Results 1 to 5 of 5

Thread: Mid-Atlantic Council to Hold Hearings on New Jersey Special Management Zones

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Nov 2008
    Posts
    248

    Default Mid-Atlantic Council to Hold Hearings on New Jersey Special Management Zones

    Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council

    News Release

    October 20, 2016

    Mid-Atlantic Council to Hold Hearings on New Jersey Special Management Zones


    The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council will hold three public hearings in November 2016 to gather public comments on a request by the State of New Jersey to designate 13 of its artificial reef sites located in federal waters as Special Management Zones (SMZ). The hearings will be held November 15-17, 2016. Written comments will be accepted until Friday, November 25, 2016, 11:59 p.m. EST.


    Background

    In November 2015, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) petitioned the Mid-Atlantic Council to designate 13 artificial reef sites as SMZs under provisions of Amendment 9 to the Summer Flounder, Scup and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management Plan. The petition was based on the need to reduce gear conflicts between hook and line fishermen and fixed pot/trap gear at those sites. The SMZ designation could prohibit the use of any gear except hook and line and spear fishing within the 13 potential SMZ sites. The Council?s SMZ Monitoring Team (MT) evaluated the NJDEP request and recommended that the Council designate all 13 artificial reef sites as SMZs. The MT analysis indicated that commercial fishing vessels deploying pot/trap gear off the coast of New Jersey would likely face minimal to no losses in ex-vessel revenue if the artificial reefs are designated as SMZs. The Council is scheduled to review public comments and make a decision relative to NJ SMZ designation at its December 2016 meeting in Annapolis, MD.


    Public Hearing Schedule

    The dates and locations of the public hearings are as follows:


    Tuesday November 15, 2016, 7:00-9:30 p.m., Kingsborough Community College, 2001 Oriental Blvd., Brooklyn NY 11235, Room M239 of the Marina and Academic Center (The Lighthouse).


    Wednesday November 16, 2016, 7:00-10:00 p.m., Clarion Hotel & Conference Center, 815 Route 37 West, Toms River, NJ 08755.


    Thursday November 17, 2016, 7:00-10:00 p.m., Congress Hall, 200 Congress Place, Cape May, NJ 08204.


    These meetings are physically accessible to people with disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aid should be directed to M. Jan Saunders, 302-526-5251, at least 5 days prior to the meeting date.


    Written Comments

    Written comments will be accepted until Friday, November 25, 2016, 11:59 p.m. and may be sent by any of the following methods:


    Mail to Dr. Chris Moore, Executive Director, Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council, 800 North State Street, Suite 201, Dover, DE, 19901 (include ?NJ SMZ Request? on envelope);


    Fax to Dr. Chris Moore, Executive Director, Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council at fax number 302-674-5399 (include ?NJ SMZ Request? in the subject line); or


    Email to Rich Seagraves at rseagraves@mafmc.org (include ?NJ SMZ Request? in the subject line).


    Contact

    For more information, contact Rich Seagraves, Senior Scientist, at rseagraves@mafmc.org.

    Press Contact: Mary Clark Sabo, (302) 518-1143



    The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council is one of eight regional councils established by the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976. The Council has primary responsibility for twelve species of fish and shellfish in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) between 3 and 200 miles off the Mid-Atlantic coast. Member states include New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina. Visit our website for more information.


    Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council | contact@mafmc.org | Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council | 800 N. State St. Suite 201 | Dover, DE 19901

    http://www.mafmc.org/newsfeed/2016/m...nagement-zones

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Nov 2008
    Location
    NJ
    Posts
    3,725

    Default

    Sounds pretty good as long as hook and line is still permitted. Do you think they're finally standing up against commercial fishermen? It's true that is fantastic.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Mar 2008
    Location
    NJ
    Posts
    1,137

    Default

    Great news thanks for sharing.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Nov 2008
    Posts
    248

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by storminsteve View Post
    Sounds pretty good as long as hook and line is still permitted. Do you think they're finally standing up against commercial fishermen? It's true that is fantastic.
    Here are the documents involved:

    http://www.mafmc.org/s/Tab05_NJ-SMZ-Consideration.pdf

    http://www.mafmc.org/s/05_NJ-SMZ-Mon...port_final.pdf

    http://www.mafmc.org/s/SMZ-Comments-2016-10-06.pdf

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    Central Jersey
    Posts
    2,087

    Default

    Thanks for the info. If anyone is close to Toms River this is the scheduled meeting. Not a bad time and place. Some of the meetings are held in Galloway. This one is a lot closer.
    Wednesday November 16, 2016, 7:00-10:00 p.m., Clarion Hotel & Conference Center, 815 Route 37 West, Toms River, NJ 08755.

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •