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Status of Maine Fish Stocks: Some Hope Amid the Gloom

April 29, 2014 — Federal officials released a report today on efforts to rebuild the nation's depleted saltwater fisheries. Thirty-four populations have been successfully restored to health since the year 2000, including two species last year. But neither of those were in Maine or New England. As Jay Field reports, it will be likely be 10 years or more before stocks of the region's most vulnerable groundfish are rebuilt.

The federal government puts out a "Status of the Stocks" report every year. Alan Risenhoover runs the Office of Sustainable Fisheries at the National Marine Fisheries Service. Risenhoover says there are positive trends in New England that are worth noting.

"Some of the trend analysis we've been looking at show some of those stocks that are overfished are starting to show some biomass increasing," Risenhoover says.

Examples include barndoor skate, smooth skate, tilefish and winter flounder.

The news is much less promising, though, on efforts to rebuild stocks of key groundfish like Atlantic cod and halibut. Risenhoover says those species aren't showing any biomass increase to speak of.

He says fisheries regulators in New England are working with the groundfish industry "to find solutions that will rebuild these stocks over time, while keeping as much of the industry fishing during that period as possible."

Read the full story and listen to the audio at The Maine Public Broadcasting Network

Sanctuary for eels: Maine builds a ladder

April 29, 2014 — It’s not always good to be popular.

Take the case of glass eels, the juvenile offspring of the American eel (Anguilla rostrata). They’re considered a delicacy, cooked in a wok and tossed like noodles or they can be fattened in a pond to a thousand times their initial weight and sold overseas for $10 a pound. In 2012 the eel fishery in Maine brought in an estimated $40,000,000, creating a sudden boom.

But prices are falling, along with the number of eels. In Europe, where the fishing is intense, populations are down 90 percent during the last 40 years and there is a moratorium on harvests. That’s led to a sudden boom in New England’s eel fishery.

“A year ago people were getting $2,000 a pound for glass eels,” noted Mark Faherty of Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary. “Now it’s done to $500.”

Ten years ago it was $30 a pound. Despite the fluctuating value of the tiny three-inch eels Sanctuary Director Bob Prescott believes the real pressure is coming not from fishermen (catching glass eels is illegal in Massachusetts) but habitat destruction. Eels have an odd life cycle, the exact opposite of our river herring that swim in from the ocean and up our streams to breed each spring. Eels are freshwater fish lurking for decades in the depths of Cape Cod ponds that migrate downstream and swim out to the Sargasso Sea where they mate. The young tiny eels hatch in the mat of floating seaweed and journey back to the coast arriving as two or three-inch clear translucent glass eels with twin black eyes. If they eaten more and developed darker pigments they’re elvers.

Read the full story at WickedLocal.com

North Carolina Fisheries Association takes action after recommendations from affiliate groups of fishermen

April 30, 2014 — The following was released by the North Carolina Fisheries Association:

Once again, commercial fishermen find themselves in a dilemma due to successful rebuilding efforts of a saltwater resource.

At a meeting in New Bern on Monday, the Board of Directors of the North Carolina Fisheries Association voted unanimously, after hours of a very “spirited” debate, to request that the Division of Marine Fisheries close the large mesh gillnet fishery immediately to the use of large mesh anchored gill nets, gill nets with a mesh of four inches or greater, and that beginning on June 1st, allow the limited opening in a few selected areas with an allowed bycatch of (4) Red Drum per day.

This unprecedented action taken by the commercial fishing trade group came about from a proposal submitted by two of its affiliate fishermen groups: Ocracoke Working Watermen’s Association and the Carteret County Fishermen’s Association.

Due to exceeding the annual commercial harvest limit of 250,000 pounds of Red Drum last year, the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries issued a press release on April 14th of this year that does not allow fishermen to bring red drum to the dock and sell it. In many areas of North Carolina, the species is so abundant at the current time due to protection efforts over the years that it is impossible for fishermen to avoid catching red drum when fishing for other fish, mainly flounder. As a result of the proclamation that prohibits commercial fishermen to sell red drum, those fish caught incidentally while targeting flounder, must be thrown back in the water. At this time of year when the water temperature is cool, most of the drum are alive. However, as the waters warm, there is an ever increasing percentage of those fish that are thrown back dead.

