Judge OKs policy on circle hooks
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 10/18/05
BY KIRK MOORE
STAFF WRITER
Federal fisheries regulators struck a reasonable balance when they allowed commercial longline fishermen to use circle-shaped hooks that reduce unintended sea turtle catches while still allowing longliners to reel in targeted swordfish and tuna, a federal district court judge ruled in Washington.

Environmental activist groups Oceana and The Ocean Conservancy had challenged the National Marine Fisheries Service plan for reducing the accidental taking of loggerhead and leatherback sea turtles, which are protected under the federal Endangered Species Act.

In an Oct. 6 opinion, District Court Judge Richard J. Leon ruled for the agency, saying NMFS had taken adequate measures required by the Magnuson-Stevens fishery conservation law.

"Although NMFS might have done more to reduce bycatch, "more' is not the standard that NMFS must follow," Leon wrote.

Longline boats and crews from Barnegat Light were among those that participated in an experimental fishery that substituted circular hooks for the J-shaped hooks traditionally used on miles-long baited lines in the deepwater swordfish fleet.

Working with federal biologists, the fishermen showed that circular hooks in the 18/0 size reduced the numbers of turtles caught when they ingested bait intended for fish, because the circular hooks were less likely to be swallowed by turtles.

Circle hooks were also much less liable to snag turtles drifting along the longlines, federal researchers reported. But in response to other fishermen's worries that 18/0 sized circle hooks would reduce their fish catch, NMFS last year agreed to allow use of slightly smaller 16/0 circular hooks in most areas.

The environmental groups argued the smaller hook sizes had not been adequately tested, and challenged the government's related biological opinion and environmental impact documents, which contended the new rule was adequate to protect turtles.

In his opinion, Leon said the fisheries service is required by law to reduce bycatch "to the extent practicable," while balancing that goal against other legal standards such as managing economic impacts on fishing communities.

Environmental activists think the law's bycatch standard means NMFS can and should be doing more to protect turtles, said Eric Bilsky, a senior staff attorney with Oceana.

"We don't think the agency took a hard look at whether this is enough to protect sea turtles from extinction," he said.

The requirement for circular hooks may be reducing longliners' swordfish catches by 30 percent but the fleet was willing to accept that as the price for reducing turtle bycatch, said Nelson Beideman of the Blue Water Fishermen's Association, an industry group that sided with the government in court.

"American fishermen lead the world on a host of conservation issues. . . . Most international fleets lag way behind and should catch up," Beideman said in a written statement.

The longliners' group contends that exporting American circle-hook fishing methodology could help reduce turtle losses worldwide.