Saving Seafood

NOAA cancels surveys, angering fishermen

August 10, 2020 — A week after announcing the Aug. 14 redeployment of at-sea monitors aboard Northeast groundfish vessels, NOAA Fisheries said it is canceling four fisheries and ecosystem surveys over COVID-19 safety concerns for its staff.

“After much deliberation, we determined we will not be able to move forward with these surveys while effectively minimizing risk and meeting core survey objectives,” NOAA Fisheries said in a statement.

The cancellation of the surveys further angered fishing stakeholders already incensed by what they regard as NOAA Fisheries’s insensitivity toward health concerns of commercial fishermen in the push to redeploy at-sea monitors while the pandemic continues.

“NOAA doesn’t have anybody working in its offices and has canceled much of its on-the-water field work out of safety concerns for its staff,” Jackie Odell, executive director of the Gloucester-based Northeast Seafood Coalition, said Thursday. “Data is very important. Monitoring is very important. But at some point, NOAA has to understand that the lives of fishermen and their families don’t come second. That has to be a top priority.”

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times

SSC Groundfish SubCommittee online meeting September 2, 2020

August 7, 2020 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Groundfish Subcommittee of the Pacific Fishery Management Council’s Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) will hold an online meeting to plan a later methodology review of elasmobranch harvest control rules and management reference points.  This online meeting is open to the public, and will be held Wednesday, September 2, 2020, from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m., Pacific Time, or until business for the day has been completed.

Please see the SSC Groundfish Subcommittee meeting notice on the Council’s website for additional details.

For further information:

  • Please contact Pacific Fishery Management Council staff officer John DeVore at 503-820-2413; toll-free 1-866-806-7204.

Fishing council plans in-person meeting on monitoring

August 6, 2020 — The New England Fishery Management Council is exploring the possibility of hosting an in-person meeting for the last public hearing before it takes final action on the Northeast groundfish monitoring amendment in September.

The council has set three more public hearings before public comment closes Aug. 31 on Amendment 23, which will set at-sea monitoring levels throughout the fishery. The first two — this Thursday and Aug. 10 — will be via webinar, as were the first four.

The final public hearing on Aug. 26 could be switched to an in-person, outdoor session under a tent at a greater Boston location — but only if it can conform with current Massachusetts COVID-19 safety restrictions for public gatherings. If not, the final public hearing will proceed as a webinar.

“The decision whether to hold the meeting in-person and outdoors primarily will depend on the guidance of Gov. (Charlie) Baker of Massachusetts and whether Massachusetts changes its restrictions on public gatherings,” Janice Plante, council spokeswoman, said Tuesday. “We don’t want to put anybody in a compromised position.”

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times

Northeast Groundfish Retail sales recovering, but prices stay down

August 5, 2020 — “Well, we’ve had an interesting first part of the fishing year,” says Bert Jongerden, general manager of the Portland Fish Exchange on Maine’s waterfront. “Prices have been very weak — I’m surprised by how much the lack of restaurant markets is impacting the pricing of groundfish.”

Generally, Jongerden notes, “a groundfish trawler averages around $2 a pound. But, right now, trawlers are getting around $1.25 to 1.30 a pound. It’s about 65 percent off this year, compared to last year.” Amid the continuing covid-19 closures, supermarket retail has been steadier, but it hasn’t made up for restaurant demand.

As New York City markets are beginning to open back up, “pollock, haddock and hake are moving along pretty well, but at reduced prices while flatfish like dabs, grey sole and monk tails are weak,” says Jongerden.

It’s been challenging to find markets for flatfish, which are typically popular in restaurants as full-plate fish. Jongerden says challenges for flatfish markets are compounded by the fact that processors along the northeast coast are having difficulty getting flatfish cut and processed.

“Finding cutters was challenging before covid-19 hit, but the pandemic has exacerbated things,” he says. “Processors have to be careful now, using screens and adjusting so workers aren’t close to one another. It all has a trickle-down effect.”

Read the full story at National Fisherman

NEFMC August-September 2020 Meeting Lineup – Skates, Scallops, Groundfish, Herring, and More

August 3, 2020 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council has scheduled numerous public hearings, advisory panel meetings, and committee meetings throughout August and September to address actions related to Atlantic sea scallops, groundfish, Atlantic herring, skates, habitat, ecosystem-based fishery management, and more. Webinar registration links and related documents are – or soon will be – posted on each of the respective hearing/meeting webpages. Here’s the lineup.

