NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service today announced the release of agency priorities and guidance for 2021, with a primary goal being the long-term sustainability of U.S. fisheries and 2021 activities to be implemented to support amplification of the economic value of commercial and recreational fisheries in a sustainable way, species recovery and conservation in a manner that supports responsible fishing and resource development, and improvement of organizational excellence and regulatory efficiency.
Specific priorities include reviewing and streamlining permitting and authorization processes for energy development and national defense while maximizing conservation outcomes, reviewing agency regulations and removing or modifying rules that unnecessarily burden business and economic growth, stabilizing highest priority protected species, institutionalizing the use of innovative technologies, increasing aquaculture production, adequately assessing all prioritized stocks and maintaining information for currently assessed stocks, enhancing cooperative data collection and sharing, and combatting illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing and seafood fraud and advancing fair trade.
