Saving Seafood

Opinion: Chefs respond to column on fisheries management

February 13, 2018 — We read David Cresson’s op-ed “Chefs push half-baked fisheries agenda” and were immediately struck with how little he seems to appreciate the real problems in Gulf fisheries.

As chefs who rely on healthy fisheries to run our businesses, we know it is possible to have fish for both the commercial and recreational sectors to catch and eat while also preserving this resource for the future. We know this because we already have a system that is doing just that: the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the primary federal law managing our nation’s fisheries.

Cresson is right when he states, “It’s time to set the record straight. The United States manages its fisheries better than anyone else in the world.” MSA has rebuilt 43 fish stocks since 2000, all while increasing their economic output.

He also correctly points out that Louisiana’s senators and congressional representatives support the proposed Modern Fish Act, a bill that would weaken fishery management and is supported by Cresson’s Coastal Conservation Association.

But it makes sense that the Louisiana congressional Delegation would stand with CCA once you follow the money.

CCA, through the lobbying firm Adams and Reese, has rewarded the Louisiana delegation handsomely. CCA paid Adams and Reese more than $110,000 each of the last three years to dole out campaign contributions to Louisiana politicians.

Cresson attempts to paint MSA defenders’ focus on red snapper as overblown, even irrational. But it is CCA’s champion, U.S. Rep. Garret Graves, R-Baton Rouge, who introduced a bill titled the Red Snapper Act that would exempt that single species from the protection of MSA, the very legislation that rebuilt the stocks.

Despite CCA’s claims that the commercial sector is taking more than its fair share, recreational fishers are allocated 49 percent of the red snapper quota. And still they have exceeded their quota 7 out of the last 10 years. Meanwhile, the commercial sector is intensely monitored to stay within its quota and the charter for-hire component of the recreational fishery (captains who take individual, paying anglers out on fishing trips) has developed separate management that is keeping them in their limit.

If Cresson is indeed interested in leading the fight for conservation, perhaps he could explain to the public why the Louisiana politicians his lobbyists influenced pushed the Commerce Department to open up the federal recreational season this summer for an extra 39 days, knowingly allowing overfishing by upwards of 50 percent, or 6 million pounds.

Read the full opinion piece at Houma Today

 

U.S. Secretary of Commerce Declares Fisheries Disasters Following Hurricanes Irma and Maria

February 12, 2018 — The following was released by the U.S. Department of Commerce:

Today, in conjunction with the requests put forward by the Governors of Florida, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico, Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross determined catastrophic fishery disasters occurred in the areas because of impacts from Hurricanes Irma and Maria that made landfall in August and September of 2017.

Under the Interjurisdictional Fisheries Act and the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, the Governors asked the Secretary of Commerce to determine whether a commercial fishery failure occurred due to a fishery resource disaster, in these cases caused by destructive hurricanes.

“The Department of Commerce and NOAA support the rebuilding efforts of communities across the Gulf which were devastated by hurricanes in the past year,” said Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross. “This declaration provides a path forward to helping fishermen and businesses recover and grow.”

Through these fishery disaster declarations, participants in the fisheries are now eligible for Small Business Administration disaster loans. Additionally, because these fisheries are in areas declared a Presidential disaster, public fishery infrastructure-related losses are eligible for Federal Emergency Management Agency Public Assistance. Economic Development Administration grants and Department of Housing and Urban Development Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery funds are another potential source of assistance for fisheries pending allocations and grantee Action Plans.

NOAA looks forward to working closely with Congress and Florida, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico to continue to support recovery efforts.

NOAA’s mission is to understand and predict changes in the Earth’s environment, from the depths of the ocean to the surface of the sun, and to conserve and manage our coastal and marine resources. Join us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and our other social media channels.

View the release in its entirety here.

 

NEW JERSEY: Freeholders Praise Washington’s Approval Of Flounder Limits

July 22, 2017 — The federal government’s decision to cap flounder fishing limits at levels favored by the state, county and local fishermen is a win for the entire Jersey Shore, Freeholder Director Joseph H. Vicari said.

“We are very pleased with this decision that maintains the limits that the state already imposes on daily flounder catches,” Vicari said.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) earlier this month affirmed New Jersey’s summer-flounder fishing size, bag limits and the length of the fishing season, meaning all rules adopted by the state earlier this year will remain in effect through early September.

