Operation Riptide: Highly Migratory Species Enforcement Levels the Playing Field for Law-Abiding Fishermen

NOAA Fisheries' Office of Law Enforcement led "Operation Riptide," a 2-day multi-state operation targeting highly migratory species enforcement in July 2025. Agents and officers from NOAA, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, and New York Department of Environmental Conservation worked together to help protect marine life and law-abiding U.S. fishermen. We conducted this operation to help improve compliance with highly migratory species regulations in the state and federal waters off of New York and New Jersey.

Each day of the operation began with virtual briefings before participating agents and officers hit the water. These briefings provided crucial information on historic fishing patterns to help them effectively assess potential violations. They included details such as:

• Target species at that time of year
• Up-to-date weather and tide information
• Real-time species-specific migration and population density information in the operation area

Collectively, we conducted patrols covering the majority of navigable coastal inlets between Cape May, New Jersey to Montauk, New York. Eight NOAA Fisheries agents and officers participated in the operation along with several officers from New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and New York Department of Environmental Conservation.

Our mobilization of state-owned patrol vessels was key to the operation's success. A total of nine patrol vessels participated in the operation; five from the New York Department of Environmental Conservation and four from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. Participating agents and officers conducted a total of 87 boardings during the operation:

• 63 federal HMS-focused boardings in the Exclusive Economic Zone
• 24 state-waters boardings, which included both state-licensed and federally permitted vessels.

We identified five federal violations and nine state regulation violations over the course of the operation. We closed two of the HMS violations after violators paid their summary settlement offers. Both involved recreational angler category permit holders who failed to maintain their kept fish in the proper form (e.g., not removing the tail, which prevents proper law enforcement verification of the total length).

Northeast Division Acting Assistant Director James Cassin called the operation a great success, explaining: "This operation demonstrated the combined readiness of both state and federal enforcement to mobilize and ensure regulatory compliance across the vast area of coastline between New York and New Jersey. We're dedicated to ensuring the sustainable harvest of domestic seafood."

If left unchecked, illegal fishing creates a competitive disadvantage for law abiding fishermen. We help level the playing field for honest fishermen by enforcing highly migratory species laws.

You can reach the Northeast Office of Law Enforcement at (978) 281-9213 (select "option 2" for regulatory compliance) or [email protected].