Most fishermen abhor waste, especially when that waste is an excellent food source for the consumer, hence the well-deserved angst from the fishermen. In addition to that, they are very much aware of today’s political environment with the calls for gamefish, bans for gillnets and even talk of a total net ban. With all of those considerations on the table, the North Carolina Fisheries Association held an open discussion about the various options facing them. The meeting was held in New Bern and was open to all commercial fishermen.

It is legal to set a large mesh gillnet to catch flounder. Flounder is one of the favorite fish for restaurants and seafood markets. It is also legal to catch red drum incidental to the targeting of flounder, but with the current situation, those drum cannot be taken to the dock which results in waste of the resource. That waste also leads to a bad political situation for fishermen when there are threats looming in the state legislature about gamefish for red drum, striped bass and speckled trout and even threats of a ban on gillnets or a total net ban. (When a species is declared a “gamefish”, it is illegal for fishermen to sell those fish, meaning it is no longer available to the consumer at retail markets or restaurants.)

The fishermen were very vocal about their frustrations with the Division of Marine Fisheries with their lack of diligence over the monitoring of the commercial harvest. Adequate monitoring would have kept the

The request by the NCFA Board also insists that the Division of Marine Fisheries implement mandatory weekly dealer reporting of red drum catches to ensure proper red drum management.

The proposal by this proposal will be a severe blow to the income of many fishermen who have been affected by this and many other restrictions. But it will avoid the waste of the red drum resource and with some exceptions where Red Drum are not know to occur in such abundance, enable some fishermen to subsist until the fishery reopens.

Going forward, there must be some changes made in the red drum fishery management plan, and they need to be made soon.

Note: The North Carolina Fisheries Association is a 61 year old trade association representing the interests of commercial fishing families. It is governed by a Board of 17 Directors, including 5 affiliate groups.

The actual wording of our proposal is listed below. More detailed background information is available upon request.

Here is the actual wording of our proposal:

On Motion duly made and seconded, The Board of The North Carolina Fisheries Association voted unanimously to request the Director, of The Division of Marine Fisheries to issue a proclamation with the following provisions that shall apply to the use of large mesh anchored gill nets and bycatch of red drum;

1) Effective May 1, 2014 all internal coastal waters will be closed to the use of large mesh anchored gill nets, gill nets with a mesh length of four (4) inches or greater;

2) Beginning June 1, 2014 the following limited areas will open for the use of large mesh anchored gill nets with four (4) red drum per day allowed as bycatch, described below:

a) Albemarle Sound – West of the Intracoastal Waterway

b)Pamlico River – a line beginning at a point at 35˚ 24.5920’N – 76˚ 32.3810’W near Currituck Point; running southwesterly to a point at 35˚ 19.6960’N – 76˚ 36.5360’W near Fulford Point.

c) Bay River – a line beginning at a point 35˚ 11.0760’N – 76˚ 31.6200’W near Bay Point; running southerly to a point at 35˚ 08.9290’N – 76˚ 32.2680’W near Maw Point.

d) Neuse River – a line beginning at a point 35˚08.9290’N – 76˚ 32.2680’W near Maw Point; running southerly to a point at 34˚ 59.2940’N – 76˚ 34.8230’W on the east shore of the mouth of South River.

e) New River – north of the Highway 172 Bridge

1. Effective August 1, 2014 these restrictions will not apply and all areas opened to large mesh gill nets by proclamation M-15-2014 will reopen for large mesh anchored gill nets with seven (7) red drum per day allowed as bycatch;

2. A run around, strike or drop net that is used to surround a school of fish and then is immediately retrieved is exempted from the restrictions above set forth in paragraphs one and two;

3. Drift gill nets that are used to capture fish while being moved along by water currents are exempt from provisions of this proclamation provided the net is being actively fished and attended from deployment through retrieval;

4. That the division implement weekly dealer reporting of red drum catches to ensure proper red drum management.

Louisiana adopts changes to certification program to strengthen consumer confidence

SEAFOOD.COM NEWS — April 29, 2014 — The Louisiana Department of Fish and Wildlife (LDFW) has adopted recent changes to the Louisiana Wild Seafood Certification Standard Program (LWSCP) intended to increase consumer confidence that products with the LWSCP logo are only wild-caught Louisiana seafood items.

