Saving Seafood

NOAA Fisheries introduces new West Coast gear rules to reduce entanglements

October 13, 2026 — NOAA Fisheries has rolled out new requirements and voluntary measures to reduce whale entanglements in commercial fishing gear on the U.S. West Coast.

“This rulemaking is, in part, in response to increased rates of entanglement of humpback whales with Pacific Coast fishing gear since 2014,” NOAA Fisheries said in its release. “Marine animals, like whales and turtles, can get caught in fishing gear, which can prevent them from eating or cause serious injury or death. The animal most often entangled in gear associated with the Pacific Coast groundfish fishery is the humpback whale.”

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

ALASKA: Bering Sea crabbers buoyed by increased catch limits this season

October 13, 2026 — The Alaska Department of Fish and Game recently released catch limits for the upcoming Bering Sea crab seasons. The seasons for Bristol Bay red king crab, Bering Sea snow crab and Tanner crab open on Thursday.

The Bristol Bay red king crab total allowable catch is up over half a million pounds from last year, set at 3.4 million pounds this season.

The Tanner, or Bairdi crab, limit increased significantly to 32.1 million pounds, with most of that — 27.2 million pounds — in the western Bering Sea.

Read the full article at Alaska Public Media

ALASKA: Alaska trawler group leader says pollock fishing isn’t to blame for salmon decline

October 13, 2026 — Alaska’s pollock trawlers are under fire for accidentally catching salmon while salmon returns in the fall, and the head of the group that represents the boats says banning them would not solve the problem.

The boats target pollock, which ends up in fish sticks, fast food fish sandwiches and imitation crab sold worldwide. Their nets also pull in salmon, a practice known as bycatch. Critics say that hurts local fishermen and threatens a way of life for some Alaskan communities. Janet Woods, a local resident, put it this way: “The industry is taking away again part of our life, part of our culture, because it’s all about money.”

Read the full article at News-Nation

MARYLAND: Talbot County environmental consulting firm plans to recruit watermen to help clean up ‘ghost pots’

October 13, 2026 — An Easton-based environmental consulting firm has won federal money to pull abandoned crab pots, known as “ghost pots,” out of the Chesapeake Bay, and local watermen will be paid to do the retrieval.

According to the Virginia Institute of Marine Sciences, Rauch Inc. received $126,000 to recruit commercial watermen to recover derelict crab traps in Talbot County waters, including around Tilghman Island. The money comes through a NOAA subaward through the Virginia Institute of Marine Science.

Those areas were chosen based on a 2016 assessment by NOAA’s Marine Debris Program and the institute.The assessment predicts high levels of derelict pots off of Tilghman Island.

Read the full article at WBOC

Appeals court rules against Maine lobster industry in lawsuit targeting Monterey Bay Aquarium Foundation

October 13, 2026 — A U.S. Appeals Court has ruled against the Maine lobster industry in a lawsuit it brought against the Monterey Bay Aquarium Foundation (MBAF).

A coalition of Maine lobstermen, including Bean Maine Lobster Inc., the Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association, Atwood Lobster LLC, and Bug Catcher Inc., had won a lawsuit against the MBAF over its decision to give the fishery a “red” rating in its seafood watch list. The aquarium foundation appealed that lawsuit, and now the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit reversed the lower court’s decision, remanding it with instructions to dismiss the complaint entirely.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Appeals court dismisses Maine lobstermen defamation case against California aquarium

October 12, 2026 — A federal appeals court has sided with the California-based Monterey Bay Aquarium, which faced a defamation lawsuit from Maine lobstermen and groups representing the state’s industry.

The lobstermen sued three years ago, after the aquarium’s Seafood Watch program stripped the U.S. and Canadian lobster fisheries of their sustainability certifications and urged consumers not to buy lobster.

The aquarium said the fishery poses a threat to the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale.

Read the full article at Maine Public

How a lobsterman’s privacy fight reached SCOTUS — and could ripple far beyond the water: ‘Ain’t over yet’

October 12, 2026 — One Maine lobsterman isn’t ready to give up after the Supreme Court declined to hear his challenge to a GPS vessel-tracking requirement Monday, fearing it threatens a way of life passed down for generations and could ripple across other industries.

