. . . National Overview: Status and 

 Potential of U.S. Living Marine Resources 



8 



The globally distributed 

 yellowfin tuna supports fisheries 

 in the Atlantic, Pacific, and 

 Indian Oceans. 



. . . INTRODUCTION 



catch landed outside the continental U.S. 

 (e.g., Pacific tunas) from "Fisheries of the 

 (Jnited States." RAY (combined commer- 

 cial and recreational fisheries) for the U.S. 

 represents a little more than 6% of the 

 recent world catch. In recent years, the U.S. 

 has ranked about sixth among major fish- 

 ing nations, following the USSR, China, 

 Japan, Peru, and Chile. 



The recreational finfish catch on the At- 

 lantic and Gulf coasts was estimated at 234 

 million fish, or 65,000 t, in 1990; for the 

 west coast it was estimated at 41 million 

 fish, or 1 3,000 1, for 1 989 (the last year that 

 data are available). This catch total is ex- 

 clusive of Pacific salmon, which historically 

 has composed about 2% of the entire west 

 coast recreational catch. 



The RAY is 72% of the national CPY and 

 LTPY. While this comparison indicates that 

 there is potential for the U.S. to increase its 

 fishery yields, the following factors need to 

 be considered in interpreting these results: 



1 ) Estimates of LTPY and CPY are some- 

 times imprecise; therefore, harvest levels 

 may be set conservatively to reduce the 



risk of depleting fishery resources (e.g., 

 Alaska's walleye pollock). 



2) Increasing the yield will result in a 

 reduction in abundance, catch rates, and 

 size of fish, which may adversely affect 

 some users of the resource (e.g., anglers 

 who desire a high catch rate and/or large 

 fish). 



3) There are limited markets for in- 

 creased landings of several species for 

 which RAY is less than CPY and LTPY (e.g., 

 dogfish off New England and arrowtooth 

 flounder off Alaska). 



4) Comparison of aggregate value of 

 LTPY, CPY, and RAY masks the fact that 

 the recent yield for many species exceeds 

 the current potential, and, as noted, the 

 current potential is lower than the long- 

 term potential as a result of overutilization 

 and resource depletion (e.g., Georges 

 Bank haddock). 



Brief regional summaries of potential 

 yields and the status of fisheries resources, 

 as well as marine mammals, and threat- 

 ened and endangered sea turtles, are given 

 below. 