The rule changed were adopted on April 20 and require additional clarifications of certain language for general marketing purposes; adjust production registration and supply chain verification and changes application requirements for retailers and restaurants .

For general marketing purposes, the rule changes defined approved statements that can be used with LWSCP Logo for general marketing. Approved statements include "ask us about our certified products,” or “ask us about our certified menu items.” Additional statements may be granted approval by LDWF on a case by case basis upon written request.

As for production registration All seafood or seafood products packaged for retail sale are now required to be registered with LDWF before utilizing the LWSCP logo. Products produced, packaged, and sold exclusively at the location for retail sale are exempt from these registration requirements. The brand owner is responsible for obtaining a product registration, which is valid for 1 year and expires 12 months from the issue date. Product registration requires the following information: brand name, brand owner, processor/packer, species contained in the product, photo or image of package containing brand and name, and three months of invoices showing LWSCP certified seafood purchased specific to the product. Invoices may be submitted by the packager if the brand owner does not directly purchase seafood used in the product.

Finally, LDWF now requires supply chain verification for all retail/restaurants selling and/or serving un-packed seafood, prepared or un-prepared. For the initial applications, each retail/restaurant wanting to participate in LWSCP must provide three months of invoices showing LWSCP certified product purchases. Applications up for annual renewal will require invoices for six months out of the last 12 months showing purchases of LWSCP certified seafood.

This story originally appeared on Seafood.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.

Lobster only major seafood to lose value over 10-year period, report says

April 29, 2014 — Of 10 key species studied by NOAA, only American lobster dropped in price from 2003 through 2012.

It’s a tale well known in Maine: Lobster prices have tanked over the past decade as the harvest has surged.

Among 10 key species that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration examined, only American lobster dropped in price from 2003 through 2012, according to a report released Tuesday.

Commercial fishermen in the United States harvested 9.6 billion pounds of fish and shellfish in 2012, earning $5.1 billion. Sea scallops, shrimp, Pacific salmon and American lobster contributed the most to total revenue.

The greatest increase in landings from 2003 to 2012 was in lobster. The catch more than doubled nationally, to more than 149.5 million pounds. Nationally, the price of lobster fell 27.5 percent, from an average of $3.96 a pound in 2003 to an average of $2.87 a pound in 2012, the report said.

Other species, such as Pacific halibut, Pacific salmon, sea scallops and tuna, roughly doubled in price per pound.

Read the full story at the Portland Press Herald

CANADA: Ice expected to delay start to Prince Edward Island, Gulf of St. Lawrence snow crab fishing until at least Sunday

April 29, 2014 — It will likely be at least Sunday before crab boats in Prince Edward Island and around the Gulf get out to set their gear, the president of the P.E.I. Snow Crab Association suggested Monday.

Carter Hutt said fisherman representatives from around the gulf will participate in another conference call with Department of Fisheries and Oceans officials on Wednesday to further evaluate ice and weather conditions.

Hutt said fishermen need at least 72 hours' notice before the season can get underway, but he added participants from the latest conference call are already considering May 4 as the earliest date the season will get underway.

While Hutt is confident all 28 members of the Island snow crab fleet are ready and able to go, he indicated ice in the Shippagan and Caraquet areas of New Brunswick is proving problematic for crab boats there.

The next conference call will evaluate changes in ice conditions.

“Everybody goes or nobody goes,” Hutt said in stressing the fleet will head out when everyone is able to go.

Read the full story at The Guardian

NOAA Economic report shows Commercial Fishery Values dwarf that of recreational sector

SEAFOOD.COM NEWS by John Sackton — April 30, 2014 — NOAA has released ‘Fisheries Economics of the US’ covering the year 2012, and it should be required reading for all in Congress involved in reauthorization of the Magnuson Stevens Act.

