Terms of Reference
Status Update of British Columbia Geoduck Stocks, 2011; and Assessment of Inshore Shrimp Stocks along the Coast of British Columbia, 2011
Pacific Regional Advisory Process
November 29, 2011
Nanaimo, British Columbia
Chairperson: Chris Pearce
This Regional Advisory Process (RAP) will review two Science Advisory Reports (SARs) for three species of marine invertebrates. The context and objectives for each review are outlined below.
REVIEW 1: Status Update of British Columbia Geoduck Stocks, 2011
Context
The British Columbia geoduck fishery is managed with a Total Allowable Catch (TAC), individual vessel quotas (IVQs), along with scheduled openings and area quotas. The fishery in the North and Gulf regions is a three-year rotational fishery while the West Coast of Vancouver Island (WCVI) is fished annually. Stock assessment and management of the fishery are conducted on a by-geoduck-bed spatial scale. The Limit Reference Point (LRP) is set at 40% of estimated virgin biomass (B0). Biomass estimates are updated annually with new data from population density surveys, mean weights, and bed areas. An updated stock assessment framework was reviewed and accepted in November 2008, which provided details of geoduck biomass estimation methods (Bureau et al., Stock Assessment Framework for the British Columbia Geoduck Fishery, 2008. Unpublished Manuscript). The purpose of this status update is to provide an updated range of geoduck biomass estimates using the 2008 framework.
Objectives
The objective of this SAR is to provide an assessment of geoduck stock status in British Columbia using the assessment framework developed in 2008: Specifically, the SAR will:
- Provide estimates of harvestable area, geoduck density, mean weight, and range of geoduck biomass estimates in British Columbia;
- Provide estimates of stock index in relation to the current LRP;
- Identify issues that may impact geoduck populations and the commercial fishery in the future; and
- Identify research priorities.
REVIEW 2: Assessment of Inshore Shrimp Stocks along the Coast of British Columbia, 2011
Context
The status of British Columbia inshore shrimp stocks, as indexed through annual surveys, forms the biological basis upon which the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) Fisheries and Aquaculture Management (FAM) branch sets annual area catch ceilings, referred to in this report as total allowable catch (TAC). In addition, in 2009, DFO implemented provisional Precautionary Approach (PA) harvest control rules (HCR) for shrimp stocks (DFO, 2009). This report provides an update to the 2010 Canadian Science Advisory Secretariat Science Advisory Report on shrimp stock trends (DFO, 2011), as indexed through surveys from inception of surveys in 1997 to 2011, along with commercial catch trends from 1987 to 2011. This report documents the advice on stock status, in relation to the PA, which provided to fishery managers and industry in-season.
Objectives
The objective of this SAR is to document the advice with respect to the management and assessment of the shrimp trawl fishery by Shrimp Management Area (SMA) along the coast of British Columbia. Specifically, the SAR will:
- Provide estimates of biomass for pink and sidestripe shrimp in 2011, resulting from the annual area-swept fishery independent surveys in selected SMAs; and
- Provide a 2011 fishery performance evaluation, in selected SMAs, of catch in comparison to the recommended catch ceilings.
Expected Publications
- CSAS Science Advisory Report (2)
- RAP Proceedings (1)
Participation
Participants will include internal DFO representatives and potentially participants from the Province of British Columbia, academia, First Nations, NGOs, and industry.
References Cited
Notice
Participation to CSAS peer review meetings is by invitation only.
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