USA: New England Council makes groundfish quota recommendations for 2024, with deep cuts to haddock

The New England Fishery Management Council has approved groundfish catch limits for the 2024 fishing year in the Northeast U.S., with deep cuts made to multiple species and few increases. The sub-annual catch limits (sub-ACLs) for multiple species of groundfish were decided through Framework Adjustment 66 to the Northeast Multispecies (Groundfish) Fishery Management Plan (NEFMC), which was implemented nearly forty years ago to reduce mortality of heavily fished groundfish stocks and promote rebuilding to sustainable biomass levels, and will still require approval from NOAA. In addition to setting quotas for multiple species in 2024, the new framework adjustment also includes provisions that will affect 2025 and 2026. Across almost every species, NEFMC recommended cuts to the catch limits, with Georges Bank haddock seeing one of the largest cuts of any species. The council recommended a sub-ACL of 6,570 metric tons (MT), a decrease of 41 percent from the 11,080 MT limit applied in ...