Resilient Fisheries

East Coast Scenario Planning

In 2021, the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council partnered with the New England and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Councils, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, and NOAA Fisheries to undertake the East Coast Scenario Planning Initiative. Scenario planning is a strategic tool used to prepare for uncertain futures. Recognizing the many current and future management challenges, like shifting fish stocks and changing habitats, fishery management organizations along the U.S. east coast undertook this effort to identify and plan for uncertainties that may impact the future success of U.S. fisheries. The process engaged hundreds of stakeholders throughout the region in the development of a scenario framework used to explore potential governance and management changes that may be beneficial under a range of future conditions. This effort produced a Potential Action Menu that provides management agencies options to move toward more adaptive and resilient fisheries management and governance.

Another outcome of the Scenario Planning effort was the formation of the East Coast Climate Coordination Group (Coordination Group), which prioritizes and updates the Potential Action Menu each year. This leadership-level group works together to prioritize, estimate resource needs, and support coordinated implementation of the various actions that each organization undertakes. For more information on scenario planning, the Potential Action Menu, or the Coordination Group visit the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council webpage.

South Atlantic Resilient Fisheries Projects

In 2023 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) announced funding for the eight regional Fishery Management Councils to support Council efforts to develop and advance resilient fisheries management and implementation. The South Atlantic proposed four projects focused on addressing existing needs identified in the Council’s Research and Monitoring Priorities and implementing actions identified through the East Coast Scenario Planning efforts described above. In addition to the East Coast efforts, the Council is also working with NOAA’s Southeast Regional Office and the Gulf and Caribbean Councils to coordinate project efforts in the Southeast.

Evaluating Species Distribution and Habitat Changes in South Atlantic Fisheries

Using state-of-the-art spatiotemporal modeling techniques this project will explore indicators of non-stationarity in the spatial distribution and habitat associations for the fish and fisheries managed under the Council’s Snapper Grouper, Coastal Migratory Pelagics and Dolphin Wahoo FMPs. The outcomes will inform more resilient fisheries management and governance by updating descriptions of distributions and Essential Fish Habitat. This will also inform an evaluation of existing governance structures, potential changes in interjurisdictional governance and implementation of more resilient management.

Anticipated Timeline: January 2025 – March 2027

Contractors: Dr. Jie Cao, North Carolina State University; Dr. Janet Nye, UNC Institute of Marine Science

Using Adaptive Implementable Management (AIM) to Develop Stakeholder Driven Management Strategy for the Wreckfish Fishery

This project will apply an adaptive management technique called Adaptive Implementable Management (AIM) to guide a stakeholder-driven management development process for the South Atlantic Wreckfish fishery. During this process contractors will work directly with managers and stakeholders to develop management recommendations more robust to future uncertainty. Stakeholder engagement is being prioritized throughout the AIM process with interviews and stakeholder workshops planned throughout the project period. The resulting management recommendations will be provided to the Council for their consideration and action.

Anticipated Timeline: March 2025 – June 2027

Contractor: Dr. Joshua Nowlis, Lynker

South Atlantic Management Program Review

Consistent with previous and ongoing efforts at the New England, Mid-Atlantic and Gulf Fishery Management Councils, this project will address the goal of improving the Council’s responsiveness and adaptability to dynamic fisheries and ecosystems by evaluating and improving regulatory processes and governance structures. A contractor will evaluate ecosystem information use and availability, review opportunities to use existing administrative tools, identify opportunities for cooperative data collection and research, evaluate committee structure and use, and evaluate opportunities to incorporate well-informed risk policies. This project is currently under review for funding. 

Anticipated Timeline: March 2025 – September 2027

Contractor: TBD

Improving Communication with and Increasing Resilience of Fishing Communities in the South Atlantic Region

This project would operationalize recommendations from east coast scenario planning efforts by identifying communities that interact with Council-managed species in the South Atlantic region and beyond. The purpose is to identify and engage communities where outreach has been lacking in the past. This will improve the Council’s understanding of constituent preferences for engagement and provide and opportunity to inform constituents about the Council process and improve their ability to become engaged. The proposed work would also describe community impacts from increasing environmental uncertainty. This project is currently under review for funding.

Anticipated Timeline: May 2025 – September 2027

Contractor: TBD