Yesterday a proposed rule to integrate electronic monitoring (EM) into the North Pacific Observer Program was published in the Federal Register, triggering a 60-day public comment period.
When NOAA Fisheries restructured the North Pacific Observer Program in 2013, it was the first time fisheries observers were placed on small boats between 40 and 60 feet, and boats harvesting halibut in Alaska. Under NOAA’s proposed rule, EM technology would only...