Chairman Wise spoke briefly to the Council about recent discussions surrounding the suggestion that the State should conduct another study of PCB concentrations in striped bass found throughout New York's Marine District.  Since the last meeting, the group charged with assessing the feasibility of conducting such a study met.  It was decided that retaining the methodology of previous PCB surveys was essential to ensure that the data and information from any future survey was directly comparable to those of previous surveys.  Estimates provided by DEC staff indicate that the cost of a full PCB survey (including sampling for mercury in striped bass) might be as much as $1 million.  This money is presently not available within DEC's budget and where to get it is an important t consideration.  Mr. John Mihale suggested that it might be possible for the Department to retain a certain percentage of the striped bass tags each year and to auction them off as a way to, over a period of years, generate some of the money necessary to finance another PCB study.   Mr. Colvin  responded that relatively few of the current 496 holders of the striped bass special commercial harvest permit would reap any benefit from reducing the size of the area closed to striped bass fishing along the South Shore of Long Island, which is the main expectation/hope of those promoting the idea of another PCB survey.  How many of these 496 would support DEC withholding a fraction of their striped bass tags for this purpose?

While previous surveys have used a variety of mechanisms to secure a sufficient number of striped bass from different areas & seasons to satisfy the requirements of statistical robustness, it is now thought that the problem of fish collection is most efficiently and effectively dealt with by consolidating this task in a single contractor organization.

Mr. Wise noted that the Council’s Subcommittee on Unmet Marine Program Financing Needs convened before today’s Council meeting.  This group is re-examining the list of program needs and opportunities within DEC's marine resources program that are unmet because of financial limitations of the Department that if first assembled 5 years ago.  He commented that a new striped bass PCB study will be looked at by the Subcommittee in terms of its relative priority compared to other marine program needs. 

Councilor Tom Jordan, Jr. suggested that a better mechanism would be for the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) to allow unharvested striped bass commercial quota to be "rolled" from one year into the next, in lieu of reducing the initial allotments of tags.  Mr. Colvin noted that there is currently no provision in the striped bass fishery management plan or New York's implementing regulations to allow this.

 

Page last modified Sunday, September 24, 2006 by George E. Carroll