October 26, 2020 — A Florida connection has brought together pioneering salmon farming firm Atlantic Sapphire and the Publix supermarket chain.
Atlantic Sapphire, which recently celebrated its first commercial harvest at its new recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) farm in Miami, Florida, U.S.A., is teaming up with the Lakeland, Florida-based supermarket chain to begin offering its Bluehouse brand salmon in 269 of its 1,255 stores, mostly in the Miami area.
October 22, 2020 — Florida has become the latest U.S. state to gain approval for its CARES Act spend plan, allowing it to begin the application process to deliver aid to the seafood industry to offset the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The approval comes several months after the USD 300 million (EUR 253.7 million) in aid funding was approved in May. Florida represents the fourth-largest recipient of those funds, with the state receiving USD 23.6 million (EUR 19.9 million) in relief funding to be distributed among industry stakeholders.
October 22, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:
KEY MESSAGES:
WHEN RULE WILL TAKE EFFECT:
FORMAL FEDERAL REGISTER CITATION:
This bulletin serves as a Small Entity Compliance Guide, complying with section 212 of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996.
Where can I find more information on Amendment 11?
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.
October 15, 2020 — Stone crabbers in Southwest Florida are facing an uncertain season, but meeting it with high hopes and optimism.
The season opens Thursday.
New crabbing regulations from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission have cut the season short and raised the size limit of claws. On top of that, the coronavirus pandemic has put the restaurant industry in flux.
“We’re all looking forward to another good season,” said Kelly Kirk, owner of Kirk Fish Company on Marco Island. “This season is a new one for us with COVID and some new regulations, but we’re excited to get back to work. It’s time and we’re ready and fired up for it and hope our customers are, too.”
October 9, 2020 — The Army Corps of Engineers will open a public comment period on a permit application for a fish farming pilot project off Florida’s southwest coast, following demands from critics and a newly issued pollution permit.
Hawaii-based developer Ocean Era LLC is proposing its Velella Epsilon aquaculture project, a single net pen system to raise up to 20,000 Almaco jack fingerlings, in the Gulf of Mexico about 45 miles southwest of Longboat Pass-Sarasota Bay.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Sept. 30 issued a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit allowing the fish farm to discharge up to 80,000 pounds of wastewater during its pilot production cycle.
“The proposed aquaculture system would be deployed for one period of 12-18 months, which will represent one production cycle including a 12-month rearing timeframe and 6 months for initial cage deployment and water quality and benthic sampling, time between stocking and harvesting, and the removal of gear at the project conclusion,” according to the Corps’ public notice of application.
October 7, 2020 — When weather permits, Capt. Rich Osburn sails a few days each week from the Fort Pierce Inlet to ply the waters of the Gulf Stream for his targeted catch.
As a commercial shark fisher, Osburn and his crew of one or two deckhands legally deploy six miles of longline in federal waters with about 500 baited hooks. The sharks they are permitted to harvest according to federal guidelines include:
Osburn said he does not harvest any tigers or hammerheads because there is no value for their meat. They get turned loose. They also are among 26 species of sharks protected from harvest in Florida state waters.
October 2, 2020 — There are currently no commercial finfish operations in US federal waters, which is defined as ocean water spanning between 12 and 200 miles offshore.
This week, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued its National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit for the Velella Epsilon aquaculture project, another big step in making American offshore aquaculture a reality.
The Velella Epsilon offshore demonstration farm is a netpen aquaculture facility set to be located approximately 45 miles southwest of Sarasota, Florida, slated to raise a single batch, or cohort, of 20,000 kampachi (Seriola rivoliana).
September 23, 2020 — The federal government said in a court filing Monday that a new Trump administration ban on oil drilling off the south Atlantic coast doesn’t stop companies from requesting to search for oil in those waters.
The case involves two consolidated lawsuits challenging permits issued by the National Marine Fisheries Service that allow seismic testing companies to disturb marine life.
The testing involves shooting air gun blasts at the ocean floor to map whether fossil fuels lie underneath. It has been shown to harm sea life such as whales.
The litigation fell into question briefly when President Donald Trump announced earlier this month he was ordering a 10-year ban on drilling off the coasts of Florida, Georgia and South Carolina.
September 21, 2020 — Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed a measure into law banning the import and export of shark fins in Florida.
Sen. Travis Hutson sponsored the bill (SB 680), but the measure is named after the late Kristin Jacobs. She sponsored the House version of the bill (HB 401). Jacobs passed away in April — almost exactly one month after the Legislature approved the legislation — after a yearslong battle with cancer.
“This bill’s really important to the state,” Jacobs said as the Legislature approved a final version of the bill.
Jacobs prioritized banning the shark fin trade. Toward the end of the legislative process, Rep. Toby Overdorf offered an amendment renaming the bill the “Kristin Jacobs Ocean Conservation Act.” That amendment was approved.
“It was an incredible honor and privilege to help Rep. Jacobs across the finish line with this bill,” Overdof said. “The aptly named Ocean Conservancy Act allows her advocacy for the environment and for bipartisan relationships to continue long after her passing.”