Saving Seafood

A 14-year-long oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico verges on becoming one of the worst in U.S. history

October 23, 2018 — An oil spill that has been quietly leaking millions of barrels into the Gulf of Mexico has gone unplugged for so long that it now verges on becoming one of the worst offshore disasters in U.S. history.

Between 300 and 700 barrels of oil per day have been spewing from a site 12 miles off the Louisiana coast since 2004, when an oil-production platform owned by Taylor Energy sank in a mudslide triggered by Hurricane Ivan. Many of the wells have not been capped, and federal officials estimate that the spill could continue through this century. With no fix in sight, the Taylor offshore spill is threatening to overtake BP’s Deepwater Horizon disaster as the largest ever.

As oil continues to spoil the Gulf, the Trump administration is proposing the largest expansion of leases for the oil and gas industry, with the potential to open nearly the entire outer continental shelf to offshore drilling. That includes the Atlantic coast, where drilling hasn’t happened in more than a half century and where hurricanes hit with double the regularity of the Gulf.

Expansion plans come despite fears that the offshore oil industry is poorly regulated and that the planet needs to decrease fossil fuels to combat climate change, as well as the knowledge that 14 years after Ivan took down Taylor’s platform, the broken wells are releasing so much oil that researchers needed respirators to study the damage.

“I don’t think people know that we have this ocean in the United States that’s filled with industry,” said Scott Eustis, an ecologist for the Gulf Restoration Network, as a six-seat plane circled the spill site on a flyover last summer. On the horizon, a forest of oil platforms rose up from the Gulf’s waters, and all that is left of the doomed Taylor platform are rainbow-colored oil slicks that are often visible for miles. He cannot imagine similar development in the Atlantic, where the majority of coastal state governors, lawmakers, attorneys general and residents have aligned against the administration’s proposal.

Read the full story at The Washington Post

California and the Trump administration rarely agree on energy policy. Here’s an exception.

October 23, 2018 — Under President Trump, the federal government and the nation’s most populous state have clashed on a number of fronts when it comes to energy and environmental policy.

But there’s at least one thing California and the Trump administration can agree on. Both want to erect wind turbines off of the state’s coast.

The Department of the Interior took its first steps last week toward developing offshore wind energy off the West Coast. “We’re opening the Pacific,” Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke said Wednesday at a wind energy conference in Washington.

“Regardless of what you read in the news, I get along with Jerry Brown,” Zinke added, referring to the outgoing Democratic governor of California who has emerged as one of the fiercest critics of the Trump administration’s energy policies. “Some things are not Republican or Democrat. A lot of things are red, white and blue.”

Read the full story at The Washington Post

Trump administration opens door for California offshore wind farms

October 18, 2018 — The Trump administration is considering allowing companies to build offshore wind farms off the coast of California.

Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke said his department’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) will start taking comments this week on potential areas within about 1,073 square miles on California’s outer continental shelf that could host wind turbines.

The announcement, initially made at an industry conference Wednesday, came alongside news that BOEM will hold an auction in December to sell the rights to build offshore wind farms in an area off Massachusetts’s coast and that officials will start the environmental review process for the proposed South Fork Wind Project, a 15-turbine wind farm off Rhode Island.

While the Trump administration has sought to promote fossil fuels across numerous policy actions, Zinke said officials also strongly support wind power.

“I’m very bullish on offshore wind, and harnessing this renewable resource is a big part of the Trump administration’s made in America energy strategy,” Zinke said in a statement.

“We are always looking at new ways to increase American innovation and productivity to provide abundant and affordable energy for our homes and manufacturers. I think this is a win for America.”

The United States currently has just one utility-scale offshore wind farm, the Block Island project off Rhode Island. Companies have leased spots off the East Coast for other potential wind projects.

Read the full story at The Hill

ALASKA: Bristol Bay king crab fishery set to open with a record-low quota

October 16, 2018 — Bering Sea commercial crabbing starts this week, with the smallest quota for Bristol Bay red king crab in more than 30 years at 4.3 million pounds, a 35 percent decrease from last year’s 6.6 million pounds.

The last time there was such a low number was in 1985, at 4.1 million pounds, according to Alaska Department of Fish and Game biologist Ethan Nichols in Unalaska.

Nichols expects fewer boats fishing this year, with fishermen combining quotas onto one boat that otherwise would have been fished by two vessels.

At least there is a red king crab season, despite earlier fears of a complete cancellation, according to Unalaska Mayor Frank Kelty.

“We wish it was more, but we’re happy there’s a king crab season,” said Jake Jacobsen, executive director of the Seattle-based Intercooperative Exchange, which negotiates prices for the crab fishing fleet.

The season will open Monday with red king crab, followed by snow crab toward the end of the year.

On a brighter note, the snow crab quota of 27.6 million pounds is up 45 percent from last year’s 19 million, according to Fish and Game.

