Dec 16th ASMFC Striper Meeting Recap

[Broad Bill]

BD / Dan I agree with both your points. I was addressing a different approach to maybe how our sector can get a voice and funding and why I believe a lawsuit is the only way to combat the corruption that exists in politics at every level including the ASMFC and MAFMC. Patience will not solve these problems as the last 20 or more years have proven.

[hammer4reel]

Originally Posted by Broad Bill

BD / Dan I agree with both your points. I was addressing a different approach to maybe how our sector can get a voice and funding and why I believe a lawsuit is the only way to combat the corruption that exists in politics at every level including the ASMFC and MAFMC. Patience will not solve these problems as the last 20 or more years have proven.

A lawsuit is the only thing that will bring change .

Group that should be pursuing that suit is the ASA.

After what we have seen , manufacturers should tell the ASA to shove it , as they aren’t doing anything with the millions of dollars they are getting to protect their interests .

.

[Broad Bill]

Originally Posted by hammer4reel

A lawsuit is the only thing that will bring change .

Group that should be pursuing that suit is the ASA.

After what we have seen , manufacturers should tell the ASA to shove it , as they aren’t doing anything with the millions of dollars they are getting to protect their interests .

.

We are in complete agreement Dan. ASA has the resources, funding (our funding) to change the dynamics and fate of these two stock's fortunes and assist in a moratorium on Cooke Inc's netting in the Chesapeake.

[Gerry Zagorski]

Here are some documents for those of you who want to dig deeper

The press release summarizing the December meeting outcome is available here: https://asmfc.org/uploads/file/6761b...Initiation.pdf



All the December meeting materials, including the presentations and a link to a full recording, are available here: https://www.asmfc.org/home/December-...sBoard-meeting

[Broad Bill]

Originally Posted by Gerry Zagorski

Here are some documents for those of you who want to dig deeper

The press release summarizing the December meeting outcome is available here: https://asmfc.org/uploads/file/6761b...Initiation.pdf



All the December meeting materials, including the presentations and a link to a full recording, are available here: https://www.asmfc.org/home/December-...sBoard-meeting

Gerry sincerely thanks for all your efforts keeping people informed about the process and what's going on here. After twenty to thirty years of getting the "proverbial short end of the stick", I think everyone sees how NMFS, ASMFC and MAFMC function and it's all about politics and not at all about managing salt water stocks for the future. Commercial owners, politicians, corrupt officials, corrupt businesses etc. and all the Members of these agencies get off on the power they yield and the money they make while the average hard working recreational angler and party and for hire owners literally get shit on. I'll take a line from Adam Nowalsky himself years ago. "You can send me as many emails, analysis and charts (created from NMFS's own data) as you wish, it won't make a bit of difference in how these fisheries are being managed". In other words, stay the %&^$ out of our affairs. The members of the Council and Committee are puppets concerned only about grabbing as much money and quota for their own states and personal benefit and aren't at all concerned about the state of fisheries or the recreational sector they're responsible for managing and representing. I'm at a stage in my life where I say let the fluke and striped bass fisheries completely collapse if that's what it'll take for everyone to realize just how misguided and destructive management of these resources are due to personal agendas and greed. We don't need death by a million cuts as we've been experiencing, get it over with and start the rebuilding process if it's not already too late as it was with whiting, winter flounder, weakfish, cod, mackerel etc. and when these two stocks stocks fail, which they assuredly will, what will commercial concerns have left to fish for and what will the politicians have left to horse trade with. NOTHING!

Short sided ill advised short term decisions with long term and potentially permanently crippling economic and social results. If that's what it takes to change this corrupt process, let it start now. In two years the same problems that've caused the striper fishery to decline will cause it to decline even further and then what, we wait another two years or close it down completely. That's what Adam Nowalsky and the ASMFC essentially accomplished in this latest meeting, secured the fate of this fishery through 2026 and it won't be pretty.

When a business is on the brink of bankruptcy, does the management team or Board say lets wait two years, collect more data and see where that takes us. By then the doors would be padlocked. How is this any different? This is a complete failure from the federal government right down to the state government and ASMFC and MAFMC are right in the middle of it all. And ASA sits on the sidelines or even worse is involved in these decisions causing an absolute shit show funded by excise taxes from the money the recreational sector spends on this recreational sport. Time to call bullshit what it really is.

Our hard earned tax dollars at work, not sure how anyone can support what's happening here or pay homage to any Member of the Commission or Council if you know the facts and understand how this process works. When stocks start growing and recreational and commercial regulations become significantly less restrictive due to the decades long sacrifices of the recreational community, then and only then is it time to give credit where credit is due. Until then, let's refrain from dolling out accolades because no one involved in this process deserves positive recognition for delivering years of failed results. Again to put this in perspective, we're living through a 42% cut in fluke quotas and staring at a potential striped bass moratorium. No one would have ever predicted this in our lifetime yet here we are yet again with two more fisheries in distress and the answer is kick the can down the road. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH, would you agree Gerry?
Your words, not mine.

