Saving Seafood

Council Actions

NEFMC Roundup – Herring, EBFM, Skates, Red Hake, January 2020 Meeting

February 5, 2020 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

Here are several timely management actions that directly relate to the work of the New England Fishery Management Council.

ATLANTIC HERRING SPECIFICATIONS:  The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS/NOAA Fisheries) is collecting public comment through February 12, 2020 on Framework Adjustment 6 to the Atlantic Herring Fishery Management Plan (FMP).  This framework was developed by the Council to set specifications and catch limits for the 2020 and 2021 fishing years and update the overfished and overfishing definitions for Atlantic herring.  Visit the Council’s Framework 6 webpage.  Stakeholders also may want to keep tabs on the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s progress on Draft Addendum III to the Interstate Atlantic Herring FMP, which may impact how the Area 1A quota is allocated.
 
ATLANTIC HERRING ASSESSMENT:  Atlantic herring is one of several stocks undergoing a management track assessment in 2020.  An Assessment Oversight Panel (AOP) meeting is scheduled for February 25, 2020 in Woods Hole, MA.  The agenda and webinar registration information can be found on the meeting webpage.  Discussions related to Atlantic herring, Atlantic mackerel, and longfin inshore squid are scheduled for the afternoon.  Surfclams, ocean quahogs, and butterfish are on deck in the morning.  The assessment peer review meeting for Atlantic herring and the other stocks mentioned above is scheduled for June 22-26, 2020.
 
EBFM CONTRACTOR:  The Council is seeking a contractor to prepare Ecosystem-Based Fishery Management-related public outreach materials.  Letters of interest and supporting documents must be received by February 14, 2020.  Details are available at EBFM Outreach.  Here’s a link to the announcement.
 
SKATES:  NOAA Fisheries is collecting public comment through March 6, 2020 on Framework Adjustment 8 to the Northeast Skate Complex FMP.  The framework was developed by the Council to set skate wing and skate bait specifications for the 2020-2021 fishing years.  Visit the Council’s Skate Framework Adjustment 8 webpage for more information.
 
RED HAKE:  On February 3, NOAA Fisheries reduced the commercial possession limit for southern red hake from 5,000 pounds to the incidental limit of 400 pounds per trip for the remainder of the fishing year, which ends April 30.  The agency took this action after projecting that 90% of the total allowable landings limit would be reached on or around February 2.  Details are available in the Federal Register notice.  The Council is working on an action to rebuild southern red hake.  Visit the Council’s whiting webpageand take a look at materials from the last Joint Whiting Committee and Advisory Panel meeting and January 2020 Council meeting.  The Council will be sending out additional information about this action in the near future.
 
NEFMC JANUARY 2020 MEETING:  The full New England Council met January 28-30, 2020 in Portsmouth, NH.  Visit the meeting webpage to access the audio and all meeting materials.  Among the many topics covered, the Council discussed how it uses sociocultural information in its process.  Take a look at the presentation and report.  Also, here’s a list of news releases from the meeting.
SAVE THE DATE:  The Council’s next meeting will be held April 14-16, 2020 in Mystic, CT.

Clarification: Southern Red Hake Commercial Possession Limit Reduction

February 5, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

On February 3, 2020, we sent an email notifying the industry that the southern red hake commercial per-trip possession is reduced to 400 lb per day for the remainder of the 2019 fishing year, through April 30, 2020.

The reduced possession limit is 400 lb per trip total, not per day, for the remainder of the 2019 fishing year, through April 30, 2020.

For more information read the bulletin or the notice published in the Federal Register.

NEFMC Votes to Send Draft Groundfish Monitoring Amendment 23 out for Comment with Preferred Alternatives

February 5, 2020 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council voted on January 29 to send Draft Groundfish Monitoring Amendment 23 out for public comment. The amendment contains numerous proposals, and the Council selected several “preferred alternatives” to help guide the public in supplying feedback. The hearings will take place this spring, likely in late March and April. The Council then will review all oral and written comments and take final action during its June 23-25 meeting in Freeport, ME.

