WASHINGTON – March 16, 2010 – The House Natural Resources Committee, Subcommittee on Insular Affairs, Oceans and Wildlife, led by Del. Madeleine Z. Bordallo (D-GU), held an oversight hearing on "Catch Shares as a Management Option: Criteria for Ensuring Success. See the video here.
Hilborn says eliminating global fishing would mean plowing world’s rainforests 22 times over
Replacing the global fish supply would cost 22 times the world's rainforests. If we replaced the protein we got from fish with land based agriculture, we'd need extra grazing land equal to the entire world's rainforest 22 times over. SEAFOOD.COM NEWS by John Sackton – March 15, 2010 – At a recent conference in New Zealand sponsored by the New Zealand fishing industry council, noted Univ. of Washington fisheries professor Ray Hilborn shared some research on the impact of halting commercial fishing.
He found that replacing the global fish supply would cost 22 times the world's rainforests. If we replaced the protein we got from fish with land based agriculture, we'd need extra grazing land equal to the entire world's rainforest 22 times over, said Hilborn.
Hilborn evaluated published research into the effects on the environment of protein production (including farming animals on land and catching wild fish). He found that on average, commercial fishing had a lesser impact on the environment than land-based animal farming.
Seafood industries are held to 'higher environmental standards generally' when compared with other food producers, he says.
'Protein production is always going to have some effect on the environment. But it is important that we are aware of the trade off required to feed the world. It wouldn't be smart to suggest we stop producing any single category of food, especially without thinking about how and with what we're going to replace it.'
'Commercial fishing in particular is held to higher environmental standards. If green groups were consistent and applied those same standards to other forms of food production we wouldn't have anything to eat. '
Professor Hilborn examined existing published and peer reviewed research from a wide range of scientific sources into the environmental effects of food production. 'When you think about it, it makes a lot of sense that fishing has a relatively small environmental impact. In terms of water use, water pollution, pesticides, fertiliser, antibiotics and soil erosion, fishing barely figures. Then when you compare energy use and CO2 footprint, fishing in general comes out on top again. '
Fishing also compared favourably in terms of biodiversity, Professor Hilborn said. 'This is interesting because biodiversity is an area where fishing has been strongly criticised. ' He said the other scientists' work shows that fishing typically reduces measured biodiversity by 30 per cent and reduces abundance of fish by one half to three quarters. 'Land based agriculture has a far greater effect on biodiversity. For every acre that's ploughed you lose 100 per cent of the biodiversity. '
John Sackton, Editor And Publisher
Seafood.com News 1-781-861-1441
Email comments to jsackton@seafood.com
Atlantic scallop fishery enters Marine Stewardship Council full assessment process
The U.S. Atlantic sea scallop (Placopecten magellanicus) dredge fishery operating in the exclusive economic zone of the United States of America offshore from Maine to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina is entering full assessment in the Marine Stewardship Council’s (MSC) certification program for sustainable and well-managed fisheries. The fishery will be assessed against the MSC Standard and, if successful, its products will be eligible to bear the MSC ecolabel recognizing products from well-managed and sustainable sources. About the U.S. Atlantic sea scallop fishery
According to the National Marine Fisheries Service, 2008 scallop landings were 24,280 metric tonnes (53.5 million lbs.) making the U.S. Atlantic sea scallop fishery the world’s largest scallop fishery by market value. The commercial fishery is conducted year round, primarily using New Bedford style scallop dredges. The scallops are shucked on board and their main markets are the U.S. and member states of the European Union.
Acting under the legislation and policy directives of the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), the New England Fisheries Management Council (NEFMC) is responsible for management of the fishery in cooperation with the Mid Atlantic Fisheries Management Council (MAFMC). Individual members of the American Scallop Association – Atlantic Capes Fisheries, Seatrade International, Eastern Fisheries, Oceans Alive Seafood, Raw Seafood, Northern Wind, Marlees, American Seafood, Marder Trawling, Hygrade Ocean Products and Chesapeake Bay Packing – are the clients for this assessment.
