Saving Seafood

A new Trump rule could shrink protected habitat for endangered wildlife

December 16, 2020 — The Trump administration adopted a rule Tuesday that could shrink the historic habitats of plants and animals threatened with extinction, an action that opponents say will make it more difficult for them to recover.

On their way out of office, the directors of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service established a rule that changed the definition of what determines a habitat under the Endangered Species Act. It was the second major rollback the administration has made to the signature wildlife protection law.

Under the new definition, only “critical habitat” that can sustain the species in question can be protected, as opposed to a broader habitat the plant or animal might one day occupy if it is suitable.

“This action will bring greater clarity and consistency to how the Service designates critical habitat,” Rob Wallace, assistant secretary for fish and wildlife and parks, said in a statement. “Making the Endangered Species Act more effective at conserving imperiled wildlife and more transparent and user friendly for stakeholders represents a win-win for everyone.”

Read the full story at The Washington Post

Hawaii longliners will convert to mono leaders

December 2, 2020 — Longline fishermen based in Hawaii will voluntarily switch to using monofilament leaders on their gear to promote shark conservation, the Hawaii Longline Association announced this week.

Based at Honolulu Harbor, the fleet of about 140 active vessels produces 90 percent of U.S. bigeye tuna and 50 percent of its swordfish and was sixth in landed value among U.S. ports with $100 million in 2018. The longline fishery is closely monitored and uses a suite of mitigation tools to reduce interactions with protected species.

That includes a 45-gram minimum weight on baited lines so they sink quickly and out of depths where seabirds forage and use of circle hooks to reduce interactions with sea turtles and false killer whales. But sharks are still more likely to be caught by circle hooks, according to the association.

“Hawaii longline vessels don’t retain sharks and most are released alive, but since most sharks are unable to bite through a wire leader, some sharks die on the line,” the group explained in a statement. “Unfortunately, this includes oceanic whitetip sharks, which are now listed as ‘threatened’ under the Endangered Species Act.”

Read the full story at National Fisherman

Alaska wanted Arctic ringed seals off endangered species list; federal officials rejected that request

November 27, 2020 — On Wednesday, the National Marine Fisheries Service ruled against a petition from the state of Alaska to delist the Arctic ringed seal from the Endangered Species Act.

Last year, the state of Alaska partnered with several North Slope entities to write the petition, arguing that keeping the ringed seal listed as endangered could negatively impact economic opportunities for the state, as well as subsistence rights.

“Although we provided substantial new information to the service, they argued that information was considered in other ways, even though that information wasn’t available previously,” said Chris Krenz, a wildlife science coordinator for the state. “We are disappointed that they took that tact with this petition.”

Krenz says the state believes that the ringed seal isn’t threatened. Officials noted the ringed seal population is in the millions, despite measurable losses in sea ice. Though climate scientists with the National Marine Fisheries Service predict that by the year 2100, there will be little to no sea ice in the Arctic, Krenz argues that looking that far ahead doesn’t constitute the foreseeable future.

Read the full story at KTOO

Six critically endangered sawfish found dead on the side of the road in Florida Everglades

October 22, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement is conducting an investigation involving the deaths of six critically endangered smalltooth sawfish in Everglades City, Fla. An employee with Everglades National Park reported the dead sawfish and two dead bonnethead sharks to NOAA experts. Two of the sawfish are missing their rostra (saws). One other had its meat removed, leaving only the carcass.

The animals were found along the causeway between Everglades City and Chokoloskee Island, Fla. A sawfish biologist from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission will perform a necropsy on the animals to try to determine the cause of death.

Smalltooth sawfish are listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act. They were once found in the Gulf of Mexico from Texas to Florida and along the East Coast from Florida to North Carolina. Their distribution has decreased greatly in U.S. waters over the past century. Today, the species is generally only found off the coast of Florida, especially southwest Florida where sawfish give birth. They reproduce every other year and give birth to just 7-14 young. The loss of these six animals is nearly equivalent to one mother’s entire litter.

NOAA officials seek information from anyone who may have details about this incident and are offering a reward up to $20,000 for information leading to a criminal conviction or the assessment of a civil penalty.

Please call the NOAA Enforcement Hotline at 1-800-853-1964. Tips may be left anonymously.

Read the full release here

New Conservation Plan Benefits California Steelhead—And Irrigators, Too

September 18, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Improvements in fish passage and assurances of water in California’s Calaveras River will help promote recovery of threatened steelhead. These changes will be implemented under the first plan of its kind in the Central Valley of California.

The Calaveras River Habitat Conservation Plan finalized this week includes commitments by the Stockton East Water District to improve conditions in the Calaveras River for steelhead. In turn, the Water District gets assurances that it can continue distributing water to irrigators and others without violating the Endangered Species Act.

It is the first Habitat Conservation Plan that NOAA Fisheries has completed in the Central Valley. It reflects a partnership with the Water District to help recover a core population of threatened steelhead while also maintaining water supplies for agricultural and municipal use.

The Plan includes a commitment from the Water District to conserve threatened steelhead in ways that will benefit the population in the long-term. In turn, the District can carry out its usual operations and serve customers even if it might have limited incidental impacts on fish. The Plan also includes a forum for public discussion and input into river management.