For decades, fifth-generation lobsterman Frank Thompson has driven his boat from Vinalhaven, a small island off the Maine coast, into deeper waters to set traps and haul in lobsters. Now, he says a GPS tracking mandate has turned his boat into a government-issued 24/7 “ankle bracelet,” sparking a years-long legal battle over constant surveillance and Fourth Amendment rights.

“This is totally against the Fourth Amendment, and somebody’s got to hear it one way or another,” Thompson told Fox News Digital. “This black box that they’re putting aboard the boat is not legal, in my mind, and I’m not a criminal.”

Thompson, who also owns Fox Island Lobster Company with his wife and two sons, was out fishing earlier this month when one of his sons texted him, letting him know the Supreme Court had declined his petition to hear the case and left in place a First Circuit ruling that said the GPS tracking requirement did not violate the Fourth Amendment because lobstering is a closely regulated industry.

“I just told myself, I said, ‘Well, it ain’t over yet,’” he said.

The mandate, requiring a small electronic box to be installed aboard federally licensed lobster boats in Maine, has flipped Thompson’s life upside down, he said.

Read the full article at Fox News

Highly Migratory Species Management: Managing Shared Resources at Home and Around the World

October 12, 2026 — Through leadership in domestic and international organizations, NOAA Fisheries helps advance science-based highly migratory species fishery management to bolster healthy international fish stocks and advocate for U.S. fishermen and fishing communities.

Highly migratory species—like Atlantic yellowfin tuna, Pacific albacore, and Atlantic swordfish—travel thousands of miles across state, national, and international boundaries throughout their lives. These important commercial and recreational fisheries support seafood businesses and coastal communities across the United States. But highly migratory fish don’t recognize state or national borders, so managing them sustainably requires collaboration across jurisdictional boundaries. Strong domestic management and international cooperation sustain these fisheries and the communities that depend on these shared ocean resources.

In the United States, highly migratory species are managed under the Magnuson-Stevens Act. Their management is consistent with requirements adopted by regional fisheries management organizations established by international treaties. Each of these RFMOs provide a forum for countries to work together to conserve these shared resources that spend their lives moving across jurisdictions.

Fisheries managers in the Atlantic and Pacific share the same goal: providing sustainable fishing opportunities while maintaining healthy fish stocks. Fisheries, geography, and management structures vary by region, so NOAA Fisheries uses different management tools and authorities to achieve that shared goal across fisheries.

Read the full article at NOAA Fisheries

NOAA Fisheries Awards 14 Projects in 2026 Sea Scallop Research Set-Aside Program

October 9, 2026 — NOAA Fisheries has made 14 new grant awards through the Scallop Research Set-Aside Program. These projects support research that informs management decisions for one of the most valuable wild-caught fisheries in the nation.

Instead of awarding federal funds, this unique program sets aside a portion of scallops that would otherwise be available for commercial harvest. Those pounds are awarded to researchers who then work with the fishing industry to both conduct their research and harvest the scallops to fund the work.

This year’s projects were awarded more than 1.5 million pounds of Atlantic sea scallops. At an estimated $16 per pound, the awards are expected to generate more than $25 million. Of that amount, $6 million will directly support research. The remaining $19 million will go to harvesters in support of small business owners and local fishing families.

The U.S. sea scallop fishery is a major contributor to the national seafood economy. In 2025, commercial scallop landings totaled 23.1 million pounds, valued at $417 million—making it the largest wild scallop fishery in the world.

The awarded projects are investigating research priorities identified by the New England Fishery Management Council. This year’s projects include enhancements to existing scallop surveys, such as:

  • Expanded coverage on Georges Bank
  • AI-enhanced processing of survey imagery
  • Continued support of industry-driven data collection and co-management

Also new this year are two projects exploring opportunities for enhancement of scallop resources.

The research set-aside program is a model of innovation. It funds essential research without using federal dollars and builds strong partnerships between scientists and the fishing industry. NOAA Fisheries currently supports research set-aside programs for Atlantic sea scallops and monkfish.

Read the full article at NOAA Fisheries