This action will update Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) designations for Atlantic cod, Atlantic herring, monkfish, and all skate species through framework adjustments to the groundfish, herring, monkfish, and skate plans.
This framework will update Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) text and map designations for all life history stages of Atlantic cod, Atlantic herring, monkfish, little skate, winter skate, barndoor skate, smooth skate, thorny skate, clearnose skate, and rosette skate. This action is being developed through the Habitat Plan Development Team, Committee, and Advisory Panel with support from species PDTs and APs.
Federal regulations require that EFH designations be reviewed and, if warranted, updated at least once every five years based on available information. EFH designations were last updated for all NEFMC managed species via the 2018 Omnibus Habitat Amendment 2. The Council completed an EFH Technical Review in January 2025, which included the development of model-based EFH designation methods. A recommendation of the review was that the Council should evaluate and potentially update text and map components of EFH designations for all NEFMC-managed species. The Council agreed to complete this detailed evaluation over a three-year period starting in 2025. This framework will build upon the work of the EFH Technical Review for the 10 species listed above.
Revisions to EFH designations (text and maps) can be used as context and background for Council discussion and decision-making on any future management action(s). Updated designations also support EFH consultations done by the Habitat and Ecosystem Services Division (HESD) at the Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office (GARFO).