Saving Seafood

NOAA Fisheries Seeks Comments for an Application for an Exempted Fishing Permit to Test Experimental Retrieval Devices for Black Sea Bass Pots in South Atlantic Federal Waters

July 15, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

KEY MESSAGE:

NOAA Fisheries is accepting comments on an application for an exempted fishing permit (EFP) from the University of Georgia Marine Extension, Georgia Sea Grant. The applicant proposes to deploy modified black sea bass pots with Acoustic Subsea Buoy Retrieval Systems in federal waters off Georgia. The project would examine the potential usefulness of the devices for use in the black sea bass pot component for the commercial sector of the snapper-grouper fishery while minimizing impacts to protected species.

HOW TO COMMENT ON THE APPLICATION:

The comment period is open now through August 14, 2020. You may submit comments by electronic submission or by postal mail. Comments sent by any other method (such as e-mail), to any other address or individual, or received after the end of the comment period, may not be considered by NOAA Fisheries.

Application information:  https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/southeast/black-sea-bass-pot-pilot-project-exempted-fishing-permit-application/

Electronic Submissions: Submit all electronic public comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal.

  1. Go to https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=NOAA-NMFS-2020-0090.
  2. Click the “Comment Now!” icon, complete the required fields.
  3. Enter or attach your comments.

Mail:  Submit written comments to Frank Helies, NOAA Fisheries, Southeast Regional Office, 263 13th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701.

Program Concepts

  • Acoustic Subsea Buoy Retrieval Systems are an example of gear that store buoys and their retrieval devices at depth. These systems exist in the water column for minutes instead of hours or days as they are activated via acoustic releases only when fishers are present.  Currently, vertical end lines and buoys, such as those utilized for black sea bass pots, present an entanglement risk to the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale, a species that migrates and calves off the coast of Georgia in the winter months.
  • Adaptation of “ropeless” systems for this style of pot fishing could reduce risk to these whales and other marine animals that suffer entanglements. Up to six different designs would be tested during this study.
  • Black sea bass pots would be fished as singles with a traditional configuration and as experimental configurations of black sea bass pots (four regulation-sized pots connected together with wire connecting clips) without vertical buoy lines on live bottom during August and September 2020. Virtual gear marking (marking of gear deployment location with chartplotters, GPS, and manufacturer-provided software) would be utilized and evaluated, with analysis of the interoperability of systems being shared with fishery management partners.
  • Testing would occur in depths from 10-30 meters in federal waters 10 to 32 nautical miles off Townsend, Georgia. Deployments would be limited to 35 total pots, up to 300 gear hauls, with an average soak time of 90-120 minutes per configuration.  The applicant intends to collect data from 90 traditional gear deployments and 270 ASBRS gear deployments.

NOAA Fisheries finds this application warrants further consideration, and is seeking public comment on the application.  A final decision on issuance of the EFP will depend on NOAA Fisheries’ review of public comments received, the South Atlantic Fishery Management Councils’ recommendations, consultations with the affected states, and the U.S. Coast Guard, as well as a determination that it is consistent with all applicable laws.

Consumption trends transforming in “uncertain times”

May 1, 2020 — In the days and weeks ahead, much of the United States will begin incrementally easing back isolation restrictions enacted to curb the spread of coronavirus.

Now that federal stay-at-home mandates have been lifted, as many as 31 states are moving forward with plans to partially reopen, CNN reported on 30 April. Restaurants in Georgia and Tennessee have already begun to open their doors to patrons for dine-in service, mostly at limited-capacity, with other states aiming to follow suit – some more cautiously than others – as the summer season approaches.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

May 1st Triggers Opening of Shallow-Water Grouper and Other Species in the South Atlantic

April 29, 2020 — The following was released by the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

If you are fortunate enough to be out on the water this spring, fishing can be a great way to ease stress while practicing social distancing and other safe measures to ensure public safety. Beginning May 1st, fishermen will have a few more species to target in South Atlantic federal waters (greater than 3 nautical miles off the coasts of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and the east coast of Florida).

May 1st marks the beginning of the shallow-water grouper season, following the annual spawning season closure from January 1st through April 30th. The one exception is the Red Grouper season in federal waters off the coasts of North Carolina and South Carolina, which will open for harvest on June 1st.

Regulations also change for Greater Amberjack, Snowy Grouper, Hogfish and several other species.

Check out the latest blog for details.

