Visualizing Fishing Data as Rasters

The Social Sciences Branch (SSB) developed a fishing-intensity raster dataset to improve the spatial representation of self-reported Vessel Trip Report (VTR) fishing locations. This derived dataset allows us to describe the spatial footprint of fishing statistically, instead of treating fishing locations as points or as discrete areas of the ocean based on a priori assumptions on spatial precision that have previously been used. In this document, we describe how this dataset was constructed, how it can be linked to other commonly used data, caveats with using and interpreting the processed data, basic directions on how to work with rasters, and we describe applications for this data set that have been used in both research and fishery management support. We also describe the aggregated, processed dataset that has been constructed and is readily available for interested parties, including the regional Fisheries Management Councils, state fisheries agencies, and the general public. 2018 NMFS (National Marine Fisheries Service) NEFSC (Northeast Fisheries Science Center) Submitted https://doi.org/10.25923/c14d-g218 Public Domain 1862