The Marine Recreational Information Program (MRIP) today released its 2018-2019 Implementation Plan Update (PDF, 14 pages). Since the first MRIP Implementation Plan was adopted in 2008, these annual updates have described the program’s strategic approach and highlighted milestones achieved and future priorities.
This document references the six core goals, strategies, and tactics that drive MRIP’s comprehensive five-year strategic plan (2017-2022). It includes detailed information on progress toward these goals, and focus areas for this fiscal year.
To follow is a partial list of program goals achieved in FY 2018 and priorities for FY 2019.
Goals Accomplished in FY 2018
- MRIP completed an Electronic Reporting Action Plan that identifies and evaluates opportunities to incorporate electronic reporting options into recreational fishing data collections.
- MRIP collaborated with state partners to certify supplemental, state- and fishery-specific survey designs to gather data and produce estimates based on the unique characteristics of a given fishery. These surveys include Alabama’s red snapper-specific Snapper Check, Mississippi’s red snapper-specific Tails n’ Scales, Florida’s reef fish-specific Gulf Reef Fish Survey, and Louisiana’s all-species general survey, LA Creel. Additionally, MRIP provided support for a September 2018 workshop that kicked off the development of a method for integrating supplemental red snapper survey data with base survey estimates.
- MRIP fully implemented the Fishing Effort Survey (FES) as the official methodology for estimating recreational shore and private boat fishing effort for the Atlantic coast, Gulf of Mexico, and Hawaii. The FES, which uses a mail survey design, is a more efficient and accurate approach to monitoring recreational fishing effort than the earlier Coastal Household Telephone Survey (CHTS).
- To support MRIP’s transition from the CHTS to the FES, MRIP’s Communications and Education Team developed presentations for fishery management councils, interstate marine fisheries commissions, scientific and statistical committees, and other stakeholders on the transition process and calibration of historical fishing effort estimates.
- In September, MRIP led a Road Show in the mid-Atlantic and New England. The multi-day, multi-state trip featured presentations to partners, meetings with anglers and for-hire owners and operators, and focus groups. The Road Show uses two-way communications to improve partner and stakeholder understanding of properties and use limitations of catch statistics, and build confidence in our data. It is planned to continue in FY 2019 with stops in the Gulf of Mexico and the South Atlantic.
- MRIP completed its internal reorganization. Formal adoption of the new structure reflects our ongoing prioritization of meeting the needs and priorities identified in MRIP Regional Implementation Plans.
Priorities for FY 2019
- Contract with the National Academies of Sciences to conduct a study of MRIP and in-season management.
- Create clear and concise baseline requirements for data collection, statistical estimation, access, and information management, and for providing measures of precision and sources of bias in data collection.
- Identify and maintain contact with key stakeholders through a social network analysis, which will provide information on how they receive and share information about recreational fishing data collection.
- Evaluate the potential application of new electronic technologies into the data collection programs.
- Use Regional Implementation Plans to develop a national inventory of partner needs and associated costs.
For a complete list of goals and priorities, and to view our FY 2019 tactics at-a-glance, download the 2018-2019 Implementation Plan Update (PDF, 14 pages).
