ASGA 2020 Recap / Update - Striped bass status
February 3, 2020
The American Saltwater Guides Association held its Annual Board Meeting at The Fly Fishing Show in Edison, NJ on January 25.
At the end of the meeting, the ASGA held a public session, during which policy updates were presented, outlining the current status of management around fisheries and species that the organization (and that we at Tightlined) are focused on, including some general outlook as to what we might run into in the coming year. Given some of the detail associated with each one, we’ll break these out over multiple days, starting with striped bass. Tune in this week for information on Bluefish, Menhaden, Bluefin Tuna and the Magnuson Stevens Act.
Striped Bass
How We Got Here
This started with a quick summary of where we are now, with the striped bass population overfished and overfishing occurring though 2019. It is important to note here, as we move forward, that the decline in the striped bass population did not start in 2019 when the AMFC received its most recent stock assessment and decided to finally alter regulations, but instead the signs were on the wall back in 2008, when the population in the Chesapeake Bay started to decline. The reason this is important is because it once again highlights how slowly the ASFMC works, how poorly its management bylaws are followed and how ineffective they have proven to be time and time again.
Fast forward a few years, and the striped bass population continued to decline to the point that in 2015, the ASMFC decided that action need to be taken to reduce harvest. In doing so, they came up with a reduction number that, at the time, did not sound like enough, but was decided on because the Commission was betting on the very abundant (4th highest on record) 2011 class of fish which, at that time, would be approaching maturity and would, theoretically, provide a much needed boost to the breeding stock. Unfortunately, as many of us are now aware, that 2011 class was essentially slaughtered before it could mature and leave the Chesapeake Bay, and the hope that was placed on that year class went with it.
What’s Happening Now
Now, here we are again, with relatively (not as abundant as 2011 was) abundant 2014 and 2015 classes – these are the fish between 20” and 26” that you’re seeing regularly – approaching maturity (28”) and the ASMFC putting new regulations in place to reduce harvest by a target of 18%. The first issue with that is that the 18% reduction is projected to help rebuild or recover the stock to the target biomass within the next 13 years. This goes DIRECTLY against the ASFMC’s own bylaws that state that once a species is overfished, a management plan must be put in place to rebuild the stock with in 10 years. So, to begin with, the regulations are, by definition of the ASFMC’s own rules, not compliant or strict enough.
That said, and more on it later, there is good news stemming from the new regulations, which have been proposed at 1 fish per day between 28” and 35,” and that is that from Maine down to New York, it appears as though striped bass will be managed under a relatively consistent slot limit that protects fish until at least the size they reach maturity (28”) and then again once they reach cow status, larger than 35-40.” This consistent, compliant approach from the northern states should have a positive impact on harvest in 2020 and beyond.
Now for the bad news. Specifically, now for what might happen in New Jersey and Maryland. In New Jersey, the state has submitted a Conservation Equivalency proposal (more on what CE is here and here), that would lower the slot from one fish at 28”-35” down to one fish at 24”-28” or 24”-29” along with some selective season closures, as well as a size increase in the fish targeted by the NJ bonus tag program so that anglers can still keep a larger fish as well. In Maryland, the state has come up with a proposal that is too convoluted to get into here – but the ASGA covers details on both of these in this blog post from a couple weeks back – read more here. Anyway, these flawed proposals expose the issue that we all have with Conservation Equivalency in the first place, and end up putting striped bass ranging from 18” all the way to the largest fish out there at risk of harvest during their migration up and down the coast.
What Can We Do / What’s Next
Looking ahead, the egregious Conservation Equivalency proposals may end up ‘giving MD all the rope it needs to hang itself.’ That refers to the Amendment to the Striped Bass management plan that the Commission will begin discussing at its May 2020 meeting.
That amendment will be a multi-year process involving public comment periods on larger-scale changes to how striped bass are viewed and managed. This is our chance to make a major impact, but in order to do so, we will need to really speak up. The concern in that amendment is a proposal to reduce the biomass threshold, lowering the number of striped bass in the water forever. With that in mind, there is an opportunity to really change the way striped bass are viewed and managed, including implementing accountability measures for states that overfish as well as getting rid of Conservation Equivalency moving forward. There have also been statements made by some ASMFC Commissioners suggesting that they would want to explore more conservative management regulations as part of the amendment evaluation, which we would obviously be on board with.
More immediately, and as was outlined in the entry in today’s What We Read Today, there is actually a possibility that accountability measures are discussed, and potentially implemented, at this week’s meeting, so please send a letter to your Commissioner TODAY urging them to include that accountability for states that harvest more than they were supposed to moving forward.
Lastly, just a stat on striped bass and trips taken. When we hit the moratorium in the early 80’s and there were as few striped bass than ever before or after, there were an estimated 500,000 annual trips to fish for them on the east coast. When the population hit its peak after the moratorium had passed, there were approximately 10 million. Abundant striped bass is better for everyone, whether you’re a catch & release angler or someone who makes a living harvesting fish.
Back tomorrow with an update on bluefish.