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News Release: For Immediate Release
July 17, 2003
Fish and Game Commission Seeks Comments on Plan for Market Squid Fishery
Contact: Chamois Andersen, Information Officer, (916) 657-4132, CAndersen@dfg.ca.gov;
Dale Sweetnam, Marine Region, (858) 546-7170, DSweetnam@dfg.ca.gov
California's market squid, which has been the state's most valuable fishery resource for the last four years, is about to receive a management boost.
The California Department of Fish and Game (DFG) has forwarded the state's draft Market Squid Fishery Management Plan (MSFMP) to the Fish and Game Commission for its adoption process. DFG is encouraging the public to review the current draft and provide comments directly to the Commission.
"California's squid resource is not only valued for its national and international sales, it is also used as bait for sport fishing, and provides essential forage for seabirds, marine mammals and a wide variety of commercial and sport fishes," said Dale Sweetnam, a DFG senior marine biologist. "This management plan will guide us in maintaining this fishery at a sustainable level," said Sweetnam, who is coordinating development of the plan.
The current draft plan will be available after July 25 for public review on DFG's Web site at www.dfg.ca.gov/mrd/marketsquid/index.html. Copies may also be reviewed at DFG's regional offices, harbors and marinas, and at county libraries along the coast. Written comments on the MSFMP may be mailed to the California Fish and Game Commission, Market Squid Fishery Management Plan, 1416 Ninth St., Room 1320, Sacramento, CA 95814.
DFG's Marine Region staff will present the draft plan to the Commission at its Aug. 1-2 meeting in Long Beach. The Commission will also hear public testimony on the MSFMP and its suite of management options at that meeting as well as at a special hearing in Monterey in September (date to be announced). The plan will also receive public comments at the Commission' s scheduled adoption hearing during its Nov. 6-7 meeting in San Diego.
The current version is the result of revisions to the preliminary draft MSFMP, which was released for public review in May 2002. The plan was redrafted to address public input as well as comments received from a scientific review panel.
The market squid fishery is often listed as California's largest fishery both in terms of volume and monetary value. In 2002, the fleet consisted of 184 vessels, which landed more than 160 million pounds of squid. This amounted to a fishery worth more than $18 million. The squid resource is also an important source of bait for the state's recreational fisheries and is a valuable forage item for marine fish, birds and marine mammals.
The MSFMP will establish a management program for California's market squid resource with goals that are aimed at ensuring sustainability of the resource and reducing the potential for overfishing.
The proposed tools to accomplish these goals include:
- Establishing fishery harvest control rules, including a seasonal catch limitation to prevent the fishery from over-expanding; continuing weekend closures, which provide for periods of uninterrupted spawning; and maintaining monitoring programs designed to evaluate the impact of the fishery on the resource.
- Instituting a restricted access program, including provisions for initial entry into the fleet, types of permits, permit fees, and permit transferability.
- Continuing gear regulations regarding light shields and wattage used to attract squid to reduce the potential negative impacts to seabirds and coastal communities; and adding limitations on using lights to attract squid around several of the Channel Islands, an effort intended to protect nesting seabirds.
The new plan also includes procedures for the Commission and DFG to follow to address potential market and environmental impacts to the resource. The market squid fishery is often subject to extreme fluctuations in stocks due to El Nino events or other environmental conditions, which can have an effect on landings and market activities. International demand for California's squid can also dramatically affect how much squid is landed.
The MSFMP has been developed under the provisions set forth by California's Marine Life Management Act (MLMA), which became law in 1999. The MLMA created state policies, goals, and objectives to govern the conservation, sustainable use, and restoration of California's living marine resources such as the squid resource.
California's market squid, popularly known in restaurants as "calamari," ranges from southeastern Alaska to Bahia Asuncion, Baja California, Mexico. This pelagic mollusk attains a length of 12 inches, including its eight arms and two feeding tentacles.
Fishing vessels target schools of squid that are aggregated in shallow water areas (from 50 to 150 feet deep) to spawn. Unlike other squid fisheries worldwide, the California fleet often utilizes two vessels in fishing operations. Operating at night, one boat is used to locate and concentrate a school of squid using strong lights to attract them to the surface. Then a second vessel uses what is called a round haul net or purse seine to catch the squid.
For information on how the public may provide comments on MSFMP, the Commission meeting schedule, and other market squid information, check out DF G's Web site at http://www.dfg.ca.gov/mrd/marketsquid/index.html.
