Saving Seafood

MAINE: Maine Lobster Harvest Down 5% Amid Warming Ocean, Right Whale Regulations

March 4, 2024 — Last year’s lobster catch in Maine fell more than 5% for a total yield of 93.8 million pounds, new data from the Maine Department of Marine Resource showed Friday, as climate change and regulations put in place to protect a rare whale species continue to impact the fragile industry.

Fishermen in Maine, who are responsible for catching more than 90% of the nation’s lobsters per year, caught 93.8 million pounds of the crustacean in 2023 (the lowest level since 2009) and were paid $4.95 per pound, up significantly from the $3.97 per pound paid to fishermen last year.

The sharp rise in price paid harvesters a total of $464.4 million, almost $72 million more than in 2023 despite the lower catch, indicative of a widely fluctuating value that involved prices spiking to $6.70 per pound in 2021 before falling to less than $4 in 2022.

The lobster industry in the state has been in flux for a decade as lobster populations move north toward Canada and away from the United States in search of cooler waters—the Gulf of Maine is warming faster than 99% of the world’s ocean surface, according to the University of New England.

New England’s fishermen have also been increasingly impacted by regulations put in place to protect right whales—one of the most endangered species of all large whales—that impact when and for how long fishermen can be on the water.

The decline in catch continues to build on a trend in the Maine lobster industry since harvesters caught a record high 132.6 million pounds in 2016, and 2023 marked the second year in a row the total catch has declined.

Read the full article at Forbes

 

MAINE: Maine’s lobster fishermen struggle with efforts to save right whales

February 28, 2024 — Willis Spear stands in the backyard of his Yarmouth, Maine home. Behind him are dozens of yellow and green lobster traps. Spear, 67, spends most of the winter preparing these traps to be deployed in the Gulf of Maine come April. It’s a task this lifelong lobster fisherman has carried out each year since he was a child.

“The water gives us life,” Spear said on an unusually warm winter day in late February.

Over the last decade, lobster fishermen in Maine have faced increasingly stronger financial headwinds — from the price of fuel to the revenue they are receiving for the lobster themselves. The lobster-fishing industry generates hundreds of millions of dollars for Maine’s economy each year.

“It’s been a difficult last couple of years. Some of my friends have dropped out altogether. Prices are going up but lobster prices are stuck at 1970s prices,” Spear said.

Read the full article at AOL

MASSACHUSETTS: 31 right whales seen in shipping lanes off the Massachusetts coast

February 27, 2024 — Authorities are urging boats traveling in shipping lanes off Cape Cod to slow down after 31 North Atlantic right whales were found in the area last week, the New England Aquarium said Monday.

The right whales were discovered in two separate groups by an aerial survey of the Great South Channel, the aquarium said in a press release. The first group of whales surfaced while “feeding about 35 miles east of Nantucket,” and a second group was seen 20 miles east of Chatham.

The Great South Channel overlaps with shipping lanes to and from Boston, and NOAA Fisheries urged ships in the area to travel no faster than 10 knots until March 7 to protect the whales, the aquarium said. The restriction is voluntary.

Right whales are a critically endangered species, with an estimated population around 360.

“These protections are particularly important given the recent loss of two female right whales—one found off of Georgia after being struck by a vessel,” the aquarium said.

Read the full at the Boston Globe

Deadline sought on overdue protections for North Atlantic right whales

February 27, 2024 — The following was released by WDC:

Conservation groups have asked a federal court on Feb. 13 to lift a stay and allow paused litigation to proceed, in pursuit of a deadline for final action on a proposed rule expanding protections for North Atlantic right whales from deadly vessel strikes. Filed in 2021, the case challenges the federal government’s unreasonable delay in acting to protect these critically endangered whales.

“The federal government has known for years that right whales urgently require expanded vessel strike protections, yet has repeatedly kicked the can down the road,” said Jane Davenport, senior attorney at Defenders of Wildlife. “When the Biden administration finally issued a proposal to do just that, we hoped it would act as quickly as it promised to finalize the expansion. Unfortunately, it has continued its practice of overpromising and underdelivering. We have no choice but to go back to court to get a deadline to force the government to do its job.”

Only around 360 North Atlantic right whales survive today. The population is declining faster than birth rates can keep up due to vessel strikes and fishing gear entanglements throughout their habitat in the  United States and Canada. Since the groups filed suit in January 2021, vessel strikes in the U.S. have killed a first-time mother and her calf, followed by an adult male. A more recent strike seriously injured a newborn calf, which was spotted in early January with devastating head and face wounds from a boat propeller and is unlikely to survive.

“Until proven technological solutions exist, the best solution is to immediately implement mandatory slow zones to protect both right whales and boaters,” said Regina Asmutis-Silvia, executive director of Whale and Dolphin Conservation. “Both physics and common sense tell us there’s a reason we don’t encourage drivers to speed through school zones.”

