9/30/2011

NOAA Fisheries has asked members of the North Pacific Fishery Management Council to take another look at the proposed halibut catch sharing plan for Southeast and Southcentral Alaska.

Glenn Merrill is the head of the Alaska Division of NOAA Fisheries. He said, after reviewing the more than 4,000 comments submitted that raised questions about the proposed plan, additional input is needed before proceeding to a final rule.

NOAA says commenters raised concerns about management implications at lower levels of abundance; the economic impacts of the catch sharing plan; and methods for calculating the average weight for guided angler fish that may be leased from commercial IFQ operators reporting guided angler fish.

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