Terms of Reference

Application of the Management Procedure Framework for Inside Quillback Rockfish in British Columbia in 2021

Regional Peer Review – Pacific Region

December 6-7, 2022
Virtual Meeting

Chairperson: Ben Davis

Context

Quillback Rockfish (Sebastes maliger) are a wide-spread marine fish that occur in all British Columbia’s (BC’s) coastal waters. Quillback Rockfish are targeted in hook and line commercial fisheries, Food Social and Ceremonial (FSC) fisheries, and recreational fisheries.

Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) manages two Quillback stocks: an inside stock that occupies the waters in Queen Charlotte Strait, the Broughton Archipelago and the Salish Sea, and an outside stock that corresponds to all other waters in BC. In 2009, the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) assessed Quillback Rockfish as a single coastwide species, comprised of both inside and outside stocks, and designated it as Threatened. While a decision by Governor in Council to list this species under the Species at Risk Act (SARA) is still pending, COSEWIC is still required to review the classification of each species at risk every 10 years (s.24 of SARA). In order to support implementation of SARA, updated scientific information and advice on the current status of these two stocks is required.

DFO Fisheries Management (Groundfish Management Unit; GMU) has requested that Science Branch review existing fishery, biological and survey data to recommend candidate reference points for inside Quillback Rockfish, and, if possible, to provide guidance and rationale on alternative reference points to the provisional MSY (maximum sustainable yield)-based reference points. The analysis, and advice arising from this Canadian Science Advisory Secretariat (CSAS) Regional Peer Review (RPR), will be used by GMU to inform harvest advice for the inside Quillback Rockfish fishery in accordance with the DFO Precautionary Approach (DFO 2009), and the legislated Fish Stock Provisions of the Fisheries Act. Outside Quillback Rockfish will be covered in a subsequent CSAS process, which, together with this Inside Quillback Rockfish assessment will inform the COSEWIC reassessment of Quillback Rockfish status.

To provide fishery managers with the best available advice, DFO Science will be following the Management Procedure (MP) Framework for groundfish species (Anderson et al. 2021). The MP Framework uses closed-loop simulation to evaluate the robustness of management procedures to achieve fishery and conservation objectives across plausible states of nature. This approach is particularly well-suited for data limited stocks with major uncertainties in stock dynamics, such as inside Quillback Rockfish. As part of the MP Framework, fishery and conservation objectives and performance measures were previously identified in a workshop series in March 2021 (Haggarty et al. 2022) with DFO scientists and managers, Indigenous representatives and knowledge-holders, commercial and public fishing representatives, non-governmental organizations, and scientists.

Objectives

The following working paper will be reviewed and provide the basis for discussion and advice on the specific objectives outlined below.

Quang Huynh, Matthew R. Siegle, Dana R. Haggarty. Management Procedure Framework for Inside Quillback Rockfish (Sebastes maliger) in British Columbia in 2021. 2022. CSAP Working Paper 2016GRF02a

The specific objectives of this review are to:

1. Convert the high level strategic objectives identified at the 2021 workshop (Haggarty et al. 2022) into quantitative objectives so that their achievement can be evaluated with performance metrics.
2. Develop and assess a suite of operating models (OMs) and describe the uncertainties the OMs are meant to address.
3. Consider environmental conditions that may affect the stock as presented in the Guidelines for Implementing the Fish Stocks Provisions in the Fisheries Act.
4. Recommend candidate reference points including a limit reference point (LRP) and upper stock reference point (USR) consistent with the DFO Precautionary Approach. Additionally, characterize the stock status relative to the LRP, USR, and if possible, B_MSY and B₀.
5. Propose a set of candidate management procedures (MPs) and test the candidate MPs across the suite of OMs using a closed-loop simulation.
6. Review the simulation results and demonstrate potential trade-offs between achieving different objectives under different MPs, including catch and index-based MPs.
7. Recommend an appropriate assessment frequency and any conditions for exceptional circumstances that warrant reevaluating the OMs.

Expected Publications

• Proceedings
• Research Document
• Science Advisory Report

Expected Participation

• Fisheries and Oceans Canada (Ecosystems and Oceans Science, Fisheries Management)
• Academia (e.g., Simon Fraser University)
• Indigenous communities and organizations (e.g., A-Tlegay Fisheries Society, Cowichan Tribes, Island Marine Aquatic Working Group, Tlowitisis First Nation Guardian Program, Tla'amin Nation, shíshálh Nation)
• Industry (e.g., Sport Fishery Advisory Board, Pacific Halibut Management Association, BC Dogfish Hook & Line Industry Association, Commercial Industry Caucus)
• Environmental non-government organizations (e.g., David Suzuki Foundation, Oceana)
• Consultants (e.g., Blue Matter Science Ltd., Landmark Fisheries, LGL)

References

• Anderson, S.C., Forrest, R.E., Huynh, Q.C., and Keppel, E.A. 2021. A management procedure framework for groundfish in British Columbia. DFO Can. Sci. Advis. Sec. Res. Doc. 2021/007. vi + 139 p.
• DFO. 2009. A fishery decision-making framework incorporating the precautionary approach.
• Haggarty, D.R., Siegle, M.R., Litt, M.A., and Huynh, Q. 2022. Quillback Rockfish Fishery and Conservation Objectives Workshop Summary Report. Can. Tech. Rep. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 3488: viii + 56 p.