In November, pregnant right whales begin their annual migration from northern feeding grounds to their only known calving grounds in the warm, shallow waters off the southeastern U.S., between North Carolina and Florida. Mother-calf pairs spend a great deal of time at or near the water’s surface, making them particularly vulnerable to vessel strikes. For the past two years, the Biden administration has denied petitions by conservation groups calling for an emergency rule expanding protections for mothers and calves in the calving grounds.

“The saddest aspect of the last several years is the avoidable deaths of calves that didn’t even make it to their first birthday,” said Erica Fuller, senior counsel at Conservation Law Foundation. “Good intentions will not save right whales; a strong vessel speed rule will save right whales. The government needs to act with the urgency that the situation demands.”

A 2008 vessel speed rule is the only protection right whales currently have from vessel strikes in U.S. waters. The rule applies only to vessels 65 feet and longer, requiring a speed limit of 10 nautical miles per hour in times and places right whales were considered most at risk in 2008. Since then, due to changing climate, right whales have shifted their habitat and new data shows that vessels between 35 and 65 feet long have struck and killed right whales. NOAA Fisheries has repeatedly stated that a vessel speed rule expansion is necessary to safeguard right whales from extinction.

“Watching North Atlantic right whales get hurt while federal agencies drag their feet on a speed limit rule is heart-wrenching and beyond frustrating,” said Catherine Kilduff, a senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity. “We’ve already seen the devastating consequences of an ‘anything goes’ approach, when a boat struck and gravely injured a calf off South Carolina last month. No one wants to lose more right whales, and slowing down vessels is the least we can do to try and prevent these beautiful creatures from going extinct.”

In 2012 and 2020, the conservation groups petitioned the federal government to expand the 2008 rule. When the government failed to respond to those petitions, the groups filed suit in 2021. NOAA Fisheries published a proposal to expand the 2008 regulation in August 2022, but the rule has yet to be finalized.

In August 2022, conservation groups reached an agreement with the federal government to put the case on hold after NOAA Fisheries released its proposed rule. This new action by conservation groups was prompted by the ongoing delay in finalizing the rulemaking, coupled with the recent vessel strike on the calf in the southeastern calving grounds, which NOAA Fisheries found was likely caused by a vessel between 35 and 57 feet long.

If finalized, the proposed speed rule would apply to vessels 35 feet and longer and would update seasonal speed zones to match right whale distribution. It would also require vessels to comply with temporary dynamic speed zones triggered by visual or acoustic right whale detections.

Contact:

Regina Asmutis-Silvia, Whale and Dolphin Conservation, (508) 451-3853, regina@whales.org

Jay Petrequin, Defenders of Wildlife, (202) 772-0243, jpetrequin@defenders.org

Catherine Kilduff, Center for Biological Diversity, (202) 780-8862, ckilduff@biologicaldiversity.org

Jake O’Neil, Conservation Law Foundation, (617) 850-1709, joneill@clf.org

Climate Change Efforts Forge Ahead Thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act

February 24, 2024 — Read the full release at NOAA Fisheries:

As we proceed into 2024, we want to make sure you’re caught up on our efforts toward mitigating climate change. In 2023, we received historic funding under the Inflation Reduction Act, which has allowed us to prioritize and tackle several critical areas impacted by climate change. A major priority for NOAA Fisheries is accelerating the pace of our response to rapidly changing oceans. The infusion of these funds allows us to focus on several critical areas.

North Atlantic Right Whales ($82 Million)

This funding, coupled with supplemental funds appropriated in FY23, provides us a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to address the North Atlantic right whale crisis with new technologies and new approaches. Human impacts, including climate change, continue to threaten the survival of this species.

Learn more about the North Atlantic right whale funding

Recently announced:

Red Snapper ($20 Million)

We will improve state and federal recreational fisheries surveys for red snapper and other reef fish in the Southeast. Our plans for red snapper are focused on improving recreational catch and discard estimates from federal and state surveys. Changing oceans will require enhancing data collection and monitoring efforts to better track the distribution and abundance of important species like red snapper.

Learn more about red snapper investments

Habitat Restoration and Fish Passage ($484 Million)

We continue our work to support fisheries and coastal communities across the country impacted by climate change through large-scale competitive funding opportunities and expert technical assistance.

Explore more about habitat restoration under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act

Tribal Fish Hatcheries ($300 Million)

Tribal initiatives include funding to support hatcheries across the West Coast. Funding will address deferred maintenance and repairs to hatcheries that produce Pacific salmon and steelhead in partnership with federally recognized tribes.