The Council developed the amendment “to improve the reliability and accountability of catch reporting in the commercial groundfish fishery to ensure there is precise and accurate representation of catch.” Catch is defined as both landings and discards.

Read the full release here

NOAA Fisheries Seeks Public Comment on Proposed Modifications to the Northeast Skate Complex Fishery Management Plan

February 5, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Framework 8 includes 2020-2021 Specifications and increased seasonal possession limits for the wing and bait fisheries to provide additional flexibility to fishermen. We propose to:

  • Increase the annual catch limit for the skate complex to 32,715 mt from 31,327 mt in 2019.
  • Increase total allowable landings of skate wings to 11,879 mt from 10,499 mt in 2019.
  • Increase the total allowable landings of skate bait to 5,984 mt from 5,289 mt in 2019.
  • Increase the bait fishery Season 3 possession limit to 25,000 lb from 12,000 lb.
  • Increase the wing fishery Season 1 possession limit to 3,000 lb from 2,600 lb.
  • Increase the wing fishery Season 2 possession limit to 5,000 lb from 4,100 lb.
  • Increase the barndoor skate possession limit in the wing fishery from 650 lb to 750 lb in Season 1, and from 1,025 lb to 1,250 lb in Season 2.

To get all the details on these proposed modifications, read the proposed rule as published in the Federal Register today.

We are accepting comments through March 6, 2020.

Please submit comments either through the online e-rulemaking portal or by mailing your comments to:

Michael Pentony, Regional Administrator
National Marine Fisheries Service
55 Great Republic Drive
Gloucester, MA, 01930.

Please mark the outside of the envelope, “Comments on the Proposed Rule for Skate Framework 8.”

New England council will examine 100 percent at-sea monitoring

February 5, 2020 — Requiring 100 percent at-sea monitoring coverage for the Northeast groundfish trips is part of the Amendment 23 proposal the New England Fishery Management Council will take to public hearing in the coming weeks.

The council approved a surprise motion by NMFS regional administrator Michael Pentony Jan. 29 at its meeting in Portsmouth, N.H., to move the long-awaited changes to the groundfish plan.

Pentony stressed that achieving 100 percent coverage is not his goal, but to spur a broader public discussion about monitoring and other reforms – which Pentony said could help provide more fishing opportunity.

“I want it to be very clear that I’m not making this motion because it’s my opinion or the agency’s opinion,” Pentony told council members. Making 100 percent coverage the preferred option will “provide a sense of what’s possible,” and a “good framework for discussion during the public hearing process,” he said.

It’s also the only option that would make possible the elimination of management uncertainty buffers, and making more groundfish available to catch, Pentony said.

“This doesn’t commit the council to action in June,” he added.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

NEW YORK: Peconic Bay scallops die-off tied to newly detected parasite

February 4, 2020 — The catastrophic die-off of Peconic Bay scallops in eastern Long Island waters may be tied to a previously undetected parasite that can infect the kidneys of adult and juvenile scallops, state regulators reported Friday.

The specific parasitic organism, known as coccidian parasite, was discovered in kidney tissue of all 32 scallops collected and sampled from Shelter Island’s Hay Beach last November, the state Department of Environmental Conservation said. Some scallops had “extensive damage” to renal tubes, enough to kill the most heavily infected, the DEC said.

The agency, working with Stony Brook University’s Marine Animal Disease Laboratory, said the parasite “represents a significant threat” to the scallops, but cautioned that “further research is needed” to study how widely the parasite may have been dispersed, its life cycle and rate of infection before it can be said with certainty that it was the direct cause of the die-off.

“This is a new factor that scientists think may have a prevalent effect,” a DEC spokeswoman said.

Biologists last year theorized a combination of factors may have spurred the catastrophic collapse of Peconic Bay scallops, which saw mortality rates of from 90% to 100% in many eastern waterways.

