2 Flounder @ 19"

geesh, they are trying to kill every public fishery, and kill the broodstock as well!

 

Docket ID: NOAA-NMFS-2016-0138

Agency: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

Parent Agency: Department of Commerce (DOC)

Summary:

NMFS proposes revised summer flounder specifications for the 2017 and 2018 fishing years. Updated scientific information regarding the status of the summer flounder stock indicates that these proposed catch limits are necessary to constrain summer flounder harvest within scientifically sound recommendations to prevent overfishing.

Agency: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
Document Type: Rulemaking
Title: Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Summer Flounder Fishery; 2017 and 2018 Summer Flounder Specifications
Document ID: NOAA-NMFS-2016-0138-0001

Comment:
I am completely opposed to any reduction in quotas for summer flounder that is based on flawed data, and flawed assumptions.

This proposal is such that we risk continuing to kill the largest female breeders, in fact if an increase
in minimum size is proposed, we would essentially be killing ALL female breeders.

In spite of the attempt to justify larger minimum sizes by allowing "multiple" years of brood, the fact is
that male flounder grow slower and are smaller, the fact is that larger female flounder have greater fecundity,
the fact is the ratio of females to males INCREASES with increase in size, the fact is that we've been
cutting into recruitment by increasing the minimum size.

By enacting these regs you are guaranteeing two things: 1. the destruction of a healthy flounder fishery and
2. the further collapse of the coastal flounder stock.

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