NOAA Fisheries is accepting public comment through Aug. 31 via email to nmfs.ebfm.roadmap@noaa.gov regarding its updated Ecosystem-Based Fisheries Management Road Map (EBFM), which is subject to periodic review.
Ecosystem-based fisheries management is defined by NOAA as an integrated, science-based approach to fisheries management in a geographically specific area that contributes to the resilience and sustainability of the ecosystem and optimizes benefits among a diverse set of societal goals.
NOAA’s first EBFM roadmap was established in 2016 to provide guidance on the agency’s policy shift toward implementing ecosystem-level planning for fisheries.
This style of management involves setting quotas and also considering how individual species’ fit into the wider ecosystem, rather than the status of an individual stock.
The method considers the entire ecosystem, including people, and aims to maintain healthy, productive and resilient conditions in order to provide services that people want and need.
The guidance has already been used by federal fisheries management councils to determine quotas for species.