Recent Regulatory Actions--Protected Resources 2005  2004  & Earlier

	Features
	Aquaculture Bycatch Partnerships and Communications Recreational Fisheries Trade and Commercial Services Grants International Interests LAPP Clearinghouse Permits Magnuson-Stevens 2007 Regulations Seafood & Health Strandings Legislation Sustainable Fisheries Leadership Awards
What is Bycatch? National Bycatch Strategy Recent Regulatory Actions Fisheries Recent Regulatory Actions Protected Resources International Activities Research and Monitoring Reports and Articles Regional Bycatch Summaries Related Laws Meetings Bycatch Reduction Presentations

2004 Stock Assessment and Fishery Evaluation (SAFE) Report for Atlantic Highly Migratory Species
Chapter 8 of the SAFE Report describes bycatch issues for Atlantic highly migratory species.

Final Supplemental EIS--Reduction of Sea Turtle Bycatch and Bycatch Mortality in the Pelagic Longline Fishery (June 22, 2004)

Final Rule to re-open the Hawaii-based pelagic longline swordfish fishery (.PDF)
This final rule eliminates a seasonal closure for longline fishing in an area south of the Hawaiian Islands and reopens the swordfish-directed component of the Hawaii-based longline fishery. In order to minimize adverse impacts on sea turtles, the swordfish component of the Hawaii-based longline fishery will be subject to restrictions on the types of hooks and bait that may be used, annual fleet-wide limits on fishery interactions with leatherback and loggerhead sea turtles, an annual fleet-wide limit on fishing effort, and other mitigation measures.
http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/by_catch/HIlongline.pdf

Final Rule to implement new fishery management plan for highly migratory species off the West Coast of the United States (.PDF)
This final rule will prevent overfishing of the fish stocks to the extent practicable and achieve optimum yield for the U.S. fisheries involved while minimizing bycatch and protected species interactions consistent with the Magnuson-Stevens Act and other applicable law.

Final Rule to prohibit shallow longline fishing for swordfish by U.S. fishing vessels operating out of the West Coast (.PDF)
This final rule, designed to protect endangered and threatened sea turtles, applies to U.S. longline fishing vessels based in California, Oregon, or Washington that operate on the high seas east of 150 degrees west longitude, or generally the area between the West Coast and Hawaii.
http://swr.nmfs.noaa.gov/news/shallowsets_prohibition.pdf

Management Measures to Reduce Seabird Incidental Take in the Alaska Hook-and-Line Halibut and Groundfish Fisheries
This action is intended to improve the current requirements and further mitigate interactions with the short-tailed albatross (an endangered species) and with other seabird species in hook-and-line fisheries in and off Alaska. For more information, download the PDF document here.

Final Rule to Implement Amendment 10 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Shrimp Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico (.PDF)
This final rule requires, with limited exceptions, the use of NMFS-certified bycatch reduction devices in shrimp trawls in the Gulf of Mexico exclusive economic zone east of Cape San Blas, Florida.

Final Amendment 1 to the Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Tunas, Swordfish, and Sharks (.PDF)
Final actions include, among other things: using maximum sustainable yield as a basis for setting commercial quotas, adjusting the recreational bag and size limits, establishing gear restrictions to reduce bycatch or reduce bycatch mortality, and establishing a time/area closure off the coast of North Carolina.