Closed Area Haddock SAP Demonstration Project

Starting in 2003, CCCHFA fishermen self-funded an experimental fishery in Georges Bank Closed Area I, testing alternative longline baits in an otherwise closed area to catch a healthy haddock resource without catching the depleted cod population. This successful two year survey has been translated into a management success as well: the Closed Area I Hook Gear Haddock Special Access Program (SAP). This special fishery, exclusively opened for hook and line, has since run for four extremely successful seasons.

In 2004, CCCHFA began working with fishermen from throughout New England to replicate the study in other closed areas in hopes of opening new opportunities to use hook and line. With funding support from the NOAA Fisheries Cooperative Research Partners Program (CRPP) , we secured a series of scientific permits and tested hook and line gear across a wide array of areas and seasons from 2004 through early 2006. The research was particularly focused on testing the performance of Norbait 700E™, a sausage-like bait specially fabricated in Norway and designed to catch haddock with low bycatch of cod.

The project was a collaborative effort undertaken by a research team of scientists, managers and commercial fishermen. Within a broad framework of areas and seasons, our industry partners chose promising locations to set bottom longline gear. Since this was an SAP Demonstration Project, the objective was to document biologically sustainable (low bycatch of cod) and economically viable (high catch of haddock) opportunities to use hook and line. Independent scientific data collectors carefully enumerated and sub-sampled all catch and bycatch according to government protocols.

The project budget operated according to an innovative model in which the vessels were paid fixed daily rates for research cruises and all legal and marketable catch and bycatch was kept, sold and used to self-fund the program. Through this arrangement, the fishing vessels generated over $126,000 towards an expected total project cost of $426,000.

Field work wrapped up in January of 2006, and a 306,000 hook dataset was audited and analyzed. The independent analysis and reporting was undertaken by Dr. Yong Chen, Associate Professor for Fisheries Population Dynamics at the University of Maine School of Marine Science. Dr. Chen’s efforts were supported and facilitated by our project partner agency, the Maine Department of Marine Resources.

The findings are presented below.

Combined initial findings of all data collected: Selective Targeting of Haddock Using Fabricated Bait

(note, this is a pdf document; download free Adobe Acrobat Reader to view)

Preliminary Catch and Bycatch Data as of 4/19/2006:

 

Area	# Trips	# Hooks	Total Haddock, pounds live weight	Haddock CPUE*	Total Cod,         pounds live weight	Cod CPUE*
EUSCA	11	176,800	65,181	0.37	3,276	0.02
WGOM	14	74,207	27,617	0.37	2,667	0.04
Cashes	5	42,955	4,932	0.11	1,677	0.04
Platts	1	12,320	1,434	0.12	73	0.01
Totals	31	306,282	99,164	0.32	7,693	0.03

* CPUE= Catch per Unit Effort (pounds per hook)

Industry Partners:
FV Black Beauty (Portland, Maine)
FV Lori B (Portsmouth, New Hampshire)
FV Never Enough (Chatham, Massachusetts)
FV Fiona A (Portland, Maine)
FV Cabaret IV (Gloucester, Massachusetts)
FV Last Chance (Scituate, Massachusetts)