Saving Seafood

NOAA: ​2019 Saltonstall-Kennedy (S-K) Grant competition is currently open.

May 29, 2018 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA Fisheries is pleased to announce the ​​2019 Saltonstall-Kennedy (S-K) Grant competition is currently open. This year’s solicitation consists of two separate submission processes. All interested applicants must submit a 2 page Pre-Proposal to the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) posted at www.Grants.gov found here.  Applicants interested in submitting a full application after the pre-proposal review process must submit the full application through www.grants.gov.

Please note that under this one Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) there are two (2) competition links.  Please be sure to submit your pre-proposals to the “PRE PROPOSALS FY19 Saltonstall-Kennedy” link prior to July 23, 2018, ​the date specified in this NOFO.  Please be sure to submit your FULL Proposals to the “FULL Proposals FY19 Saltonstall-Kennedy” link prior to ​Novem​b​er 5, 2018, ​​​the date specified in this NOFO. Be sure to read the NOFO and follow the directions closely.

The goal of the S-K program is to fund projects that address the needs of fishing communities, optimize economic benefits by building and maintaining sustainable fisheries, and increase other opportunities to keep working waterfronts viable. The FY19 solicitation seeks applications that fall into one of three priorities:

  • Promotion
  • Development
  • Marketing
  • Marine Aquaculture
  • Support of Science that Maximizes Fishing Opportunities
  • Revenue and Jobs in U.S. Fisheries
  • Long-Term Sustainability of Marine Resources

For more information click here.

 

Hunt is on for tagged lobsters that double as raffle tickets

May 21, 2018 — PORTLAND, Maine — This scavenger hunt is a hunt for scavengers.

Interstate fishing managers are asking fishermen to check traps for lobsters carrying special green tags. The tags are part of a data collection program being conducted from May to November by the Commercial Fisheries Research Foundation and the University of Rhode Island.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, which manages some East Coast fisheries, is promoting the program.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at AP News

 

ASMFC: Report Tagged Lobsters

May 16, 2018 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

If you find a lobster with a green “SNECVTS” t-bar tag behind the carapace or a black acoustic tag on the carapace, please contact: Michael Long at (401) 515-4892 or mlong@cfrfoundation.org. This tagging program is part of the Southern New England Cooperative Ventless Trap Survey (SNECVTS) being conducted from May – November 2018 by the Commercial Fisheries Research Foundation and University of Rhode Island. SNECVTS will collect baseline data on lobster and Jonah crab abundance and distribution in the RI/MA Wind Energy Area, which is centered on Cox’s Ledge. For more information on SNECVTS see attached flyer or visit: www.cfrfoundation.org/snecvts/.

Learn more about the ASMFC by visiting their site here.

 

Long Island fishermen object to black sea bass quota deal

May 10, 2018 — Fishermen critical of a recent deal to ease black-sea bass regulations demanded further state action at a fisheries meeting Tuesday, but officials said the interstate agreement was the best they could get this year.

Around a dozen angry party- and charter-boat captains attended a meeting of the Marine Resources Advisory Council in Setauket Tuesday night to raise objections to the deal, which effectively nixed a planned 12 percent reduction in the state’s recreational black sea bass quota this year. They and a supporting lawmaker cited a more lenient quota for competing New Jersey fishermen, saying anglers would favor the Garden State given its earlier season open and ability to keep more fish at a smaller size.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s original order would have pushed New York’s season opening to July, but a deal brokered by the state and led by Jim Gilmore, the commission’s chairman and head of the state Department of Environmental Conservation’s marine division, resulted in a season that will instead open on June 23 – four days earlier than last year.

Read the full story at Newsday

 

Changes to US eel fishery up for hearings on East Coast

May 9, 2018 — BREWER, Maine — Interstate fishing managers are considering a host of changes to the way they regulate commercial eel harvesting, and public hearings about the subject are getting started in New York.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission is holding the hearings in May and June from Florida to Maine. The first hearing is on Wednesday in New Paltz, New York. The commission is considering making changes to the eel quota system.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at the New Haven Register

 

ASMFC: Presentations and Audio Files from the 2018 Spring Meeting Now Available

May 9, 2018 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The presentations and audio files from the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s 2018 Spring Meeting are now available at http://www.asmfc.org/home/2018-spring-meeting; go to the relevant board header and click on either “Presentations” or “Audio.”  Some Boards may have two audio links given the length of the meetings.

