The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on Wednesday announced it will hold a teleconference on Thursday to release its draft national policy encouraging the use of catch shares.
The conference will take place at 1 p.m. EST.
A catch share program differs from traditional fishery management systems in which fishermen compete for a total allowable catch, often leading to a derby-style fishery and too many vessels going after too few fish, according to NOAA. Under catch shares, fishermen, cooperatives, communities or other entities are allocated a share of the total allowable catch.
NOAA Administrator Dr. Jane Lubchenco will host the teleconference along with representatives from NOAA’s Fisheries Service.
However, some fishermen say catch shares privatize fisheries and are often based on flawed stock estimates. New England fishermen have held several rallies this year to voice their opposition of catch shares.
