Council hears update on West Coast marine mammal take reduction team, TRT to convene with tight schedule

Council staff briefed members on the West Coast Take Reduction Team (TRT) established under a stipulated settlement between NOAA Fisheries and the Center for Biological Diversity. The TRT will focus on two humpback whale stocks and the federal sablefish pot fishery; NOAA Fisheries published a Federal Register notice establishing the team and announced initial meetings.

Staff said the first virtual meeting is scheduled and that convening the TRT starts the statutory clock for producing recommendations. The TRT is charged under the Marine Mammal Protection Act to develop consensus recommendations that reduce incidental mortality and serious injury toward rates approaching zero within five years of implementation. Council designee Rebecca Lent, who will represent the council on the TRT, said she is honored to serve and noted that observed mortality and serious injury are already below potential biological removal for the relevant stocks, which affects the planning approach.

Advisory bodies and industry representatives raised concerns that the compressed schedule — and the effects of a government shutdown earlier in the month — could limit industry participation. The groundfish advisory subpanel asked NOAA Fisheries to maximize virtual or hybrid options, to record TRT meetings, and to consider extending the six‑month window if needed to ensure broader, transparent participation by industry and other stakeholders.

NOAA/NMFS staff (Ryan Wolf) confirmed the agency’s intent to convene the first meeting and said the TRT will have six months from the first convening to develop recommendations, with staff evaluating scheduling for subsequent meetings. Council staff said they will track TRT meetings and bring updates to the council as appropriate.