Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the MSA and the Angler Contributions that are Critical to Healthy and Abundant Marine Fisheries

This April, the National Wildlife Federation joins conservationist and anglers around the globe in celebrating the milestone 50th anniversary of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, also known as the “MSA”. The MSA is the primary U.S. federal law that governs fishing in our nation’s ocean waters. Considered one of the most effective fishery laws in the world, it establishes clear science-based standards to manage fishing and sustain healthy United States’ marine fisheries.

The MSA and Sustainable Fisheries Management Strategy

First introduced in 1976, the MSA has been instrumental in keeping fish populations in America healthy. It achieves this through several key objectives that help prevent overfishing, rebuild overfished fish stocks, and protect valuable habitat that fish need to thrive.

It also helps ensure sustainable access and provides a management framework that gives both recreational anglers and commercial fishermen a voice and role through representation on eight Regional Fishery Management Councils.

All these aspects work in concert to support healthier and more sustainable fish populations that benefit the outdoor economy and marine ecosystems. Simply put, the MSA supports abundant fish in the water, which in turn means better fishing opportunities and fishing outcomes.

America’s more than 15 million saltwater recreational anglers benefit from the MSA’s role in maintaining the resources and habitats that support productive recreational fisheries. These anglers are essential to its success, as important and powerful stewards of the country’s marine fisheries and active participants in the management process.

Increasing Fish Survivability: Return ‘Em Right

Advances in fishing technology are making recreational and commercial fishermen more efficient in their pursuit of offshore species, heightening the need to exercise best practices to minimize by-catch and to maximize the survivability of fish that are returned to the ocean.

A particular problem with releasing fish caught in deeper water is that they can suffer from barotrauma when brought up from the depths.

Gases expand internally, often displacing organs and leaving them bloated and unable to return to depth on their own. Release mortality due to barotrauma is a growing problem affecting reef fish like red snapper, grouper, amberjack, triggerfish, and other marine fish populations due to reduced season overlap and stricter limits resulting in more fish being released.

Recreational anglers are demonstrating that they are a significant part of an effective solution by using methods to ensure survivability of released fish such as the use of circle hooks, venting tools and descending devices.

Recently, a new program called Return ‘Em Right launched to better equip and train recreational anglers to release fish back to deep water and increase their survival rate after suffering from barotrauma.

The program, which was funded from penalties from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, operates in the Gulf and provides recreational anglers with a free descending device and training on proper use. Since 2022, the Return ‘Em Right program has trained and provided free release gear to more than 50,000 saltwater anglers, equipping them with the knowledge and tools to properly release fish and significantly improve survival rates.

Through the successful efforts of this program, nearly 20,000 reef fish have also been tagged and released to aid in research. With recreational fishing expenditures in the Gulf totaling more than $11 billion and representing approximately 36% of all such expenditures in the United States, this is helping to ensure a robust and sustainable fishery for current and future generations of anglers.

Recreational anglers are critical leaders in sustaining our fisheries for the next 50 years of the MSA.

To learn more about the best practices to help reef fish survive release, check out the Return ‘Em Right program.

Lindsay Gardner is Director of Marine Conservation for the National Wildlife Federation.