Women’s History Month: Talking with Katey Marancik

March 11, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

My interest in a marine science career really started when I was 9 years old. My siblings and I were playing in the waves at our favorite place in the world—Island Beach State Park, New Jersey. The lifeguards started whistling, making everyone get out of the water. It turned out garbage, including syringes, was washing up on beaches nearby. I was furious! No one messes with my ocean, and no one makes me get out of the water except hunger or my mom. This seemingly small event inspired my fascination with how people use the sea and how things move around in it. Whether it’s garbage washing up on beaches from a barge offshore, or it’s fish larvae moving from a spawning site to juvenile habitat.

I went to college and grad school, working with some amazing men and women in the vast marine biology field. I earned my Bachelor of Science in marine biology from the University of North Carolina, Wilmington. While there, I narrowed my interests while participating in undergraduate honors research studying the movement of fish larvae through Beaufort Inlet in North Carolina. Fish larvae are so diverse in how they look and how they function in their environment. I was hooked—enjoy the pun!

After college, I earned a Master of Science at East Carolina University studying larval fish communities in and around Gray’s Reef National Marine Sanctuary off the coast of Georgia. I then took on a series of research positions, including my current position where I’ve learned more about the amazing early life history of fish.

Now, I’m a contractor working with the talented and dedicated researchers of the science center’s Oceans and Climate Branch. We collect and analyze plankton and hydrographic data to inform how we understand and manage fisheries and protected species. All these years later, I’m still connecting my long-held fascinations with how people use the ocean and how fish larvae move through it.

Read the full release here

Recreational red snapper season uncertain for 2020

March 5, 2020 — There won’t be a red snapper season for recreational fishers this year in federal waters off the Georgia coast unless an amendment under consideration moves with the necessary quickness.

The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council, which manages fisheries in federal waters from North Carolina to the Florida Keys, is in its annual March meetings on Jekyll Island. The SAFMC committee on snapper and grouper aired a fair amount of vexation Wednesday as it came to red snapper and plans to speed up a planned stock assessment.

“There’s obviously a lot of sources of frustration about the situation we’ve got with red snapper,” said Spud Woodward, a fisheries biologist and former director of the state Department Natural Resources’ Coastal Resources Division. He said it can be hard to know where to focus efforts in this sort of situation.

“Concerns about the quality of the data that we use to estimate the catch, which will ultimately drive the next stock assessment, which is a whole other issue,” Woodward said.

One thing Woodward said concerns him is that discussions tend to come back around to the inadequacy of the data. He said they’ve got to work on the foundations of the ability to manage the fisheries. There was some talk among snapper/grouper committee members that there would always be a significant amount of problems with recreational reporting, because it’s would take too much money and too much effort to put into effect the sort of policies that would come close to guaranteeing reliable numbers.

Read the full story at The Brunswick News

3 more right whale calves spotted

February 6, 2020 — Three more right whale calves have been spotted off the coasts of Georgia and Florida, according to the National Marine Fisheries Service.

A 28-year-old mother named Calvin was spotted swimming off Georgia with her calf, the statement says. In 2000, Calvin was found entangled off the coast of Cape Cod and was disentangled by the Center for Coastal Studies Marine Animal Entanglement Response Team.

A 24-year-old mother named Echo was seen with her calf off Atlantic Beach in Florida, and an 18-year-old mom called Arrow was spotted with her calf off Amelia Island in Florida.

These sightings bring the total number of right whale calves this season to nine, up from seven seen all of last year, according to a statement from the Center for Coastal Studies.

Read the full story at the Cape Cod Times

NOAA Fisheries – FB20-002: Atlantic Spanish Mackerel Southern Zone Commercial Trip Limit Reduction to 500 Pounds on January 29, 2020

January 27, 2020 — The following was released by the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

WHAT/WHEN:

  • The daily trip limit for the commercial harvest of Atlantic Spanish mackerel in the southern zone is reduced from 1,500 to 500 pounds, effective at 6:00 a.m., local time, on January 29, 2020.
  • The southern zone includes federal waters off the states of South Carolina, Georgia, and the east coast of Florida. The boundary for the southern zone is the North Carolina/South Carolina border and the Monroe/Miami-Dade Counties, Florida, border.

