As it does every year, the federal government has again painted a rosy picture of the health of the nation’s ocean fish populations. While there has been growth in some species, this is only half the story – literally. The National Marine Fisheries Service has no idea about the status of half the country’s fish species. Worse, the number of species that remain overfished in New England is about the same as previous years.

There could be help on the way, however, as NMFS last month proposed to set catch limits and measures to ensure they are not exceeded. The limits would first be set in 2010 for 41 stocks that are currently overfished. They would be expanded to all fish stocks by 2011.

The strictness of the limits and the severity of penalties for exceeding them will determine whether they are meaningful.

In the recently released 2007 Status of U.S. Fisheries report, NMFS service trumpeted that last year represents the best single-year improvement in the number of stocks subject to overfishing, the point at which the catch rate is not sustainable. However, the number of fish stocks that are overfished, meaning the population of fish left in the ocean is below the level set by regulators, has dropped to 45 from 47 in 2006; not much of an improvement.

In New England, 16 of 34 stocks with a known status, including cod, haddock and yellowtail flounder, were overfished, the worst percentage in the country’s fisheries regions. An additional fish species, winter skate, was added to the overfished list.

This shows that the current regulations that seek to limit the volume of fish caught by limiting the number of days fishermen can spend fishing and by putting areas of the ocean off limits to fishing is not working. Setting firm catch limits is long overdue.

Figuring out how to divide up that catch among fishermen is the next difficult hurdle.

A proposal from Down East Maine offers a way to try out one system. The Area Management Coalition, a group of fishermen, scientists and conservationists, is ready to test a regional management approach.

The group has proposed that Maine’s inshore fishery be managed by a local council that would set restrictions for those who want to fish in the area. By managing on a smaller scale, the hope is that fishermen will be rewarded for restricting their catches to allow populations to grow.

Regional management has worked well for the state’s lobster fishery. It, coupled with a strict catch limit and localized quotas, could be the answer to New England’s longstanding overfishing.