Saving Seafood

Atlantic Herring Area 1A Days Out Meeting on September 24

September 10, 2021 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

Members of the Commission’s Atlantic Herring Management Board from the states of Maine and New Hampshire, and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts will meet via webinar on September 24, 2021 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m., to discuss Season 2 (October 1 – December 31) days out measures for the 2021 Area 1A fishery (inshore Gulf of Maine). Days out measures include consecutive landings days for Season 2. The webinar and call information is included below:

Atlantic Herring Days Out Meeting

September 24, 2021

10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

You can join the meeting from your computer, tablet or smartphone at the following link: https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/517895485. If you are new to GoToMeeting, you can download the app ahead of time (click here) and be ready before the meeting starts. For audio, the meeting will be using the computer voice over internet (VoIP), but if you are joining the webinar from your phone only, you can dial in at +1 (872) 240-3412 and enter access code   517-895-485 when prompted. The webinar will start at 9:30 a.m., 30 minutes early, to troubleshoot audio as necessary.

The 2021 Area 1A sub-annual catch limit (sub-ACL) is 1,453 metric tons (mt) after adjusting for the carryover from 2019, the 30 mt fixed gear set-aside, and the 8% buffer (Area 1A closes at 92% of the sub-ACL). There is no research-set-aside for 2021 because the participants in the RSA program will not continue their RSA project in 2021.

The Board established the following seasonal allocations for the 2021 Area 1A sub-ACL: 72.8% available from June 1 – September 30 and 27.2% available from October 1 – December 31.

Please contact Emilie Franke, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator, at 703.842.0716 or efranke@asmfc.org for more information; or visit http://www.asmfc.org/calendar/9/2021/Atlantic-Herring-Area-1A-Days-Out-Meeting-on-September-24/1797.

The meeting announcement can also be found at http://www.asmfc.org/files/AtlHerring/AtlHerringSep2021DaysOutMeetingNotice.pdf

MASSACHUSETTS: Commercial black sea bass season expanded

August 27, 2021 — The state has approved an in-season adjustment to the commercial black sea bass fishery that will provide more open fishing days and higher catch limits.

The in-season adjustments, approved by the state Marine Fisheries Advisory Commission based on recommendations by the state Division of Marine Fisheries, represent the first adjustments in commercial fishing limits for the directed hook and line and pot fishery for black sea bass since 2017.

Since 2017, Massachusetts’s share of the annual commercial black sea bass quota, allocated by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, has increased 32%.

Effective Aug. 30, according to DMF, Mondays and Wednesdays will be added as open commercial fishing days for the directed commercial black sea bass pot and hook and line fisheries.

The additional days will allow anglers to fish for black sea bass Sunday through Thursday.

On Oct. 1, the schedule will be expanded even more when Fridays and Saturdays are added to allow commercial harvesters to fish for black sea bass seven days per week.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times

ASMFC 80th Annual Meeting Preliminary Agenda and Public Comment Guidelines Now Available

August 27, 2021 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s 80th Annual Meeting will be held October 18-21, 2021 at the Ocean Place Resort and Spa, 1 Ocean Blvd, Long Branch, New Jersey. As of now, the Commission is moving forward with an in-person meeting that will also be accessible via webinar. ASMFC leadership is monitoring CDC guidelines for large meetings/gatherings, state travel restrictions, and the occurrence of COVID-19 cases in Monmouth County. Please do not make travel reservations yet; we will notify when to do so. Additional meeting information regarding the hotel, registration for social events, and reimbursement guidelines will be provided as we get closer to the meeting date.

The preliminary agenda and public comment guidelines, which follow and are attached, are also available on the Commission website at http://www.asmfc.org/home/2021-annual-meeting. The final agenda and meeting materials will be available on October 6th on the Commission website at http://www.asmfc.org/home/2021‐annual‐meeting.

ASMFC & NOAA Fisheries Select Coonamessett Farm Foundation to Conduct Components of the At-Sea Monitoring Training Program

August 24, 2021 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, in cooperation with NOAA Fisheries’ Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC), has selected the Coonamessett Farm Foundation to conduct components of the At-Sea Monitoring (ASM) Training Program for NEFSC. Training will include identifying target and bycatch species in Atlantic groundfish fisheries, collecting and reporting fisheries-dependent data following federal guidelines, and instruction in offshore safety and survival.

At-sea monitors collect data aboard commercial fishing vessels that are used to manage and monitor annual catch limits in the Northeast groundfish sectors. A sharp increase in the required ASM coverage rate (up to 100%) and observer attrition during the COVID-19 pandemic have resulted in the need for approximately 140 new at-sea monitors. Coonamessett Farm Foundation will take on the majority of the training with support from NEFSC. ASM training by the Coonamessett Farm Foundation will start this year and extend at least through 2022.

