UPDATE:Upcoming Groundfish Management Meeting in Monterey - Public Participation

Hello Everyone,
    Below you'll see part of a press release regarding the 2017-18 recreational and commercial groundfish seasons. This is your chance to help shape our upcoming groundfish season structure, new regulation development and potentially relaxing the depth restriction. There are lots of proposed regulations coming out of these meeting and this is your chance to be part of the process.

Workshop Schedule

    Eureka on December 2, 2015, 5:00-8:30 p.m.
    Eureka Public Marina, Wharfinger Building, Bay Room, 1 Marina Way, Eureka, CA 95501

    Fort Bragg on December 3, 2015, 5:00-8:30 p.m.
    California Fish and Wildlife Office, 32330 North Harbor Drive, Fort Bragg, CA 95437

    Sausalito on December 9, 2015, 5:00-8:30 p.m.
    Bay Model Visitor Center, 2100 Bridgeway, Sausalito, CA 94965

    Monterey on January 6, 2016, 5:00-8:30 p.m.
    California Fish and Wildlife Office, 20 Lower Ragsdale Drive, Suite 100, Monterey, CA 93940

    Los Alamitos on January 7, 2016, 5:00-8:30 p.m.
    California Fish and Wildlife Office, 4665 Lampson Avenue, Suite C, Los Alamitos, CA 90720


Each of these workshops will provide an overview of recent groundfish management and science developments, and include a discussion on recreational and nearshore commercial fishery management measures for 2017 and 2018. Staff will be actively interacting with participants about their preferences for various management measures, including season dates, potential changes to Rockfish Conservation Areas, and bag limits – including the possibility of retaining canary rockfish. CDFW is also seeking input on approaches to best minimize interactions with cowcod and yelloweye rockfish, which remain overfished. Attendants will be encouraged to provide input to managers and representatives based on their own personal experience that will assist in the development of groundfish management.

Thanks for posting. Not yet sure if I can make it, but I'm going to try...

I missed any opportunity to provide comment at these meetings, but it'd be mighty cool if petrale sole and some other flatfish weren't lumped in with RCG depth restrictions.  I don't understand why one can fish 200 feet and retain sand dabs and Pacific halibut, yet not retain petrale.  Meanwhile, you go to a fish processing plant and you see the boats unloading literally thousands of petrales to be sold in supermarkets.

What gives?

I missed any opportunity to provide comment at these meetings, but it'd be mighty cool if petrale sole and some other flatfish weren't lumped in with RCG depth restrictions.  I don't understand why one can fish 200 feet and retain sand dabs and Pacific halibut, yet not retain petrale.  Meanwhile, you go to a fish processing plant and you see the boats unloading literally thousands of petrales to be sold in supermarkets.

Byproduct of the fact that Petrale Sole was on the overfished list until a couple or so years ago?

-Allen

I missed any opportunity to provide comment at these meetings, but it'd be mighty cool if petrale sole and some other flatfish weren't lumped in with RCG depth restrictions.  I don't understand why one can fish 200 feet and retain sand dabs and Pacific halibut, yet not retain petrale.  Meanwhile, you go to a fish processing plant and you see the boats unloading literally thousands of petrales to be sold in supermarkets.

Byproduct of the fact that Petrale Sole was on the overfished list until a couple or so years ago?

-Allen

That's exactly right Allen. Petrale has been on the over-fished list for some years now. It is really really close to being taken off that list, once the new stock assessment has been completed.

Thanks for posting Matt!!

I can't make it but look forward to hearing how it goes!

 

Sincerely,

Jim

Well, I think it was a productive meeting last night...at least for the recreational groundfish anglers. Most of the people that showed up were primarily commercial groundfish fishermen. It got pretty heated when it came the discussion regarding commercial fishery. Lots of angry comments and accusation by a few commercial guys but not all.
On the recreational side, there were only a handful of people at the meeting. The regulations and season structures they talked about will go in effect in 2017. Some of the new proposed regulations include:
- Reducing the bag limit of lingcod from 3 to 2
- Open up petrale year round
- For our Central management area…we might get 50 fathoms (I hope we get that one)
Clayman - You must have been channeling the groundfish biologist. They are taking a serious look at opening the petrale fishery and basically mirroring the sanddab fishery...ie open year-round at all depths

If you are interested in seeing to proposed recreational season structures…take a look at this handout (http://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=113239&inline )
Here is a link to all of the handouts they had at the meeting.
(https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Marine/Groundfish/2017-2018#316091122-regulation-development-process-calendar-of-events-and-how-to-participate )

Well, I think it was a productive meeting last night...at least for the recreational groundfish anglers. Most of the people that showed up were primarily commercial groundfish fishermen. It got pretty heated when it came the discussion regarding commercial fishery. Lots of angry comments and accusation by a few commercial guys but not all.
On the recreational side, there were only a handful of people at the meeting. The regulations and season structures they talked about will go in effect in 2017. Some of the new proposed regulations include:
- Reducing the bag limit of lingcod from 3 to 2
- Open up petrale year round
- For our Central management area…we might get 50 fathoms (I hope we get that one)
Clayman - You must have been channeling the groundfish biologist. They are taking a serious look at opening the petrale fishery and basically mirroring the sanddab fishery...ie open year-round at all depths

If you are interested in seeing to proposed recreational season structures…take a look at this handout (http://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=113239&inline )
Here is a link to all of the handouts they had at the meeting.
(https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Marine/Groundfish/2017-2018#316091122-regulation-development-process-calendar-of-events-and-how-to-participate )

Thanks for the update Matt!

