The sportfishing community is calling on NOAA for an overhaul of the methods researchers use to estimate fish stock after an internal study from the association found that a coastal survey could be overestimating the amount of recreational fishing going taking place.
NOAA — the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration — published a study in August called “Evaluating Measurement Error in the MRIP Fishing Effort Survey,” which found a 30-40 percent discrepancy between the data from the administration’s current Fishing Effort Survey (FES) and a differently formatted test survey that was issued as part of the study.
Researchers concluded that the discrepancy is likely an overestimate of coastal fishing activity.
The study was one of a handful that researched possible biases in the continual Fishing Effort Survey, which is run by the Marine Recreational Information Program (MRIP), a state, regional and federal partnership that is part of NOAA. MRIP is tasked with compiling recreational catch data, which is then used to direct management strategies for fish populations.
The effort survey is just one of the methods MRIP uses to estimate total regional catch, according to its website.
“These estimates are combined with commercial catch data, biological research, and information collected from direct observations of fisheries to help stock assessment scientists and fisheries managers evaluate and maintain sustainable fish stocks for future generations,” according to the FES general information page.
The same page says that NOAA keeps a constant critical eye on its data collection, and that no statistical survey comes error-free.