The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said arguments challenging its new halibut bycatch rule that went into effect in January are "too vague and ambiguous to permit a response."
The administration made the statement March 5 in response to a lawsuit brought last year by the Groundfish Forum, arguing its member groups are suffering severe economic losses from the new rule.
The response is NOAA's first to the complaints made against it in a lawsuit filed by the Groundfish Forum last year.
The Groundfish Forum, which represents Fishermen's Finest, Northstar Fishing, Ocean Peace Inc., O'Hara Corporation and United States Seafood, operates 17 trawl vessels and is arguing for the reinstatement of a fixed bycatch limit of 1,745 metric tons for the Amendment 80 fleet.
The new rule requires that when halibut abundance is very low in the Bering Sea Aleutian Islands (BSAI), the prohibited species catch, or PSC limit, decreases for the Amendment 80 fleet by 35 percent from the current cap amount of 1,745 metric tons.
With two competing surveys on abundance -- one by International Pacific Halibut Commission (IPHC) showing low abundance and one from a National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) trawl survey showing high abundance --the 2024 cap for Amendment 80 sector is set at 1,396 metric tons.
The companies harvest a variety of species in federally managed fisheries off Alaska.
NOAA said in its answer filed with an Alaska district court, the Groundfish Forum's complaint "has failed to state a claim upon which relief can be granted."
Lawyers for NOAA added the plaintiff "failed to exhaust its administrative remedies and thus has waived some or all of its claims."
Bycatch refers to non-targeted fish caught while commercial fishermen are harvesting a different species. Several Alaska commercial fishing sectors, including the pollock industry, have opposed significant changes to bycatch measures in recent years, saying the changes threaten their ability to operate.
In its initial lawsuit filed in December, the group said the bycatch rule change will cause members "significant economic losses, potentially exceeding $100 million annually."
Earlier this year, lawyers for the seafood association said its members had to reduce the 2024 fleet by a total of three fishing vessels. The move has resulted in "hundreds of jobs lost," according to the court document.
The association asked the Alaska court to issue a ruling on the matter by November of this year so they can properly prepare for the 2025 season.
Halibut in decline
The halibut stock, managed by the IPHC, has experienced a long decline in its overall spawning biomass off the US West Coast, British Columbia and Alaska.
After several years of study, members of the North Pacific Fishery Management Council voted in 2021 to tie halibut bycatch limits to Eastern Bering Sea (EBS) abundances.