WHY THIS TRIP LIMIT REDUCTION IS HAPPENING:

  • When landings of Atlantic Spanish mackerel in the southern zone reach or are projected to reach 100 percent of the adjusted commercial quota, the daily trip limit is reduced to 500 pounds.
  • The trip limit reduction is necessary to slow the rate of commercial harvest to avoid exceeding the commercial quota.

AFTER THE TRIP LIMIT REDUCTION:

  • The 500 pound trip limit will remain in effect until the end of the current fishing season on February 29, 2020, or when 100 percent of the commercial quota is reached or projected to be reached, whichever occurs first. If 100 percent of the quota is reached or projected to be reached, NOAA Fisheries will close the fishery.

This bulletin provides only a summary of the existing regulations. Full regulations can be found in the Federal Register or at http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/retrieveECFR?gp=&SID=76c2b80788a139f1549b85d3764437b0&mc=true&n=pt50.12.622&r=PART&ty=HTML#sp50.12.622.q.

Injured Baby Right Whale Given Grim Prognosis After 2nd Look

January 15, 2020 — An endangered newborn right whale spotted with grievous injuries to its head off the Georgia coast is unlikely to survive, though scientists may try to inject the calf with antibiotics using a syringe fired from an air gun if they can safely get close enough, government experts said Monday.

Foggy weather along the coast was delaying efforts to locate the wounded baby whale and its mother by plane Monday. The calf was first seen from the air Wednesday, and a boat crew got close enough Friday near St. Simons Island for scientists to conclude its injuries were worse than initially feared.

“If you talk about an animal having an uphill climb, this one has a climb up Mt. Everest,” said Barb Zoodsma, who oversees the right whale recovery program in the U.S. Southeast for the National Marine Fisheries Service.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at The New York Times

SAFMC to Address Transit Provisions for Shrimp Fishery

January 13, 2020 — The following was released by the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

At the request of penaeid shrimp fishermen, the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council is considering measures to modify current transit provisions for cold-weather closed areas. The Council will hold a joint meeting of its advisory panels as well as public hearings to get input on proposed changes.

Joint Advisory Panel Meeting

  • Deepwater Shrimp, Law Enforcement, and Shrimp Advisory Panels (via webinar)
  • Friday, January 17, 2020 at 10:00 a.m.
  • Details, including a meeting agenda with a link to webinar registration, briefing book materials, and an online comment form is available at: https://safmc.net/safmc-meetings/current-advisory-panel-meetings/.

Public Hearings

  • Amendment 11 to the Shrimp Fishery Management Plan (via webinar)
  • Wednesday, February 5, 2020
  • Thursday, February 6, 2020
  • Hearings begin at 6:00 p.m. Additional details, including a public hearing summary document and overview will be posted online as they become available at: https://safmc.net/safmc-meetings/public-hearings-scoping-meetings/. Links for the webinar registration are now available.

The Council created the cold-weather closures and associated transit provisions to protect over-wintering white shrimp if the abundance of white shrimp decreases by 80% or water temperatures dip below 48 degrees Fahrenheit for at least one week. The current provisions, implemented in 1994, require that trawl gear be stowed below deck when transiting the closed areas. Fishermen have expressed concerns that changes to vessel design over the years make it more difficult to store the gear.

Council members will review recommendations from its advisory panels and input from the public hearings before considering final approval of Shrimp Amendment 11 during their March 2-6, 2020 meeting in Jekyll Island, GA.

Baby right whale spotted with deep wounds off Georgia coast

January 10, 2020 — A newborn right whale spotted off the coast of Georgia was suffering from deep cuts on either side of its head, dismaying conservationists who closely monitor the southeast U.S. coast during winter for births among the critically endangered species.

The S-shaped gashes, roughly 2 feet (0.6 meters) apart, were likely inflicted by the propeller of a boat, said Barb Zoodsma, who oversees the right whale recovery program in the U.S. Southeast for the National Marine Fisheries Service.

She said Thursday humans may be helpless to do anything to treat the injured calf.

“If this was a human baby, this calf would be in the NICU right now,” Zoodsma said, referring to a hospital’s intensive care unit for babies. “… And it’s highly unlikely that we can fix this animal.”

Crews searched by air and by boat Thursday in an attempt to relocate the wounded whale and its mother, which were first spotted Wednesday. But they couldn’t be found, said Allison Garrett, a National Marine Fisheries Service spokeswoman. She said inclement weather moving into the area could prevent further searches until next week.

Read the full story from the Associated Press