[Gerry Zagorski]

ASA Donation to the SSFFF

FishAmerica Foundation Awards $10,000 to Support Summer Flounder Science

To help advance fisheries science and promote improved fishing access to
summer flounder, the American Sportfishing Association has awarded $10,000
through the FishAmerica Foundation to support the Save the Summer Flounder
Fishery Fund (SSFFF). The foundation’s grant will be leveraged with $50,000
in additional matching funds from other organizations and agencies.

“The FishAmerica Foundation is proud to support SSFFF on their initiative to
advance fisheries science and promote improved fishing access to summer
flounder for those who enjoy it and depend on its survival,” said Mike
Nussman, president and CEO of the American Sportfishing Association (ASA).
“The recent decision by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council to
significantly cut the summer flounder recreational harvest in 2016 makes
this all the more important.”

The SSFFF is working with scientists from Cornell, Rutgers and other
universities, along with the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), to
develop a more comprehensive summer flounder model that more accurately
portrays the size and composition of the fishery. Dr. Pat Sullivan from
Cornell University is leading the effort on developing the new stock
synthesis model, which he hopes will be ready for review by the summer
flounder stock assessment scheduled for 2016. The new model, if accepted by
NMFS, will lead to better, more accurate fisheries management.

“ASA has, from day one, been in the forefront of supporting this effort for
better science, and on behalf of the SSFFF board, I extend my appreciation
to the foundation,” said Nick Cicero, SSFFF board member . “With luck, this
may be the start of a new way of dealing with NMFS and the beginning of a
more cooperative relationship between all user groups.”

As ASA’s research and conservation foundation, the FishAmerica Foundation
empowers local communities to invest in improving sportfishing opportunities
and habitat conservation through matching funding and volunteer support