Saving Seafood

NOAA says Kennebec dams improvement plan will benefit Atlantic salmon. Conservation groups disagree

March 21, 2023 — A coalition of local and national conservation groups is criticizing a new opinion from NOAA fisheries that finds endangered Atlantic salmon aren’t jeopardized by four hydropower dams on the Kennebec River.

NOAA said the operator of the dams, Brookfield Renewable, has an acceptable plan to make improvements that will benefit salmon and other species. In a press release on Monday, NOAA said the plan to make significant structural and operational changes to the dams would allow salmon to swim up the Kennebec to freshwater habitat for the first time since the dams were constructed in the 1800s.

Read the full article at Maine Public

MAINE: Environmentalists: Maine dam operator not protecting salmon

March 8, 2023 — Environmental groups and a Native American tribe accused the operator of a Maine dam on Monday of not fulfilling its obligation to protect the country’s last remaining Atlantic salmon river run.

The last wild Atlantic salmon live in a group of rivers in Maine and have been listed under the Endangered Species Act since 2000. The Penobscot River, a 109-mile (175-kilometer) river in the eastern part of the state is one of the most important habitats for the fish.

The Penobscot is also the site of the Milford Dam, which is owned by renewable energy giant Brookfield Renewable. The company is required under the Endangered Species Act to maintain fish passages that allow 95% of adult salmon to pass the dam within 48 hours.

According to the Natural Resources Council of Maine, Atlantic Salmon Federation and Penobscot Indian Nation, documents obtained using the Maine Freedom of Access Act show that Brookfield isn’t living up to that obligation and that data compiled by the Maine Department of Marine Resources last fall show that only about 21% of salmon pass the dam in the required timeframe.

Read the full article at the Associated Press

Salmon deplete fat stores while stopped at dams, UMaine study shows Avatar photo

February 10, 2023 — Restoration of the critically endangered Atlantic salmon is an important issue in the rivers of Maine. Dams on Maine rivers have long been known to impact fish populations, but a new study led by the University of Maine quantifying the time and energy lost by Atlantic salmon stopped by dams indicate that the structures might have even more of an impact than once thought.

Atlantic salmon return to the rivers of Maine from the ocean every spring to make the long, arduous swim upstream to spawn in freshwater. When the fish are stopped by dams, they are stuck in warmer waters for longer than expected, which can deplete the fat they have stored up to power their journey. The stored energy isn’t just used for migration, but also producing gametes, developing secondary sexual traits and spawning.

“Salmon limit the food they eat in freshwater, so excess energy lost during their migration doesn’t get replaced,” says Sarah Rubenstein, who completed her masters of science in wildlife ecology at the University of Maine in 2021. “However, spawning takes a lot of energy, so the more energy reserves salmon have left after migrating and during spawning, the more likely they will be at successfully reproducing. This is particularly important here in Maine where Atlantic salmon populations have been on the decline since the 1800s.”

Read the full article at Bangor Daily News

USDA kicks off 2023 with USD 8 million salmon buy

January 19, 2023 — The U.S. Department of Agriculture is continuing its purchase of U.S. seafood products this year, awarding salmon contracts worth more than USD 8 million (EUR 7.4 million) in early January 2023.

Seattle, Washington, U.S.A.-based OBI Seafoods will supply the USDA with nearly USD 6.4 million  (EUR 6.9 million) in canned pink salmon and frozen salmon fillets, while Sitka, Alaska, U.S.A.-based Silver Bay Seafoods will supply nearly USD 1.7 million (EUR 1.6 million) the USDA said in a notice.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Ban on salmon farming in Wash. ignites new worries in Maine

December 10, 2022 — Aquaculture opponents in Maine celebrated earlier this year when they helped convince state officials to block a proposed industrial fish farm in the waters of Frenchman Bay, right next to Acadia National Park.

This week, they said they’re now gearing up for another threat, fearing that Washington state’s decision last month to ban net-pen salmon fish farming could once again increase the pressure to develop Maine’s coastal waters.

Henry Sharpe, president of the opposition group Frenchman Bay United, said he was pleased that Washington state had decided to join Alaska, California and Oregon in banning net-pen farms.

But he said he was also “deeply concerned that … others will now see Maine as an even more inviting place to build large ocean-based fish farms.”

“We hope Maine officials are paying close attention to what is happening in these places that went big for ocean-based salmon farming only to now ban it,” Sharpe said.