The decision also won final approval from U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross.

In approving the state plan, Ross rejected a proposal to reduce the annual flounder haul by 34 percent and instead found that New Jersey’s existing rules are in compliance with the safe and sustainable management of summer flounder.

The Freeholders in April passed a resolution favoring the existing limits and rejecting the proposed 34 percent decrease, saying the change would have harmed the local tourism economy and done nothing to protect the flounder population.

Read the full story at Jersey Shore Online

Red snapper recreational season continues off Louisiana

July 21, 2017 — The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries says anglers have caught about 655,600 pounds of red snapper off the Louisiana coast this summer, and will be able to go after the fish again this weekend.

The state is more than halfway to its self-imposed limit. The department will end the season for anglers when it appears the catch will total just over 1 million pounds.

Under an agreement between the U.S. Commerce Department and all five Gulf states, the federal government added 39 weekend days to the red snapper season for recreational angles in federal waters. The agreement required the states to match those days rather than having longer seasons.

Read the full story at WBRZ

N.J. fishermen make their case to feds as fluke battle rages on

June 20, 2017 — With New Jersey’s summer flounder fishing industry on the line, Garden State officials made their case to NOAA fisheries on Tuesday afternoon.

In a hearing with the federal agency, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection officials argued that the state’s regulations for summer flounder (or fluke) fishing reach conservation equivalency with new federal regulations.

The cornerstone of New Jersey’s argument: That the state’s proposed regulations will actually preserve more of the summer flounder stock than the measures being put forth by the feds.

Tuesday’s call was closed to the press, but in a statement following the call NJDEP spokesperson Bob Considine described it as a “good discussion.” He added that New Jersey emphasized its plan would protect more breeding females, thus making a brighter outlook for the future of the fluke stock.

The showdown between NOAA and New Jersey fishermen has been building throughout the spring. On June 1, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission declared New Jersey to be out of compliance with fluke regulations.

The dispute is now being considered by NOAA Fisheries, and U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, for a final decision. If the out-of-compliance finding is upheld, a moratorium on fluke fishing in New Jersey could be instated until the state returns to compliance.

Read the full story at NJ.com

American Samoa Calls On Federal Court To Dismiss Large Vessel Prohibited Area Case

May 31, 2017 — With federal defendants offering no new evidence in the Large Vessel Prohibited Area (LVPA) legal battle, the Territory of American Samoa has asked the federal court in Honolulu to dismiss defendants’ motion for reconsideration and to amend the court’s judgement.

Early this month, the federal defendants, including the US Commerce Department and US National Marine Fisheries asked the federal court to “reconsider and amend” its judgment, which was in favor of plaintiff, the Territory of American Samoa, through the Governor’s Office, or ASG.

US District Court Judge Leslie Kobayashi in March this year ruled in favor of American Samoa, saying that the NMFS’ decision in 2016 to reduce the LVPA in territorial waters is invalid and that NMFS’ adoption of the 2016 LVPA rule, which became effective on Feb. 3, 2016 “was arbitrary and capricious”.

The major focus of the plaintiff’s lawsuit centered around the two Deeds of Cession — 1900 Deed of Cession for Tutuila and Aunu’u islands and the 1904 Deeds of Cession for Manu’a islands — with the United States.

Kobayashi agreed with ASG saying that the court concluded that the Deeds of Cession require the United States to preserve American Samoan cultural fishing practices.

However, the federal defendants requested the court, to among other things, reconsider its judgement. See Samoa News edition May 11th on federal defendants arguments.

Read the full story at the Pacific Island Report

Trump budget delivers body blows to Alaska fisheries

May 27, 2017 — The 2018 budget unveiled May 23 by the Trump administration is bad news for anything that swims in or near U.S. waters.

The Trump budget will cut $1.5 billion from the U.S. Commerce Department, with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration taking the hardest hit.

The NOAA budget for its National Marine Fisheries Service operations, research and facilities would be slashed by about $43 million, eliminating NOAA’s coastal research efforts as well as its Sea Grant program.

