A Petrale sole flatfish. Photo courtesy of Positively Groundfish.
Fishery Sectors Covered by the West Coast Groundfish Observer Program and the At-Sea Hake Observer Program
An overview of the West Coast fishing sectors we observe.
Fishery sectors covered by the West Coast Groundfish Observer Program and the At-Sea Hake Observer Program
This table summarizes all sectors currently covered by West Coast Groundfish and At-Sea Hake observer programs. More detailed descriptions of selected sectors are presented below.
|
Sector |
Sub-Sector |
Permits |
Gears |
Targets |
Vessel Length (m) |
Fishing Depths (m) |
Fishery Management |
State or Federal Fishery |
|
Limited Entry (LE) Trawl |
LE Trawl |
LE permit1 with trawl endorsement |
Bottom Trawl Hook & Line Pot |
Groundfish2 |
15-40 |
10-1600 |
IFQ Some vessels use electronic monitoring (EM) in lieu of 100% observer coverage |
Federal |
|
Limited Entry (LE) Trawl |
Midwater Rockfish |
LE permit1 with trawl endorsement |
Midwater Trawl |
Midwater Rockfish3 |
15-33 |
>70 |
IFQ Some vessels use EM in lieu of 100% observer coverage |
Federal |
|
Limited Entry (LE) Trawl |
Midwater Hake |
LE permit1 with trawl endorsement |
Midwater Trawl |
P. hake4 |
17-40 |
>70 |
IFQ Some vessels use EM in lieu of 100% observer coverage |
Federal |
|
At-Sea Hake |
Mothership- Catcher Vessels (MSCV) |
LE permit with MSCV endorsement1 |
Midwater Trawl |
P. hake4 |
8-1385 |
53-4605 |
IFQ Some vessels use EM in lieu of 100% observer coverage |
Federal |
|
At-Sea Hake |
Catcher- processors (CP) |
LE permit with CP endorsement1 |
Midwater Trawl |
P. hake4 |
82-115 |
60-570 |
IFQ |
Federal |
|
At-Sea Hake |
Tribal |
none |
Midwater Trawl |
P. hake4 |
<38 |
53-460 |
IFQ |
Federal |
|
Non-Nearshore Fixed Gear |
Sablefish endorsed |
LE permit with fixed gear endorsement1 and sablefish quota |
Longlines, Pots |
Sablefish6 |
7-32 |
20-1300 |
Sablefish tier quotas Seven month season |
Federal |
|
Non-Nearshore Fixed Gear |
Sablefish non-endorsed (a.k.a. Zero Tier) |
LE permit with fixed gear endorsement1 w/o sablefish quota |
Longlines, Pots |
Sablefish6 rockfish3 flatfish8 |
7-32 |
20-1300 |
Trip limits |
Federal |
|
Non-Nearshore Fixed Gear |
Open Access |
none |
Longlines, Pots |
Sablefish6 other groundfish |
3-30 |
20-1300 |
Trip limits |
Federal |
|
IPHC Pacific Halibut Directed |
IPHC Pacific Halibut permit9 |
Longlines |
Pacific halibut10 |
3-32 |
40-400 |
10-hour fishing periods South of Pt. Chehalis, WA Legal size >82 cm Trip limits |
Federal |
|
|
Open Access (OA) California Halibut |
CA Halibut permit11 |
Bottom trawl |
California halibut12 |
9-22 |
10-200 |
Fish mainly within the CA Halibut Trawl Grounds Minimum mesh sizes Seven month season |
State |
|
|
Nearshore Fixed Gear13 |
CA or OR state nearshore permits and endorsements |
Variety of hand lines, pot gear, stick gear, rod and reel |
Rockfish3 Cabezon14 Greenlings15 |
3-15 |
<100 |
Federal and state regulations Area closures 2-month trip limits Minimum mesh size |
State |
|
|
Pink Shrimp |
WA, OR, or CA state pink shrimp permit |
Shrimp trawl |
Pink shrimp16 |
11-33 |
60-800 |
State regulations Bycatch reduction devices Trip limits on groundfish landings |
State |
|
|
CA Ridgeback Prawn |
Prawn permit11 |
Shrimp or Bottom trawl |
Golden, Spot, Ridgeback or other prawn17 |
9-19 |
45-700 |
Oct-May season Trip limits Area restrictions Landing requirements |
State |
|
|
CA Sea Cucumber |
Sea cucumber trawl permit11 |
Bottom trawl |
California sea cucumbers18 |
9-12 |
<100 |
Logbook requirement Area and seasonal closures |
State |
1a.k.a., LE permit. All LE permits issued by NOAA.
2Vessels with a California halibut permit, issued by the state of California, can land CA halibut under California’s CA halibut fishery regulations.
3Sebastes spp.
4Merluccius productus
5Average values for catcher vessels
6Anoplopoma fimbria
8Pleuronectiformes
9Issued by the International Pacific Halibut Commission
10Hippoglossus stenolepis
11Issued by the state of California.
12Paralichthys californicus
13The state of Washington does not conduct a nearshore fishery.
14Scorpaenichthys marmoratus
15Hexagrammidae
16Pandalus jordani
17Includes: Crangon spp., Lysmata californica, Pandalus danae, P. jordani, P. platyceros, Sicyonia ingentis
18Parastichopus californicus
More Information
West Coast Groundfish Trawl Catch Share Program
Fisheries Observation Science on the West Coast
West Coast Catch Share Observer Program
Contact
Jon McVeigh, Observer Program Manager
A Petrale sole flatfish. Photo courtesy of Positively Groundfish.
