Saving Seafood

As Ørsted seeks interconnection site, Skipjack delayed until 2026

March 3, 2021 — Ørsted, the Danish multinational green energy company developing the Skipjack Wind Farm off Delaware’s coast, has delayed plans to bring its wind turbines online until the second quarter of 2026, four years after what it originally proposed.

The delay comes as Ørsted is continuing to search for sites for Skipjack’s transmission cable to make landfall and to build an interconnection site. Ørsted originally planned to do so at Fenwick Island State Park under a memorandum of understanding with the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control.

Those plans were ultimately dropped last July, after it became clear that construction would disturb wetlands at the state park.

“Ørsted is using the additional time created to further investigate, evaluate, and optimize critical components of the project like cable landfall and interconnection,” said Brady Walker, Ørsted’s Mid-Atlantic market manager. “We are committed to a transparent process in making this important decision and will engage stakeholders at all levels before any final decisions are made.”

Read the full story at the Delaware Business Times

DELAWARE: DNREC adds ship to growing artificial reef

August 24, 2020 — On Aug. 13, the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control sank the menhaden fishing boat Reedville at Reef Site 11. The coordinates of the sinking are N 38 40.423/ W 74 44.295. The ship sits in 87 feet of water and is 16 miles offshore from Indian River Inlet. She is 180 feet long and measures 38 feet from the keel to the top of the stack. With her cavernous hold, she is expected to be very attractive to both black sea bass and tog.

The Reedville was first commissioned as a Navy ship, then as an Army freight and supply vessel. When the ship was recommissioned as a menhaden purse seiner, she was named Reedville after the town in Virginia where the largest fish processing plant is located. The town is named after Capt. Elijah W. Reed, whose process for extracting fish oil from menhaden in the 19th century made him and the town very rich.

There are three other menhaden boats at Site 11 along with 997 New York subway cars, 86 Army tanks, eight tugboats, a fishing trawler and two barges. Last fall, a cruse ship was placed there as well.

Read the full story at the Cape Gazette

Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission to hold public hearings

November 30, 2016 — The Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control’s Division of Fish & Wildlife will host Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission public hearings on proposed changes to the interstate fishery management plans for Atlantic menhaden at 6:30 p.m. Dec. 8 in DNREC’s Lewes Facility, 901 Pilottown Road.

The Atlantic menhaden FMP hearing will be preceded by a 6 p.m. public hearing on a proposed addendum to the Jonah crab FMP.

As the first step in the amendment process, the ASMFC is seeking input from stakeholders and other interested groups about changes observed in the fishery/resource and potential management measures. Work on Draft Amendment 3 to the Atlantic menhaden plan was initiated following review by the Atlantic Menhaden Management Board, of which Delaware is a member, and acceptance of the 2015 Stock Assessment and Peer Review report, which found the menhaden resource in good condition — neither overfished nor experiencing overfishing. Population fecundity, a measure of reproductive capacity, was estimated to be about double the threshold value of 86.8 trillion eggs. Additionally, total fishing mortality was below the current target.

The ASMFC’s public information document — the precursor to the forthcoming draft amendment — outlines a number of issues in the Atlantic menhaden fishery and solicits feedback on how the resource should be managed. Specifically, the PID presents a suite of tools to manage the menhaden resource using ecological reference points and provides options to allocate the resource among the states, regions and user groups. In addition to the specific issues identified, comments are welcome on all aspects of the fishery and resource, including recommendations for future management.

Read the full story at The Beacon 

States Schedule Hearings on Jonah Crab Draft Addendum II

November 17, 2016 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

ARLINGTON, Va. — The Atlantic coastal states of Maine through Virginia have scheduled their hearings to gather public comment on Draft Addendum II to the Jonah Crab Fishery Management Plan (FMP). The details of the scheduled hearings follow.