Read the full story at Newsday

Marina firm develops tech that could help whale entanglement

February 4, 2020 — On the heels of a new report indicating whale entanglements from buoyed ropes from crab traps could worsen in Monterey Bay, a Marina company has a technology that can eliminate the need for any entangling lines.

A study released last week by a researcher from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration indicates that conditions that have caused a marked increase in humpback whale entanglements are likely to get worse because of climate change.

The reasons can be complicated but essentially humpbacks are being pushed toward crab lines in search of food that isn’t available in their normal feeding areas.

Traditional crab traps lie on the ocean floor and are connected to identifiable buoys with roping. When a whale swims under the buoy it can get caught up in that roping and suffer severe trauma such as deep cuts.

Read the full story at the Monterey Herald

When Environmentalists and the Fishing Industry Team Up, Ocean Habitats Win

February 4, 2020 — When it comes to threatened Pacific species, groundfish rarely get the glory. They are not as charismatic as orcas, nor is their life history as inspiring as salmon’s. As seas warm and the threats of climate change take effect, what these bottom-dwellers—and the cultures that depend on them—do have going for them is an incredible and unexpected comeback story.

Historically, the Pacific groundfish fishery was run as a derby—essentially a race for fish. By the 1970s, massive quantities of fish and bycatch were being hauled in via trawl nets all along the coasts of Washington, Oregon, and California. But by the late 1990s, research began to reveal signs of overfishing among groundfish, which includes dozens of species that live near the ocean bottom, such as rockfish, roundfish, and flatfish. Since many of these species are long-lived, they are slow to grow and reproduce, meaning they’re also slow to recover from overharvesting. As the century turned, managers scrambled to close certain areas to fishing and reduce catch limits to prevent collapse.

“The first decade of the millennium, we were in sort of a frantic panic mode trying to gather more scientific information,” says Gretchen Hanshew, a fisheries management specialist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. At the same time, NOAA worked to rein in some exploitative fishing practices to make sure they weren’t creating future problems.

Still, in 2001, a coalition of environmental groups sued the federal government to step up the management of overfished species and won. The result was a sweeping closure of fishing areas considered essential fish habitat, many as a precautionary measure. Managers essentially froze the map on trawl fishing until they could get a better handle on what was happening where.

Read the full story at Yes Magazine

Roughly 1,400 pounds of shark fins seized in Florida

February 4, 2020 — Inspectors with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced on Monday they had seized roughly 1,400 pounds of shark fins hidden in boxes in Florida last month.

The agency said the shipment of severed fins arrived on Jan. 24 at Miami Port of Entry in roughly 18 boxes. They were believed to have come from South America and likely bound for Asia.

Officials estimated the total value of the fins to be worth between $700,000 and $1 million. They waited until Monday to share the news outside of law enforcement.

“The goal of this seizure is to protect these species while deterring trackers from using U.S. ports as viable routes in the illegal shark fin trade,” said Christina Meister, a spokeswoman for the Fish and Wildlife Service, according to the Miami Herald.

Read the full story at Fox News

For offshore wind, expect more delays

February 4, 2020 — Federal agencies assessing the environmental impact of Vineyard Wind are now expecting the long-delayed process to wrap up sometime in December, according to a top Baker administration official.

The Vineyard Wind project was put on hold indefinitely in August 2019 when the federal government decided to supplement its environmental impact review with a study of the cumulative impact of the many wind farms being proposed along the eastern seaboard. The impact of wind farms on fishermen is a focus of that supplemental review.

Kathleen Theoharides, the governor’s secretary of energy and environmental affairs, said on Monday that federal agencies have developed a new timetable for the review of the Vineyard Wind project that calls for the work to be wrapped up by the end of the year.

That timetable is problematic for wind farm developers up and down the coast, but especially for the two companies that have been awarded power purchase contracts by Massachusetts utilities and are eager to begin construction. The lengthy delay also pushes back the starting point for delivery of wind power that is badly needed if Massachusetts is going to meet its greenhouse gas emissions targets.

Read the full story at Commonwealth Magazine