Saving Seafood

Regulators to consider reducing lobstermen’s lines to protect right whales

February 8, 2019 — Regulators will consider removing up to 40 percent of the lines that link seabed lobster traps to buoys on the surface, taking the step in the hopes of protecting the endangered North Atlantic right whale and avoiding federal restrictions on the lobster fishery.

Fishermen who serve on the American Lobster Management Board of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission say the action is required to prevent the federal government from declaring the lobster fishery a threat to North Atlantic right whales, whose population has dwindled to 411 because of changes in habitat, low calving rates, ship strikes and entanglement in fishing lines. If the federal government places a “jeopardy” finding on the species, it would likely trigger far more burdensome restrictions on Maine’s $1.4 billion a year lobster industry, board members said.

Better that fishery participants decide what concessions they can live with than leave it up to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, they said.

Read the full story at the Portland Press Herald

ASMFC 2019 Winter Meeting Press Releases, Summaries and Motions Now Available

February 8, 2019 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

Press releases, meeting summaries and motions from the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s 2019 Winter Meeting are now available at http://www.asmfc.org/files/Meetings/2019WinterMeeting/2019WinterMeetingSummary.pdf. The document can also be obtained on the Commission website on the Meeting Archives page at http://www.asmfc.org/home/meeting-archive. Presentations and audio files from this week’s meetings will be posted to the 2019 Winter Meeting page (http://www.asmfc.org/home/2019-winter-meeting) early next week.

Omega Protein Applauds ASMFC Vote to Not Penalize Virginia for Failure to Adopt Chesapeake Bay Cap

February 8, 2019 — SEAFOOD NEWS — The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission voted to indefinitely postpone a motion that would have found Virginia and its menhaden fishery out of compliance.

The issue of non-compliance stems from the fact that Virginia has not codified a reduced cap on Omega Protein’s menhaden harvest in the Chesapeake Bay, which was slashed by 41 percent in 2017. Omega Protein claims the Bay Cap is not scientifically derived, but rather is a political compromise and a precautionary measure adopted by the Commission. The lack of scientific evidence supporting the cap has been well documented, according to the company.

“Bluntly, we’ve outkicked our coverage with this particular action,” said ASMFC Commissioner Robert Boyles, head of South Carolina’s Marine Resources Division, during the meeting. “The law doesn’t support a non-compliance finding here. That is the hard and fast fact.”

The menhaden fishery is currently being managed sustainably. In its most recent stock assessment in 2017, the Commission found that menhaden is not overfished, nor is it experiencing overfishing. The stock is healthy enough that the Commission raised the coastwide quota each year from 2015 to 2017.

Declaring a healthy fishery non-compliant would have been unprecedented, as noted by NOAA attorney Chip Lynch at the Commission’s August 2018 meeting on menhaden. At that meeting, Mr. Lynch said a non-compliance recommendation would be “the first time ever…that the federal government would receive a non-compliance referral for a fishery that is not overfished and overfishing is not occurring. And there is record evidence from the leadership of the Commission that the measure is not related to conservation.”

“The Commission made the right decision today because the Bay Cap is not ‘necessary for the conservation of the fishery,’ as is required in a non-compliance finding,” said Ben Landry, Director of Public Affairs for Omega Protein. “The Commission’s decision to press pause on this motion signals their acknowledgement that the basis for the reduced Bay Cap was not going to meet federal standards.”

This story was originally published on SeafoodNews.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission. 

Potential changes coming for Maine’s lobster industry

February 8, 2019 — Multiple rule-changes could be coming for Maine’s lucrative lobster industry from both the state and federal governments in the coming year.

At the federal level, concerns over entanglements with the endangered North Atlantic right whale have led fisheries managers to begin discussing what steps need to be taken by the lobster industry to avoid whale deaths. Currently there are just over 400 right whales left in the world, and high death rates in 2016 and 2017 have led rule makers to consider changes to gear requirements.

At a meeting of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Council in Virginia, the lobster board voted unanimously to push forward a set of actions intended to reduce the amount of vertical lines from lobster traps in the water. Those changes could include lower limits on the number of traps that lobstermen are allowed to use, changes in gear configuration, and seasonal closures.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

New Protections Proposed to Help Falling Herring Population

February 7, 2019 — Interstate fishing managers are proposing options to try to better protect the Gulf of Maine‘s population of herring, which is a valuable fish that has declined in recent years.

Atlantic herring are important for the East Coast lobster fishery because they are a critical source of bait. They’re also used as food for humans, and they’re a vital link in the ocean’s food chain.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission says new protections are needed because the herring population has fallen. It is considering rule changes that include extending the length of fishing closures to try to protect areas where the fish spawn.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at U.S. News

ASMFC Indefinitely Postpones Action on VA Compliance with Atlantic Menhaden Amendment 3 Chesapeake Bay Reduction Fishery Cap

February 7, 2019 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Commission’s Atlantic Menhaden Management Board postponed indefinitely action to find the Commonwealth of Virginia out of compliance with the provisions of Amendment 3 to the Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Menhaden, specifically the Commonwealth’s failure to implement the Chesapeake Bay reduction fishery cap of 51,000 mt. This action is contingent upon the Chesapeake Bay reduction fishery not exceeding the cap. If the cap is exceeded, the Board can reconsider the issue of compliance.