And there will be a Tanner crab fishery in the western district, which wouldn’t have happened two years ago.

Read the full story at the Anchorage Daily News

Before Kanye visit, Trump signed bill to help reduce plastics in ocean

October 15, 2018 — Before his much publicized visit with American musician Kanye West on Thursday, US president Donald Trump helped advance efforts to remove some of the mountains of plastic floating in the ocean by signing the Save Our Seas (SOS) Act.

The law, sponsored by senators Dan Sullivan, an Alaska Republican, and Sheldon Whitehouse, a Rhode Island Democrat, will allow the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to declare severe marine debris events and authorize funds to assist with cleanup and response efforts.

“Every year, over 8 million tons of garbage is dumped into our beautiful oceans by many countries of the world,” Trump said during the signing ceremony. “That includes China, that includes Japan, and that includes many, many countries.

“This waste, trash, and debris harms not only marine life, but also fishermen, coastal economies along America’s vast stretches. The bad news is it floats toward us. I’ve seen pictures recently, and some of you have seen them, where there’s — a vast, tremendous, unthinkable amount of garbage is floating right into our coast, in particular along the West Coast.

“…This dumping has happened for years and even for decades. Previous administrations did absolutely nothing to take on the foreign countries responsible. We’ve already notified most of them and we’ve notified them very strongly.”

The SOS Act was introduced in March 2017 before being passed by unanimous consent in the Senate in early August 2018 after an identical bill, sponsored by Alaska representative Don Young, a Republican, was passed by a voice vote in the House in late July.

The law, which was supported by both the plastics industry and some ocean conservation groups, also reauthorizes NOAA’s Marine Debris Program, which carries a mission of supporting research on marine debris and the authority to take action to prevent and clean it up.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

President Trump Signs Save Our Seas Act

October 15, 2018 — The following was released by the President of the United States:

Today, I have signed into law S. 3508, the “Save Our Seas Act of 2018” (the “Act”). The Act reauthorizes the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Marine Debris Program for 5 years, promotes increased safety in the maritime industry, and promotes interagency and international action to reduce the amount of marine debris.

The Act, however, raises constitutional concerns. Sections 206(b), 208(a)(1), and 216 of the Act purport to dictate the position of the United States in external foreign affairs, and section 208(a)(2) of the Act purports to require an update to certain congressional committees on the progress of international negotiations. My Administration will treat these provisions in a manner consistent with the President’s constitutional authority as the sole representative of the Nation in foreign affairs, and with the President’s constitutional authority to withhold information protected by executive privilege, the disclosure of which could impair foreign relations.

Feds beat fishermen: Court dismisses challenge to Atlantic monument

October 10, 2018 — A federal judge upheld the creation of the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument last week, dismissing a lawsuit from commercial fishing groups that challenged presidential authority to establish the monument.

The national monument, created by former President Barack Obama, was authorized under the Antiquities Act. Representatives from the Massachusetts Lobstermen’s Association argued that the act does not include authorization to protect bodies of water and that the monument in question, an area of nearly 5,000 square miles, was too large.

But U.S. District Judge James Boasberg ruled that the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument complied with the law and sided with the Trump administration’s motion to dismiss the suit.

“In all, plaintiffs offer no factual allegations explaining why the entire monument, including not just the seamounts and canyons but also their ecosystems, is too large,” wrote Boasberg in his decision.

He also clarified that the Antiquities Act histories grant that waterways, as well as land, can be protected under the act.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

 

Federal court rules against fishermen in Northeast Canyons monument lawsuit

October 10, 2018 — A federal judge last week dismissed a lawsuit brought by commercial fishing groups that challenged the creation of a marine national monument in 2016.

The organizations, which included the Long Island Commercial Fishing Association and the Massachusetts Lobstermen’s Association, claimed the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama did not have the authority to establish the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument.

The monument is the first national marine monument established in the Atlantic Ocean. Because of the designation, commercial fishing – except for certain red crab and lobster fishing – is prohibited in the 5,000-square-mile area. The crab and lobster fishing will continue until their permits expire.

While the administration of current U.S. President Donald Trump has been considering reopening it and other marine monuments for commercial fishing, it did seek the dismissal of the lawsuit, claiming the Antiquities Act gave presidents the right to establish and define such monuments.

“This is not a joke, jobs will be lost and thousands of people’s lives will be impacted through a back-door process that did not require formal federal review,” said Bonnie Brady, executive director of the Long Island Commercial Fishing Association in a Facebook post.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

 

Seafood industry leaders reviewing new USMCA trade pact

October 2, 2018 — The day after U.S. and Canadian government officials announced a deal on a new trade agreement, seafood industry leaders from the neighboring countries expressed optimism about the accord, albeit with some uncertainty as they still pore over the details.

Canada’s participation, which was confirmed late in the evening of 30 September, means a new deal will replace the North American Free Trade Agreement, the accord governing trade between the U.S., Canada and Mexico for the past two decades. In late August, Mexican and American officials had reached a tentative agreement on a new deal.