Learn more about the Columbia River Basin Hatcheries maintenance under the Mitchell Act

Regional Fisheries Management Councils ($20 Million)

Support to the councils will assist regulatory responses to current climate challenges. We need to implement more timely dynamic fishery management measures and increase fishing community resiliency to fishery changes caused by anticipated climate impacts.

Learn more about working with regional fisheries management councils to respond to climate change

Pacific Salmon ($42 Million)

We are enhancing our efforts to conserve, restore, and protect Pacific salmon in the face of climate change. Part of the funding for Pacific salmon will go to the Pacific Coastal Salmon Recovery Fund (announced in 2023). Part will go to science and research that supports transformative modeling to identify and prioritize high-impact restoration.

Learn more about the Pacific salmon science investment we just announced

Expect More in 2024

Data Acquisition and Management ($145 Million)

We will invest in advanced technologies, modern data systems, and infrastructure that expand and modernize stock assessments to account for climate change. This will increase the number and types of observations we can make, which will move us toward the greater sampling required to manage the nation’s large marine ecosystems.

Recently Announced:

Climate, Ecosystems, and Fisheries Initiative ($40 Million)

A cross-NOAA effort that will develop predictive capabilities of our oceans and associated ecosystems in support of actionable climate-informed advice to decision-makers.

Inflation Reduction Act Headlines Recap

April 2023

June 2023

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December 2023

January 2024

February 2024

Right whale often seen in Cape Cod Bay spotted with newborn calf

February 24, 2024 — An endangered North Atlantic right whale that’s been frequently sighted in Cape Cod Bay was recently seen swimming with her new calf down south.

“Skittle” and her calf were spotted east of Kure Beach in North Carolina on Feb. 16. Skittle is often seen swimming in Cape Cod Bay in March.

It’s believed Skittle is at least 23 years old and gave birth to her first calf in 2010, but that calf likely did not survive. The New England Aquarium explains that Skittle gets her name from her skin pattern that resembles a bowling pin used in the British sport of Skittles.

Read the full article at CBS News

Another death of critically endangered North Atlantic right whale renews calls for shipping regulations

February 20, 2024 — Another death of a critically endangered North Atlantic right whale has renewed calls for regulation of shipping lane speed limits to protect the dwindling species and other marine life.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported a dead right whale floating about 20 miles off the coast of Tybee Island, Georgia, on Thursday. NOAA Fisheries was first alerted to the juvenile female whale, an offspring born to a tracked whale named Pilgrim, the previous Tuesday.

Read the full article at ABC News

Another death of critically endangered North Atlantic right whale renews calls for shipping regulations

February 16, 2024 — Another death of a critically endangered North Atlantic right whale has renewed calls for regulation of shipping lane speed limits to protect the dwindling species and other marine life.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported a dead right whale floating about 20 miles off the coast of Tybee Island, Georgia, on Thursday. NOAA Fisheries was first alerted to the juvenile female whale, an offspring born to a tracked whale named Pilgrim, the previous Tuesday.

Read the full article at ABC News

Rope Found on Dead Right Whale is From Maine

February 14, 2024 — The rope embedded in the tail of a dead young right whale that washed up on the Vineyard last month is consistent with buoy lines used by trap fishermen in Maine, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

An analysis of the rope recovered from the whale found purple markings that are used to identify trap fishing gear from the Pine Tree State, NOAA wrote in a statement Wednesday. The finding is another clue into the whale’s death, though final results from the investigation led by the International Fund for Animal Welfare have yet to be released.

Preliminary results show the whale suffered from chronic entanglement. The whale’s death was a blow to the species, which now has dwindled to fewer than 360 whales.

“Entanglements are a constant threat to right whales, cutting their lives short and painting a disheartening future for this species,” Conservation Law Foundation senior counsel Erica Fuller said in a statement.

Read the full article at the Vineyard Gazette 

Scientists look for clues to right whale death on Martha’s Vineyard. It could take weeks.

February 10, 2024 — For about half her life, the North Atlantic right whale that washed up dead Jan. 28 on a Martha’s Vineyard beach lived with fishing rope wrapped around her tail and flukes, making her existence increasingly difficult and painful as she grew.

A team of more than 20 scientists last week conducted a necropsy on the 3-year-old female whale, looking for clues about her cause of death, which has yet to be determined, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Fisheries Division. Researchers at the New England Aquarium‘s Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life were able to identify her as the 2021 calf of the right whale known as Squilla, the now approximately 17-year-old’s only known calf.

The dead whale is listed in the North Atlantic right whale catalog as #5120 and was last seen alive in Cape Cod Bay in January 2023. Found washed up on Jan. 28 just south of Joseph Sylvia State Beach — a barrier beach along Nantucket Sound between Oak Bluffs and Edgartown — she was moved to Aquinnah for the investigation.

Read the full article at Cape Cod Times