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THE MFC ADVISOR Marine Fisheries Commission Business Meeting The MFC held a business meeting Feb. 21-23 at the Marriott in Carolina Beach, North Carolina. The following members were in attendance: Mac Currin - Chairman, Dr. B.J. Copeland -Vice Chairman, David Beresoff, Dr. Barbara Garrity-Blake, Mikey Daniels, Dr. Jim Leutze, Bradley Styron and Marshall Williford. Rusty Russ had an excused absence and was not in attendance. This was Commissioner Daniels’ first meeting; he replaces David Hilton who resigned from the commission in September 2006. Motion to approve minutes from the November 2006 MFC meeting – motion passed unanimously. Magnuson-Stevens Reauthorization 2006 Moratorium Steering Committee Recommendations/Fisheries Reform Act The commission asked for several presentations at the next business meeting on fishing trends. Another issue raised was the length of advisory committee meetings – the meetings are too long and perhaps committee chairs need to work to run the meetings more efficiently. The issue of limiting the number of permits for the guide/charter fleet was discussed. The matter of a request from Virginia to not require Virginia fishermen to have to have the N.C. Coastal Recreational Fishing License was also mentioned. Chairman’s Report Pres Pate Resolution – The commission approved a resolution to present to former DMF Director Pres Pate in appreciation of his years of service to North Carolina. Motion to approve a resolution acknowledging the contributions of Pres Pate to North Carolina – motion passed unanimously. Motion to request a written explanation from the Coastal Resources Commission in regard to actions relative to the Sandy Point permit variance – motion passed. Motion to send prioritized list of candidates for the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council vacancy to Governor Easley as follows: Rita Merritt, Tom Burgess and Andy High – motion passed unanimously. Motion not to seek the at-large seat for the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council – motion passed unanimously. Fishery Management Plans Motion to approve goals and objectives for the Oyster and Clam FMP revision – motion passed unanimously. Motion to approve the timeline for the Oyster and Clam FMP revision – motion passed unanimously. Draft River Herring FMP Motion to publish notice of text to implement rules as amended for river herring – motion passed unanimously. Suspension of Rules Motion to re-suspend the rules to implement the Amendment 13C measures of the Snapper-Grouper Fishery Management Plan in state waters, noting that the commission is concerned with the validity of Amendment 13C of the Snapper-Grouper Fishery Management Plan – motion passed. Draft Bay Scallop FMP Motion to approve the Bay Scallop FMP as amended and send to the secretary of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the Joint Legislative Commission on Seafood and Aquaculture – motion passed unanimously. Recommendation 1 – Observer coverage, 2 percent initially increasing to 10 percent when/where interactions occur. MFC recognizes the need and benefit of a long-term observer program that provides valuable catch, effort and bycatch data. DMF will continue to seek long-term funding for this program. Recommendation 2 – Educational outreach to industry for sea turtle resuscitation; and encouraging reporting and compliance with regulations. DMF will continue these efforts. Recommendation 3 – Support continued effort for gear modifications with objective of reducing sea turtle interactions. DMF will continue these efforts. Recommendation 4 – Implement state seasonal/area closures in identified problem areas. DMF will proceed with the establishing of criteria to define sea turtle interaction problem areas and proceed with the recommendation. Recommendation 5 – Determine and enforced Turtle Excluder Device compliance in NC by providing stated authority to this federal rule. DMF will accurately define federal/state citation protocols and proceed with rule making. Recommendation 7 – Encourage and educate pound net fishermen to check leads for sea turtles during operations. DMF will proceed with this recommendation. Recommendation 8 – Require pound net fishermen to catalog gear time out of the water report to DMF. DMF Rules Team will review and report back to MFC. Recommendation 9 - Encourage pound net fishermen to remove webbing during closed seasons and establish a recovery cost for pulling lost/abandoned gear. DMF Rules Team will review and report back to MFC. Recommendation 10 – Support sea turtle resuscitation education, evaluating existing NMFS observer coverage and support continued gear modification testing. MFC will send letter to NMFS requesting observer data be sent to DMF on a regular basis. Recommendation 11 – Rod and reel, commercial and recreational. The MFC recommends educational outreach programs, reporting, dehooking and line removal. The MFC also supports the Marine Recreational Fishing Statistical Survey addition. Recommendation 12 – Eliminate bait lids on crab pots where sea turtle interactions are occurring. MFC does not support this recommendation. Recommendation 13 – Research needs and other considerations. MFC supports all global research needs and considerations. Motion to submit notice of text for definitions in support of Coastal Habitat Protection Plan goals – motion passed unanimously. Motion to submit notice of text for a Striped Bass Permit – motion passed unanimously. Motion to submit notice of text to clarify striped bass trawl rules – motion passed unanimously. Meeting adjorned. 2007 Meeting Schedule:
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