On March 4, 2002 Dr. Michael Sissenwine, Director of the Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC)  for the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) told a group of commercial and recreational fishing industry representatives that he did not believe it would be productive to continue a formerly cooperative science program whereby a commercial fishing vessel accompanied and supplemented survey trips conducted by the NMFS research vessel Albatross.  He stated a possible misunderstanding of goals as a reason for discontinuing the program. To date, commercial fishermen and New Jerseys Fisheries Information and Development Center (FIDC) have collectively spent over $150,000.00 to fund two side-by-side surveys but reports detailing results of these completed trips were not referenced during the meeting that halted the program.

Fishermen from all sectors of the industry will be adversely affected by this decision to take a step back from a program that could have vastly improved the data being used by government fisheries managers. "The decision by NMFS to stop the cooperative science survey program with commercial fishermen is unfortunate, at best, and will undoubtedly have extreme ramifications on the commercial fishing industry along the Northeast coast. Stopping these cooperative surveys gives NMFS less information, not more, in determining accurate fish populations," said Congressman Felix Grucci of Long Island (R-NY1). "This will further cripple a commercial fishing industry already suffering from limits and regulations being imposed on our fishermen that are based on bad science, and incomplete or inaccurate information, that could lead to the end of an important industry that is part of our Long Island heritage."

Side-by-side surveys were initially proposed by Dr. Eric N. Powell, Director of the Haskin Shellfish Research Laboratory (HSRL) on behalf of the National Fisheries Institute Scientific Monitoring Committee (NFISMC) at a meeting on January 10, 2001 at NEFSC-Woods Hole. They were suggested by several members of NFISMC who did not think NMFS survey results reflected the diversity, quantities or age distributions of the stock populations they encountered while fishing.     In a letter to Dr. Patricia Kurkul, Regional Administrator of the NMFS nine days later, Powell submitted a protocol for the program that he had developed in cooperation with Drs. Steve Murawski and Tom Azarovitz of NEFSC. The stated objective for the program was to conduct side-by-side tows between an industry vessel and the R/V Albatross to provide information on the relative catch-ability of the two platforms and gears fished during the spring survey.

Dr. Powells initial science plan enumerated several possible benefits of the program.  Industry believed that, should the commercial vessel catch be significantly different from that of the research vessel in terms of quantity, age range, size range and other factors that are used to determine species biomass in government stock assessments, they could begin to calibrate the differences in catch-ability. After a series of side-by-side surveys had taken place, these differences could be factored into the government's assessments in order to enhance the available data and biomass measurements.

The first side-by-side tows took place during the Spring 2001 Survey, from February 27 to March 4 and March 26 to 29. The official report on the program was released in August 2001, after NEFSC completed its peer-review. There was discussion in its conclusion about the importance of input data (survey results) in developing accurate stock assessments and side-by-side tows were identified as a vehicle to improve this input data. The report also stated, Analysis of these tows has revealed some potential areas of concern that may need to be addressed in improving the survey or analysis of survey data. However, it is essential to obtain confirmation of the repeatability of these results. Only repeatable results should be used as the basis for modification in survey or analytical protocols. Evaluating repeatability can only be accomplished by continuing the sampling program in the coming year.

Thus, in order to evaluate whether the Spring results were repeatable, or a one-time aberration, industry worked with NMFS to develop a program for side-by-side tows in the Fall Survey. The basic goal of comparing catch-ability between the research vessel and the commercial vessel remained.  In addition, the F/V Jason & Danielle (Jason), after a series of side-by-side tows, was to tow independently in areas proscribed by NMFS to supplement the number of stations that would be surveyed by the R/V Albatross. By then, the nature and importance of the side-by-side program had received attention from both commercial and recreational fishermen throughout the Northeast. The FIDC was able to obtain funding to cover the second survey.

From September 20 to September 27, 2001 the Jason once again took on six Rutgers University and NMFS-trained scientists to accompany and supplement the efforts of the Albatross. A report on the results of the Fall 2001 Survey was submitted to NMFS on January 2, 2002.  After a February 13^th meeting at NEFSC, Dr. Powell wrote to Dr. Kurkul that there was considerable interest... in a simultaneous spatially intensive survey in a region being surveyed by the NMFS vessel, combined with a few side-by-side tows for calibration...(but) no final commitment can occur prior to the March 4 meeting. This more in-depth meeting was ostensibly being held to evaluate the results of last years two research efforts and to determine 1) whether a science program will be conducted this spring and 2), if so, what it will be. When representatives from HSRL, FIDC and the Jason & Danielle arrived in Tuckertown, NJ to discuss the future of the program, they were informed by Dr. Sissenwine and Dr. John Boreman of NEFSC that the R/V Albatross had set sail that morning to begin the Spring 2002 Survey.

The March 4th meeting was contentious.   Dan Cohen, Chairman of NFISMC opened the meeting with a summary of the program to date and an expression of hope that the program would continue this spring only to learn it was impossible because the survey had already started.  He stated that the calibration of the Albatross efforts had been intended to help build a level of confidence in the survey and stock assessment process.  Jeff Reichle, Chairman of FIDC said there was no confusion regarding the goals of the program when his group committed $150,000.00.  Tom Fote, Chairman of the Jersey Coast Anglers Association and a board member of FIDC, pointed out the inaccuracy of the summer flounder recruitment figures for the past several years.  He said adjustments to stock abundance done through mathematical regression formulas at NEFSC after the fact might not have been necessary if the surveys were more accurate in the first place. When Dr. Sissenwine said that 37 samples were not enough to show that Jasons independent tows were of value, Dr. Powell was quick to point out that the study involved 37 tows in the spring and an additional 60 tows in the fall; a total of 97 commercial tows.

Perhaps the most frustrated participant was fisherman Bill Grimm, owner of the F/V Jason & Danielle.  He had volunteered his vessel for the program because fishermen believe that Spring and Fall Surveys are conducted to measure stock abundance upon which quotas are based.  After the first leg of Spring 2001, he described the R/V Albatross fishing methods as something he would do if I were trying to not catch any fish.

At the March 4th meeting, Mr. Grimm pointed out to Dr. Sissenwine that the speed, gear and distance of the research tows virtually guaranteed that the net very rarely touched the ocean floor.  That’s why, he argued, Hank (Lackner, Grimm's partner and captain of the F/V Jason & Danielle) averaged 110 fluke per tow while the Albatross only averaged two and that’s why you only caught one striped bass on the south shore of Long Island in September!

Were not out there to catch fish!  Sissenwine snapped.

Well, muttered Mr. Grimm, Maybe NMFS should find something else to do with the money.

Mr. Grimm also clashed with Dr. Sissenwine when the latter tried to present areas in which cooperative research might take place in the future, such as questions involving sampling, timing, temperature and boundary issues. The NEFSC scientist suggested that, for instance, fishermen with a hypothesis that scup schooled beyond the boundary of the NMFS survey could submit a protocol for testing that hypothesis with a targeted survey fleet carrying observers. I don’t need a hypothesis, stated Mr. Grimm. I can show you where the scup are right now. It’s what I do for a living.

Cooperative research efforts between the fishing industry and NMFS are still being pursued.  Targeted survey fleets, observer programs and biological stock sampling are just some of the areas where fishermen and scientists are working together to improve the best available science. The commercial-recreational alliances that developed around the side-by-side tow program are proving to be an ongoing benefit to all fishermen. However, the Spring 2002 Survey will not involve industry participation; calibration of the governments research vessel efficiency has been suspended; and it remains to be seen whether the results of last years cooperative surveys will be repeated often enough to validate fishermen’s experience as important input to the stock assessment process.