Are Ling stocks on the decline again? Or was there another reason for going back down to 2 per day. I am totally fine with 2 per day personally, but just curious.

 

Sincerely,

Jim

Well, I think it was a productive meeting last night...at least for the recreational groundfish anglers. Most of the people that showed up were primarily commercial groundfish fishermen. It got pretty heated when it came the discussion regarding commercial fishery. Lots of angry comments and accusation by a few commercial guys but not all.
On the recreational side, there were only a handful of people at the meeting. The regulations and season structures they talked about will go in effect in 2017. Some of the new proposed regulations include:
- Reducing the bag limit of lingcod from 3 to 2
- Open up petrale year round
- For our Central management area…we might get 50 fathoms (I hope we get that one)
Clayman - You must have been channeling the groundfish biologist. They are taking a serious look at opening the petrale fishery and basically mirroring the sanddab fishery...ie open year-round at all depths

If you are interested in seeing to proposed recreational season structures…take a look at this handout (http://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=113239&inline )
Here is a link to all of the handouts they had at the meeting.
(https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Marine/Groundfish/2017-2018#316091122-regulation-development-process-calendar-of-events-and-how-to-participate )

Thanks for the update Matt!

Are Ling stocks on the decline again? Or was there another reason for going back down to 2 per day. I am totally fine with 2 per day personally, but just curious.

 

Sincerely,

Jim

I know that the Ling population was not threatened by me, as I only retained two last season

Thx for the update!

Well, I think it was a productive meeting last night...at least for the recreational groundfish anglers. Most of the people that showed up were primarily commercial groundfish fishermen. It got pretty heated when it came the discussion regarding commercial fishery. Lots of angry comments and accusation by a few commercial guys but not all.
On the recreational side, there were only a handful of people at the meeting. The regulations and season structures they talked about will go in effect in 2017. Some of the new proposed regulations include:
- Reducing the bag limit of lingcod from 3 to 2
- Open up petrale year round
- For our Central management area…we might get 50 fathoms (I hope we get that one)
Clayman - You must have been channeling the groundfish biologist. They are taking a serious look at opening the petrale fishery and basically mirroring the sanddab fishery...ie open year-round at all depths

If you are interested in seeing to proposed recreational season structures…take a look at this handout (http://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=113239&inline )
Here is a link to all of the handouts they had at the meeting.
(https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Marine/Groundfish/2017-2018#316091122-regulation-development-process-calendar-of-events-and-how-to-participate )

Thanks for the update Matt!

Are Ling stocks on the decline again? Or was there another reason for going back down to 2 per day. I am totally fine with 2 per day personally, but just curious.

 

Sincerely,

Jim

I know that the Ling population was not threatened by me, as I only retained two last season

Thx for the update!

I kept a few more than 2....

 

 

But...I passed on more than I shot. 

 

Sincerely,

Jim

[/quote]

Thanks for the update Matt!

Are Ling stocks on the decline again? Or was there another reason for going back down to 2 per day. I am totally fine with 2 per day personally, but just curious.

 

Sincerely,

Jim
[/quote]

Hey Jim,
   The stocks are not in decline. It has to do with the federal harvest guidelines. The combined recreational and commercial lingcod fishery have been close the past few years to exceeding that harvest guideline. I believe CDFW is taking a proactive approach by reducing that bag limit to stay under the HG.
Oh...forgot to mention. Canary rf 1 fish bag limit is on the table for discussion!!

Matt

Got it!!

Thanks again Matt!!

 

Sincerely,

Jim

Clayman - You must have been channeling the groundfish biologist. They are taking a serious look at opening the petrale fishery and basically mirroring the sanddab fishery...ie open year-round at all depths

That's awesome they're considering it!  I know Matanaska's talked about it for a while too.  I just couldn't understand why petrale were off-limits (basically off-limits, with their preference for deeper water) while the commercial boats just hammered them.  Literally, boat-loads of petrales.

Opening petrale to recreational anglers would provide a fishery in areas that have practically none in the winter months.  It might not attract the droves of anglers that salmon or rockfish do and spur coastal economies, but it'd be better than nothing from November to May.  I look forward to hearing what they say for 2017.

Good news, for once! Thanks for posting the mtg info and an update, Matt.

All this time I thought they were reducing the Lingcod limit so the Lincod can eat all the other rockfish then they can put them on the threatened list. Just following Federal guidelines is stupid. The MLPAs create a breeding ground for lings that eat every other fish. Look at the videos of lings at the Farralons were they look like cord wood on the bottom  do you see very many other fish species down their with them? When people screw with closed areas and species limits the Repercussions are drastic. You watch in 5 years the Lingcod limit will be 10 and other rockfish limits 1 or 2.