May 11, 2023 — 19th-century whalers sailed the world’s seas hunting their giant prey for oil-producing blubber. But they were also fueling the New England economy — at its peak in 1880, the industry was bringing in $10 million a year, the equivalent of about $296 million today.
US fishing policy is boosting fish populations, not constraining most fisheries, finds research
May 11, 2023 — Commercial fishing employs 1.2 million Americans and generates more than $165 billion annually. Yet warming waters are threatening fish populations and disrupting fisheries around the world—a challenge set to worsen as climate change advances.
Despite the importance of sustaining fisheries, the reauthorization of the cornerstone policy protecting them in the United States—the Magnuson-Stevens Act—has been stalled in Congress for a decade. The holdup? Some blame the policy for being too stringent and leading to what they call “underfishing,” while others argue the policy is not doing enough to rebuild depleted fish populations. Others go so far as to argue that fish populations would have rebounded without any policy.
A pair of studies finds these concerns to be largely unsubstantiated. In analyzing the policy’s impact on fish populations, fishing, and industry revenue, they find that it is working essentially as it should. It is rebuilding fish populations, and in most cases it is not unduly holding back fishers from making their catch.
“Many people talk about the need to manage our resources sustainably,” says Eyal Frank, a lead author of the studies and an assistant professor at the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy. “Too often, this becomes just talk with little evidence that our policies are making a difference. Our studies provide that evidence. Our fishing policy is working, and that is very encouraging news at a time when sustaining our fisheries couldn’t be more vital.”
Spamming streams with hatchery salmon can disrupt ecosystems, study finds
May 10, 2023 — Every year, 22 million sockeye salmon begin life some 420 kilometers, or about 260 miles, inland from the Alaskan coast, in plastic bins. They’re at the Gulkana hatchery, the largest sockeye salmon hatchery in the world — but just one of countless hatcheries around the globe that release native fish into rivers, lakes and oceans to augment wild stocks.
Fish hatcheries, like the species they breed, come in many shapes and sizes. Some, like the Gulkana facility in the U.S., pump out millions of fish each year to support commercial fisheries. Others, like the Nechako White Sturgeon Conservation Centre hatchery in Canada, focus on conservation by rebuilding and maintaining genetic diversity in threatened populations. Some hatcheries use eggs and milt (sperm) from wild fish; others use hatchery fish as parents. But no matter what the species of fish or the purpose of the hatchery program, the released fish enter the ecosystem en masse and interact with an existing community.
Pacific salmon are economically and culturally important species for nations across the northern Pacific Ocean, and hatchery programs positioned to boost commercial fisheries have increased dramatically over the last 150 years. Since the early 1990s, approximately 5 billion hatchery salmon have been released every year, primarily by the United States, Japan and Russia. Chum (Oncorhynchus keta) and pink (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) salmon are by far the most common hatchery salmon species, but others are also bred and released from hatcheries. For example, in Japan, masu salmon (Oncorhynchus masou masou) are a highly sought-after fish, and hatchery managers release approximately 10 million hatchery-bred fry — a juvenile life stage of salmon — into freshwater each year. Typically, the released masu fry stay in streams for at least a year before the majority migrate to sea (as smolts), returning a year later to freshwater streams to spawn (as adults).
Pilot project testing on-demand lobster gear concludes as innovative technology fund opens
May 5, 2023 — The largest deployment of on-demand, or “ropeless” fishing gear in the U.S. region of New England recently concluded with up to 30 federally permitted lobster and Jonah crab vessels fishing waters closed to traditional trap and vertical-line setups.
The collaboration between the National Marine Fisheries Service, its Northeast Fisheries Science Center, and southern New England pot and trap fishermen is an effort to test a potential long-term solution to prevent whale entanglements. Participating fishermen were allowed 10 trawls each, using different designs of on-demand gear, activated by acoustic signals for retrieval, in federal waters of the South Island Restricted Area and the Massachusetts Restricted Area. Testing ran from 1 February to 30 April under an exempted fishing permit issued to the NOAA Northeast Fisheries Science Center.
Restricted waters test of on-demand lobster gear in southern New England
May 3, 2023 — The largest deployment of on-demand, or “ropeless” fishing gear in southern New England recently concluded with up to 30 federally permitted lobster and Jonah crab vessels fishing waters closed to traditional trap and vertical-line setups. The collaboration between the National Marine Fisheries Service, its Northeast Fisheries Science Center, and southern New England pot and trap fishermen is an effort to test a potential long-term solution to prevent whale entanglements.
Participating fishermen were allowed 10 trawls each, using different designs of on-demand gear, activated by acoustic signals for retrieval, in federal waters of the South Island Restricted Area and the Massachusetts Restricted Area. Testing ran from Feb. 1 to April 30 under an Exempted Fishing Permit issued to the NOAA Northeast Fisheries Science Center.
“It’s been nice because a couple of years ago fishermen would say ropeless would never work,” Henry Milliken, a supervisory research fishery biologist at the Northeast Fisheries Science Center. “Now they say it will be the technology that keeps them on the water.”
No participating fishermen responded to requests for comment and NMFS refused to release the names of participating fishermen. There have been allegations of harassment and threats levied at fishermen on both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts who have participated in prior on-demand and ropeless tests.
A Welcome Supreme Court Review of Chevron Deference
May 3, 2023 — The following was released by BOEM:
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) today announced that it intends to conduct a review of potential environmental impacts associated with the possible issuance of an offshore wind energy research lease in the Gulf of Maine. The lease was requested by the State of Maine for the purpose of researching potential floating offshore wind energy development. The research site lies 20 nautical miles off the coast of Maine, roughly southeast of Portland, and if developed would comprise up to 12 floating offshore wind turbines capable of generating up to 144 megawatts of renewable energy.
