cowcatcher1

I cam across this artical the other day. I hope they don't ban or shorten anymore seasons.

By RICHARD DEGENER Staff Writer, 609-463-6711
Published: Wednesday, March 12, 2008





The federal government is closing New Jersey's tautog fishery April 1 for failing to impose measures to reduce the catch by almost 26 percent this year.

The closing announced Tuesday by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA. Fisheries will close both recreational and commercial sectors.
About 90 percent of the catch is landed by recreational fishermen, and the ban is bad news for them as they already face cuts this year in summer flounder and scup, probable $4 per gallon gasoline at marinas this summer and a move to force boat owners to buy insurance.
"This will hurt recreational fishing. You won't be able to use tog as a substitute for summer flounder. We have to do what we have to do to get back in compliance," said Tom Fote, of the Jersey Coast Anglers Association.
Greg DiDomenico, of the Garden State Seafood Association, a commercial fishing trade group, had been urging the state to come into compliance with tautog targets established by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission or ASMFC.
"It will certainly put a damper on the spring fishery. That starts in April and is mainly a northern New Jersey fishery," said DiDomenico.

If action is taken quickly, fishing could be restored when party and charter boats, commercial fish potters and private boaters take to the waters off southern New Jersey this summer.
A compact of East Coast states, the ASMFC sets tog quotas for the states, and in February it found New Jersey out of compliance for failing to approve a plan to cut catches by 25.6 percent. The state presented its own data and argued the cuts were not needed. The ASMFC rejected New Jersey's data.
The New Jersey Marine Fisheries Council approves state fishery plans and voted 5-2 not to accept the reduction. The only way to lift the moratorium is if the council approves a plan, probably a combination of measures such as increasing minimum fish sizes or imposing lower bag limits, to achieve the reduction.
Darlene Yuhas, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Environmental Protection, said the DEP will push the council to act.
"We fully intend to avoid the moratorium. We'll be reaching out to the Marine Fisheries Council shortly," said Yuhas.
Stocks of tautog, also known as blackfish, have been declining since the 1980s, and many blame the Asian live fish market. Marine conservation agents in New Jersey are constantly busting illegal tog operations. The live fish are sold to Asian restaurants.
"Its greedy market fishing," said Jim Donofrio, of the Galloway Township-based Recreational Fishing Alliance. "New York boats are coming into New Jersey waters and taking tog. It's a huge problem."
Donofrio said the answer is to give tog gamefish status to prohibit it from being bought and sold. This is not likely to be supported by the commercial sector.
Donofrio noted anglers are reporting catching larger tog but no small ones, which is the size the Asian markets covet.
Maggie Mooney-Seus, of NOAA, said each state can decide its own measures to meet the quota. She said New Jersey has one of the larger tog fisheries on the coast. In 2006, there were 4.3 million pounds of tog landed on the East Coast. New Jersey landed 770,000 pounds of this with the recreational sector accounting for 700,000 pounds.
Mooney-Seus said lifting the closing is a process that would probably take several months. She said any proposal would first go to the ASMFC, but New Jersey would have to act first.
"The ball is in their court," she said.
This is only the second time New Jersey has faced a federal moratorium. In 1990, the state was out of compliance with striped-bass measures and the federal government issued a moratorium that forced compliance.
To e-mail Richard Degener at The Press: RDegener@pressofac.com