In making its decision, the Board took into account the fact that reduction fishery harvest within the Chesapeake Bay has been below the cap level since 2012, including 2018 harvest. During its deliberations, the Board commended Virginia Commissioners on their efforts to monitor landings and work with the Commonwealth’s General Assembly to seek full implementation of the provisions of Amendment 3. While the Bay cap was established as a precautionary measure given the importance of menhaden as a prey species, additional information stemming from the development of ecological-based reference points (ERPs) may be informative to the Bay cap issue. Accordingly, the Board will consider action to modify the Bay cap after it completes action on ERPs, anticipated for 2020.

ASMFC American Lobster Board Initiates Draft Addendum XXVIII

February 7, 2019 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s American Lobster Management Board initiated Draft Addendum XXVIII to Amendment 3 to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for American Lobster. The Draft Addendum considers reducing the number of vertical lines in the water in response to concerns about the North Atlantic right whale population and the potential impacts of whale conservation measures on the conduct of the lobster fishery.

“With this proposed action, the Board is entering uncertain waters,” stated Maine Commissioner Pat Keliher. “However, as the lead management authority for American lobster, we have a responsibility to ensure the viability of the lobster fishery. Through the active engagement of the states and the lobster industry in our management process, we believe the Board is best suited to navigate the growing challenges facing the lobster fishery.”

A key focus of the Board meeting was the intersection of lobster management and the conservation of protected resources. While the Commission is primarily a forum for the Atlantic coast states to cooperatively manage fish and shellfish species, the Board noted several factors associated with North Atlantic right whale conservation which could substantially impact the economic and cultural future of the lobster fishing industry. These include future recommendations of the Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Team and the anticipated Biological Opinion being developed under the Endangered Species Act. Given the high economic value of the lobster fishery and its social significance to coastal communities, the Board agreed it is important to ensure the implementation of measures to conserve North Atlantic right whales takes place in a way that maintains the sustainability and culture of the lobster fishery.

Draft Addendum XXVIII will propose options to reduce vertical lines from zero to 40%, to be achieved by trap limits, gear configuration changes, seasonal closures, and/or the acceleration of currently planned trap reductions. The Board noted reductions will consider ongoing state and federal management actions, including trap reductions and trap caps, which have already reduced vertical lines. By initiating this action, states can continue to cooperatively participate in the management of this species during ongoing discussions on the conservation of North Atlantic right whales. In addition, those who are most familiar with the intricacies of the lobster fishery, including industry, can provide input on future regulations.

Read a PDF copy of the release here

ASMFC Summer Flounder, Scup and Black Sea Bass Board Approves Status Quo Measures for 2019 Recreational Black Sea Bass Fishery

February 7, 2019 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Summer Flounder, Scup and Black Sea Bass Management Board approved status quo measures for the 2019 black sea bass recreational fishery (see Table 1). This action is based on the recommendations of its Technical Committee, which found that status quo measures are not likely to exceed the coastwide recreational harvest limit for 2019. Based on the most recent most stock assessment, the stock is estimated to be above the biomass target and not experiencing overfishing.

The Board also approved proposals from Virginia and North Carolina to participate in the February 2019 recreational fishery specified by NOAA Fisheries. The season will be open from February 1-28, 2019 with a 12.5 inch minimum size limit and 15 fish possession limit. To account for any harvest in February, Virginia and North Carolina will adjust their management measures later in the season, if necessary. Recreational anglers should verify regulations with their respective states.

Read the full release here

New drive to reduce lobster fishing gear to help rare whale

February 7, 2019 — Interstate fishing managers are starting the process of trying to reduce the amount of lobster fishing gear off the East Coast in an attempt to help save a declining species of rare whale.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission announced on Wednesday that it would consider options designed to reduce vertical lobster fishing lines in the water by as much as 40 percent. The lines pose a threat to the North Atlantic right whale, which is one of the rarest marine mammals in the world.

The commission said it would try to reduce the amount of gear with a combination of trap limits, seasonal closures, changes to gear configuration and other methods. The rules are under development and it will take months before they come up for public hearings.

The commission said in a statement that the drive to reduce lines in the water is “in response to concerns about the North Atlantic right whale population and the potential impacts of whale conservation measures on the conduct of the lobster fishery.” But some lobster fishermen said they need more details about the effort before they will get on board.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at the San Francisco Chronicle

Atlantic Lobster Board Moves Toward Reducing Rope In Effort To Save Right Whales

February 6, 2019 — A consortium of Atlantic states fisheries managers is calling for broad changes to the gear lobstermen use, in an effort to reduce risks posed to the endangered North Atlantic right whale and to ward off potential federal action that could be even more challenging for the industry.

There are roughly 410 right whales left in the world, and they are at risk of potentially fatal entanglements with vertical rope lines lobstermen and other marine harvesters use to position and haul their traps. At a meeting of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Council in Virginia, its lobster board voted unanimously to set in motion the process that could lead to major changes in the East Coast’s lobster industry.

“I don’t want NOAA making decisions on what this lobster fishery is going to look like in the future,” says Patrick Keliher, commissioner of the Department of Marine Resources for Maine, home to the country’s dominant lobster fishery, which landed some 110 million pounds of lobster in 2017 worth more than $450 million at the dock.

Keliher says that the National Oceanic And Atmospheric Administration is developing a “biological opinion” that could include a formal “jeopardy” finding for the right whales, which under the federal Endangered Species Act could lead to severe restrictions on the state’s harvest.

Read and listen to the full story at Maine Public