Saving Seafood

Marine resources commissioner opposes task force to study addiction in fishing industry

December 6, 2017 — PORTLAND, Maine — The head of the Maine Department of Marine Resources has come out against a proposed bill to study the high rate of addiction in commercial fishing.

Patrick Keliher said a task force bill that will be introduced by Rep. Mick Devin, a Newcastle marine biologist who sits on the committee that oversees Keliher’s agency, focuses too narrowly on one industry. Keliher acknowledges the commercial fishing industry has a drug addiction problem, but no more so than any other line of work. Addiction is an issue that transcends the fishing industry, he said.

“While I applaud any effort to address the issue of drug addiction in Maine, I believe this bill focuses too much on one industry, when many others are impacted,” Keliher said in a statement Tuesday to the Press Herald. “This is an issue of statewide significance. Addiction does not discriminate. It affects many different professions, and any effort to address addiction should acknowledge that.”

 Keliher said he shared his concerns about the creation of a special addiction task force with Devin, as did members of his staff, before Devin asked the Legislative Council to green-light his bill for consideration by the Legislature when it returns in January. In even-numbered years, the Legislature tries to limit debate to emergency bills. Last week, the council decided, in a 6-4 vote, that the task force bill met that emergency threshold.

UMass to study how fishing and wind industries can ‘coexist’

November 20, 2017 — DARTMOUTH, Mass. — The University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth is hoping to launch a new research project on how the offshore wind and commercial fishing industries can coexist.

The university said last week that creation of the “Blue Economy Initiative” is made possible by a $1 million commitment from Deepwater Wind, a Rhode Island-based company hoping to become a major player in the state’s nascent offshore wind industry.

Read the full story by the Associated Press at The Boston Globe

NOAA: American fisheries remain a strong economic driver

November 1, 2017 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Commercial and recreational fisheries remain a strong contributor to the United States economy, according to the annual Fisheries of the United States report released today by NOAA.

Saltwater recreational fishing remains one of America’s favorite pastimes and a key contributor to the national economy—with 9.6 million anglers making nearly 63 million trips in 2016, catching more than 371 million fish (61 percent of which are released alive), and in 2015, contributing $36 billion to the national economy. By weight, striped bass remains the top harvested catch among saltwater anglers, followed by dolphinfish, bluefish, yellowfin tuna, spotted seatrout, and summer flounder.

Also in 2016, U.S. commercial fishermen landed 9.6 billion pounds of seafood (down 1.5 percent from 2015) valued at $5.3 billion (up 2.1 percent from 2015). The highest value commercial species were lobster ($723 million), crabs ($704 million), scallops ($488 million), shrimp ($483 million), salmon ($420 million), and Alaska walleye pollock ($417 million). By volume, the nation’s largest commercial fishery remains Alaska walleye pollock, which showed near record landings of 3.4 billion pounds (up 3 percent from 2015), representing 35 percent of total U.S. commercial and recreational seafood landings.

In 2016, the U.S. imported 5.8 billion pounds of seafood (up 1 percent compared to 2015) worth $19.5 billion (up 3.5 percent). However, a significant portion of this imported seafood is caught by American fishermen, exported overseas for processing, and then reimported to the United States. Shrimp and salmon are two of the top three imported species and much of that is farm-raised. The U.S. ranks 16th in total aquaculture production around the world—far behind China, Indonesia and India. In 2015, 1.4 billion pounds of aquaculture production was reported in the U.S.

“With the United States importing billions of pounds of seafood annually, and with so much of that seafood foreign farm-raised, the numbers in this report underscore the untapped potential of aquaculture here at home,” said Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross. “Expanding our nation’s aquaculture capacity presents an opportunity to reduce America’s reliance on imports while creating thousands of new jobs.”

The report also shows that the average American ate 14.9 pounds of fish and shellfish in 2016, a decrease from 15.5 pounds the year before. U.S. dietary guidelines recommend 8-12 ounces of a variety of seafood species per week, or 26 to 39 pounds per person per year.

For the 20th consecutive year, the Alaskan port of Dutch Harbor led the nation in 2016 with the highest amount of seafood landed—770 million pounds, valued at $198 million. Walleye pollock accounted for 89 percent of that volume. Likewise, for the 17th year in a row, New Bedford, Massachusetts, claimed the highest value catch from one port—107 million pounds, valued at $327 million. Sea scallops accounted for 77 percent of that value.

NOAA Fisheries will release a detailed look at economic impact of recreational and commercial fisheries on the U.S. economy in the upcoming Fisheries Economics of the United States report.

View more facts and figures or read the report.

Fishways Connect Habitats and Support Coastal Communities

October 6, 2015 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

By Sean McDermott, Greater Atlantic Region, Habitat Conservation Division

Have you ever seen a fish ladder or a fish lift? Do you know how one works? For many people the answer to both is “no.” If you live along the coast or on a river, there may even be a fish ladder or lift near you. Why do fish need these devices?

Migratory fish such as sea lamprey, rainbow smelt, American shad, alewife and blueback herring live and grow in the ocean and return to rivers to spawn. They arrive in coastal rivers every spring, with some rivers seeing millions of fish. After spawning, they return to the sea. Then, in the fall, millions of young fish make their way from river to sea. These fish become prey, or bait fish, supporting popular commercial and recreational fisheries. Stripers, Atlantic cod, and bluefish, to name a few, rely on these migratory fish for food. In addition, marine mammals also prey on these fish.

Fish Versus Dams: A Centuries-Old Battle

Harvest of sea-run migratory fish once provided an important food source for Native Americans and colonial settlers. Rivers also provided travel routes, and hydro-mechanical power for development of agricultural and industrial technology. As technology developed, the construction of dams for navigation and hydro-mechanical power spread, blocking the migration of those sea-run fish. The conflict between dam-building industrialists and commercial fishers led to the “Shad Wars” from 1780 to the late 1800s, with warring parties shooting guns and cannons at each other and destroying weirs and dams, all in the pursuit of the best fishing spots.

In the end, dams rose and migratory fish populations fell, taking with them the economic and cultural traditions they once supported. Populations of several species are now at all-time lows. Three species (Atlantic salmon, Atlantic sturgeon, and shortnose sturgeon) are listed under the Endangered Species Act, and four others (rainbow smelt, alewife, blueback herring, and American eel) are either species of concern or have been petitioned for listing under the Act.

Read the rest of the story on our website.

Read more stories from our Habitat Conservation Division.

Questions? Contact Jennifer Goebel, Regional Office, at 978-281-6175 or Jennifer.Goebel@noaa.gov.

An Alaskan steeppass is typically designed for small dams. The ability to reduce energy within the chute allows the steeppass to be built at a higher angle. Photo credit: Sean McDermott, NOAA.