Meetings
Today, representatives from organizations in Canada and the United States concerned with Groundfish, their habitat and the various factors affecting their stocks meet annually to exchange information and to identify data gaps and information needs for groundfish stocks of mutual concern from California to Alaska. Each agency prepares a comprehensive annual report highlighting survey and research activities, including stock assessments. These reports are compiled into an annual GTC report that is published online. The GTC reviews agency reports and recommends collaborative work or plans workshops on topics of shared interest. Early work by the GTC led to the formation of the Western Groundfish Conference series which has been a biannual tradition for more than fifty decades.
The current organizations involved in regular GTC meetings include:
- Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission,
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries,
- Department of Fisheries and Ocean Canada,
- Alaska Department of Fish and Game,
- Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife,
- Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, and
- California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Discussions center around the following topics:
- Life history and ecosystem processes,
- Habitat and distribution,
- Stock assessment and fishery monitoring
- Survey methods and fisheries management,
- Effects of climate change, and
- Social and community impacts.