BOEM will publish a Notice of Intent in the Federal Register on stating its intent to prepare an Environmental Assessment (EA) for the wind energy research lease, which will initiate a 30-day public comment period that will end at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on Jun. 5, 2023. During this period, BOEM seeks public input regarding important environmental issues and the identification of reasonable alternatives that should be considered in the EA. Read more…
Tracking endangered North Atlantic right whales
April 28, 2023 — NOAA Fisheries is working with partner agencies and organizations to rebuild and conserve the remaining North Atlantic right whale population.
Now estimated to number only around 340 animals, they are one of the world’s most endangered species. NOAA says that tracking and monitoring the right whale population and the health of these mammals is crucial to their recovery efforts.
Right whales can be observed from a boat, on shore, and from the air, but researchers have varieties of technology and methods to be able to monitor these mammals underwater.
By attaching tracking devices to right whales, scientists and researchers can learn more about the time that these animals spend out of sight.
The tracking devices are known as tags that can be attached to a whale through a suction cup or implantable darts. NOAA shares that these tags document the animal’s location, behavior, movement, swim speed, habitat uses, dive depth, and health.
Some of the tags can record audio and capture ocean temperatures. The collected data provides insights on an animals movement and behavorial habits that are critical for addressing their conservation challenges.
The tags used for whales are lightweight and relatively small and range from the size of a cell phone to a book. The devices are tested rigorously before being approved for use in the field.
Read the full story at National Fisherman
Panel of scientists to study impact of wind turbines on endangered right whales
April 27, 2023 — A committee of scientists and experts convened this week to begin a monthslong process of independently evaluating potential impacts of offshore wind development on the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale and its primary food source.
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), the lead regulator on offshore wind, called for an independent review by a committee under the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine.
The committee has a technical name, “Evaluation of Hydrodynamic Modeling and Implications for Offshore Wind Development: Nantucket Shoals,” but in simpler terms, it will evaluate the scientific models BOEM uses to inform assessments of wind turbine impacts.
According to an agency spokesperson, BOEM recognized the need for an independent evaluation of existing science on potential impacts of wind development as it relates to right whales and availability of the tiny crustaceans they feed on, also called zooplankton.
The Light first reported an inter-agency letter from a NOAA Fisheries scientist to BOEM last year that expressed concern on impacts of wind development on right whales. The scientist recommended restricting turbines in some parts of the Massachusetts-Rhode Island wind energy area, particularly those abutting the Nantucket shoals — a region that has become a critical area of foraging, breeding and calf rearing for right whales during much of the year.
Opportunity: New England Gear Innovation Fund 2023 Request for Proposals
April 27, 2023 — The following was released by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation:
NFWF is excited to share that our New England Gear Innovation Fund Request for Proposals (RFP) is now available here and accepting pre-proposals through May 22, 2023. The program seeks to promote the development and adoption of innovative gear technologies in New England fisheries, including fixed gear fisheries like lobster and Jonah crab. We encourage you to share this funding opportunity with colleagues or constituents who may be interested. Please note that work with fisheries, like NE Mobile Gear fisheries, to address innovative gear marking or other issues would be eligible for funding.
Full information on the funding priorities of the New England Gear Innovation Fund is available in the RFP, but high level priorities include:
- Develop, test, or deploy innovative gear technologies that meet fishery participants’ needs in a viable and economically feasible way and that reduce entanglement risk posed by vertical lines on lobster traps and other fixed gear fisheries.
- Conduct outreach with fishermen to encourage participation in the process of developing, testing, and voluntarily adopting innovative gear.
The program is assessing the funding need of the region and NFWF will award grants towards that need, providing up to $18 million in grants. Awards are anticipated to range between $250,000 and $2,000,000, but applicants seeking grants larger or smaller than that are still encouraged to apply and are eligible.
Short (2 page) pre-proposals must be submitted through NFWF’s Easygrants system no later than May 22, 2023. This RFP is also accepting early pre-proposals, with all pre-proposals reviewed as they are submitted on a rolling basis. If you feel that you have a project concept that is well developed and would benefit from earlier access to funds, please contact Gray Redding (gray.redding@nfwf.org) immediately for information on these early submission deadlines. All interested applicants must submit a pre-proposal in order to be invited to the full proposal process. Full proposals will be due July 13, 2023, with an earlier full proposal deadline for those seeking the early submission process.
NFWF is hosting a webinar on May 2nd, at 3 PM (Eastern). The webinar will include information about the application process and funding priorities. To register, please follow this link: Webinar Registration. Applicants are strongly encouraged to participate, but if you are unable to attend live, the webinar will be recorded and posted on the RFP page. In addition to the webinar, interested parties can schedule time to speak with NFWF staff regarding their pre-proposal at this link: Schedule Pre-Proposal Appointment.
North Atlantic Right Whale, Harbor Seals Focus of New Offshore Wind Studies
April 26, 2023 — State environmental officials and utility regulators announced last week their coordinated Offshore Wind Research and Monitoring Initiative requested an updated proposal for the deployment of “archival passive acoustic monitoring equipment to understand better the distribution and habitat space of the baleen whale species, including the endangered North Atlantic right whale,” off the coast.
RMI is administered by the N.J. Department of Environmental Protection and the Board of Public Utilities. In a joint statement April 19, officials said the updated request for proposal is part of a larger project that includes coordination with other state, regional and federal agencies looking to protect marine mammals as offshore wind lease areas develop on the Eastern Seaboard.
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