Saving Seafood

China tariffs threaten booming lobster business

June 20, 2018 — China’s proposed retaliatory tariffs on U.S. lobsters would have a crushing impact on Gloucester lobster exporters such Mortillaro Lobster Inc. and Intershell, likely pricing their lobsters and all others from the U.S. completely out of the most vibrant lobster market in the world.

“I think this is going to kill us,” said Vince Mortillaro of the Commercial Street lobster sellers that bears his family’s name. “We’re already dealing with the treaty Canada has with the European Union that allows them to sell their lobsters cheaper there. Now with this on top of it, forget about it.”

On Friday, China announced additional 25 percent tariffs on approximately 545 American exported products with a collective value of $50 billion and the seafood industry — particularly U.S. lobster harvesters, processors and sellers — was hit hard.

Those tariffs were in retaliation to U.S. import tariffs on Chinese goods announced earlier by President Donald Trump.

China said it is imposing new tariffs — set to go into effect July 6 — on about 170 U.S. seafood products worth approximately $1 billion.

While the number of seafood products represents about 31 percent of the total U.S. products affected by the new tariffs, it accounts for only 2 percent of the $1 billion value of all U.S. products facing additional 25 percent tariffs from the Chinese.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times

China threatens tariffs on US lobsters as business booms

June 18, 2018 — A set of retaliatory tariffs released by China on Friday includes a plan to tax American lobster exports, potentially jeopardizing one of the biggest markets for the premium seafood.

Chinese officials announced the planned lobster tariff along with hundreds of other tariffs amid the country’s escalating trade fight with the United States. China said it wants to place new duties on items such as farm products, autos and seafood starting on July 6.

The announcement could have major ramifications for the U.S. seafood industry and for the economy of the state of Maine, which is home to most of the country’s lobster fishery. China’s interest in U.S. lobster has grown exponentially in recent years, and selling to China has become a major focus of the lobster industry.

“Maine’s lobster industry is an irreplaceable piece of our state’s economy that supports thousands of jobs and entire coastal communities,” the state’s congressional delegation said in a statement. “Just two weeks ago, the Maine delegation heard directly from our state’s lobster industry about the economic hardship a trade war with China would cause them.”

The delegation — Republican Sen. Susan Collins, Independent Sen. Angus King; Democratic Rep. Chellie Pingree and Republican Rep. Bruce Poliquin — said they plan to outline their concerns to federal trade officials.

“Hopefully cooler heads can prevail and we can get a solution,” said Matt Jacobson, executive director of the Maine Lobster Marketing Collaborative. “It’s a year round customer in China. This isn’t good news at all.”

Read the full story at the Associated Press

Regulators want reports from lobstermen to fill ‘giant black hole of data’ on offshore fishery

June 18, 2018 — The National Marine Fisheries Service wants all Maine lobstermen who haul traps in federal waters to share their fishing data.

Currently, only lobstermen who fish for something else, such as groundfish, must share their data with federal authorities, but the service wants to start collecting better data on the growing offshore fishery. It has announced its plan to draft a new rule that will require all those who lobster in federal waters to report exactly when, how and where they fish.

“There is a giant black hole of data when it comes to the offshore lobster fishery, which appears to be growing and changing fast,” Peter Burns, a National Marine Fisheries Service fishing policy analyst, said on Friday. “Lobster is so important, not just in Maine, but in New England, too. We need more data to better understand this lucrative fishery and protect it.”

The proposal has a long way to go before it could go into effect, requiring two rounds of public hearings and approval from the highest level of the U.S. Department of Commerce. The first round of public comments must be submitted by July 16. If the agency decides to move ahead, it would solicit public comment one more time. The process could take up to a year.

If the rule is implemented, it would affect roughly 1,000 Maine lobstermen who fish offshore in federal waters but don’t currently have to submit a report, Burns said. About 2,000 federally licensed lobstermen, mostly from Maine, already report the trips because they hold some other federal fishing license, Burns said. About 4,000 Maine lobstermen hold commercial licenses to fish in state waters.

Read the full story at the Portland Press Herald

US considers upping reporting requirements for lobster harvesters

June 18, 2018 — The US’ National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is seeking comment on changes that would increase reporting requirements for US lobster harvesters, including a requirement that federal lobster permit holders report on catches for each fishing trip.

The changes are part of Addendum XXVI to Amendment 3 of the Interstate Fisheries Management Plan for American Lobster, which has been approved by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, NOAA explained in a statement issued this week. They would “improve the scope and type of data collected in the lobster fishery in order to improve stock assessments, assess potential impacts of wind farms, and better assess interactions with marine mammals,” the agency said.

The changes are not yet in a proposed rule and “would be completed through a separate, future rulemaking,” the agency clarified.

Other recommendations for reporting requirements include having NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service collect data on where, when, and how long fishermen are fishing and expanding the agency’s offshore biological sampling program.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

ASMFC Begins Preparations for American Lobster Benchmark Stock Assessment

January 30, 2018 — ARLINGTON, Va. — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission has initiated a benchmark stock assessment for American lobster (Homarus americanus) to be completed in the summer of 2020.  The goals of the assessment are to evaluate the health of stocks along the U.S. Atlantic coast and inform management of this species.  The Commission’s stock assessment process and meetings are open to the public, with the exception of discussions of confidential data, when the public will be asked to leave the room.