Washington state’s decision to get rid of its fish farms has drawn attention from both conservation groups that oppose aquaculture on environmental grounds and businesses that hail it as a safe way to increase U.S. seafood production.

Washington state had long been regarded as a leader in salmon farming, allowing it in the waters of Puget Sound for more than 30 years.

But the industry took a huge hit in 2017 when a net pen operated by Canada-based Cooke Aquaculture Inc. near the San Juan archipelago collapsed and released 260,000 nonnative Atlantic salmon.

Read the full article at E&E News

AquaBounty’s GE salmon back under FDA assessment

November 25, 2022 — AquaBounty’s genetically engineered AquAdvantage salmon is once again going through a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) environmental assessment (EA) after a lawsuit by multiple organizations led to a court order for additional analysis.

The FDA granted permission for the salmon to be sold in the U.S. in 2015, but a judge ruled in 2020 the agency needed to perform additional review of the salmon to evaluate the chances it could be introduced into the wild and its subsequent danger to wild salmon populations. A judge in San Francisco ruled the FDA did not do its due diligence when considering the possibility of environmental consequences with its approval of the salmon.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

A new milestone for the Atlantic Salmon Restoration Project

November 15, 2022 — Launched in 2019, the Salmon for Maine’s Rivers Program reaches a milestone in the three-year project designed to increase the number of Atlantic salmon that spawn in the favorable habitat of the East Branch of the Penobscot.

With the recent release of three hundred mature Atlantic salmon into the upper reaches of the East Branch of the Penobscot River, the state of Maine has taken another step forward in its effort to restore the critically endangered species. The release represents a milestone in a three-year project designed to increase the number of Atlantic salmon that spawn in the favorable habitat of the East Branch.

The endangered Gulf of Maine DPS (Distinct Population Segment) of Atlantic salmon has declined significantly since the late 19th century. Historically, dams, overfishing, and pollution led to large declines in salmon abundance. Because of this, the commercial Atlantic salmon fishery closed in 1948.

Improvements in water quality and stocking from hatcheries helped rebuild populations to nearly 5,000 adults by 1985. But dams continued to block access to habitats and marine survival has decreased significantly since the late 1980s, resulting in annual returns to the United States of generally less than 1,000 adults. The rapid decline and dire status of the ESA-listed Gulf of Maine DPS makes it a priority for NOAA Fisheries and partners to prevent its extinction and promote its recovery.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

MAINE: Salmon restoration project hits milestone

November 11, 2022 — With the recent release of 300 mature Atlantic salmon into the upper reaches of the East Branch of the Penobscot River, the state of Maine has taken another step forward in its effort to restore the critically endangered species.

The release was a milestone in a three-year project designed to increase the number of Atlantic salmon that spawn in the favorable habitat of the East Branch.

“The East Branch of the Penobscot has lots of high-quality habitat for Atlantic salmon, but mortality in both the marine and freshwater environments prevents many from reaching it,” said Department of Marine Resources (DMR) scientist and project lead Danielle Frechette.

“One of the best ways to help Atlantic salmon move towards recovery is to have more adults spawning in this high quality, but largely vacant habitat.”

Read the full article at The Ellsworth American

Gene-editing of salmon being studied in Norway

September 15, 2022 — Researchers at the Norwegian Institute of Marine Research in Bergen, Norway, have used the CRISPR/Cas9 method of gene editing to produce salmon that cannot produce gametes (eggs and sperm), so cannot reproduce.

If produced for commercial purposes, any escaped fish would be unable to breed with the wild salmon population. They would also not experience the issue of early sexual maturation, which can lead to poor meat quality and greater susceptibility to disease, according to Lene Kleppe, a researcher working on the project.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

‘Salmon Wars’ in the media undermines sustainability

September 8, 2022 — To promote their new book, Salmon Wars, the Dark Underbelly of our Favorite Fish, writers Douglas Frantz and Catherine Collins published an article attacking salmon aquaculture in Time Magazine. The article, 3 Reasons to Avoid Farmed Salmon, recommended that readers completely avoid all open net pen-reared Atlantic salmon. “Farmed Atlantic salmon from open-net pens is off our menu and should be off yours,” they concluded.

The seafood industry and sustainable aquaculture advocates were quick to rebut, with the National Fisheries Institute and the National Aquaculture Association posting a thorough fact check last week. Saving Seafood and industry expert Jennifer Bushman also added her frustrations.

Read the full article at Sustainable Fisheries