Harbor Porpoise Take Reduction Team (2007-present)

CONCUR is facilitating the Harbor Porpoise Take Reduction Team for the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). This work – one of four Take Reduction Teams being facilitated for NMFS by CONCUR – strives to identify consensus-supported approaches that can reduce bycatch to sustainable levels. After an initial stakeholder assessment, CONCUR convened and facilitated both in-person and teleconference meetings among fishermen, conservationists, academics, researchers and various government agencies. The discussions – a December 2007 in-person meeting in Philadelpia and a teleconference in April 2008 –produced a set of consensus-supported agreements. The agreements focused on (1) strengthening requirements on the use of pingers as a deterrent, and (2) developing a set of management options which include the paired use of compliance monitoring and implementation “triggers” to motivate higher levels of compliance and help bring about reduced rates of bycatch.