Public Comment for Herring Amendment 5 this Thursday in Hyannis!

NOAA recently announced its decision to partially approve Amendment 5 to the Atlantic Herring fishery management plan. Although NOAA did approve a series of measures intended to improve management of the fishery, it disapproved crucial components of the amendment that were necessary to achieve better oversight and accountability on the fleet, including:

1) 100% observer coverage for the Category A and B vessels that harvest the majority of the catch
2) A slippage cap that would provide a disincentive against existing dumping practices
3) Dealer reporting requirements to accurately weigh the catch

For those of you that participated in the decade-long community effort to improve management and oversight of this fishery, there will be an opportunity at the upcoming New England Fishery Management Council meeting to voice your concerns and urge Council members to task NOAA with fixing Amendment 5 as soon as possible.

The Council meeting is this Thursday, September 26th, at the Cape Codder Resort (1225 Iyannough Rd) in Hyannis, MA.

There will be an opportunity for public comment at 9:15AM and herring will be discussed at 10:15AM.

Please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 508-945-2432 with any questions.