SKATES – Thursday, August 6: The Council’s Skate Committee will meet by webinar at 9:00 a.m. to continue developing and clarifying the problem statement, goals, and objectives for Amendment 5 to the Northeast Skate Complex Fishery Management Plan (FMP). This action is considering whether to limit access to the skate wing and bait fisheries. Meeting materials and the webinar registration link are at Skates August 6.

Read the full release here

PFMC: Groundfish Management Team to hold online meeting August 25, 2020

July 29, 2020 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council’s (Pacific Council) Groundfish Management Team (GMT) will hold an online meeting to discuss items on the Pacific Council’s September 2020 meeting agenda. The meeting is open to the public. The meeting will be held Tuesday, August 25, 2020, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., Pacific Daylight Time, or until business for the day has been completed.

Please see the GMT online meeting notice on the Council’s website for purpose and participation details.

For further information:

  • Please contact Pacific Fishery Management Council staff officer Todd Phillips at 503-820-2426; toll-free 1-866-806-7204.

Massachusetts Lawmakers Call for Observer Waiver to Continue Past July 31

July 28, 2020 — With just days left before the redeployment of observers will begin in the Greater Atlantic Region, Massachusetts lawmakers called on NOAA Fisheries to extend the waiver of fishery observers as long as is necessary.

In a letter to NOAA leadership, the delegation asked for a delay of the at-sea monitoring requirement for the Northeast groundfish fishery citing rising cases in coastal areas in the region including Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Virginia communities.

Read the full story at Seafood News

NOAA Fisheries Sets Management Measures for Northeast Groundfish

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

We are approving the previously proposed Framework 59 and implementing new catch limits for groundfish stocks for the 2020 fishing year (May 1, 2020 – April 30, 2021), including the three stocks managed jointly with Canada. These revised catch limits are based upon the results of stock assessments conducted in 2019.

Framework 59 is adjusting the allocations of the total quota between the commercial and recreational fishery for Gulf of Maine cod and haddock. The proportion of quota allocated to the recreational fishery is increasing from 33.7 percent to 37.5 percent for Gulf of Maine cod, and is increasing from 27.5 percent to 33.9 percent for Gulf of Maine haddock. Management measures for the recreational fishery will be announced in a separate rulemaking.

Read the final rule as filed in the Federal Register and the permit holder bulletin available on our website.

NEFMC to Host July 27 Webinar Training for Scallop, Groundfish Public Hearings

July 17, 2020 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council will host another webinar training session to help fishermen and other stakeholders prepare for this summer’s string of public hearings on Scallop Amendment 21 and Groundfish Amendment 23.

WHEN AND WHAT TIME: Monday, July 27, 2020 at 4:00 p.m.

HOW DO I JOIN: First, you need to register for the webinar at this orange link: Here

IMPORTANT: Anyone who wants to speak during the webinar must register for and join the webinar. That’s because you’ll need to click on a “raise hand” button on the webinar screen to let the organizer know you want to talk. Registering will allow you to mute and unmute yourself when it’s your turn to provide comments. Additionally, you can call in by phone if you’d like – the information will be in your email confirmation – but be sure to join the webinar first.

Read the full release here

Public hearings slated for fish monitoring amendment

July 15, 2020 — With COVID-19 still looming, the New England Fishery Management Council has crafted an array of digital alternatives to help commercial fishermen understand the options contained in the long-discussed and critical Amendment 23 that will set monitoring levels in the groundfish fishery.

The council, which expects to take final action on the measure at its September meeting, has moved the Amendment 23 public hearings to online webinars and has produced an online tutorial to help the webinar uninitiated participate and develop informed comment. It plans a narrated digital presentation on the measure and has scheduled “Amendment 23 outreach office hours” when fishermen can call in or participate via webinar with questions for council staff.

Given the complexities of the measure, however, fishing stakeholders said the council should continue to search for a way to safely hold at least some of the remaining public hearings in person to accommodate industry members not as well versed with the digital world.

“This is such an important and significant action that we hope the council will do everything possible to hold traditional public hearings, but with safe distancing and all the other precautions we need to take,” said Jackie Odell, executive director of the Gloucester-based Northeast Seafood Coalition. “Taking it all online might be fair to some members of the industry, but not to all.”

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times