Peer Review on New England Groundfish Science:  The peer review of our New England groundfish science was completed and presented at the New England Fishery Management Council meeting this week in Providence, Rhode Island.  The reviewers concluded that our science is sound, credible, and should be considered by managers working on the Northeast Multispecies FMP.  "We have a saying where I am from--polishing peanuts-- I think you could polish these peanuts for a very long time, and not get much more out of them," said Dr. Andrew Payne, who chaired the review group.  In addition to looking at scientific results on groundfish Maximum Sustainable Yield, related reference points, and stock projections, the reviewers looked at results from investigations into the effect of the uneven trawl wires discovered last Fall on the Albatross IV.  They concluded that wire offset effects on data collected were minimal, the data should be used, and changes in the survey should be approached cautiously.   The reviewers were provided through the Center for Independent Experts and hailed from the U.K. and Canada.  They were asked to do an enormous amount of work in a very short time period (sound familiar?) and we are extremely grateful to them for rising to the challenge.  The reviewers' reports have been sent to the Northeast Fisheries Science Center and are posted on the following website:
http://www.nefsc.noaa.gov/press_release/advisory03.04.html

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