Order Giving Notice of Decisions Not to Add Certain Species to the List of Endangered Species — 1
nt of seven separately licensed commercial fishing fleets that target different individual groundfish species or groups of species. Key elements of integration include (a) an inter-fleet trading system for individual species allocations to enable the different fishing fleets to pursue their fisheries while avoiding the need to discard non-directed by-catch; and (b) a comprehensive and consistent catch monitoring system for all fleets intended to account for all catches (both landed and released at sea). More specifically, in response to the 2002 COSEWIC assessment, DFO has sought to reduce non-directed catch of Bocaccio. As a result, the fishing industry progressively shifted from targeting Bocaccio to incidentally capturing it while going after a main fishery and is also now actively trying to avoid the incidental catch of Bocaccio. A voluntary relinquishment program for Bocaccio was introduced to prevent further population decline and improve prospects for a recovery of the population. The commercial groundfish industry has been successful in achieving voluntary harvest reductions through adaptive modifications of fishing practices in order to avoid areas where densities of Bocaccio are found to be high. Efforts towards further reductions are underway. Harvest has been reduced to 150 t or lower (120 t in 2006/07; 150 t in 2007/08; 121 t in 2008/09), from the earlier level of 200 t to 300 t. By permanently adopting the Commercial Groundfish Integration Pilot Program, DFO will continue to monitor the catch of Bocaccio by the commercial groundfish sector to ensure catches do not increase. If the non-directed catch of Bocaccio is found to have increased to harvest levels deemed unsustainable under the Precautionary Policy, new management measures, such as setting a TAC and Individual Vessel Quotas (IVQ) for Bocaccio non-directed catch will be implemented and will be focused on the groundfish trawl sector, which accounts for 90% of the total non-directed catch of the species. Initiatives to reduce harvest and improve information include active avoidance of this species by harvesters, readily informing other harvesters of the presence of Bocaccio and giving up voluntarily the proceeds of the incidental Bocaccio catch in the trawl fishery to a research society. In addition, multi-species surveys have been introduced to monitor relative abundance, to ensure that 100% at-sea and dockside monitoring of all catch is in force, to ensure 100% retention of rockfish, to monitor individual quotas and transferability of quotas between all commercial ground fish licences, and to require full catch accountability by all commercial ground fish harvesters. As well, improved catch monitoring will be established to better estimate the level of mortality of Bocaccio in the recreational and First Nations fisheries to ensure that non-directed catch levels do not increase. In particular, a review of the recreational groundfish creel program will be conducted to estimate the recreational catch for the upcoming year. This review will be used to inform recommendations for an improved catch monitoring program for the recreational sector. In addition, DFO is working co-operatively with First Nations to develop new tools for reporting catch information from food, social and ceremonial fisheries. Current harvest from these sectors is not considered to impact recovery of the species. New actions to further address the threat to Bocaccio take account of the permanency of the Commercial Groundfish Integration Pilot Program, which includes (a) 100% at-sea monitoring of all catch; (b) 100% dockside monitoring of all catch; (c) 100% retention of rockfish; (d) individual quotas; (e) transferability of quotas between all commercial groundfish licences; and (f) individual catch accountability (under which harvesters must acquire a quota for all catch for species with a TAC and quotas). The outcome of these new measures is expected to allow for the improved catch moni