Industry-Funded Monitoring in the Northeast

Midwater  trawl, purse seine,and bottom otter trawl gear.

Industry-funded monitoring programs can be used as part of fishery management plans for Atlantic herring, Atlantic salmon, Atlantic sea scallop, deep-sea red crab, Northeast groundfish, and Northeast skates. These programs are different from the annual large-scale effort in the region to characterize catch—both kept and discarded—across fleets and fisheries.

Industry-funded monitoring is focused on specific fisheries and is intended to  assess the amount and type of catch and reduce uncertainty around catch estimates. While future programs may be developed, the Atlantic herring program was the first to be implemented.

Atlantic Herring Industry-Funded Monitoring

The New England Fishery Management Council established a 50 percent monitoring coverage target. This applies to at-sea monitoring aboard vessels with Category A or B herring permits using midwater trawl, bottom trawl, or purse seine gear on declared herring trips. Coverage target is achieved using a combination of data from existing monitoring programs and monitoring coverage. 

The Goal

Overall, industry-funded monitoring is intended to provide increased accuracy in catch estimates. Specific goals include:

• Accurate estimates of catch (retained and discarded)
• Accurate catch estimates for incidental species with catch caps (haddock and river herring/shad)
• Affordable monitoring for the herring fishery

The Program

Additional information about the program:

• Summary of requirements
• Infographic: Industry Funded Monitoring the Atlantic Herring fishery
• About the new Pre-Trip Notification System (PTNS)
• PTNS Portal

Affected Species

Industry-funded monitoring includes these species: Atlantic herring, American shad, blueback herring, haddock and alewife.

• Atlantic Herring, information about the species management and industry-funded monitoring.
• Haddock, information about the species management.

Approved Providers for Herring Vessels IFM Years 2020-2021

A.I.S., Inc, 540 Hawthorn St., North Dartmouth, MA 02747  508 990 9054
  Services:  Industry-funded observer, at-sea monitoring, portside sampling. 

East West Technical Services, LLC, PO Box 643864, Vero Beach, FL  32964  860 910 4957
  Services:  Industry-funded observer, At-sea monitoring, portside sampling.

Fathom Resources LLC, 855 Aquidneck Ave,Unit 9, Middletown, RI 02842  508 990 0997
  Services:  Industry funded observer, at-sea monitoring, portside sampling.

Saltwater Inc., 733 N St., Anchorage, AK 99501  907 276 3241
  Services:  Portside sampling.
For services provided please check The Federal Register Notice

Industry-Funded Monitoring (IFM) Providers for Herring Vessels IFM Years 2020-2021 (pdf, 1pg)

Service providers

More Information

Fisheries Monitoring and Operations 

Training and Data Quality

Data and Information Systems

Quota Monitoring in the Greater Atlantic Region

New England Fishery Management Council Omnibus IFM Amendment

Northeast Fisheries Observer and At-Sea Monitoring