CONCUR is an active practitioner of truly agreement-focused facilitation, notably in its work throughout the United States to support several Take Reduction Teams.
The Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) section 118 mandates that NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) develop and implement Take Reduction Plans (Plans) to assist in the recovery or prevent the depletion of strategic marine mammal stocks that interact with Category I and II fisheries.
According to NOAA Fisheries, a strategic stock is one that:
- is listed as endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA),
- is declining and likely to be listed as threatened under the ESA,
- is listed as depleted under the MMPA, or
- has direct human-caused mortality which exceeds the stock’s Potential Biological Removal level
The immediate goal of Take Reduction Plans is to reduce, within six months of its implementation, the incidental serious injury or mortality of marine mammals from commercial fishing to levels less than Potential Biological Removal.
The long-term goal is to reduce, within five years of its implementation, the incidental serious injury and mortality of marine mammals from commercial fishing operations to insignificant levels approaching a zero serious injury and mortality rate, taking into account the economics of the fishery, the availability of existing technology, and existing state or regional fishery management plans.