The National Marine Fisheries Service convened an in-person meeting of the Pacific Offshore Cetacean Take Reduction Team on March 17-19, 2015.

The team discussed next steps on recent Pacific Offshore Cetacean Take Reduction Team-related activities and potential merits of using alternative methodologies for modeling bycatch estimates for strategic stocks in addition to sperm whales. The Pacific Fishery Management Council discussed to developing a drift gillnet management and monitoring plan related to hard caps, and considered development of options for, and to seek consensus on, permanent amendments to the Pacific Offshore Cetacean Take Reduction Plan (TRP). Based on the team’s deliberations, a set of non-regulatory recommendations addressing a wide range of issues, from the Council’s proposal for a California drift gillnet Fishery Management and Monitoring Plan, were implemented to improve TRP effectiveness.