Should Habitat Conservation Become a New National Standard for Fishery Management Plans

Marine fisheries management will be facing a number of challenges to fish and shellfish habitats in the coming decade, including renewable ocean energy development, coastal and marine spatial planning, and the continuing effects of climate change.  In the U.S., fishery management plans (FMPs) developed under the Magnuson-Stevens Act describe and identify essential fish habitats for managed species, take practicable steps to minimize adverse effects of fishing to EFH, and identify other actions to conserve EFH.  The Magnuson Act also provides the Councils with the authority to review and comment on actions that could affect those habitats.  If habitat conservation became a national standard for FMPs, regional fishery management councils would then be required to develop specific objectives for conservation of habitats that support managed species and that would achieve the overall goals established in the plans.  Habitat science in support of fisheries management can then focus efforts on providing information that will help councils identify the threats and prevent or mitigate their impacts on managed fishery stocks.  Will the science community be capable of meeting these challenges?