Transboundary Resources Assessment Committee Status Report 2015/01 : Eastern Georges Bank Cod TRAC. 2015. Eastern Georges Bank Cod. TRAC Status Report 2015/01

Combined Canada/USA catches were 574 mt, including 30 mt of discards in 2014. The Virtual Population Analysis (VPA) “M 0.8” model from the 2013 benchmark was used to provide catch advice. Natural mortality (M) was fixed at 0.2 for all ages in all years, except for ages 6+ in years from 1994 onward, where M = 0.8. Since 1995, adult population biomass (ages 3+) has fluctuated between 5,900 mt and 18,800 mt. The estimated adult population biomass at the beginning of 2015 from the VPA “M 0.8” model was 10,048 mt. Recruitment at age 1 has been low in recent years. The 2003 and 2010 year classes are estimated to be the highest recruitments since 1998. The current estimate of the 2013 year class is about two-thirds of the 2003 and 2010 year class based on the 2015 assessment. The 2012 year class is the lowest on record. Fishing mortality (F) has been declining since 2007 and has been at or below F = 0.11 since 2011. F in 2014 was estimated to be 0.04. Average weight at length, used to reflect condition, has been stable in the past, but has started to decline in recent years. Lower weights at age in the population in recent years and poor recruitment have contributed to the lack of rebuilding. 2015 NMFS (National Marine Fisheries Service) NEFSC (Northeast Fisheries Science Center) Submitted Public Domain 1930