Saving Seafood

LOUISIANA: CARES deadline for fishermen is this week

August 23, 2021 — The application period for CARES relief funds ends next week, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries says.

“Just a reminder that the application period for the CARES 2.0 relief funds is open for one more week. LDWF will accept applications through 11:59 p.m. Sunday, August 29, 2021. A total of $12.4 million is available to Louisiana fishermen and others in the industry who have been financially affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Qualified applicants will receive direct aid payments from Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission,” a post from the agency states.

For more information about the program, and to access the application, go to: www.wlf.la.gov/page/cares-act-assistance.

Read the full story at KATC

North Carolina Accepting Applications for Round 2 of Fisheries CARES Act Funding

August 20, 2021 — Monday, Aug. 16 was the starting date for accepting N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries applications for the 2021 Consolidated Appropriations Act (CARES Act II) Fisheries Relief Program. There will be financial assistance available for seafood dealers, processors, commercial fishermen, marine aquaculture operators, and for-hire fishing operators. However, financial assistance will only be available to for-hire fishing operators who have a revenue loss greater than 35% in 2020.

The application packets are available through the Economic Relief Programs website linked here.

Read the full story at Seafood News

COVID Relief Application Period Open to Hawaii Seafood Industry

August 20, 2021 — Hawaii fishermen and seafood businesses should be ready to apply for more COVID-19 relief funds.

Through the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021, Congress and NOAA allocated an additional $3.6 million to eligible Hawai‘i fishery participants affected by the novel coronavirus. Applications for Round 2 CARES Act assistance were available this week through the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission website, the Hawai‘i Division of Aquatic Resources reported on its website on Aug. 13.

Read the full story at Seafood News

Unalaska Boosts COVID Risk Level To ‘High’ After Potential Spread At Weekend Festivals

August 19, 2021 — The City of Unalaska confirmed what it called a “widespread community exposure” of COVID-19, after identifying two new community acquired cases of the virus Tuesday.

In a prepared statement and interviews, city officials said wastewater testing had recently shown an uptick in COVID-19 positivity. They also said they’re on guard after two major public festivals last weekend brought residents together in close quarters.

In response to the new cases, the city has raised its COVID-19 risk level to “high” and closed certain municipal buildings to the public.

Despite the uptick in cases, the city isn’t mandating any extra public health protocols or scheduling a special City Council meeting to discuss them. However, council will meet next Tuesday to review community-wide protective measures.

City Hall and the public library are also temporarily closing to the public, while the pool and Community Center will remain open at limited capacity, and by appointment only.

Read the full story at KUCB

Maine delegation urges USDA to buy seafood from Maine fishermen

August 19, 2021 — While the U.S. Department of Agriculture has increased its seafood buying in response to the pandemic and directives from Congress, none of the agency’s COVID-related seafood purchases have been awarded to suppliers based in Maine.

Maine’s congressional delegation called out the agency on Tuesday in hopes of drawing attention to product harvested by the state’s small-scale independent fishermen.

“USDA efforts to engage these smaller producers will pay large dividends — supporting and maintaining economic activity in rural areas, and helping develop consumers’ tastes for seafood that is sustainable, affordable, and harvested close to their homes,” U.S. Sens. Angus King, I-Maine, and Susan Collins, R-Maine, and U.S. Reps. Chellie Pingree, D-Maine 1st District, and Jared Golden, D-Maine 2nd District, wrote in a joint letter to USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack.

The letter urged the Biden administration to work with small-boat family fishing businesses to fully explore opportunities for Maine seafood products in USDA’s procurement efforts, according to a news release.

Read the full story at MaineBiz

“ROUND 2” CARES ACT FUNDING FOR HAWAII‘I’S COMMERCIAL FISHING INDUSTRY

August 18, 2021 — The following was released by the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council:

Through the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021, Congress and NOAA have allocated an additional $3.6 million to eligible Hawai‘i fishery participants affected by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). Applications for “Round 2” CARES Act assistance will be available beginning Monday, Aug. 16, 2021, through the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission (PSMFC) website.