Read the full release here

Judge orders new fisheries impact analysis on right whales, decides not to close fishery

September 10, 2020 — United States District Court Judge James Boasberg in Washington, D.C., handed down his remedy Aug. 19 to the National Marine Fisheries Services, which he ruled last spring had violated the Endangered Species Act in licensing the fisheries in the northeastern U.S.

He gave the NMFS until May 31, 2021, to conduct a new biological opinion on the fishing industry’s impacts on the endangered right whale species and measures to decrease whale deaths caused by the industry, vacating the previous biological opinion.

Earlier this year he found that the NMFS had failed to file an incidental take report in 2014 after discovering the vertical lines used in the fishing industry could be responsible for up to three whale deaths a year, which is more than the species can sustain, according to NMFS’ own calculations.

Center for Biological Diversity, Conservation Law Foundation, Defenders of Wildlife and the Humane Society of the United States, the plaintiffs in the case, requested over 5,000 square miles south of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, where large numbers of whales congregate, be closed to vertical line fishing.

Intervenors in the case argued that closing off that area to fishing would place more nets outside its boundaries, creating a situation where lines are closer together, increasing entanglement risks for whales trying to reach the area considered for fishing closure.

The judge decided against the plaintiffs’ request because there is no legal precedent for such an action, he said in his opinion. He decided it would be too detrimental to the New England fishing industry that is already struggling because of the coronavirus.

Read the full story at Village Soup

Guidelines for Safely Deterring Marine Mammals

August 28, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Today, NOAA Fisheries is soliciting input on a proposed regulation for safely deterring marine mammals from damaging fishing gear or catch, damaging personal or public property, or endangering personal safety. MMPA section 101(a)(4)(B) directs the Secretary of Commerce, through NOAA Fisheries, to publish guidelines for safely deterring marine mammals and recommend specific measures to non-lethally deter marine mammals listed as endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act. This is an opportunity for the public to provide input on these guidelines and recommended specific measures. NOAA Fisheries has included in the guidelines and recommended specific measures those deterrents that are unlikely to kill or seriously injure marine mammals; we have not evaluated the effectiveness of deterrents.

Copies of the draft Environmental Assessment prepared in support of this action are available and accessible via the Internet at: https://www.regulations.gov/. We are accepting comments on the proposed rule for 60 days through 10-30-2020.

NOAA Fisheries Releases Proposed Rule for Marine Mammal Non-Lethal Deterrents

August 28, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Today, NOAA Fisheries is soliciting input on a proposed regulation for safely deterring marine mammals from damaging fishing gear or catch, damaging personal or public property, or endangering personal safety. MMPA section 101(a)(4)(B) directs the Secretary of Commerce, through NOAA Fisheries, to publish guidelines for safely deterring marine mammals and recommend specific measures to non-lethally deter marine mammals listed as endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act. This is an opportunity for the public to provide input on these guidelines and recommended specific measures. NOAA Fisheries has included in the guidelines and recommended specific measures those deterrents that are unlikely to kill or seriously injure marine mammals; we have not evaluated the effectiveness of deterrents.

We are accepting comments on the proposed rule for 60 days through 10-30-2020.  For more information and to review the draft Environmental Assessment and other materials prepared in support of this action visit our website.

Judge won’t close offshore lobster area; grants NMFS more time for whale analysis

August 21, 2020 — A federal judge granted the National Marine Fisheries Service a May 31, 2021 deadline to produce new biological opinion on the Northeast lobster fishery and northern right whale, following up on his earlier ruling that the agency had violated the Endangered Species Act with a 2014 opinion.

But in his new decision issued Monday, U.S. District Court Judge James E. Boasberg granted NMFS the nine-month grace period it had requested, rather than a Jan. 31, 2021 deadline sought by environmental groups that had sued the agency.

Boasberg also decided against ordering an immediate halt to the use of vertical lines for lobster gear in an area traversed by right whales south of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket – a ‘Southern New England Restricted Area,’ about the size of Connecticut, proposed by plaintiffs including the Center for Biological Diversity and Conservation Law Foundation.

In a 31-page memorandum of opinion, the District of Columbia judge laid out his reasoning, and recognized the difficulties NMFS faces in resolving the right whale issues. But he included a stern warning to the agency and to make progress.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

The Army Corps failed to enact endangered species protections for Willamette River salmon, judge rules

August 19, 2020 — A federal judge has ruled in favor of claims that federally owned dams on the upper Willamette River have failed to carry out Endangered Species Act protections for chinook salmon and steelhead.

U.S. District Judge Marco A. Hernandez ruled Tuesday that the Army Corps of Engineers and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) fell short of their legal obligations by delaying action or failing to take necessary steps under a 2008 Willamette River Biological Opinion plan. The plan included dozens of measures to ensure the survival and recovery of upper Willamette River wild spring chinook and winter steelhead.

It was a result of a previous lawsuit filed in 2007 by environmental organization Willamette Riverkeeper and Northwest Environmental Defense Center against the Corps for not producing a Biological Plan for the Willamette Basin and failing to comply with the ESA.

Read the full story at OPB