Saving Seafood

NOAA finds gray whales have increased in population along US West Coast over the past year

July 21, 2026 — A new study published by NOAA’s Fisheries’ Southwest Fisheries Science Center found that population numbers of gray whales along the U.S. West Coast have increased since 2025.

How and why populations of Eastern North Pacific gray whales are seeing an uptick is still under research, but in a release, NOAA confirmed that the increase “likely exceeds the reproductive capacity of the population.” Last year, the most recent estimate for gray whale calves was the lowest on record at 85. Now, researchers estimate the population of Eastern North Pacific gray whales is between 15,930 and 20,530, which is much higher than last year’s estimate of between 11,690 and 12,890.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

US Senate bill would provide more funding for restoring salmon along the San Joaquin River

July 20, 2026 — The U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources advanced legislation providing additional funding for restoring salmon in the San Joaquin River, clearing the bill for a vote from the full Senate.

If passed into law, the bill would triple the cap on funding available under the San Joaquin River Restoration Settlement Act from USD 250 million (EUR 219 million) to USD 750 million (EUR 656 million). The original legislation was passed in 2009 as part of a settlement ending an 18-year-long lawsuit filed by the Natural Resources Defense Council, which blamed government policy and dam operators for causing local extinction of spring-run Chinook salmon in the San Joaquin River.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

CALIFORNIA: Calif. salmon fleet returns under limited season three-year closure

July 15, 2026 — California’s commercial salmon fleet is back on the water for the first time since 2022 following a three-year statewide closure, though the reopening remains tightly restricted as fishery managers work to protect rebuilding Chinook salmon stocks.

According to The Press Democrat, state and federal fishery managers reopened the commercial and recreational salmon season in late June after improved rainfall and snowpack during 2023 and 2024 boosted survival rates for juvenile Chinook salmon migrating from the Sacramento Valley to the Pacific Ocean. Those fish have now returned as adults in numbers sufficient to support a limited harvest, though managers continue to closely monitor catches.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

CALIFORNIA: Salmon fishing resumes off California coast for first time since 2022. Here’s what that means

July 14, 2026 — Commercial and recreational salmon fishing has resumed off the North Coast after a three-year statewide closure, marking a long-awaited milestone for a troubled industry that has endured historic losses in revenue and resources.

Charter captains are reporting abundant catches out of Bodega Bay, and commercial boats up and down the coast are again unloading hauls of the prized West Coast staple for the first time since 2022.

Still, the reopening is far from a return to normal, industry veterans say.

This year’s season is heavily restricted with staggered openings and closings designed to limit the take on rebounding Chinook salmon returns. And fewer boats may be around to cash in, as some fishermen say years of lost income from curtailed and closed fisheries have driven some away from the water for good.

“We’re at a little less than half throttle right now,” said Capt. Mike Harbarth of Sonoma Coast Adventures. “There is strict management and they’re being conservative this year. We’ve all respected that.”

From his charter boat “Shauna Lee” berthed at the Porto Bodega Marina, Harbarth said sport anglers have managed to reel in their two-fish limits on most trips out. Some of those fish have weighed up to 30 pounds and Harbarth said they are finding “miles and miles of salmon” off the Sonoma Coast.

Harbarth, who has spent most of his life chasing salmon, remembers when California’s season stretched from late winter into the next fall – a far cry from the current reality. But, after three consecutive years of closures, the carefully managed reopening is a welcome start.

Read the full article at the Sacramento Bee

OREGON: Electronic vessel monitoring could come to Oregon fisheries by Dec. 1

July 13, 2026 — On Aug. 16, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife Commission will decide if the department will implement electronic vessel monitoring and electronic logbook requirements for crabbing vessels working within the Oregon Dungeness Crab Fishery.

During the meeting, the department will hear public comment on the proposed rules which could make the systems required on board for vessels operating in Oregon fisheries as soon as Dec. 1.

Electronic monitoring is not new to West coast fisheries. In Washington and California, fishers have been required to use the monitoring systems for years. For “dual permit” fishers — fishers with permits for both Oregon and Washington — this is also already a regular practice.

In addition, electronic monitoring equipment is a small part of the department’s upcoming “conservation plan” which outlines how ODFW will take steps to reduce whale entanglements in the fishery.

Read the full article at the Seaside Signal

CALIFORNIA: Proposed Marine Protected Area would restrict fishing near Morro Bay

July 9, 2026 — A Marine Protected Area (MPA) petition filed by the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians (SYBCI) includes the area from Morro Rock to the dog beach.

The MPA was one of 20 received by the California Fish and Game Commission in 2023. There were also 72 proposed regulatory changes.

