Newfoundland Fall and / or Winter Acoustic Herring Survey

TITLE: Newfoundland Fall Acoustic Herring Survey CONTRACT PERIOD Contract award through to December 31, 2021, with options to renew for 3 additional 1 year periods at the sole discretion of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO). Option periods if exercised will be January 1, 2022 through to December 31, 2022 and January 1, 2023 through to December 31, 2023 and January 1, 2024 through to December 31, 2024. PROJECT WORK Surveys will take place in the fall and winter each year. Exact dates to be provided if and when option years are exercised. BACKGROUND Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) will be chartering a fishing vessel to conduct an acoustic herring survey which will include obtaining samples using a commercial capelin and/or herring seine in White Bay and Notre Dame bay during fall 2020. DFO intends to complete annual herring acoustic surveys in both fall and winter for the next several years. Herring acoustic surveys were conducted in the past for Newfoundland and Labrador (NL) herring stocks to obtain acoustic biomass estimates (1982-2000) which were used in population models for assessments – the surveys were discontinued due to program reductions. Without these surveys it has not been possible to implement any quantitative model for these stocks to estimate biomass/total abundance or provide advice on the impacts of removals. Continued acoustic surveys will aid in the development of quantitative stock assessment models for herring. LOCATION OF WORK Inshore waters to the 120m depth contour. Fall 2020, 2022 and 2024 in White Bay and Notre Dame Bay; Fall 2021 and 2023 in Trinity Bay and Bonavista Bay; Winter 2021 and 2023 in St. Mary’s Bay and Placentia Bay; Winter 2022 and 2024 in Fortune Bay. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this project is to conduct a herring acoustic survey to obtain acoustic biomass estimates to be used in stock assessments.