Evaluation of the Northeast Region's Study Fleet Pilot Program and Electronic Logbook System: Phases I and II

摘要

A Study Fleet pilot program was initiated to: (1) assemble a study fleet of commercial New England groundfish vessels capable of providing high resolution (haul-by-haul) selfreported data on catch, effort and environmental conditions while conducting normal fishing operations; and (2) develop and implement an electronic data collection system. An electronic logbook system (ELB) was developed and tested to collect, transfer and store data collected at sea by fishers. Field testing and data collection was conducted on board a variety of groundfish vessels from November 2002 to August 2005 in a two-phased approach. Approximately 1,100 trips were reported by 33 vessels using the ELB system during Phases I and II. Study Fleet vessels did not constitute a random sample and were not based on a statistical design. Instead, vessels were selected to test the feasibility of obtaining high quality self-reported catch data under realistic field conditions. Study Fleet data were compared to existing fishery-dependent data collection programs used in the National Marine Fisheries Service Northeast Region to assess data quality and identify areas where improvements are needed. Data were evaluated at four levels: trip, haul, species catch, and landings. Overall, the Study Fleet data were similar to that collected by the Northeast Fisheries Observer Program (NEFOP) and offered increased accuracy and precision over the Fishing Vessel Trip Reports (FVTR) in terms of identifying the area of fishing and duration of effort. Because of the electronic data collection and at-sea transmission of data, Study Fleet data are timelier than FVTR and NEFOP data. Study Fleet data more accurately captured the statistical area fished than did the FVTR and were consistent with NEFOP data. Species catch reporting was found to be generally consistent with other programs; however, the haul-by-haul nature of the Study Fleet pilot program resulted in increased reporting of discarded catch compared to FVTR data. Additional training is warranted for Study Fleet participants to reinforce the data reporting for each individual species and to improve hail weight estimations. All vessel-based components of the technology used are reviewed with recommendations for continued use or modifications where appropriate. The Study Fleet pilot program was successful in developing, testing, and deploying an ELB system among the New England groundfish fleet. Deployment of future Study Fleet data collection programs will depend upon the program objectives.