The Commission welcomes the submission of data sources that will contribute to the goals of the assessment.  This includes, but is not limited to, data on abundance (young-of-the-year, recruits, full recruits), biological samples (sex, maturity, weight, carapace length), life history information (growth, natural mortality, mating, shell disease), stock connectivity (tagging data), catch (harvest, fishing effort) and information regarding the environmental influence on lobster life history. For data sets to be considered, the data must be sent in the required format, with accompanying description of methods, to the Commission by April 13, 2018.

The Data Workshop will be conducted May 14-17, 2018 at the University of Rhode Island’s Graduate School of Oceanography, 218 South Ferry Road, Narragansett, RI 02874. This workshop will review available data sources for American lobster and identify datasets to be incorporated in the stock assessment.

For those interested in submitting data and/or attending the American Lobster Data Workshop (space is limited), please contact Jeff Kipp, Senior Stock Assessment Scientist, at jkipp@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740.

 

Federal government failing to protect right whales from destruction, lawsuit alleges

January 22, 2018 — The federal government must do more to protect endangered North Atlantic right whales from getting tangled up in lobster gear, a leading cause of death for the rapidly declining mammals, a lawsuit filed Wednesday asserts.

A coalition of environmental groups filed the suit in US District Court in Washington, D.C., against officials from the Commerce Department and National Marine Fisheries Service.

According to a 33-page civil complaint, there were only about 455 right whales in 2016, and at least 17 died last year, “pushing the species even closer to the brink of extinction.” Many of the whales have been spotted off Cape Cod.

The complaint says entanglement in commercial fishing gear has been the “primary cause” of right whale deaths in recent years, and the “lobster fishery is a U.S. fishery that frequently entangles right whales.”

In 2014, the complaint states, the fisheries service issued a “biological opinion” finding that the lobster fishery is likely to kill or seriously injure more than three North Atlantic right whales every year, yet the agency also concluded “the fishery is not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of North Atlantic right whales.”

The suit alleges the fisheries service “is failing to ensure that its continued authorization, permitting, and management of the American lobster fishery does not jeopardize the continued existence of endangered North Atlantic right whales.”

Read the full story at the Boston Globe

 

Feds Seeking Comments on Future Lobster Regulations

November 27, 2017 — GLOUCESTER, Mass. — The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries is seeking comments on possible revisions for the lobster industry.

They include changes to lobster trap gear requirements and allowing substitute vessels to fish lobster traps for those that are federally permitted but inoperable.

The poor condition of the of the Southern New England lobster stock is part of the reason for this action.

Read the full story at CapeCod.com

Maine Lobster, The Most Valuable Species In US Seas, Hit By Trump’s Trade Stance

November 22, 2017 — Maine lobster has become more valuable than any other single species commercially fished in the United States, but trade policies pursued by President Donald Trump could reduce its annual worth for the first time in nearly a decade.

Of the more than $600 million worth of North Atlantic lobster caught in the U.S. in 2016, nearly 90 percent, or $538 million, was harvested and brought ashore in Maine, according to a report on nationwide fisheries released this month by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

No other single commercially fished species, even those harvested in multiple states, exceeded $500 million in landings in 2016 or in 2015, according to the report. Maine lobster first earned the most-valuable distinction in 2015, when $501 million worth of American lobster was harvested in the state, according to the Maine Department of Marine Resources.

The value of Maine’s lobster catch has risen every year since 2009. But it’s on track to drop for 2017, in part because of U.S. trade policies that put Maine’s lobster industry at a disadvantage to Canada in selling abroad.

Trump is pursuing efforts to renegotiate trade deals with Mexico, Canada, and South Korea, the fifth-largest importer of Maine lobster. He also pulled the U.S. out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a 12-nation free-trade agreement, and has talked tough on trade with Europe.

Read the full story at the Bangor Daily News

Plan to improve lobstering data collection faces hearings

November 17, 2017 — ELLSWORTH, Maine — Interstate fishing regulators are holding a series of hearings on the East Coast about a plan to improve data collection in the lobster fishery.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission is holding the hearings in January. The commission says it wants to improve harvest reporting and biological data collection to better inform fishing regulations.

The hearings and potential rule changes also apply to the Jonah crab fishery. Changes could include use of new reporting technology.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at the Bradenton Herald

 

Under threat of lawsuit, Maine lobstermen say Canada is failing to protect right whales

November 1, 2017 — A record number of right whale killings this summer has put environmental groups on the offensive, potentially leading to stricter regulations for Maine lobstermen, even as most of the animals turn up dead in Canadian waters.

A group of environmental organizations has notified federal officials they intend to sue if regulatory agencies fail to better protect the endangered species, following what’s believed to be one of the deadliest summers for North Atlantic right whales in centuries.

Maine lobstermen fear that a lawsuit against the National Marine Fisheries Service could result in more costly restrictions on how they fish, even though none of the 16 right whale deaths have been directly linked to the American lobster fishery. Twelve of the whale deaths occurred in Canada’s Gulf of St. Lawrence, where that country’s snow crab fishery has been cited by experts as a likely factor in several of the deaths.

The remaining four were found off Cape Cod.

With this year’s deaths, the total population of North Atlantic right whales is estimated at fewer than 450.

Early this month, the four environmental organizations sent a letter to Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and Chris Oliver, head of the federal fisheries service, saying that federal regulators are violating the Endangered Species Act by not doing more to protect North Atlantic right whales. The groups specifically called on regulators to determine whether additional restrictions should be placed on the American lobster fishery in order to prevent whales from getting entangled in lobster gear.

Read the full story at the Bangor Daily News