California Box Crab EM Pilot Project

The California Box Crab electronic monitoring pilot assesses the commercial viability of an experimental fishery by using EM in place of at-sea observers, supporting data collection and oversight under an exempted permit administered by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.

March 22, 2021

Crab pot full of harvested crabs being hauled onto a fishing vessel deck for monitoring and sampling.

The U.S. Dungeness crab fishery is a major commercial fishery on the Pacific West Coast. It is part of a multibillion-dollar industry that employs hundreds of fishing boats. In California there are 350 crab fishing vessels. Archipelago has been involved with this fishery since 2019 supporting the crab fishery with Electronic Monitoring solutions to modernize the management of the coastal fishery. 

Archipelago, partnered with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife https://wildlife.ca.gov/, Archipelago implemented an Electronic Monitoring pilot that operated under an exempted fishing permit (EFP) allowing the use of EM as a substitute for at-sea observers on five crab fishing vessels in California.  Key problems to address during the pilots were: 

  • Knowing the fishing locations and vessels tracks 
  • Determining the number of crab traps deployed under the mandatory trap limit 
  • Could EM be used as a cost-effective substitute for at-sea observers? 
  • Would data collection facilitate strategies to reduce interaction with endangered mammals and lead to better zone closure management?

In the summer of 2023, California implemented Electronic Monitoring of their Dungeness Crab Fleet which has  reduced costs and improved the management of the fishery. Archipelago supported CDFW with initial pilot projects that then moved into full commercial implementation, covering the 350 vessels. Today the fishery is realizing the benefits of: 

  • Eliminates the need and cost of At Sea Observers since all data is collected electronically 
  • Provides real-time tracking of vessel location and trap deployment   
    • Can also show in real time any fishing regions that are closed 
  • Logs all traps deployed and retrieved ensuring they stay within the trap limit regulations 
    • This also reduces gear loss / theft saving big money annually
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