FROM TBF'S ELECTRONIC NEWSLETTER............

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) released its Proposed Rule offering options being considered for “reinvigorating” the U.S. swordfish fishery. The reinvigoration is to improve the ability of U.S. vessels to fully harvest the North Atlantic swordfish quota, while ensuring that bycatch remains within acceptable levels.

Public hearings have been scheduled by the NMFS as follows:
1) Wednesday, January 17, 2007, 6-9 p.m., Northeast Regional Office, One Blackburn Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930.
2) Thursday, January 18, 2007, 6-9 p.m., City of Madeira Beach, 300 Municipal Drive, Madeira Beach, FL 33708.
3) Thursday, January 18, 2007, 6-9 p.m., Manahawkin Public Library, 129 North Main Street, Manahawkin, NJ 08050.
4) Tuesday, January 23, 2007, 6-9 p.m., Destin Community Center, 101 Stahlman Avenue, Destin, FL 32541.
5) Thursday, January 25, 2007, 6-9 p.m., Bayou Black Recreational Center, 3688 Southdown Mandalay Road, Houma, LA 70360.
6) Tuesday, January 30, 2007, 6-9 p.m., Fort Pierce Library, 101 Melody Lane, Fort Pierce, FL 34950.
7) Wednesday, January 31, 2007, 6-9 p.m., Manteo Town Hall, 407 Budleigh Street, Manteo, NC 27954.

The Proposed Rule options include:

(1) Increase retention limits for incidental swordfish permit holders to 30 fish, except for vessels participating in the squid trawl fishery, which would be limited to 15 swordfish.

(2) Increase the bag limit per vessel from 3 to 4 in the HMS Angling category, but retain the 1 swordfish per person bag limit.

(3) Increase the retention for the HMS charter/headboat category from one swordfish per paying passenger up to a maximum of six per charter vessel and 15 per headboat.

(4) Modify vessel upgrading restrictions for vessels that are authorized to fish for swordfish and tunas with pelagic longline gear (i.e., vessels that possess limited access swordfish and shark permits, as well as an Atlantic tunas longline category permit). These vessels could be upgraded, or permits transferred, as long as the upgrade or permit transfer does not result in an increase in vessel size (LOA, GRT, and NT) of more than 35 percent, relative to the vessel first issued HMS limited access permit.


Comments must be submitted by 5 p.m. on January 31, 2007, by email to SF1.110206A@noaa.gov, faxed to (301) 713-1917 and written to Sari Kiraly, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910. Please mark the envelope “Comments on Proposed Swordfish Rule”.