Maine Department of Marine Resources

December 13, 2016; 6 PM

Casco Bay Lines Conference Room

56 Commercial Street

Portland, Maine

Contact: Terry Stockwell at 207.624.6553

*This hearing will precede the Menhaden PID hearing

 

New Hampshire Fish and Game Department

December 6, 2016; 7 PM

Urban Forestry Center

45 Elwyn Road

Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Contact: Doug Grout at 603.868.1095

* This hearing will precede the Menhaden PID hearing

 

Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries

December 12, 2016; 5 PM

Bourne Community Center, Room 1

239 Maine Street

Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts

Contact: Dan McKiernan at 617.626.1536

* This hearing will precede the Menhaden PID hearing

 

Rhode Island Division of Fish and Wildlife

December 19, 2016; 6 PM

University of Rhode Island Bay Campus

Corless Auditorium, South Ferry Road

Narragansett, Rhode Island

Contact: Robert Ballou at 401.222.4700 ext: 4420

* This hearing will precede the Menhaden PID hearing

 

Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection

December 14, 2016; 7 PM

CT DEEP Boating Education Center

333 Ferry Road

Old Lyme, Connecticut

Contact: David Simpson at 860.434.6043

* This hearing will follow the Menhaden PID hearing

 

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

December 5, 2016 at 7 PM

Cornell Cooperative Extension Office

423 Griffing Avenue

Riverhead, New York

Contact: Kim McKown at 631.444.0454

 

Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control & Maryland Department of Natural Resources

December 8, 2016; 6 PM

901 Pilottown Road

Lewes, Delaware

Contact: John Clark at 302.729.9914

* This is a joint hearing of DE DNREC and MD DNR; it precedes the DE DNREC menhaden public hearing

 

Virginia Marine Resource Commission

December 8, 2016; 5:30 PM

2600 Washington Ave, 4th Floor

Newport News, Virginia

Contact: Joe Cimino at 757.247.2237

The Draft Addendum considers establishing a coastwide standard for claw harvest to address concerns regarding the equity of the current claw provision. Specific options include establishing a whole crab fishery or allowing for the harvest of claws coastwide. The Draft Addendum also considers establishing a definition of bycatch, based on a percent composition of catch, in order to minimize the expansion of a small-scale fishery under the bycatch allowance.

The FMP currently establishes a whole crab fishery with the exception of fishermen from NJ, DE, MD, and VA who have a history of claw landings prior to June 2, 2015. Following approval of the FMP, claw fishermen from NY and ME were identified. Currently, these fishermen are required to land whole crabs. As a result, jurisdictions have expressed concern regarding the equity of this provision as some fishermen with a history of claw landings are allowed to continue this practice while others must land whole crabs.

In order to address concerns regarding the expansion of a small-scale fishery, consideration of a bycatch definition was added as a second issue in the Draft Addendum. Addendum I established a bycatch allowance of 1,000 crabs per trip for non-trap gears and non-lobster trap gears (i.e., fish pots, crab pots, whelk traps). Fishermen using these gears are not required to have other species on Board when harvesting Jonah crab. As a result, fishermen harvesting Jonah crab under the bycatch limit may, in fact, directly target Jonah crab by landing 1,000 crabs per trip and nothing else. This does not reflect the intention of the bycatch allowance which is to account for Jonah crab caught while targeting another species.

Stakeholders are encouraged to provide input on Draft Addendum II either by attending state public hearings or providing written comment. The Draft Addendum can be obtained at http://www.asmfc.org/files/PublicInput/JonahCrabAddendumII_PublicComment.pdf or via the Commission’s website, www.asmfc.org, under Public Input. Public comment will be accepted until 5 PM (EST) on January 6, 2017 and should be forwarded to Megan Ware, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator, 1050 N. Highland St, Suite A-N, Arlington, VA 22201; 703.842.0741 (FAX) or at mware@asmfc.org (Subject line: Jonah Crab Draft Addendum II).

The Board will review submitted public comment and consider final action on the Draft Addendum at the Commission’s Winter Meeting.  For more information, please contact Megan Ware at mware@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740.

