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WEST COAST GROUNDFISH OBSERVER PROGRAM
WEST COAST GROUNDFISH OBSERVER PROGRAM
Problem Statement
Discarded catch occurs for a variety of reasons including size, unmarketable species,
prohibited species and fishery management regulations. For 20 years, the fishery has
had regulatory catch limits to slow the pace of landed catch and allow for year-round
fishing, processing and marketing opportunities. A result of these trip limits is
discarded catch.
Critical Factors
- Both regulatory and market discards are occurring in the groundfish fishery.
- These discards must be monitored in order to accurately determine fishing mortality.
- Accurate information on fishing mortality is necessary to assure accuracy
in quota management, stock assessments and allocations among fishing groups.
- The West Coast observer program is designed to obtain information on total catch
(landing catch and discard) in the West Coast groundfish fishery.
Status of Research
The observer program currently consists of 30 to 40 observers stationed
along the coast from Bellingham, WA to Santa Barbara, CA. Fisheries observers are
trained professionals who monitor and record catch data from commercial fishing
vessels and processing facilities. Observers collect data on species composition
of the catch, weights, disposition of fish caught, seabird sightings and marine
mammal interactions. Observers also collect biological data such as sexed fish
lengths, weights and aging structures.
Observers are deployed routinely on the permitted trawl and fixed-gear groundfish
fleet. The program has also begun deployment of observers on the open-access
groundfish fleet. In addition to deploying observers on vessels, the program
is exploring alternative means to collect data, such as video monitoring systems.
Data collection focuses on determining at-sea discards, which are being integrated
into logbook information and fish ticket data on retained catch. The summary of the
first year of observer collected discard information will be available in January 2003.
Future Considerations
The open-access fleet is larger than can be fully observed by the existing
number of observers. In addition, a large number of open-access vessels cannot
accommodate an observer on board. New deployment and observation methods such as
"ride along side observers" must be developed to adequately observe the entire
open-access fleet. Groundfish are caught and discarded in a number of ancillary
fisheries, such as the salmon troll fishery, California halibut fishery and
market squid fishery. Additional observers are needed to adequately monitor
discards in these fleets.
Key Players
Fishery Resource Analysis & Monitoring (FRAM) Division, NWFSC
Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife
California Department of Fish and Game
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife
Contact: Dr. Elizabeth Clarke, Director, FRAM Division (206/860-3381)
NWFSC Issue Paper FRAM
Issue Papers Home
last modified 2002-10-02
Web site owner: Northwest Fisheries Science Center
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