Chesapeake Fish Stock Monitoring Wksp

To download or view presentations from the Fish Stock Monitoring Workshop, please click HERE.

To download or view the final report from the Fish Stock Monitoring Workshop, please click HERE.

The following paragraphs from the earlier Workshop invitation letter present our intended context:

The workshop is designed to review the contributions of the current suite of fish monitoring projects and their data in fisheries management in the Bay and examine possibilities for a Bay-wide integrated fish monitoring program in the future as the region moves forward in multi-species fisheries management and ultimately, ecosystem-based fisheries management. Participants will include all fish monitoring teams from the Bay, experts active in fish collections and management from other systems, and fisheries managers and supporters in VA and MD.

The workshop report we will produce is intended to be a fishery-independent monitoring plan which, if implemented, will provide scientists and managers with Bay-wide data required (now and into the future) to assess and manage fish stocks in the Chesapeake region. Currently, management is species-specific, with hopes of cross-jurisdiction, multi-species management adopted in the next few years, evolving into ecosystem-based fisheries management thereafter. We anticipate that the plan will be both broad in scope and as specific as possible (specific as to gear descriptions, survey designs, target species, geographic and temporal coverage, etc.) within the time constraints of the workshop.

Monitoring in Chesapeake Bay is largely state-specific and a multi-million dollar per year activity. Many current programs are the results of mandates by interstate fishery management bodies. Some programs are species-specific, some are multi-species oriented. Some programs were begun in order to answer specific assessment or management needs, some are more general and descriptive in nature. However, with all of the monitoring that is done, large gaps in assessment and management-related knowledge about several species remain. Additionally, funding is being curtailed so that a comprehensive, Bay-wide coordinated effort is preferred within the limited fiscal support, specific to fisheries management across the region rather than the current piece-meal, jurisdiction-specific approach. We anticipate that workshop attendees will identify improvements, expansions, continuations, consolidations, and efficiencies for existing surveys and identify needs and possible designs for new survey types. For those who manage on-going mandated programs, please know that we understand that the value of your program is in its continuity. The workshop may be able identify possible expansions and efficiencies to increase value of the extended time series.

If you have any questions or concerns please contact Chris Bonzek (cfb@vims.edu, (804) 684-7291).

	Printable Agenda
	Summary of Current Fish Monitoring Programs in the Chesapeake Bay Region
	Managed Fisheries of the Chesapeake Bay
	Developing Ecosystem-Based Fishery Management Plans
	Pathways to Fisheries Ecosystem Plan Implementation
	Monitoring in Support of Ecosystem-Based Fisheries Management