FishWatch

Harvesting Dover Sole

Most U.S.-caught Dover sole is harvested in the West Coast groundfish trawl fishery. A small amount of Dover sole is also harvested by trawlers in the Gulf of Alaska.

Management

Who’s in charge? NOAA Fisheries and the Pacific (West Coast) and North Pacific (Alaska) Fishery Management Councils
Current management:
West Coast: Groundfish Fishery Management Plan (Dover sole are often caught in “multispecies complexes” – several different groundfish species caught together at the same time – and managed along with 90 other species that also live on or near the bottom.)

• All vessels fishing in the groundfish fishery off Washington, Oregon, and California must have a federal limited entry permit. With a small number of permits available (about 400), this program controls the capacity of the groundfish fishing fleet by limiting the overall number of fishing vessels, the number of vessels using each of the three specified gear types (trawl, trap/pot, longline), and increases in harvest size by limiting vessel length.
• As of January 2011, the West Coast groundfish trawl fishery is now managed under a trawl rationalization catch share program. Under this new program, managers establish annual catch limits based on the health of each fish stock. They then allocate a share of this catch limit to individual fishermen or groups of fishermen. These fishermen can decide how and when to catch their share – preferably when weather, markets, and business conditions are most favorable, allowing the fishery the flexibility to be more environmentally responsible, safer, more efficient, and more valuable. Observers monitor 100 percent of the fishing trips, which helps reduce bycatch and provides better data for future stock assessments.
• Various gear restrictions and closed areas affect both West Coast groundfish fisheries and fisheries that may take groundfish incidentally. These regulations are in place to reduce bycatch of overfished groundfish species and protect groundfish habitat.

Gulf of Alaska: Gulf of Alaska Groundfish Fishery Management Plan (Dover sole are managed as part of the “deep water flatfish group” along with Greenland turbot and deep-sea sole, but the fishery primarily targets Dover sole.)

• Managers set a conservative annual catch limit for the fishery, which has allowed for sustainable harvests for the past decade.
• A “license limitation program” limits the number, size, and specific operation of vessels in groundfish fisheries. This helps prevent the “race for fish,” where fishermen would compete against one another to catch as many fish before the catch limit was reached and the fishery closed, leading to unsafe fishing practices, market instability, and high levels of bycatch.

Annual Harvest

Off the West Coast, Dover sole have been harvested by trawlers since World War II, and caught incidentally before then in directed fisheries for English and petrale sole. Annual landings have averaged over 8,200 metric tons (18.1 million pounds) since 2001 on the West Coast.

In the Gulf of Alaska, catch of Dover sole rapidly increased to almost 10,000 metric tons in the early 1990s when the domestic commercial fishery began, but has declined since then. Since 2001, annual catches have averaged about 550 metric tons. The 2011 catch totaled 465 metric tons. Overall flatfish landings are typically limited by early closures of the fishery, when they reach their quota of allowed Pacific halibut bycatch.

Economy

Dover sole make up a substantial portion of annual revenues from the West Coast trawl fishery. In 2009, Dover sole landings were valued at $8.7 million, and 2010 landings in 2010 were valued at $7 million.