It's still not too late to have input on the Proposed Regional Fluke Management decisions!!

By Michael Melchionne

Last month we did an article about reflecting back on 2013....the who's, why's, and where's were left unanswered! One thing for sure is that most of the anglers I speak with are always commenting on the "Fishery Management Plan"... size and possession limits...and it seems everyone is a dockside expert, usually complaining about these requirements. It doesn't end...we are constantly debating.

Recently, John Oswald, a reporter for the Asbury Park Press, wrote an informative article on the "Proposed" Regional Fluke Management Plan. Rather than reinvent the wheel, a copy of that article appears below. Our comments or notes will appear in bold.

New Jersey anglers attending Monday night's (January 13, 2014) meeting on proposed regional management measures for summer flounder unanimously rejected the plan.

Yet, depending on how states vote on the issue, the measures may still be put in place. The meeting was held to collect public comment on Draft Addendum XXV, which proposes three options for the management of summer flounder.

Option 1 is to keep the status quo, which is conservation equivalency and allows states to set their own size, season and bag limits. (States know what's best for their own backyard, or should I say "front" yard!) Option 2, which is designed to be used in conjunction with Option 1, allows for the sharing of under-utilized quota. (Fishery's management is based on science. And there is some merit to it. If you want the most up to date skinny on any fishery, talk to the folks out there every day. They can provide a heck of a lot more information than a formula... scientific or not... or some pencil pusher!) .

Option 3, Adaptive Regional Management, proposes managing the stock on a regional basis. The two regions proposed are (1)Massachusetts; Rhode Island to New Jersey; Delaware to Viginia; and North Carolina or (2) Massachusetts and Rhode Island; Connecticut to New Jersey; Delaware to Virginia and North Carolina.

The ASMFC’s rationale behind the plan is to provide a more equitable access to a shared fishery. However, the regional push is widely recognized as New York’s effort to get more fish to catch.  (Our question is HOW are regions determined? Are we fishing or competing for the same fish...or an entirely different fishery??)

“If this is about equity, consider the fact that the regions that have been chosen make no sense whatsoever,” Ray Bogan, a local attorney long-involved with fishery issues in New Jersey said at the meeting. If anything, he said, New Jersey should be in a more traditional region with the southern states.
Regional measures, he said, “would result in a massive shift of fish and the addendum would build up one state at the expense of another,” namely, New Jersey. Bogan favored Options 1 and 2. (Being in a mid-management position most of my life I was often frustrated at most of my managers' lack of understanding of the concerns of the practitioners who actually did the work. In this scenario... US ... the fishermen and women. I always took into account my personnel’s opinions before changing existing policies! When people like Ray Bogan have an opinion it would behoove all of us to take that opinion into account).

Chris Zeman, one of the state’s representatives to the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council, said the message from New Jersey’s anglers was loud and clear. “New Jersey fishermen are pretty smart. They know a political fish grab when they see it. It’s an effort by one state using political pressure and threats of litigation to get what it wants and, for that reason alone, I’d oppose it,” he said. (...Attaboy Chris!)

If regional measures are approved, one scenario has New Jersey going from a five fish limit at 17½ inches to four fish at 18 inches.(How do you think that’s gonna work out for bringing a fish or two home to the table?)

Sportsmen's groups, charter captains and individual anglers all voiced their opposition to regional fluke management. Among those endorsing Options 1 and 2 were the Jersey Coast Anglers Association, New Jersey Outdoor Alliance, the New Jersey Federation of Sportmens Clubs, RFA-New Jersey Chapter, the Hi Mar Fishing Club, United Boatmen and the Save the Summer Flounder Fishery Fund. (That’s why it’s so important to be involved in one or more of these groups. They are looking out for you. Right on fellas!)

“The SSFFF wants to get as many fish for the people of New Jersey, not only this year, but in years to come,” said Greg Hueth, one of the fund’s founders. “We feel Option 1 and 2 are the best way to continue to have a fishery that is equally divided along the Atlantic Coast States,” he said.

The whole problem, he said, comes down to science and as far as summer flounder are concerned, it is still broken. “Until we fix the science, nothing is going to change.” (Do we really need to say any more? Thank you, Greg.)

Hueth was not alone in his assessment of the current state of fishery science. Nearly all those commenting on the fluke options had an opinion to offer on the poor state of fishery data. Ray Bogan called the difference between the Marine Recreational Information Program (MRIP) and MRFSS, the program it replaced, as the difference between “ugly and very ugly.” (Don’t go sugar coating it on our account Ray...lol!)

Capt. Adam Nowalsky, chairman of the N.J. Chapter of the RFA, who helped lead the meeting, listened to the litany of complaints about the lack of reliable data and took the opportunity to remind anglers there is a way to improve the current information.

It’s called the Volunteer Angler Survey and it provides a mechanism for fishermen to submit catch data at www.nj.gov/dep/fgw/marinesurvey. ( I wonder if they thought of giving the stake holders... NJ anglers... a broader opportunity to participate by working with the hundreds of bait and tackle, party and charter boat captains, marinas, you know... the "practitioners” and provide these questionnaires or surveys at these locations? OK...say what you want but not everyone is computer savvy!)

“Anglers have to recognize that the state has put something in place that they need to take advantage of,” he said.

A final decision on regional measures will be in made in February when ASMFC member states vote on the Draft Addendum. The vote is expected to be close.

So you see there still is time to make a difference. Don’t blame someone else. Get off the couch and be part of the solution.

I want to thank John Oswald for keeping us all in the loop as to what is going on where most remain uninformed. In fact, over the years when I wasn’t living in such close proximity to New Jersey's vast recreational resources, I obtained a vast amount of information from writers like Howard Brant, Al Ristori, John Geiser and Vinnie Sporano. My thanks to each and every one of them for sharing their knowledge with others. Here at www.fishinjersey.com our goal is the same, to keep you all in the loop.

It’s hard to believe, but Spring will be here before you know it. Start organizing that tackle... peek in that boat (and see what a mess you left!)... change some line on those reels...and remember to support our local businesses here in New Jersey.