The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has announced quotas and other measures for bluefin tuna. The NOAA's Fisheries Service also announced a review of domestic bluefin tuna management to address allocation issues, discards of dead bluefin tuna and the best ways to reduce unintended catch of bluefin tuna.
The allocations divide the available 2011 US bluefin tuna quota of 957 tonnes among commercial and recreational fishing sectors for the fishing season that began on June 1. The total US quota was set by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) last November. Each ICCAT member nation divides its national quota among its domestic users.
Under the NOAA's allocations, the general category, which includes commercial fishermen who use rod and reel, will receive 435 tonnes, nearly half the 2011 US quota. The allocations for other categories are: angling category, 182 tonnes; purse seine fishermen, 171.8 tonnes; long-line fishermen, 61 tonnes; harpoon fishermen, 36 tonnes; trap fishermen, 0.9 tonnes; and a reserve of 70.6 tonnes. The reserve is set aside for scientific research and to account for landings and dead discards.
The allocations account for potential discards of unintentionally caught bluefin tuna. Bluefin tuna are primarily discarded by long-line fishermen, who are targeting swordfish and other tunas. Although fishermen attempt to release them alive, many discarded fish do not survive. The long-line fishery was the only sector to receive reductions in its base quota to account for dead discards in advance of them actually being caught. Data from the 2010 fishing season was used to estimate the discarded amount.
"We are working closely with long-line fishermen to reduce the amount of bluefin tuna that they catch unintentionally," said Eric Schwaab, assistant administrator for the NOAA's Fisheries Service. "This spring, we began requiring long-line fishermen in the Gulf of Mexico to use weak hooks to reduce the unintended bluefin catch while still allowing them to catch swordfish and yellowfin tuna."
The weak hook, a circular hook constructed of thin gauge wire, is designed to straighten when a large fish such as bluefin tuna is hooked, releasing it, but holding on to smaller, lighter fish.
FIS (www.fis.com)
