2024 Finfish Aquaculture - MMPA List of Fisheries

U.S. fisheries are classified under the Marine Mammal Protection Act according to the level of interactions that result in incidental mortality or serious injury of marine mammals.

Current Classification on the List of Fisheries

Category	III
Estimated Number of Participants	48
Target Species	Various finfish (such as Atlantic cod, haddock, halibut, salmon, flounder, red drum, cobia, pompano, snapper, grouper)
Applicable Take Reduction Plans	N/A
Observer Coverage	N/A
Marine Mammal Species/Stocks Killed or Injured	Harbor seal, Western North Atlantic

^ Number of participants estimates are based on state and federal fisheries permit data. The estimated number of participants is expressed in terms of the number of active participants in the fishery, when possible. If this information is not available, the estimated number of vessels or persons licensed for a particular fishery is provided. If no recent information is available on the number of participants, then the number from the most recent LOF is used. NOAA Fisheries acknowledges that, in some cases, these estimations may be inflating actual effort.

*Observer coverage levels include the latest information reported in the most current final Stock Assessment Report (SAR).

¹ Indicates the stock or species is driving the classification of the fishery.

Basis for Current Classification

Reports of marine mammal interactions are below 1% of the stock’s Potential Biological Removal level.

Distribution

Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean

Gear Description

Penned/caged fish

Management

Consultation on critical habitat and protected resources is undertaken by the Army Corps of Engineers on all proposed aquaculture facilities. Currently this fishery operates solely in state waters, and is therefore subject to regulations by states.

Historical Information

Original Category (Year added to the LOF)	III (1989)
Original Number of Participants	48
Basis for Original Classification	Marine mammal interactions include seal interference with the pens. Non-harassing methods such as double netting around pens have been used to protect fish to date. At this time however, there does not appear to be more than a remote likelihood of entanglement or incidental taking of these marine mammals
Past Names	"Gulf of Maine Atlantic salmon" (until 1995)
Species/stocks historically documented as killed or injured (but not currently on the list)	N/A

Timeline of Changes

1997	Added harbor seals, Western North Atlantic stock, to list of species/ stocks incidentally killed or injured.
1995	Renamed “Finfish aquaculture” from “Gulf of Maine Atlantic salmon” to include other regions and species. Reduced to a Category III fishery as logbook data and prohibition of intentional takes resulting from amendments to the MMPA. Incidental marine mammal takes were believed to be less than 1% of PBR.
1994	Elevated to a Category II fishery due to admission from industry of under reported intentional killing rates of harbor and grey seals.

Last updated by Office of Protected Resources on 04/21/2025

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