Ecosystem-based Management Weighed for Atlantic Herring

by Laurie Schreiber

PORTSMOUTH, N.H. – Atlantic herring is a linchpin species, interacting with many other marine organisms as both prey and predator.

As such, environmentalists and others have been asking the New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC) to manage Atlantic herring in an ecosystem context, rather than as a single species.

At its January meeting, NEFMC moved forward to do just that, when it unanimously approved a scoping document for Amendment 8 to the Atlantic herring fishery management plan. Amendment 8 will aim to manage Atlantic herring as a key forage species within a broad ecosystem context.

According to NEFMC, long-term management of Atlantic herring “depends on evaluating the tradeoffs between their direct market value and other ecosystem-related values, which is very complicated. Atlantic herring serve as an important prey species for many animals, including commercially valuable fish like Atlantic cod and bluefin tuna, recreationally valuable species like striped bass, and many protected species and seabirds. Additionally, Atlantic herring serves as an important commercial fishery and the primary bait for the highly valuable American lobster fishery. Managing these tradeoffs will require implementing a control rule that is based on in-depth knowledge of both Atlantic herring ecology and other species’ ecology, as well as knowledge about the economy and substitutes for these species within the marketplace. Furthermore, managing these tradeoffs will involve making risk-based choices based on ecological, economic, cultural, and social preferences.”

NEFMC member Michael Sissenwine cautioned against tackling a complex issue in too short a time.

“I’m concerned, given the six months available to come up with something that’s operational,” he said. “We’re really addressing some of the most fundamental and longtime unsolved questions in ecology….To go from these very complex theories to operational solutions is going to require some broader approach… And it’s probably going to require large-scale modeling and meta-analyses at a national and international level.”

NEFMC will schedule public hearings on the scoping document.