The South Atlantic Bite

Posted November 7, 2024

Newsworthy Notes – November 7th, 2024

Council Meeting Scheduled for December 2-6, 2024 in Wrightsville Beach, NC

Members of the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council will meet December 2-6, 2024 in Wrightsville Beach, NC. The meeting will be held at the Lumina Holiday Inn Resort, 1706 N. Lumina Avenue, Wrightsville Beach, NC 28480.

Council meetings are open to the public and available via webinar as they occur. Register now for the webinar and receive email reminders as the meeting date approaches. Meeting materials, including agendas and briefing book materials, and an online public comment form will be posted to the Council’s website by Friday, November 15, 2024.

The full Council will meet on Monday, December 2nd, with meetings of the Council’s Citizen Science, Dolphin Wahoo, SEDAR (Southeast Data, Assessment and Review), and Snapper Grouper Committees through Thursday afternoon. The meeting will conclude with an additional meeting of the Full Council and is scheduled to end at noon on Friday, December 6th.

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Reminder! – Apply Today for Open Advisory Panel Seats

Applications due tomorrow – November 8, 2024

The clock is ticking! The deadline to apply for advisory panel seats to be considered by the Council during its December 2-6, 2024 meeting in Wrightsville Beach, NC ends tomorrow. Advisory panels inform and advise the Council in developing federal fishery management plans and amendments and allows members to become more involved in the federal fishery management process.

Open seats include members for the Council’s new For-Hire Reporting Advisory Panel. This advisory panel is being created on a temporary basis to provide stakeholder insight on improving the Southeast For-Hire Integrated Electronic Reporting (SEFHIER) Program.

Applications are being solicited for the following advisory panels:

• For-Hire Reporting
• Law Enforcement
• Mackerel Cobia
• Shrimp
• Deepwater Shrimp
• Snapper Grouper – (2) NC Seats; (2) GA Seats; and (1) FL Seat
• Spiny Lobster

Additional details, including application forms, are available from the Council’s website. Applications must be received by Friday, November 8, 2024 to be considered by the Council during the December 2024 meeting.

SAFMC Seminar Series

Why facts don’t change minds, and what does – Communicating science for real-world impact

Tuesday, November 12 | 1:00- 2:30 p.m. | Via Webinar

Will you please just listen to me? Have you ever wondered why fact-based explanations of ground-breaking scientific research don’t always change minds or behaviors? Join social science communicator Anne Toomey as she explores these an other questions as this month’s SAFMC Seminar Series continues on Tuesday, November 12th.

Register now for the webinar and listen as this seminar explores what leads to shifts in attitudes and behaviors, and how scientists and stakeholders can engage effectively with communities and policymakers for real-world change. Members of the public will have an opportunity to participate in the discussion following the presentation.

Learn more about the Council’s Seminar Series and view past presentations by visiting the Council’s website.

North Carolina Fishermen, Mark Your Calendars! Best Fishing Practices Master Volunteer Program Workshops Scheduled

Fishermen who target snapper grouper species in federal waters take note! Plan now to attend an in-person two hour workshop in your area and be a part of the Council’s Best Fishing Practices (BFP) Master Volunteer Program (MVP).

The workshops will focus on best practices that improve survival of released fish and how to get involved in the Council process, including Citizen Science projects. Participants will receive a BFP MVP workbook full of helpful information and have a chance to win a descending device from Sea Grant!

Registration is not required but encouraged. Learn more about the BFP MVP workshops and sign up today! Questions? Contact Ashley Oliver at Ashley.Oliver@safmc.net.

Upcoming Workshops

All workshops are held from 5:00 – 7:00 P.M.

Additional Snippets:

Special Initiative on Offshore Wind – Fisheries Mitigation Project

Eleven East Coast states, from Maine to North Carolina, have been advancing an initiative to establish a regional fund administrator for fisheries compensatory mitigation which would provide financial compensation for loss from offshore wind development off the Atlantic Coast. Through a competitive process, BrownGeer in partnership with Carbon Trust has been selected to design and develop the regional fund. See the recent press release for additional information.

NOAA Fisheries Offers Paperless Ways to Receive Information about Fishing Regulations and Management Actions

NOAA Fisheries recently sent a Fishery Bulletin reminder outlining three ways to receive information from the Southeast Regional Office in St. Petersburg, FL: Electronic/email, Mail, and Text Message Notifications. The NOAA Fisheries Southeast Regional Office provides fisheries information for the South Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico, and U.S. Caribbean. See the Fishery Bulletin for details on how to sign up.

New Research Visualizes How Fishing Communities Can Change Fishing Habits to Adapt to Climate Change

In a massive research project spanning five years and stretching the length of the Northeast seaboard, a Wellesley College professor is examining how various fishing communities can change their fishing habits in order to adapt to climate change. Read more in this article from Phys.org and see how a ‘spatial sea map’ is being use to illustrate adaptive styles of 266 fishing communities from North Carolina to Maine.

Mark Your Calendar

Keep track of meetings scheduled by the Council from the Meetings page of the website and register for meeting webinars as information becomes available. Register early and receive email reminders as the meeting date(s) approach!