The report shows once and for all that in terms of economic value, employment, sales and income, there is simply no comparison between the recreational and commercial sectors.

This fact is particularly important as lobbyists for the recreational sector call for reallocation of US fisheries resources, which would mean taking a broad economically productive asset and putting it in fewer and more private hands.

There is a wealth of specific information in the economic report, but we want to highlight a few facts to put to rest the myth about the value of recreational fisheries.

In terms of sales, the Commercial sector in 2012 represented $140 billion, the recreational sector $58 billion. In terms of value added to the national economy, the commercial sector added nearly $60 billion, vs. about 30 billion for the recreational sector.

In terms of jobs, the commercial industry (producers, processors, distributors, wholesalers and seafood retailers) employed 1.27 million people, while the recreational sector employed 380,000.

But the most striking difference is in where these people are employed. For the recreational fishing impacts, it was building boats and engines that drove the value. This kind of durable equipment represented 82% of employment impacts, 82% of total sales and impacts, and 81% of value added impacts.

This economic power is represented in the funding of the commercial lobby as well. They are primarily funded from engine makers like Evinrude and Yamaha, and from recreational boat manufacturers like Grady White, Mako and others.

To put this another way, the value of the power boat yacht industry is the primary “value” of recreational fishing. It takes just a simple statement on a form to say a $300,000 power boat – used for cruising, parties, and fishing is part of the recreational fishing industry.’

According to NOAA, less than 20% of the jobs in the industry come from guides, boat operators, tackle shops, motel owners etc.

The picture NOAA paints of the commercial sector is totally different. Here, Seafood Retailers generated the largest number of job and value impacts, accounting for 610,000 jobs, and $32 billion in sales. They were followed by the import sector (207,000 jobs), and wholesalers and distributors (57,000 jobs). The remaining jobs were in harvesting and processing.

In short, the economic benefits of the commercial seafood sector penetrate all parts of the US, throughout the entire economy. It is true that a fishermen in Alaska is in fact supporting the jobs of dozens of people throughout the rest of the country.

The other striking thing about recreational employment was how much of it was concentrated in Florida. For example, out of 380,000 jobs in 2012, fully 30% of them are in Florida alone.

If you add the rest of the Gulf States and North Carolina, the proportion of recreational jobs is around 45%, or nearly half the national total.

This report negates the argument that the recreational fishery has a greater or more direct economic impact than the commercial fishery.

The recreational fishery’s value is primarily concentrated in boat manufacturers and equipment makers and it is highly regionally concentrated.

For the commercial industry, the value and jobs created spread throughout the entire country, while for the recreational sector, the jobs and value are concentrated in a few states and industries. Florida is the only state in the country with more jobs attributable to recreational fishing than commercial. In the rest of the 49 states, the commercial industry provides more jobs and value by a wide margin.

This analysis fully supports the purposes of the Magnuson Stevens Act, which is that if the marine resources of the US are to be used to benefit the entire country, than the commercial seafood industry is by far the most effective and democratic way to accomplish that goal.

Notes for Chart: The Value and Sales figures are in 100,000's, ie. the sales is $1.4 billion, while the jobs figures are in thousands; i.e. 1.4 million. Source NOAA Fisheries Economics of the US.

This story originally appeared on Seafood.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.

In runup to Brussels Show, supply swings influencing EU imports of traditional US seafood items

SEAFOOD.COM NEWS — April 30, 2014 –In the runup to the Brussels Seafood show (now Seafood Expo Global) next week, we looked at what changes were occuring in US seafood exports to Europe this year. Although year to date date is only available through February, it appears that the major driver for changes in US seafood exports has been supply availability.

Through February of this year US salmon, lobster and monkfish exports to the EU market are all up from last year, while scallops, cod and pollock have fallen.

Total salmon shipments have benefited from an improved supply situation and are up 31 percent through February. With the figure also up over 17 percent from 2012 levels, US salmon continues to be an attractive item in the EU market.

Monkfish shipments, another popular item in the EU market have steadily increased since 2012. As of February this year the EU has imported nearly 21 percent more monkfish compared with 2013. This past year, the New England Fishery Management council expanded the trip limits for monkfish, based on improving stocks.

