Methot, R. D., Tromble, G. R., Lambert, D. M., and Greene, K. E. 2014. Implementing a science-based system for preventing overfishing and guiding sustainable fisheries in the United States. – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 71: 183–194. Fisheries management in the United States is primarily governed by the Magnuson–Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, first enacted in 1976. Overarching principles are that fishing mortality rates should not jeopardize the capacity of a stock to produce maximum sustainable yield (MSY) and that overfished stocks (i.e. biomass is too low) should be rebuilt to the level that will support MSY. The science-based system for achieving sustainable fisheries is implemented, in part, through setting annual catch limits (ACLs) that cannot exceed the acceptable biological catch that is recommended by Scientific and Statistical Committees using methods that account for scientific uncertainty. Accountability measures (AMs) are management measures to prevent ACLs from being exceeded or correct any overages that occur. Implementation in 2012 of ACLs and AMs in all Federal fisheries was a historical achievement in the United States; one that will help rebuild stocks and ensure sustainable fisheries into the future. Some remaining challenges include: determining appropriate catch levels and management approaches for stocks with incomplete data; assessing more stocks, more frequently; addressing differences between managing stocks as a complex vs. managing individual stocks in a multistock fishery; and incorporating social and economic factors in determining the appropriate response to uncertainty.
This report is an element of the comprehensive body of information developed as part of the NAWQA Program. The program depends heavily on th^ advice, cooperation, and information from many Federal, State, interstate, Tribal, and local agencies and the public. The assistance and suggestions of all are greatly appreciated.
FOREWORDThe mission of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is to assess the quantity and quality of the earth resources of the Nation and to provide information that will assist resource managers and policymakers at Federal, State, and local levels in making sound decisions. Assessment of water-quality conditions and trends is an important part of this overall mission.One of the greatest challenges faced by waterresources scientists is acquiring reliable information that will guide the use and protection of the Nation's water resources. That challenge is being addressed by Federal, State, interstate, and local water-resource agencies and by many academic institutions. These organizations are collecting water-quality data for a host of purposes that include: compliance with permits and water-supply standards; development of remediation plans for a specific contamination problem; operational decisions on industrial, wastewater, or water-supply facilities; and research on factors that affect water quality. An additional need for water-quality information is to provide a basis on which regional and national-level policy decisions can be based. Wise decisions must be based on sound information. As a society we need to know whether certain types of water-quality problems are isolated or ubiquitous, whether there are significant differences in conditions among regions, whether the conditions are changing over time, and why these conditions change from place to place and over time. The information can be used to help determine the efficacy of existing water-quality policies and to help analysts determine the need for and likely consequences of new policies.To address these needs, the Congress appropriated funds in 1986 for the USGS to begin a pilot program in seven project areas to develop and refine the National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program. In 1991, the USGS began full implementation of the program. The NAWQA Program builds upon an existing base of water-quality studies of the USGS, as well as those of other Federal, State, and local agencies. The objectives of the NAWQA Program are to:Describe current water-quality conditions for a large part of the Nation's freshwater streams, rivers, and aquifers.Describe how water quality is changing over time.Improve understanding of the primary natural and human factors that affect water-quality conditions. This information will help support the development and evaluation of management, regulatory, and monitoring decisions by other Federal, State, and local agencies to protect, use, and enhance water resources.The goals of the NAWQA Program are being achieved through ongoing and proposed investigations of 60 of the Nation's most important river basins and aquifer systems, which are referred to as study units. These study units are distributed throughout the Nation and cover a diversity of hydrogeologic settings. More than two-thirds of the Nation's freshwater use occurs within the 60 study units and more than two-thirds of the people served by public water-supply syste...
Streamflow station number and name Precipitation station number Available periods and location of record 08063500 Richland Creek near Richland, Tex. 08065000 Trinity River near Oakwood, Tex.
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