What the fishery says
“Operating sustainably and seeking MSC certification is the right thing to do not only for us, but certainly for the people behind us who will run our companies in the future,” said Ross Paasche, president of the American Scallop Association. “Down the road it will be the minimum threshold for global buyers, products will need a mark of some sort and we clearly see the MSC as the authority when it comes to certification as a sustainable fishery.”
What the MSC says
“The MSC is pleased to see this significant fishery moving forward with full assessment,” said MSC Americas Regional Director Kerry Coughlin. “If they are successful, MSC certification will provide the Atlantic scallop fishery with an internationally recognized method to demonstrate to their buyers, and consumers of this popular seafood, that they have made a meaningful and long-term commitment to seafood sustainability.”
About the certifier
The American Scallop Association has contracted with MSC-accredited certification company Moody Marine Ltd. to conduct the independent, third-party assessment which is expected to take approximately 12 months to complete. Moody Marine will convene a team of scientific experts to evaluate the fishery based on the three core principles of the MSC’s standard: the sustainability of the fish stock, its impact on the environment and the management system in place.
Senator John Kerry Introduces Legislation to Protect Whales
Further demonstrating his commitment towards environmental conservation, Senator John Kerry (D-MA) today introduced legislation aimed at protecting whales. The International Whale Conservation and Protection Act of 2010 addresses major threats to whales including commercial whaling, ship strikes, entanglement in fishing gear, ocean noise, and climate change and reasserts the U.S. as a leader in whale conservation.
"Whales are in a sea of trouble, and we must do all we can to mitigate threats to the species and its habitat," said Jeff Flocken, IFAW DC Office Director. "We applaud Senator Kerry's leadership in championing this legislation and hope his colleagues follow suit."
Elements of the legislation include:
* Promoting international efforts to conserve and protect the world's whales throughout their range.
* Strengthening the whale conservation and protection efforts of relevant international organizations including the United Nations Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals, the International Whaling Commission (IWC), the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), and the International Maritime Organization.
* Ensuring that the IWC commercial whaling ban is neither lifted nor weakened and that the related illegal and lethal scientific whaling is ended.
* Reducing and, where possible, eliminating sources of human-caused death, injury, harassment and disturbance of the world's whales.
* Initiating and expanding research to improve our understanding of the world's whales including health and reproduction, whale habitats and the impacts of human activities and other threats to whales.
Catch Shares, Consolidation and The Tipping Point
Proponents claim Catch Shares will stop overfishing, restore the stocks, create high paying quality jobs, and make the fishermen profitable and safe. A closer look at Catch Share programs in place for decades shows no data to support these claims.
Further consolidation or reduction of the commercial fishing fleet, a known consequence of Catch Shares and stated by NOAA during their push for implementation, will take the independently owned at sea fishing vessel operations and the dockside support businesses beyond their financial “tipping point”. This will cause the small, family owned, independent fishing businesses and their communities to collapse.
The New England Fishery Management Council is in the process of installing the Amendment 16 management scheme of Catch Shares or Individual Fishing Quotas (IFQ’s), or Individual Transferrable Quotas (ITQ’s). The various terms and acronyms for the program can all be defined by the concept of owned percentages of the Total Allowable Catch (TAC) by individuals, or groups, or corporations, or organizations, or cooperatives. A “Sector” is a cooperative of Catch Share holders.
This Catch Share management approach is actually an idea of economics, claiming production efficiency, and not one of fishery conservation. It is the private ownership of the shares of a natural resource. Catch shares are an extension of the faulty deregulated free market theories of economists such as Milton Friedman, which in this case have evolved into the concept of Free Market Environmentalism which is the approach of …ownership equals responsibility; or render a commodity profitable enough and somehow the owners and the mechanism of market capitalization will automatically stabilize and sustain that resource or industry.