Delaware might scuttle ferry for artificial fishing reef

LOWER TOWNSHIP, N.J. — A Cape May-Lewes Ferry boat that has been for sale for four years likely will be scuttled as a new artificial reef after failing to draw interest on the commercial market.

The MV Twin Capes has been moored at the Delaware River & Bay Authority’s docks in Lower Township since it was gradually taken out of service about two years ago.

The ferryboat is bigger, heavier and more nicely appointed than the other three in the fleet. It has a full restaurant, a food court and two plush bars that were added as part of a $27 million renovation in 1996.

But the bigger boat costs more to operate, DRBA spokesman James Salmon said. It requires a bigger crew (17 people instead of 12) and uses more fuel than the other three ferries with every 17-mile crossing over the Delaware Bay.

The DRBA has a tentative agreement to sell the ferry for $250,000 to Delaware’s Department of Natural Resources for use as an artificial ocean reef.

Delaware is partnering with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, which has decades of experience sinking barges, boats and construction material to create offshore habitat for fish.

Read the full story at Press of Atlantic City

Public invited to an open house July 20 on draft Mid-Atlantic Regional Ocean Action Plan

July 18, 2016 — The following was released by the Delaware Department of Natural Resources:

LEWES, Del. –DNREC’s Delaware Coastal Programs and the Mid-Atlantic Regional Planning Body (RPB) invite ocean stakeholders and the interested public to attend an open house to consider a draft Mid-Atlantic Regional Ocean Action Plan. The open house is scheduled from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, July 20 at The Virden Retreat Center, University of Delaware, 700 Pilottown Road, Lewes, DE 19958. The program will begin with a brief presentation on the draft plan, followed by a poster session and opportunities for questions and comment. The agenda can be found on the Mid-Atlantic Regional Council on the Ocean (MARCO) website by clicking here.

“The draft Mid-Atlantic Ocean Action Plan represents nearly three years of deliberations and stakeholder outreach by the Mid-Atlantic Regional Planning Body in developing ocean policy for the region,” said Sarah W. Cooksey, Delaware Coastal Program Administrator, who along with DNREC Fisheries Administrator John Clark, is the state’s representative on the RPB. “With many people in Delaware depending on the ocean for its vast resources, the RPB is providing an opportunity for stakeholders and the public to learn about the plan and give comments that will be considered for the final document that will be submitted to the federal government.”

The draft plan outlines a series of actions on how federal and state agencies, tribes and the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council can better collaborate to ensure healthy, productive, and resilient marine ecosystems and sustainable ocean uses in the Mid-Atlantic, including state and federal waters off Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York. The draft Plan can be found on the RPB website at http://www.boem.gov/MidA-New/. The public comment period closes on September 6, 2016.

The draft plan supports improved government coordination and increased stakeholder participation to ensure healthy ocean ecosystems and sustainable ocean uses. The healthy ocean ecosystem goal promotes ocean health, functionality, and integrity through conservation, protection, enhancement, and restoration. Sustainable ocean usesrequire planning to provide for existing and emerging ocean uses that minimize conflicts, improve effectiveness of government, and support economic growth.

The draft plan has been developed by the RPB with the support of MARCO. Established in 2009 by the Governors of Delaware, Maryland, New York, New Jersey, and Virginia, MARCO provides a forum for the coastal Mid-Atlantic states to collaborate on shared regional priorities related to marine habitats, renewable offshore energy, climate change adaptation, and ocean water quality.

Last January, Delaware Coastal Programs hosted the MARCO forum on scientific data that was used to develop the draft Ocean Action Plan for the region. The content of the plan is the culmination of research, coordination and planning through contracted projects that included marine ecological data, human use data and the Regional Ocean Assessment.

President Obama’s National Ocean Policy mandated that each U.S. ocean and coastal region develop a plan to guide ocean use, manage resources, and utilize the principles of marine spatial planning for increased coordination across all levels of government. Additional information about the RPB may be found at http://www.boem.gov/Mid-Atlantic-Regional-Planning-Body/.

See the full release at the Delaware Department of Natural Resources