Building Linkages for Use of Electronic and Human Observer Data in the Gulf of Mexico Reef Fish Fishery

Partner: Mote Center for Fisheries Electronic Monitoring

As electronic monitoring (EM) becomes more widely used, there is a growing need to integrate EM data with other data streams, particularly data gathered by human observers. To lay the groundwork for this integration, the Mote Center for Fisheries Electronic Monitoring (CFEMM) mapped the data flows that are needed to use electronic reporting and monitoring data in the management of Gulf of Mexico fisheries.

This work facilitated networking and direct involvement with stakeholder groups and partners, supporting the application of EM and working towards identification of optimum data types and formats for standardizing EM with other collected fishery-dependent data. Further achievements included the identification of proof of concept strategies for a file-sharing portal and bringing to fruition a CFEMM ‘Home Port’ for increasing data and communications with industry, science, and management. Collectively, these efforts are a step forward in the standardization and integration of EM with other collected fishery-dependent data, and moved towards scaling the applications to all Gulf stock assessments