Applications must be submitted to the PSMFC by Sept. 30, 2021. Interested applicants should carefully review Hawai‘i’s Round 2 spend plan (also available on the PSMFC website) to determine their eligibility. At a minimum, applicants must be able to claim:

  • Economic revenue losses greater than 35% as compared to the prior 5-year* average revenue; or
  • Any negative impacts to subsistence, cultural, or ceremonial fisheries

*Entities that have been in business less than five years are still eligible for assistance.

Fishery participants eligible for funding include commercial fishing businesses, charter/for-hire fishing businesses, qualified aquaculture operations, wholesale seafood dealers and processors, subsistence/cultural/ceremonial fishers, and other fishery-related businesses.
If you have CARES Act related questions, please email hicares@psmfc.org or call toll free (877) 695-3457.

North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries accepting applications for CARES Act II relief

August 18, 2021 — Members of the seafood industry in Carteret County and elsewhere across the state may apply to the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries for financial relief.

The N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries is accepting applications for the 2021 Consolidated Appropriations Act, also known as the CARES Act II, Fisheries Relief Program. The financial assistance is available to eligible commercial fishermen and marine aquaculture operators, seafood dealers and processors and for-hire fishing operators who can document a greater than 35% revenue loss in 2020 compared to the previous five-year average due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The division mailed application packets to eligible license, lease and permit holders. Application packets are available online at deq.nc.gov/about/divisions/marine-fisheries/grant-programs/economic-relief-programs or at division offices for eligible stakeholders who are not licensed by the division. In Carteret County, the DMF headquarters is located at 3441 Arendell St. in Morehead City.

Read the full story at the Carteret County News-Times

New research shows pandemic good for recreational fishing due to ‘social fishtancing’

August 18, 2021 — Recreational fishing in the U.S. is largely a personal hobby that scales up to a multibillion-dollar economic activity. More than 44 million people in the U.S. identify as recreational anglers making this hobby second only to jogging in terms of popular outdoor activities.

At the beginning of the  last spring as things were shutting down, fisheries science researchers at LSU, U.S. Geological Survey and Clemson University saw the opportunity to study how the pandemic was affecting recreational anglers. LSU launched an online survey from July to August 2020 and received nearly 18,000 responses across 10 states. The researchers asked recreational anglers 20 questions that included if they fished more or less since the pandemic, what their motivations were and if they thought fishing is safe in terms of COVID-19 exposure.

“What we found is people still fished and in fact, they fished a little bit more during the pandemic,” said LSU Department of Oceanography & Coastal Sciences Assistant Professor Stephen Midway, who is the lead author of this study that is published in PLOS ONE.

Out of five anglers, four fished as much during the pandemic as they did before while, one angler out of the five fished more—taking about one additional trip in the spring. Although the increase may seem small, it has a positive ripple effect for the economy and fisheries management.

Read the full story at PHYS.org

Pacific island leaders call for vaccination of fishermen, seafarers, and observers

August 18, 2021 — Leaders of Pacific island nations are encouraging the region’s governments to prioritize the vaccination of fishing crews and seafarers in their national vaccination programs.

In a communique released by the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) leaders last week, 18 member countries and territories stated that vaccination will facilitate the transit and return of fishing crew and seafarers to their countries. The leaders have endorsed the Pacific fisheries ministers’ recommended actions to deal with the impact of COVID-19.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

New Global Biodiversity Agreement: China to Host a Two-Part Summit on Nature

August 18, 2021 — The following was released by the Convention on Biological Diversity:

Decisive in-person meetings on a highly-anticipated new UN agreement on biodiversity have been paused for a few more months by the coronavirus pandemic.

Host country China and the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) today announced dates for the UN Biodiversity Conference, which includes the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP-15), www.cbd.int/meetings/COP-15, to be convened in two parts, the 10th meeting of Parties to the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety (CP-MOP 10) and the 4th meeting of Parties to the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization (NP-MOP 4).

From Monday 11 to Friday 15 October 2021, an official opening will take place online, followed by final negotiations on the post-2020 global biodiversity framework during face-to-face meetings in Kunming, China, Monday 25 April to Sunday 8 May 2022.

The opening meeting will address agenda items essential to the continued operations of the biodiversity convention and its two Protocols. It will also include a High-Level Segment to be held on 12 and 13 October and expected to produce a Kunming Declaration adding political momentum to the Framework negotiations.

Read the full release here