Electronic Reporting Harvest Program

Daily Electronic Harvest Reporting Program Using FACTS^TM

Our Mission         

Part of the Oyster Recovery Partnership (ORP)’s mission is to promote and implement wild fishery activities to protect our environment, support our economy and preserve our cultural heritage. We value the sustainability of wild fisheries while having an appreciation for the economic dependency on them as a resource and therefore strive in maintaining a strong relationship with both fisheries managers and watermen.

Why Electronic Reporting?

Our organization has recognized a limiting factor in current commercial harvest reporting which prevents commercial fisheries from being managed most effectively and therefore leads to non-sustainable harvesting of fisheries.

As a means to resolve this issue, our organization has looked to daily electronic harvest reporting which allows watermen to report more efficiently while simultaneously providing fisheries managers with timelier and more accurate fisheries data to more properly assess and manage the fisheries.

Our Involvement

Our involvement with this project has included working with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) and other agencies to initiate, monitor and manage the following two pilot programs for Maryland commercial fisheries.

Blue Crab Pilot Project

Starting in 2012, a pilot project was initiated to test the ability and effectiveness of Maryland commercial blue crab industry to report their harvest electronically. Since the beginning of the program, approximately 150 watermen have participated, submitting over 10,000 trips in the FACTS^TM system. The project has continued for 3 years, during which, our developing team has worked with participants to obtain feedback so that system modifications can be made to develop a reporting method best suited to watermen and managers’ needs. Click here to learn more about this project.

Striped Bass Pilot Project

In the fall of 2014 the project was continued with the initiation of a pilot program to test the effectiveness of the electronic harvest reporting system within the striped bass industry. Similar to the blue crab pilot project, this program allowed for increased accountability within the fishery, simpler reporting for watermen and better management due to more timely and accurate fisheries data. The striped bass pilot program also allowed watermen to manage and transfer their quota electronically with instant access to their trip, harvest and transfer records. The striped bass pilot project extended from November 2014 through February 2015, during which, 17 watermen volunteered and reported their harvest for approximately 180 fishing trips which were checked in at 8 check stations using FACTS^TM.  Click here to learn more about this project.

Click here to sign up for the program.

Our Goal

Educate watermen and public from all regions on importance of E-reporting

Tie in importance of sustainable seafood?

Convert to electronic reporting as predominant way of harvest reporting