Read the complete story at Ahab's Journal.
Alaska legislators blast Endangered Species Act
Members of Alaska’s congressional delegation met with two top Obama administration environmental officials Friday to discuss several issues that could have wide-ranging impacts on the state.
Of most concern to the delegation is the proposed listing of a critical habitat for the Cook Inlet beluga whale and petitions to list ice seals as threatened or endangered species. The delegation is worried that such decisions by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration could harm the state’s economy.
“In this economic climate, the fear is that all this activity will hurt the economy of Alaska. I share that fear,” Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski said in a statement. “Everyone wants to protect the environment, our wildlife and marine mammals, but the Endangered Species Act is being used as an instrument to stifle economic growth and development.”
Right whales return off Cape for feeding season
At least two dozen North Atlantic right whales have been spotted off the coast of town as their annual feeding season begins in the Northeast, said a Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies scientist on Friday, March 12.
Aerial surveys and boat sightings by the center's research and monitoring teams have indicated that the rare mammals have traveled in and out of Cape Cod Bay, a critical habitat. The whales have so far not "anchored in the inner bay," said Charles "Stormy" Mayo, who directs a right whale habitat study for the center.
The Coastal Studies' aerial survey team had seen three right whales yesterday off Race Point Beach in Provincetown by noon, said survey director Ruth Leeney.
"They're definitely here," Mayo said Friday. "The last information we've received from aerial surveys and vessels is that they're north of Provincetown. But I expect they'll be coming back in. We usually see them early. We did see them as early as January this year."
Alaska lawmakers meet with NOAA chief to discuss endangered status for whales
If there's one thing Alaska's congressional delegation can agree on, it's a distrust of the Endangered Species Act and a belief it could ruin the state's economy.
Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski, Democrat Sen. Mark Begich and Republican Rep. Don Young met Friday to express their concerns with Jane Lubchenco, the administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The agency is in the midst of determining whether to designate more than 3,000 square miles of Cook Inlet as critical habitat for beluga whales.
A spokeswoman for the agency called the meeting productive, but wouldn't elaborate on the delegation's concerns. Lubchenco declined to be interviewed after the meeting.
Pew Applauds the Obama Administration for Backing Global Trade Prohibition of Atlantic Bluefin Tuna, Urges International Support
The Pew Environment Group today praised the Obama administration for supporting the proposed CITES Appendix I listing for Atlantic bluefin tuna. Pew also called for all governments to join the United States in advocating for this proposal, sponsored by Monaco, which would prohibit international commercial trade of this iconic species and prevent it from becoming commercially extinct.
Government delegates from almost 175 countries – including the United States – will debate the bluefin proposal as well as international trade restrictions for eight species of sharks at the upcoming Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) conference. During this meeting, which will take place in Doha, Qatar from March 13-25, governments will determine the fate of these and more than 40 other species.
Pew today hosted a call (MP3) with leading marine scientists and CITES experts who highlighted the desperate conservation status of bluefin and the shark species. Speakers discussed the significance of U.S. support for the bluefin tuna proposal and the critical need for governments to provide these fish with the necessary levels of commercial protection under CITES.
Malta insists bluefin tuna should be regulated by ICCAT, not by CITES
When the meeting of the Conference of the Parties of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) convened yesterday, Malta was the single EU member state still arguing against the inclusion of Atlantic bluefin tuna in the CITES Appendix I listing, which essentially means that the international trade of bluefin tuna will be banned.
The proposal to list bluefin tuna on CITES Appendix I was submitted by the Principality of Monaco in October. Atlantic bluefin tuna is at serious risk of commercial extinction because of decades of unsustainable and illegal fishing in the Mediterranean Sea, driven by demand from Japan’s luxury seafood markets.
The EU, like the USA and a growing list of other countries, is supporting the listing, but Japanese tuna brokers staged a protest on Thursday, ahead of the CITES meeting in Doha, which started yesterday and runs till 25 March.