Learn more about the ASMFC by visiting their site here.

 

Virginia: State Sen. Monty Mason named to ASMFC

May 8, 2018 — Gov. Ralph Northam has named state Sen. Monty Mason, D-Williamsburg, to the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, a regional body that coordinates the conservation and management of 27 species of fish.

The commission’s efforts with one species — menhaden — sparked controversy in the General Assembly this year, when Del. Barry Knight, R-Virginia Beach, proposed bills to write its sharp cut in Chesapeake Bay landings of the fish into state law. Northam supported the measures, but they did not make it out of the House of Delegates.

Menhaden is the one species directly regulated by the General Assembly; other fisheries are managed by the Virginia Marine Resources Commission and the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.

Last year, the commission approved a 41.5 percent cut — more than 36,000 metric tons — in the bay quota for menhaden caught by drawing huge seine nets around schools of the fish and then hauling them up onto so-called “purse seine” fishing vessels.

Read the full story at the Daily Press

 

Omega Protein critical of ASMFC actions on Chesapeake menhaden

May 7, 2018 — A spokesman for Omega Protein said his company took exception to the statement released last week by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission that put Virginia on notice for not implementing a reduced catch limit for menhaden in Chesapeake Bay.

Ben Landry, Omega Protein’s director of public affairs, told SeafoodSource that the commission’s decision last November to reduce the Chesapeake Bay cap by more than 36,000 metric tons was “devoid of science.” The company processes menhaden at its Reedville, Virginia facility, which sits on the western shore of the bay.

“We feel that it’s targeting one company, which is what this provision applies to Omega,” said Landry, noting that there are no caps for the bait fishery. “It’s not in accordance with the best available science. It’s not necessary for the conservation of the species because it’s not overfished.”

Across the ASMFC’s jurisdiction, the Atlantic Menhaden Management Board raised the total allowable catch to 216,000 metric tons for the 2018 and 2019 seasons, representing an eight percent increase. However, the limit for Chesapeake Bay was set for just 51,000 metric tons.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

 

ASMFC 2018 Spring Meeting Press Releases, Summaries and Motions Now Available

May 7, 2018 — 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 2018 Spring Meeting are now available at http://www.asmfc.org/files/Meetings/2018SpringMeeting/2018SpringMeetingSummary.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 2018 Spring Meeting page (http://www.asmfc.org/home/2018-spring-meeting) early next week.

Learn more about the ASMFC by visiting their site here.

 

ASMFC South Atlantic State/Federal Fisheries Management Board Approves Addendum I to the Black Drum Fishery Management Plan

May 7, 2018 — ARLINGTON, Va. — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Commission’s South Atlantic State/Federal Fisheries Management Board approved Addendum I to the Black Drum Interstate Fishery Management Plan (FMP). The Addendum allows Maryland to reopen its black drum commercial fishery in the Chesapeake Bay with a daily vessel limit of up to 10 fish and a 28-inch minimum size.

In the late 1990s, Maryland closed its Bay commercial black drum fishery in order to conduct a tagging and migration study. The fishery was not reopened after the study. In 2013, the Black Drum FMP extended this closure by requiring states to maintain management measures in place at the time of the FMP’s approval.

In approving Addendum I, the Board considered the status of the resource, which is not overfished nor experiencing overfishing, and the estimated relatively small size of the reopened commercial fishery. When the fishery was open in the 1970s under more liberal management than that in Addendum I, it was a small scale fishery with an average annual harvest of 11,475 pounds. Over the next year, Maryland will develop a management program for the commercial fishery with implementation by April 1, 2019.

The Addendum will be available on the Commission’s website, www.asmfc.org (under Black Drum). For more information, please contact Dr. Mike Schmidtke, FMP Coordinator, at mschmidtke@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740.   

View the release in its entirety here.