NOAA released their annual report this week, which shows that U.S. fisheries are improving.
The fifteenth Annual Report to Congress on the Status of the Nation’s Fisheries documents the agency’s efforts towards ending overfishing and rebuilding the nation’s fisheries. Key findings in the report:
- 258 stocks were reviewed
- 36 stocks are subject to overfishing
- 45 stocks are overfished
- 27 stocks previously overfished have been rebuilt
- 51 stocks are in rebuilding plans
Of the twenty-seven stocks declared rebuilt, six are new to this report. Those are Gulf of Maine haddock, summer flounder, widow rockfish, Chinook salmon, coho salmon, and Bering Sea snow crab.
Fisheries and related businesses generate $183 billion per year in the U.S. economy and generate more than 1.5 million full and part-time jobs. Keeping the fisheries healthy through sound science-based management is an important task.
Snow Crab photo via Creative Commons
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