[Gerry Zagorski]

There's plenty wrong with the system especially for us recs.. MRIP which is our assumed harvest numbers can't be trusted and even though some fisheries that we suffered to rebuild, like Sea Bass, we get no liberalization.

As far as me doling out accolades, I feel the need to recognize the people that try and make a difference and add some common sense to let an otherwise flawed process steam down the tracks.

In this Striped Bass example, were initially given unilateral one size fits all measures that did not take into account state and regional differences and did not distribute the sacrifices that needed to be made equitably.

The new proposal gives the states and the regions the time and ability to provide input on how they'd like to achieve their fair share of 9% harvest reduction. As far as I'm concerned, that's a major victory since decisions like these are best made closest to the people they effect.

[Broad Bill]

Originally Posted by Gerry Zagorski

There's plenty wrong with the system especially for us recs.. MRIP which is our assumed harvest numbers can't be trusted and even though some fisheries that we suffered to rebuild, like Sea Bass, we get no liberalization.

As far as me doling out accolades, I feel the need to recognize the people that try and make a difference and add some common sense to let an otherwise flawed process steam down the tracks.

In this Striped Bass example, were initially given unilateral one size fits all measures that did not take into account state and regional differences and did not distribute the sacrifices that needed to be made equitably.

The new proposal gives the states and the regions the time and ability to provide input on how they'd like to achieve their fair share of 9% harvest reduction. As far as I'm concerned, that's a major victory since decisions like these are best made closest to the people they effect.

Gerry while I respect your views and intentions, mine are different for a lot of reasons. Both fisheries should never be in the position they are today and if these "managing bodies", and I use that term loosely, were doing their jobs, we wouldn't be faced with two incredibly struggling fisheries. Everyone involved in the management of these stocks should have seen this coming a mile away and addressed it as this didn't happen over night. You have to ask yourself why that is. Decisions should be made to fix these problems today, not next year, two years from now or beyond. The same people throwing out talking points now are for the most part the same people who put us in this position to begin with and the stock, many small businesses, for hire / party boat operators including your sponsors and recreational anglers will be the ones who feel the pain. Commercial on the other hand always seem to see their catch values increase regardless of quota cuts because of basic supply and demand principles. That and these Committees and Councils protect commerce by making sure they harvest the fish with the highest market values which typically means the breeding stock of every fishery further compounding the problem.

It has to change and if it means a tea party approach so be it because 20 or more years of waiting for NMFS, ASMFC, MAFMC, ASA and all the individual fishing organizations to come together to save our fisheries has been an abject failure. We keep on this pace and there won't be a stock worth fishing for in the ocean and thousand of owner operators and small businesses will get crushed financially. As I said earlier, Chris Moore, Executive Director of MAMFC, acknowledges this latest decision for what it really is, another failure by ASMFC. Collectively, NMFS, ASMFC and MAMFC aren't getting it done, why would anyone believe they're going to find religion over the next two years. I've had too many exchanges with these people and know they don't give a shit about recreational anglers. We'll see what happens by 2026 but I'd bet it won't be pretty and will require more remediation then because of their indecisiveness now and then what?

Enough on the subject, I wish you and your family a Very Merry Christmas along with all the members of the site.

[Gerry Zagorski]

Originally Posted by Broad Bill

Gerry while I respect your views and intentions, mine are different for a lot of reasons. Both fisheries should never be in the position they are today and if these "managing bodies", and I use that term loosely, were doing their jobs, we wouldn't be faced with two incredibly struggling fisheries. Everyone involved in the management of these stocks should have seen this coming a mile away and addressed it as this didn't happen over night. You have to ask yourself why that is. Decisions should be made to fix these problems today, not next year, two years from now or beyond. The same people throwing out talking points now are for the most part the same people who put us in this position to begin with and the stock, many small businesses, for hire / party boat operators including your sponsors and recreational anglers will be the ones who feel the pain. Commercial on the other hand always seem to see their catch values increase regardless of quota cuts because of basic supply and demand principles. That and these Committees and Councils protect commerce by making sure they harvest the fish with the highest market values which typically means the breeding stock of every fishery further compounding the problem.

It has to change and if it means a tea party approach so be it because 20 or more years of waiting for NMFS, ASMFC, MAFMC, ASA and all the individual fishing organizations to come together to save our fisheries has been an abject failure. We keep on this pace and there won't be a stock worth fishing for in the ocean and thousand of owner operators and small businesses will get crushed financially. As I said earlier, Chris Moore, Executive Director of MAMFC, acknowledges this latest decision for what it really is, another failure by ASMFC. Collectively, NMFS, ASMFC and MAMFC aren't getting it done, why would anyone believe they're going to find religion over the next two years. I've had too many exchanges with these people and know they don't give a shit about recreational anglers. We'll see what happens by 2026 but I'd bet it won't be pretty and will require more remediation then because of their indecisiveness now and then what?

Enough on the subject, I wish you and your family a Very Merry Christmas along with all the members of the site.

And all the best to you and yours Tom!

[Gerry Zagorski]

An interesting read from the JCAA, their take on what happened https://www.jcaa.org/jcnl2501/2501FMLR.htm