Deployment Performance Review of the 2019 North Pacific Observer Program

This report contains the analyses and findings of the Alaska Fisheries Science Center’s Fisheries Monitoring and Analysis Division’s Fishery Monitoring Science Committee (FMSC) on the efficiency and effectiveness of observer deployment following the 2019 Annual Deployment Plan (ADP). Responses to comments by the North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) from the 2018 version of this report, and recommendations to improve data quality and guide the 2021 Annual Deployment Plan are also included. In 2019, there were 10 strata to evaluate: one full coverage stratum, five partial coverage observer strata defined by gear and tender designation, two partial coverage Electronic Monitoring (EM) strata defined by gear designation, one zero coverage EM research stratum, and one zero coverage stratum. Observers were deployed under trip-selection on 161 full coverage vessels that fished for 3,343 trips and 584 unique partial coverage vessel and stratum combinations (vessels can fish in more than one stratum) that fished 5,016 trips total. This was the second year in which data from the EM HAL stratum were used in catch accounting, and the first year in which data from the EM POT stratum were used in catch accounting. 2020 NMFS (National Marine Fisheries Service) AFSC (Alaska Fisheries Science Center) Submitted https://doi.org/10.25923/8xpb-rg73 Public Domain 1861