Purpose and Need

The St. Croix FMP is one of three island-based FMPs developed by the Council to update the management of federal fishery resources in the U.S. Caribbean.  The St. Croix FMP incorporates those components of the U.S. Caribbean-wide Reef Fish, Spiny Lobster, Queen Conch, and Corals FMPs that pertain to the EEZ surrounding the island of St. Croix. 

The purpose of developing the St. Croix FMP/EA is to ensure the continued health of fishery resources occurring in the EEZ surrounding St. Croix within the context of the unique biological, ecological, economic, and cultural characteristics of those resources and the communities dependent upon them by managing on an island basis.  The St. Croix FMP is intended to ensure productive and sustainable fisheries for the long-term livelihood, enjoyment, economy, and environment of St. Croix and the U.S.; conserve and manage the fisheries of St. Croix within an island-based approach; and, enhance stewardship among fishermen, residents, and others who value the fishery resources and the marine and coastal environments of St. Croix and the U.S. 

St. Croix FMP Goals and Objectives

The overarching goal of the St. Croix FMP is to ensure the continued health of fishery resources occurring in the EEZ surrounding St. Croix, within the context of the unique biological, ecological, economic, and cultural characteristics of those resources and the communities that are dependent upon them. 

Specific fishery management goals for the EEZ off St. Croix are:

Goal 1: Prevent overfishing and achieve, on a continuing basis, the optimum yield from St.

Croix’s federally managed fishery resources while ensuring the continued health of the fishery resource, providing for the sustained participation of fishermen and fishing communities, and minimizing to the extent practical adverse economic impacts on such communities.

Goal 2: Manage the fisheries within the limits of local ecosystem production so as to not jeopardize the wide range of goods and services provided by a healthy ecosystem, including food, revenue, and recreation for humans.

Goal 3: Ensure continued provision of ecosystems services derived from living marine resources, including an adequate abundance of forage resources to ensure a healthy and diverse trophic web.

Goal 4: Promote awareness of laws and regulations governing marine resource management and the science and social obligations that support that management, and to ensure informed public input into the management process.

Goal 5: Foster collaboration between territorial and federal authorities to achieve compatible management of fisheries throughout the waters surrounding St. Croix.

To achieve the goals described above, the following objectives are defined:

Objective 1: Provide for long-term sustainable use of fisheries resources within the limits of local ecosystem production using a precautionary, ecosystem-based approach to management that accounts for uncertainty and relevant biological, ecological, economic and social factors in the fishery, including the benefits of food production, recreational opportunities, and protection of marine ecosystems.

Objective 2: Reduce bycatch and waste in the fishery through the use of measures such as gear restrictions, seasonal closures or marine protected areas that reduce or minimize regulatory and/or economic discards, including measures to minimize the mortality of discarded bycatch that cannot be avoided.

Objective 3: Establish and maintain data collection and reporting programs necessary to support the conservation and management objectives of the FMP, including the biological, ecological, economic, and social data needed to assess the impacts of management measures.

Objective 4: Collaborate with domestic and international regional fishery management bodies in managing pan-Caribbean stocks.

Objective 5: Promote fair and equitable use of fishery resources, recognizing the importance of fishery resources to fishing communities as well as differences in local environment, culture, markets, user groups, gear types, and seafood preferences.

Objective 6: Provide flexibility in the management process which minimizes regulatory delay and allows for rapid adaptation to changing resource abundance, availability, health or preference, using the best available scientific and socio-economic information.

Objective 7: Devise a regulatory framework that maximizes the efficiency and efficacy of enforcement efforts within and across jurisdictional boundaries while promoting the safe conduct of fishing operations.

Objective 8: Promote awareness of laws and regulations governing marine resource management and the science and social obligations that support that management, and to ensure informed public input into the management process.

Objective 9: Protect spawning aggregations and the habitats supporting those aggregations to ensure the future health of the resource.

Objective 10: Map, define, and manage habitats upon which the resource depends, with particular emphasis on coral reef resources throughout the region.

Objective 11: Account for ecological relationships and functional roles of species in the fishery that contribute to a healthy ecosystem, such as grazers, forage fish, habitat-builders and top predators.

Objective 12:  Require essential scientific data is gathered and analyzed in advance to guide the development of new fisheries to ensure they are sustainable from the start.

While most of these goals and objectives are being addressed throughout this plan, some may be addressed through future amendments to the St. Croix FMP, as requested by the Council to NMFS.