“The original petition proposed the allowance of recreational take of finfish and invertebrates except mussels and scallops,” said Claire Wagonner, California Department of Fish and Wildlife Marine Region Habitat Conservation Program Manager. “So it would’ve still continued to allow some recreational take.”

Waggoner said that changed in April when the tribe requested to amend the petition, allowing only tribal fishing for the SYBCI.

“It’s our livelihood,” said Lori French, a Morro Bay fisherman’s wife. “It’s his identity. It’s not like you just go to work and shut the job off.”

Read the full article at KSBY

Termination of Gulf of Maine leases casts further uncertainty over offshore wind

July 7, 2026 — The termination of two federal leases in the Gulf of Maine present the latest layer of uncertainty for offshore wind projects, once thought to be key to Maine’s energy secure, low-carbon future.

Last month, the U.S. Department of the Interior announced a settlement agreement with Chicago-based Invenergy, which included the termination of offshore wind leases in Maine, California and New York.

“It’s a bad deal for Mainers, at a time when energy is getting more and more expensive, we are spending public dollars to not build energy resources and to not bring electricity prices down,” said Nick Janzen with Maine Conservation Voters.

As part of the agreement, the federal government will reimburse Invenergy up to $765 million, which the company will then reinvest in natural gas-fired power plants and geothermal power generation projects.

The administration of President Donald Trump has cited “national security concerns” about the development of offshore wind as the reason for terminating leases, and stopping work on other projects.

“Rather than waiting years for the projects to materialize, the Trump administration is prioritizing investments in existing infrastructure and functioning supply chains that can create jobs now and deliver economic benefits faster,” an Interior spokesperson said in a statement last week.

Read the full article at Spectrum News

NOAA eyes potential changes to Alaska sea lion protections as Trump urges boosted seafood harvests

July 6, 2026 — Federal regulators plan to reevaluate fishing closure boundaries established to protect endangered Steller sea lions in Alaska, part of a national Trump administration push to cut regulation of U.S. commercial seafood harvests.

The Steller sea lion protections are among a series of rules that the administration is seeking to relax or change to carry out a mandate from President Donald Trump to increase catches, reduce regulation and ensure that the nation is “the world’s dominant seafood leader.”

The recommended changes were released on Thursday by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Fisheries service and are in response to Trump’s 2025 executive order titled “Restoring American Seafood Competitiveness.” They could affect oceans from New England and the Caribbean to the tropical Pacific and the Bering Sea.

Several months of public consultations resulted in a list of recommendations that “we believe will reduce burdens on domestic fishing, increase production, stabilize markets, improve access, and enhance economic profitability,” NOAA Fisheries Assistant Administrator Eugenio Piñeiro Soler said in a statement.

Read the full article at Alaska Public Media

Studies document impact of warm streams on juvenile salmon

July 6, 2026 — New studies at the University of British Columbia confirm the increasing heat stress for juvenile salmon at this vulnerable stage of their lives.

The studies by UBC’s Pacific Salmon Ecology and Conservation Lab document how young fish cope with heat differently than older fish and that current methods of measuring that stress underestimate the risks these fish face in warming waterways.

The study exploring the biological mechanisms that influence heat tolerance was published in the Journal of Experimental Biology. The study examining swimming performance and survival at different temperatures was accepted by the journal Conservation Physiology.

UBC researchers focused in these two studies on juvenile Chinook salmon, but have

previously examined thermal tolerance in all life stages of sockeye and adult coho, adult Chinook, and adult pink, said studies leader Scott Hinch, a professor of fisheries conservation at UBC. Similar conditions have been observed in Alaska, Washington state, Oregon and California, he said.

Read the full article at National Fisherman

CALIFORNIA: Many California fishermen are nearing retirement. Can the industry save its graying fleet?

July 1, 2026 — In choppy surf off of La Jolla, fisherman Shane Volberding fought to land a yellowtail, a silver and gold fish prized in the sushi seafood trade.

Gulls wheeled above the water as the fish dove and darted against him, dragging the line. One crank at a time, Volberding reeled it in, jabbed it with a gaffe and then hoisted it on deck. As he grappled with the thrashing fish, his deckhand Destiny Louise Silva hauled in another yellowtail and dunked it in a bucket, tail up.

The swift, back-to-back catch was the highlight of an unusually productive day on the water that yielded seven yellowtail and other fish, not counting the ones snatched by thieving sea lions.

“That’s a really good day for yellowtails,” Volberding said. “They’re usually very hard to catch.”

That lucky happenstance belies the unpredictability of California’s commercial fishing sector, where the speculative nature of the catch collides with complex regulations, economic hurdles and a graying fleet.

Read the full article at the Associated Press