FAX ACTION - Immediate for EEZ

[JohnR]

Yesterday NMFS denied the RFA request of August 7th to extend the comment period for openingstriped bass fishing in the EEZ.

Please distribute this as quickly as possible via email or message boards asking folks to FAX the letter below.

COMMENTS MUST BE RECIEVED BY 5PM, WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 20

Dear Fellow Fisherman,
Your voice must be heard! The national Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is considering opening up the Exclusive Economic Zone (3-200 miles offshore) to commercial and recreational striped bass fishing. The Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) has been closed to striped bass fishing for the last 13-years which has played a major role in the successful recovery of the stock. Tell NMFS, at this point, the EEZ must remain closed to striper fishing.

After a near collapse in the 1980's, the striped bass stock is now at a record level. However, years of hard work to rebuild this stock could go down the tube if the EEZ is opened up to striper fishing.

Today, extensive coastal migrations of striped bass occur annually in the EEZ and many of these fish are large breeders. During these migrations, stripers aggregate on bottom features that hold bait and use these areas as winter feeding grounds. This makes large numbers of bass vulnerable to commercial fishing gear such as gillnets, small and large mesh trawls, mid-water trawls and pair trawls. On the water observations have shown that there is already a significant amount of striped bass mortality in the EEZ due to commercial bycatch. NMFS opening up these waters will add to this problemand undermine management measures already in place.

Email comments are not being accepted. Take a minute to sign and fax the following letter to NMFS by 5 PM on Wednesday, August 20, 2003, to help keep the EEZ closed to striper fishing. NMFS must understand that the striped bass resource is critically important to the recreational fishing community and allowing a new fishery for striped bass in the EEZ is not appropriate at this time.

Sincerely,
Jim Donofrio
RFA Executive Director
-------------------

Anne Lange
Chief, State-Federal Fisheries Division
Office of Sustainable Fisheries
National Marine Fisheries Service
1315 East-West Highway, Room 13317
Silver Spring, MD 20910

VIA FACSIMILE 301-713-0596

Dear Ms. Lange:

The Recreational Fishing Alliance (RFA) is a national, grassroots political action organization representing individual sport fishermen and the sport fishing industry. As a member of the RFA, I respectfully urge NMFS to keep the EEZ closed to striped bass fishing.

First, NMFS must address the commercial bycatch of striped bass that is already occurring in the EEZ before opening these waters to directed fisheries. Extensive coastal migrations of striped bass occur annually in the EEZ and many of these fish are large breeders. During these migrations, stripers aggregate on bottom features that hold forage and use these areas as winter feeding grounds. This makes large numbers of bass vulnerable to commercial fishing gear such as gillnets, small and large mesh trawls, mid-water trawls and pair trawls. On the water observations have shown that there is already a significant amount of striped bass mortality in the EEZ due to commercial bycatch. It would not be appropriate to remove the moratorium until this is addressed.

Second, as Amendment 6 of the Atlantic Striped Bass Fishery Management Plan states, there are concerns about the relative lack of larger fish in the stock. Many of the striped bass in the EEZ are larger females. Lifting the moratorium would place an increased pressure on the stock of older, larger fish, which Amendment 6 seeks to enhance. Thus, the long-term sustainability of the stock would be threatened.

Striped bass are far too valuable to the recreational fishing sector and coastal communities to be compromised by opening the EEZ at this time. I strongly urge NMFS to continue the striped bass harvest moratorium in the EEZ indefinitely or until time in which we more clearly understand the consequences of its removal.

Respectfully Submitted,


Michael J. Doebley
Deputy Director for Government Affairs
Recreational Fishing Alliance
1-888-Join-RFA

I don't have a fax so I'll need to do an Internet Fax of some sort (or find an old operating dialup account)... This is an important item - please participate!

Thanks,

John