July 17, 2003
Fish and Game Commission Seeks Comments on Plan for Market Squid Fishery
Contact: Chamois Andersen, Information Officer, (916) 657-4132, CAndersen@dfg.ca.gov;
Dale Sweetnam, Marine Region, (858) 546-7170, DSweetnam@dfg.ca.gov
California's market squid, which has been the state's most valuable fishery resource for the last four years, is about to receive a management boost.
The California Department of Fish and Game (DFG) has forwarded the state's draft Market Squid Fishery Management Plan (MSFMP) to the Fish and Game Commission for its adoption process. DFG is encouraging the public to review the current draft and provide comments directly to the Commission.
"California's squid resource is not only valued for its national and international sales, it is also used as bait for sport fishing, and provides essential forage for seabirds, marine mammals and a wide variety of commercial and sport fishes," said Dale Sweetnam, a DFG senior marine biologist. "This management plan will guide us in maintaining this fishery at a sustainable level," said Sweetnam, who is coordinating development of the plan.
The current draft plan will be available after July 25 for public review on DFG's Web site at www.dfg.ca.gov/mrd/marketsquid/index.html. Copies may also be reviewed at DFG's regional offices, harbors and marinas, and at county libraries along the coast. Written comments on the MSFMP may be mailed to the California Fish and Game Commission, Market Squid Fishery Management Plan, 1416 Ninth St., Room 1320, Sacramento, CA 95814.
DFG's Marine Region staff will present the draft plan to the Commission at its Aug. 1-2 meeting in Long Beach. The Commission will also hear public testimony on the MSFMP and its suite of management options at that meeting as well as at a special hearing in Monterey in September (date to be announced). The plan will also receive public comments at the Commission' s scheduled adoption hearing during its Nov. 6-7 meeting in San Diego.
The current version is the result of revisions to the preliminary draft MSFMP, which was released for public review in May 2002. The plan was redrafted to address public input as well as comments received from a scientific review panel.
The market squid fishery is often listed as California's largest fishery both in terms of volume and monetary value. In 2002, the fleet consisted of 184 vessels, which landed more than 160 million pounds of squid. This amounted to a fishery worth more than $18 million. The squid resource is also an important source of bait for the state's recreational fisheries and is a valuable forage item for marine fish, birds and marine mammals.
The MSFMP will establish a management program for California's market squid resource with goals that are aimed at ensuring sustainability of the resource and reducing the potential for overfishing.
The proposed tools to accomplish these goals include:
- Establishing fishery harvest control rules, including a seasonal catch limitation to prevent the fishery from over-expanding; continuing weekend closures, which provide for periods of uninterrupted spawning; and maintaining monitoring programs designed to evaluate the impact of the fishery on the resource.
- Instituting a restricted access program, including provisions for initial entry into the fleet, types of permits, permit fees, and permit transferability.
- Continuing gear regulations regarding light shields and wattage used to attract squid to reduce the potential negative impacts to seabirds and coastal communities; and adding limitations on using lights to attract squid around several of the Channel Islands, an effort intended to protect nesting seabirds.
The new plan also includes procedures for the Commission and DFG to follow to address potential market and environmental impacts to the resource. The market squid fishery is often subject to extreme fluctuations in stocks due to El Nino events or other environmental conditions, which can have an effect on landings and market activities. International demand for California's squid can also dramatically affect how much squid is landed.
The MSFMP has been developed under the provisions set forth by California's Marine Life Management Act (MLMA), which became law in 1999. The MLMA created state policies, goals, and objectives to govern the conservation, sustainable use, and restoration of California's living marine resources such as the squid resource.
California's market squid, popularly known in restaurants as "calamari," ranges from southeastern Alaska to Bahia Asuncion, Baja California, Mexico. This pelagic mollusk attains a length of 12 inches, including its eight arms and two feeding tentacles.
Fishing vessels target schools of squid that are aggregated in shallow water areas (from 50 to 150 feet deep) to spawn. Unlike other squid fisheries worldwide, the California fleet often utilizes two vessels in fishing operations. Operating at night, one boat is used to locate and concentrate a school of squid using strong lights to attract them to the surface. Then a second vessel uses what is called a round haul net or purse seine to catch the squid.
For information on how the public may provide comments on MSFMP, the Commission meeting schedule, and other market squid information, check out DF G's Web site at http://www.dfg.ca.gov/mrd/marketsquid/index.html.