The Trump dump also includes pulling the budget from NOAA’s Coastal Zone Management Program and the Pacific Coastal Salmon Recovery Fund, which targets recovery of West Coast and Alaska salmon runs.

Funding for management and enforcement of U.S. catch share programs, such as halibut, sablefish and Bering Sea crab, would be cut by $5 million.

Budgets for Coastal Ecosystem Resiliency Grants, Interjurisdictional Fisheries Grants, the Chesapeake Bay project, the Great Lakes Restoration Project and the National Estuary Program also would be eliminated.

Another $193 billion would be cut from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program over 10 years. SNAP is a program used by more than 42 million needy Americans to supplement food purchases and often includes government-purchased seafood.

Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney told McClatchy News that the Trump administration “looked at the budget process through the eyes of the people who were actually paying the bills.”

Read the full story at Alaska Dispatch News

Commerce Committee Advances Coast Guard Authorization

May 19, 2017 — The following was released by the Office of U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan:

U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Chairman of the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries, and Coast Guard, today thanked his colleagues on the Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee for advancing the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2017, legislation introduced by Senator Sullivan.

“The men and women of the U.S. Coast Guard do an outstanding job protecting the homeland and responding to crises on a moment’s notice,” said Senator Sullivan. “I am honored to have the opportunity to lead this year’s Coast Guard Authorization, giving our Coast Guard the resources and training they need to complete the many diverse missions they are tasked with. The legislation also includes a number of provisions addressing the priorities and concerns of Alaskans, including relieving unnecessary burdens on fishermen and boat operators, exploring better ways to monitor illegal and unreported fishing, and advancing the Coast Guard’s ability to operate in the Arctic.”

Read the full release here

Chris Oliver Was Offered and Accepted Top NOAA Position – Now Vetting Process Begins

May 11, 2017 — The following was written by Peggy Parker and published today by Seafoodnews.com:

Chris Oliver, Executive Director director of the Alaska-based North Pacific Fisheries Management Council, has been offered and has accepted the position of Assistant Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. A tentative start date is Monday, June 19, 2017.

Oliver notified members of the NPFMC and staff by email yesterday, explained that “this appointment is still subject to the White House vetting and approval process, which may take a few weeks, so it is NOT final yet.”  

He said that recent industry rumors, plus the need for transition planning, led to his email.

Only the Commerce Department or the White House can make any official announcement on the position, and that cannot happen until the process is complete.

“I, and Commerce, would have preferred to keep this information close until the full appointment process is indeed finalized, but given the timing involved, and the necessary transitional aspects involved, I feel it is incumbent upon me to let everyone know the status of this,” Oliver wrote.

It is widely believed that Oliver’s appointment will give NMFS needed stability and deep experience at a time of significant budget and regulatory review.

There were two other contenders for the job — Robert Barham, who served as wildlife and fisheries secretary under former Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal (R),  and LaDon Swann who heads up the Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium.

This story originally appeared on Seafoodnews.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.

Former fish auction owners renew battle with NOAA

April 7, 2017 — The long and torturous legal battle with NOAA that sent the former Gloucester Fish Exchange into bankruptcy and to its ultimate sale may not be over just yet.

The owners of GFX — the forerunner to the Cape Ann Seafood Exchange on Harbor Loop — are suing NOAA in federal court to recoup about $464,000 in legal fees the company paid during its battle and ultimate settlement with the federal fisheries regulator.

The action names current Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, the Commerce Department and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration as defendants.

The suit, prompted by NOAA’s final decision on March 6 denying GFX any reimbursement for legal fees, rekindles the battle that began as far back as 2005. The long-running affair resulted in two NOAA enforcement actions against the former auction — and a subsequent apology by then Commerce Secretary Gary Locke and NOAA administrator Jane Lubchenco for the excesses of the agency’s law enforcement unit.

The former owners of GFX seek to void the settlement GFX agreed to for the enforcement actions, saying the deal should be set aside because it was the product of “economic duress” created by NOAA, and that NOAA “breached the covenant of good faith and fair dealing.”

“The amount of attorneys’ fees and costs that GFX has had to bear, as well as the permit sanctions imposed and modified numerous times throughout the mosaic of agency actions …  which in fact caused GFX to enter bankruptcy, are arbitrary and/or excessive,” the suit claims.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Times