“Today, Canada and the United States reached an agreement, alongside Mexico, on a new, modernized trade agreement for the 21st Century: the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA),” U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said in a joint statement with Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland. “USMCA will give our workers, farmers, ranchers and businesses a high-standard trade agreement that will result in freer markets, fairer trade, and robust economic growth in our region.  It will strengthen the middle class, and create good, well-paying jobs, and new opportunities for the nearly half billion people who call North America home.”

Officials from the Fisheries Council of Canada received a high-level briefing on the USMCA on 1 October.

“We look forward to this apparent deal to help heal our trading relationship with the US and lead to more trading opportunities in the future,” said Paul Lansbergen, council president, in an email to SeafoodSource.

The desire to revamp NAFTA has been one leg of a global trade strategy by the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump. That strategy has also included numerous proposals to raise tariffs on Chinese imports, including numerous seafood products, as the president seeks to reduce the trade deficit.

The National Fisheries Institute has lobbied heavily in recent months that tariffs on seafood products hurt U.S. jobs as the country imports more than 90 percent of the seafood Americans consume.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

State Dept. Appoints NOAA’s Chris Oliver Alternate Commissioner to IPHC

October 1, 2018 — SEAFOOD NEWS — Earlier this month, the State Department announced two new appointments to the three-member U.S. delegation of the Seattle-based International Pacific Halibut Commission. Yesterday, the third new commissioner was announced.

As with the previous announcement, yesterday’s appointment of Chris Oliver, Assistant Administrator for NOAA Fisheries, to replace Dr. Jim Balsiger, regional administrator for NOAA Fisheries in Alaska is being done on a temporary basis until the President’s “duly designated” commissioner is appointed.

In all three cases, it is expected President Trump’s designation will be the same names appointed under ‘alternate’ status. They are: Bob Alverson, executive director of the Fishing Vessel Owners Association; Richard Yamada, president of the Alaska Charter Association and owner of Shelter Lodge; and Chris Oliver. Only Alverson is a reappointment.

“While NOAA awaits the Presidential appointments for the International Pacific Halibut Commission commissioners, Chris Oliver, the Assistant Administrator for NOAA Fisheries, has been appointed by the Department of State as an Alternate Commissioner to the IPHC serving in the Federal Commissioner role,” the announcement read.

Alverson and Yamada were appointed to terms ending January 31, 2019. That is one day before the end of the annual IPHC meeting; presumably the President’s designation will be done for a longer term so the Commissioners can complete the annual meeting. Oliver’s term is through the end of March 2019.

“As Assistant Administrator for NOAA Fisheries, Chris oversees the management and conservation of recreational and commercial fisheries across the United States. He previously served as the Executive Director of the North Pacific Fishery Management Council where he had direct experience working with the Pacific halibut fishery,” read yesterday’s release.

The statement referred to the Northern Pacific Halibut Act of 1982 as the defining legislation in the U.S. that put the Canadian-U.S. Treaty into law.

Below is the section of the law relevant to appointments of Commissioners.

“16 U.S. Code § 773a – International Pacific Halibut Commission

The United States shall be represented on the Commission by three United States Commissioners to be appointed by the President and to serve at his pleasure. The Commissioners shall receive no compensation for their services as Commissioners. Each United States Commissioner shall be appointed for a term of office not to exceed 2 years, but is eligible for reappointment. Any United States Commissioner may be appointed for a term of less than 2 years if such appointment is necessary to ensure that the terms of office of not more than two Commissioners will expire in any 1 year. A vacancy among the United States Commissioners shall be filled by the President in the manner in which the original appointment was made, but any Commissioner appointed to fill a vacancy occurring before the expiration of the term for which the Commissioner’s predecessor was appointed shall be appointed only for the remainder of such term. Of the Commissioners—

(1) one shall be an official of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; and

(2) two shall be knowledgeable or experienced concerning the Northern Pacific halibut fishery; of these, one shall be a resident of Alaska and the other shall be a nonresident of Alaska. Of the three commissioners described in paragraphs (1) and (2), one shall be a voting member of the North Pacific Fishery Management Council.

(3) Commissioners shall not be considered Federal employees except for the purposes of injury compensation or tort claims liability as provided in section 8101 et seq. of title 5 and section 2671 et seq. of title 28. This subsection shall take effect on the 90th day after May 17, 1982.

(b) Alternate United States Commissioners

The Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary, may designate from time to time alternate United States Commissioners to the commission. An Alternate United States Commissioner may exercise, at any meeting of the Commission, all powers and duties of a United States Commissioner in the absence of a duly designated Commissioner for whatever reason. The number of such alternate United States Commissioners that may be designated for any such meeting shall be limited to the number of authorized United States Commissioners that will not be present.”

This story originally appeared on Seafood News, it is republished here with permission.