A summary of post-cruise data loss in the North Pacific Observer Program from 2014 to 2023

In the North Pacific Observer Program (NPOP), a significant element of the QA/QC chain is the final debriefing, an interview between trained, knowledgeable staff (debriefers) and fisheries observers returning from deployment. The purpose of the interview is to review data and data collection protocols for compliance with collection requirements. To understand the impact of final debriefings on data quality in the NPOP, we summarized trends in how, where, and why debriefers deleted data during the interview stage from 2014 to 2023.