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We received a total of 46 submissions for the FY 2019 Fisheries Information System program/National Observer Program/Catch Shares Program Request for Proposals. This year's RFP process began with a pre-proposal submission, which helped streamline applications and boost the number of collaborative proposed projects compared to previous years.
The RFP is a competitive process that enables FIS, NOP, and CSP to support projects in four areas:
- Quality Management and Continuous Improvement (QM & CI) -- 11 proposals received.
- Electronic Reporting (ER) -- 18 proposals received.
- Electronic Monitoring (EM) -- 13 proposals received.
- Fishery Information Network (FIN) Improvement -- 4 proposals received.
The RFP was open to all NOAA Fisheries offices,
regional Fishery Information Networks, and state agencies. The proposals will be reviewed between June 18 and August 10, with final decisions announced in September and funding made available sometime in spring 2019, once appropriations are received.
You can learn more about our funded projects from FY 2018 and earlier on the FIS website. View the guidance document here for complete details on the 2019 submission process.
As part
of the overall update to the NOAA Fisheries website, the FIS web pages have
recently been refreshed with a new look and new structure. Be sure to visit our
new home and update your bookmarks!
Solutions to Real-World Challenges
Expanding Electronic Monitoring Technologies in the North Pacific Fisheries
One of the top priorities of FIS is supporting the implementation of electronic technologies in fisheries. Here's one example of how FIS support is having an impact -- for more details, see the full story online.
Overview
This has been a multiyear electronic monitoring collaboration between the Alaska Fisheries Science Center and FIS to improve data collection through the development of innovative electronic monitoring technologies. The goal of the project is to automate video analysis for length measurement and species identification, and to integrate electronic monitoring data into overall catch accounting.
The Challenge
The biological and catch composition data gathered by independent observers on commercial fishing vessels through the National Observer Program play a critical role in stock assessments and fisheries management decision-making. However, on some vessels, space for human observers is limited and safety is a concern.
The Solution
In 2013, the AFSC and FIS began working to integrate EM technologies into fisheries-dependent data collection as an alternative to on-board observers on longline vessels. One initiative has focused on creating a camera chute system for measuring halibut bycatch during release from trawler catches. The chutes take calibrated images of each
halibut released, from which counts, length composition and total weight can be
estimated.
The Outcome
In addition to the potential to alleviate space and safety concerns onboard, the chute system expedites catch estimates, so fish spend less time out of the water, possibly reducing the bycatch mortality of high-value, prohibited fish species, such as halibut in the North Pacific. As speed and accuracy of species identification improves, the technologies and lessons learned will be shared via open-source software tools and hardware specifications with the rest of NOAA Fisheries, as well as with the interstate fisheries commissions and regional fishery management councils across the country.
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