fisheries
West Coast fishers keep bigger limits on three species
NOAA is keeping higher catch limits in place through Dec. 31 for shortspine thornyhead, canary rockfish and petrale sole after newer projections found more fish than earlier estimates.
The temporary rule starts July 20 and keeps higher allocations in place through the end of 2026. NOAA says the extra catch room is meant to avoid direct economic losses while the longer-term groundfish plan is worked out.
- Higher limits stay in place for three West Coast groundfish species.
- The rule starts July 20 and runs through Dec. 31, 2026.
- NOAA says newer projections show more fish available than earlier assessments did.
- The agency says the extension helps avoid economic losses tied to tight catch limits.
- West Coast fishing crews off Washington, Oregon and California are keeping a larger catch allowance for three groundfish species
West Coast fishing crews off Washington, Oregon and California are keeping a larger catch allowance for three groundfish species. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, through its National Marine Fisheries Service, is extending emergency measures for shortspine thornyhead, canary rockfish and petrale sole, and the temporary rule takes effect July 20, 2026, through Dec. 31, 2026.
For fishers, the difference is not abstract. Harvest specifications and sector allocations shape how much can be landed, how long boats can keep working and how much product reaches coastal businesses tied to the fishery.
Why the catch stays larger
NOAA says the higher limits are based on newer catch-only projections that show more biomass available for harvest than the stock assessments used to set the 2025-2026 management measures. In plain terms, the agency says recent information points to a bigger available fish supply than the earlier numbers suggested.
The extension keeps the emergency increases already in place instead of snapping the fishery back to the tighter annual catch limits that had been cutting into income. NOAA says that step is needed to reduce significant direct economic loss while the updated information is folded into management.
The three species at the center
The rule covers shortspine thornyhead, canary rockfish and petrale sole in the Pacific Coast groundfish fishery. Those names may sound like paperwork, but each one matters to crews trying to fill a hold, to quota managers balancing allocations and to buyers who depend on steady West Coast landings.
NOAA is not rewriting the whole fishery framework here. It is extending an emergency response for a specific set of species, leaving the broader management system intact while the temporary higher specifications remain in force.
The cutoff at year’s end
The higher harvest specifications and sector allocations stay in place until Dec. 31, 2026. After that, the emergency extension expires unless it is replaced by another federal action.