Northeast Groundfish Recreational Fishing Demand Survey (ME, MA, NH)

Stated preference choice experiment data were collected in conjunction with NMFS’ Marine Recreational Fisheries Statistics Survey (MRFSS) along the coastal states of Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts during 2014. All anglers intercepted in Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts for NMFS' Marine Recreational Information Program (MRIP) intercept survey were asked to participate in a voluntary follow-up mail survey. Anglers who agreed to participate in the follow-up were sent mail questionnaires using a modified Dillman Tailored Design. The choice experiment survey asked anglers that have targeted Gulf of Maine cod, haddock, or pollock to simultaneously compare features of different hypothetical fishing trips and then to choose the trip they liked best. The features or attributes varied across trips and included bag and size limits of each species, the number of legal-sized fish caught of each species, the number of sub-legal sized fish caught of each species, the number of other types of fish that were legally kept, the trip length in hours, and the total trip cost. Respondents were also permitted to choose an opt-out option which was “Do something else: Freshwater fishing, Saltwater fishing for species other than cod, haddock and pollock, or don't go fishing.” The collection of choice responses from the various choice scenarios allows for the examination of tradeoffs and behavioral responses to various biological and regulatory changes. A total of 1,763 surveys were mailed out and 481 completed mail surveys were returned for a response rate of 27%.