1. 158th Caribbean Fishery Management Council Meeting
Triggering Accountability Measures (AMs) for Reef Fish in the Puerto Rico Exclusive Economic Zone
SERO
Proposed Amendment to the Reef Fish FMP
December 13, 2016
158th Caribbean Fishery Management Council Meeting
St. Thomas, USVI
December 13-14, 2016

2. Average Landings (lbs)
Purpose and Need
Purpose: Revise the manner in which accountability measures are triggered and applied in order to minimize the risk of fishery closures of the Puerto Rico reef fish fishery and reduce negative socio-economic impacts.
Need: Ensure to the greatest degree practicable that optimum yield is achieved for federally managed reef fish fisheries while preventing the fishery from exceeding the overfishing limit.
Snapper Unit 2
Puerto Rico
EEZ
Average Landings (lbs)
ACL (lbs)
Over/Under (lbs)
Closure
(days)
Commercial
155,889
145,916
9,973 36
Recreational
2,460
34,810
-32,350
Total
158,349
180,726
-22,377*
*Potential harvest remaining in Puerto Rico’s SU2 fishery

3. Proposed Action 1: Select the trigger for applying AM-based closures in the commercial or recreational reef fish fishery in Puerto Rico.
Suggested Option 1: No action. The AM is triggered for a particular sector when the average of the three most recent years of available landings from that sector exceeds the sector-specific annual catch limit (ACL).
Suggested Option 2: The AM is triggered only if the combined average of the three most recent years of available landings exceeds the total ACL, but the overage would be assigned to each fishing sector in proportion to their individual overage of the sector ACL. If only one of the two sectors exceeds its ACL, the AM would be applied only to that sector.
Suggested Option 3: The AM is triggered only if the combined average of the three most recent years of available landings exceeds the total ACL, but the overage would be assigned to each fishing sector equally regardless of the extent to which either sector exceeded their sector-specific ACL. 

4. Next Steps Discuss management options (Council)
Motion to develop amendment for the Reef Fish FMP (Council)
Decide on public hearings (Council)
Develop timeline (Staff)

5. Questions?

6. Draft Timeline Today Staff provides update to Council
Council discusses management options
Council passes motion to develop Regulatory Amendment 6 to Reef Fish FMP
Council may take final action at spring meeting
Council submits reg. amendment to the Secretary of Commerce for review
Proposed Rule Publication and Comment Period
LATE SPRING / EARLY SUMMER 2017
December Council Meeting
2016
2017
SPRING Council Meeting
Council reviews reg. amendment, selects preferred alternative
Council takes final action
Council revises and approves codified text.
Council approves reg. amendment for Secretarial Review
NOAA publishes Final Rule
Final Rule Effective
New regs in effect for FY 2018
LATE SUMMER / EARLY FALL 2017