, observer activities, and regulatory actions to prevent overfishing,” she said. A similar statement is found posted on the U.S. Department of Commerce’s website (https://www.noaa.gov). NMFS/NOAA is a part of the Department of Commerce. Of the 11,328 NOAA employees (as of 11/2018), 5,453 are considered critical during a shutdown as they are necessary for performing activities authorized/implied by law.
American Bluefin Tuna Association
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