To learn more about becoming an at-sea monitor, contact one of the companies that provides at-sea monitors to the NEFSC’s Northeast Fisheries Observer Program. A list is posted here:
https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/new-england-mid-atlantic/fisheries-observers/sea-monitoring-northeast

For more information on Coonamessett Farm Foundation ASM training award, please contact Tania Lewandowski (Tania.Lewandowski@noaa.gov), Tasha O’Hara (tohara@cfarm.org), or Quinn McWatters (qmcwatters@cfarm.org).

Clean needles depend on the blue blood of horseshoe crabs

August 23, 2021 — It’s one of the stranger, lesser-known aspects of U.S. health care — the striking, milky-blue blood of horseshoe crabs is a critical component of tests to ensure injectable medications such as coronavirus vaccines aren’t contaminated.

To obtain it, harvesters bring many thousands of the creatures to laboratories to be bled each year, and then return them to the sea — a practice that has drawn criticism from conservationists because some don’t survive the process.

The blood, which is blue due to its copper content, is coveted for proteins used to create the LAL test, a process used to screen medical products for bacteria. Synthetic alternatives aren’t widely accepted by the health care industry and haven’t been approved federally, leaving the crabs as the only domestic source of this key ingredient.

Many of these crabs are harvested along the coast of South Carolina, where Gov. Henry McMaster promoted the niche industry as key to the development of a domestic medical supply chain, while also noting that environmental concerns should be explored.

Read the full story at the Associated Press

Atlantic Herring Eastern Maine Spawning Closure in Effect Starting August 28, 2021 through October 9, 2021

August 23, 2021 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic herring Area 1A (inshore Gulf of Maine) fishery regulations include seasonal spawning closures for portions of state and federal waters in Eastern Maine, Western Maine and Massachusetts/New Hampshire. The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Atlantic Herring Management Board approved a forecasting method that relies upon at least three samples, each containing at least 25 female herring in gonadal stages III-V, to trigger a spawning closure. However, if sufficient samples are not available then closures will begin on predetermined dates.

There are currently no samples from the Eastern Maine spawning area to determine spawning condition. Therefore, per Addendum II default closure dates, the Eastern Maine spawning area will be closed starting at 12:01 a.m. on August 28, 2021 extending through 11:59 p.m. on October 9, 2021. The Eastern Maine spawning area includes all waters bounded by the following coordinates:

Maine coast     68° 20’ W
43° 48’ N          68° 20’ W
44° 25’ N         67° 03’ W
North along the US/Canada border

Vessels in the directed Atlantic herring fishery cannot take, land or possess Atlantic herring caught within the Eastern Maine spawning area during this time. The incidental bycatch allowance of up to 2,000 pounds of Atlantic herring per trip per day applies to vessels in non-directed fisheries that are fishing within the Eastern Maine spawning area. In addition, all vessels traveling through the Eastern Maine spawning area must have all seine and mid-water trawl gear stowed.

For more information, please contact Emilie Franke, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator, at 703.842.0740 or efranke@asmfc.org.

The closure announcement can also be found at http://www.asmfc.org/files/AtlHerring/M21-98AtlHerring_EM_SpawningClosure_Aug2021.pdf

New regulations credited for decrease in striped bass harvest

August 20, 2021 — Striped bass catches were down along the Atlantic coast last year, an early sign that tough regulations imposed across 15 states are helping the species recover from years of overfishing.

A new report from the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission estimates that in 2020 nearly 5.1 million striped bass were “removed,” a figure that includes commercial and recreational catches as well as those that likely died after being caught and released.

The harvest count has fluctuated widely through the years, from a low of 1.1 million in 1990 to a high of 10.9 million in 2006.

In 2019, the Atlantic States commission, which manages estuary and near-shore fisheries from Maine to Florida, mandated that each state cut its commercial quotas by 18% compared with 2017 levels, and it limited recreational fisherman to taking home one fish per day.

Read the full story at The Bay Journal

Press Release, Summaries, and Motions from Joint MAFMC and ASMFC August 9 & 10 Meeting Now Available

August 16, 2021 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

Press releases, meeting summaries and motions from the joint meeting of the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council and the Commission’s ISFMP Policy Board and Management Boards for Bluefish, and Summer Flounder, Scup and Black Sea Bass (held on August 9 & 10) are now available athttp://www.asmfc.org/files/Meetings/Bluefish_SFlounderScupBSB_PolicyBoard_MAFMCMtgSummary_Aug2021.pdf

The webinar recordings from the Council’s meetings last week are available at https://www.mafmc.org/briefing/august-2021.

ASMFC & MAFMC Set Specifications for Jointly Managed Species Summer Flounder, Scup, Black Sea Bass, and Bluefish

August 16, 2021 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Management Boards for Bluefish and Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass met jointly with the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) to adopt 2022-2023 specifications for all four species. The Boards and Council reviewed the results of the June 2021 management track stock assessments for the four species, which incorporated fishery catch and fishery-independent survey data through 2019. They also considered recommendations from the Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC), Monitoring Committees and Advisory Panels, as well as comments from members of the public regarding the specifications for each species.

