Pioneer Cooperative Rockfish Survey
A groundbreaking collaboration brought fishermen’s experience and innovative technology on board to improve rockfish assessment.
When Gulf of Alaska rockfish Fisherman Bob Hezel approached NOAA Fisheries biologist Mark Zimmermann with an innovative proposal, he saw a potential solution to a rocky problem.
“Captain Hezel offered to collect scientific data in ‘untrawlable’ areas where standard NOAA Fisheries survey trawls can’t sample fish populations. I was impressed with the advanced technology that ships like his, the F/V U.S. Intrepid, use to fish in these rocky, steep habitats, like a live-feed video camera that helps them target their catch while minimizing gear and habitat damage,” Zimmermann said. “I was also impressed that Bob and Fishermen’s Finest wanted to use these capabilities to improve rockfish assessments. This fishery is really important to them, and they want to invest in the resource by providing us scientific data to manage it. They want to help ensure that annual catch limits are sustainable.”
That conversation spawned a cooperative pilot study to explore using industry catch and effort data to inform Gulf of Alaska rockfish assessments. The new project is called the Science-Industry Rockfish Research Collaboration in Alaska (SIRRCA). Learn more at the link below: