Three great comments from the attached article.
At peak season these days, says Gus Lovgren, a fourth-generation New Jersey fisherman, fisheries can catch 3,000 to 5,000 pounds of black sea bass in just 20 minutes. Back in the early 2000s, only 500 to 1,000 pounds out of the well-known Point Pleasant’s Fishermen’s Dock Co-Op were possible.
In New Jersey, catch limits in 2015 would have forced Burcaw in Sea Isle City to cap his spring catch at 3,000 pounds of black sea bass per week. That’s more than doubled. He can now haul in 8,000 pounds. and
For black sea bass in the mid-Atlantic, extending from New England to North Carolina, the quota has increased from just 2.2 million pounds in 2015 to 6 million pounds this year.
Add insult to injury, January through July is the spawning season so another stock with no protection during their spawn.
And the recreational angler gets this in return:
May 17–June 19: 10 fish - 23 days when fish are just arriving inshore, best shot at the stock
July 1–August 31: 1 fish - 62 days of one fish which makes the winter flounder bag limit seem generous. And each permitted commercial can haul 8,000 lbs. per week.
October 1–October 31: 10 - 31 days when the fish are headed offshore and most boats have already hauled their boats for the season.
November 1–December 31: 15 fish - 61 days when only the long range party boats are able to reach the stock.
Not exactly sure how this qualifies as a "fair and equitable allocation" of the oceans resources between sectors as mandated by MSA.
Here's a quote regarding the dynamics of the stock.
50-72°F.
Black sea bass are classified as a warm water species, meaning the species is more tolerant of warmer temperatures compared to colder. More specifically, these species prefer water temperatures of 11-22°C or 50-72°F. Kind a refutes the point of the article these fish would move north to colder waters. Again, sacrifices made by the recreational sector to rebuild the stock and when it is more than rebuilt who benefits from those sacrifices?
https://allfreshseafood.com/products...RoCP0UQAvD_BwE
At $36.99 / lb. retail, recreational will never get their fair share of the allocation regardless of how the regulations read. For that price, I'd rather go through the McDonald's drive thru and get a quarter lb. cheeseburger and fries for $20! The recreational angler can harvest 1 fish while the stock is within reach inshore while commercial operators can harvest 8,000 lbs. per week. God help us and God help these fisheries.