Likewise EU imports of US lobster have grown along with the heavy domestic landings. This year EU imports are up 27 percent from last year and 40 percent from 2012 as prices have come down.

Conversely lower landings and record high prices for US scallops have driven down imports for what is a typically popular item in the EU market. This year US scallop shipments are down over 15 percent from 2013 and 18 percent from two years ago.

And with Barents Sea cod quotas soaring to nearly 1 million tons over the last two years, an EU market flush with supply has moved away from US product. Cod shipments to the EU are down about 18 percent so far this year and 25 percent from two years ago.

As for pollock, EU imports from the US are down about 14.5 percent from last February. The drop this year is in contrast to 2013 where EU imports ticked up 3.6 percent year-over-year through February.

Overall, major US seafood shipments to the EU are trending upwards on improved supplies, namely for lobster and salmon. At the same time, when inventories and prices for other traditional items, like scallops, are unfavorable for EU buyers, US shipments have declined.

This story originally appeared on Seafood.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.

West Coast plankton being destroyed by ocean acidification ‘decades early’ say scientists

SEAFOOD.COM NEWS [SCOM] — April 30, 2014 — The problems of ocean acidity harming the marine food chain and ultimately upending West coast fishery produdtion could be coming much sooner than expected. In a new paper published this week, NOAA scientists have found large scale evidence of severe dissolution of the shells of a major oceanic plankton, called a pteropod.

A NOAA-led research team has found the first evidence that acidity of continental shelf waters off the West Coast is dissolving the shells of tiny free-swimming marine snails, called pteropods, which provide food for pink salmon, mackerel and herring, according to a new paper published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

Researchers estimate that the percentage of pteropods in this region with dissolving shells due to ocean acidification has doubled in the nearshore habitat since the pre-industrial era and is on track to triple by 2050.

"Our findings are the first evidence that a large fraction of the West Coast pteropod population is being affected by ocean acidification," said Nina Bednarsek, Ph.D., of NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory in Seattle, the lead author of the paper.
The research team, which also included scientists from NOAA's Northwest Fisheries Science Center and Oregon State University, found that the highest percentage of sampled pteropods with dissolving shells were from northern Washington to central California, where 53 percent of pteropods sampled had severely dissolved shells. The ocean's absorption of carbon dioxide emissions is also increasing the level of corrosive waters near the ocean's surface where pteropods live.

"We did not expect to see pteropods being affected to this extent in our coastal region for several decades," said William Peterson, Ph.D., an oceanographer at NOAA's Northwest Fisheries Science Center and one of the paper's co-authors.

The research documents the movement of corrosive waters onto the continental shelf from April to September during the upwelling season, when winds bring water rich in carbon dioxide up from depths of about 400-600 feet to the surface and onto the continental shelf.

"Acidification of our oceans may impact marine ecosystems in a way that threatens the sustainability of the marine resources we depend on," said Libby Jewett, Director of the NOAA Ocean Acidification Program. "Research on the progression and impacts of ocean acidification is vital to understanding the consequences of using fossil fuels."

This story originally appeared on Seafood.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.

LOUISIANA: Licensing Bill Moves Forward in State Legislature

April 29, 2014 — A bill that would raise saltwater fees by 136-percent for Louisiana residents overwhelmingly passed the full Louisiana House of Representatives today and is now headed for the Senate Natural Resources Committee, according to the bill’s author.

Rep. Stuart Bishop (R-Lafayette) said House Bill 1082, which would raise the saltwater license fee for Louisiana residents from $5.50 to $13, passed by a vote of 74-17.

“I had no questions on the bill. I didn’t really have any opposition that I had heard of,” Bishop said. “The 17 that voted against it really are generally the people that vote against any fee increase whatsoever.

“That’s just their political ideology, and I completely understand that.”

From here, the bill now heads to the Senate Natural Resources Committee, where it will probably be heard sometime in the next two weeks, he said.

“I still need to go over to the Senate side and visit with the senators and check and see who would like to carry it, but it shouldn’t be an issue,” Bishop said.

Read the full story at the Louisiana Sportsman

Management & Regulation