The table below summarizes commercial quotas and recreational harvest limits (RHL) for all four species (2021 values are provided for comparison purposes). No changes were made to the commercial management measures for any of the species. The Commission’s actions are final and apply to state waters (0‐3 miles from shore); the Council will forward its recommendations for federal waters (3 – 200 miles from shore) to the NOAA Fisheries Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Administrator for final approval.

Summer Flounder
The 2021 summer flounder management track stock assessment concluded the stock was not overfished and overfishing was not occurring in 2019. Spawning stock biomass was estimated to be about 86% of the biomass target. The 2018 year class was above average at an estimated 61 million fish, the largest estimate of recruitment since 2009, while the 2019 year class is below average at 49 million fish. Based on the SSC’s recommendation, the Board and Council approved an acceptable biological catch (ABC) of 33.12 million pounds for 2022 and 2023. After accounting for expected discards, the ABC results in a commercial quota of 15.53 million pounds and an RHL of 10.36 million pounds. These landing limits represent a 24% increase in the commercial quota and a 25% increase in the RHL from 2021 levels.

Scup

The 2021 scup management track stock assessment concluded the stock was not overfished and overfishing was not occurring in 2019. Spawning stock biomass was estimated to be about 2 times the biomass target. The assessment indicated the stock experienced very high recruitment in 2015 and below-average recruitment during 2016-2019. Based on the SSC’s recommendation, the Board and Council approved an ABC of 32.11 million pounds for 2022 and 29.67 million pounds for 2023. After accounting for expected discards, the ABCs result in a commercial quota of 20.38 million pounds and an RHL of 6.08 million pounds in 2022, and a commercial quota of 17.87 million pounds and an RHL of 5.41 million pounds in 2023. Compared to 2021 landings limits, the new limits represent a slight decrease in the commercial quota and a minor increase in the RHL in 2022. The Board and Council discussed an industry proposal to increase or eliminate the commercial possession limit during the winter I quota period and decrease the minimum size from 9 inches to 8 inches in total length. After reviewing the Monitoring Committee recommendation and input from the Advisory Panel, the Board and Council determined that changes to current commercial measures were not warranted at this time.

Black Sea Bass

The 2021 black sea bass management track stock assessment concluded the stock was not overfished and overfishing was not occurring in 2019. Spawning stock biomass was estimated to be about 2.1 times the target level in 2019 and the fishing mortality rate was 15% below the threshold level that defines an overfished condition. Based on the SSC’s recommendation, the Board and Council approved an ABC of 18.86 million pounds for 2022, which, after accounting for expected discards, results in a commercial quota of 6.47 million pounds and an RHL of 6.74 million pounds. These landings limits represent a 6% increase compared to the 2021 landing limits. The 2023 ABC was set at 16.66 million pounds, resulting in a 2023 commercial quota of 5.71 million pounds and an RHL of 5.95 million pounds.

Bluefish

The 2021 bluefish management track assessment concluded spawning stock biomass was still overfished but overfishing was not occurring in 2019. Based on the SSC’s recommendation, the Bluefish Board and Council adopted an ABC of 25.26 million pounds and 30.62 million pounds for 2022 and 2023, respectively. The 2022 ABC results in a commercial quota of 3.54 million pounds and an RHL of 13.89 million pounds, and represents a 28% increase in the commercial quota and a 67% increase in the RHL from 2021 levels. The 2023 ABC results in a commercial quota of 4.29 million pounds and an RHL of 22.14 million pounds. Historically, a portion of the total allowable landings above the expected recreational harvest have been transferred from the recreational fishery to the commercial fishery. However, because the stock is currently overfished and the recreational and commercial sectors are both anticipated to fully harvest their limits, the Bluefish Board and Council did not authorize any quota transfers.

For more information on the Commission’s actions pertaining to summer flounder, scup, and bluefish, please contact Dustin Colson Leaning, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator at dleaning@asmfc.org and contact Savannah Lewis at slewis@asmfc.org for more information pertaining to the Commission’s actions on black sea bass.

Lobster boat tracking coming to protect whales, fishery

August 16, 2021 — America’s lobster fishing businesses could be subjected to electronic tracking requirements to try to protect vulnerable right whales and get a better idea of the population of the valuable crustaceans.

An arm of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, an interstate regulatory authority, said this month it is considering implementing the tracking requirements for lobster boats that have federal permits. The rules would also apply to boats that harvest Jonah crabs, which are the subject of another important New England fishery.

The tracking devices would record the location of the vessel while it is fishing, said Caitlin Starks, a fishery management plan coordinator with the commission. That would provide regulators with better data to get an idea of where in the ocean lobsters are located, she said.

The new rules could also help protect North Atlantic right whales, which number only about 360, Starks said. The whales are vulnerable to entanglement in fishing gear, which can cause them to drown. They’ve been listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act for more than 50 years and have suffered poor reproduction and high mortality in recent years.

New federal rules are coming to the lobster fishery soon to help protect the whales. Federal officials have said they will focus on reducing the number of vertical ropes in the water. They’re also expected to modify restricted areas of ocean.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at The Seattle Times