Saving Seafood

Northern Gulf of Maine Scallop Management Area Closes For the Season

May 10, 2021 — The Northern Gulf of Maine Scallop Management Area closed on Thursday after NOAA determined that 100% of the 2021 default total allowable catch for the area will be taken. As of May 6, no scallop vessel fishing under federal scallop regulations is allowed to fish for, possess, or land scallops in the area until March 31, 2022.

According to NOAA, Framework Adjustment 33 is currently under review and will implement a 2021 NGOM LAGC TAC of 119,222 lbs. when finalized. The agency explained that because Framework Adjustment 32 default TAC will be harvested by May 6, the closure is required before Framework Adjustment 33 can be finalized.

Read the full story at Seafood News

NOAA Fisheries Announces Closure of the Northern Gulf of Maine Scallop Management Area

May 5, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Effective 0001 hr May 6

NOAA Fisheries is closing the Northern Gulf of Maine Scallop Management Area to all federally permitted limited access general category scallop vessels effective 0001 hr, on May 6, 2021.

As of May 6, 2021, no scallop vessel fishing under federal scallop regulations may fish for, possess, or land scallops in or from the Northern Gulf of Maine Scallop Management Area. The scallop regulations require that we close this area once we project that 100 percent of the 2021 default total allowable catch for this area will be taken. The closure will be in effect until the end of the fishing year, March 31, 2022.

Framework Adjustment 33 to the Scallop FMP is currently under review and will implement a 2021 NGOM LAGC TAC of 119,222 lb when finalized. Because the Framework Adjustment 32 default TAC will be harvested by May, 6, a closure is required before Framework Adjustment 33 is finalized. After Framework Adjustment 33 is in place, the difference between the 2021 NGOM LAGC final catch and the Framework Adjustment 33 TAC will be deducted pound-for-pound from a future fishing year.

If you have declared a trip into the Northern Gulf of Maine Scallop Management Area using the correct Vessel Monitoring System (VMS) code and have crossed the VMS demarcation line before 0001 hr, May 6, 2021, you may complete the trip and retain and land scallops caught from the Northern Gulf of Maine Scallop Management Area.

Exemption for Maine and Massachusetts Vessels Fishing Exclusively in State Waters

If you have a valid Maine or Massachusetts state scallop permit, you may continue to fish in Maine or Massachusetts state waters within the Northern Gulf of Maine Scallop Management Area under the State Waters Exemption program. If you are fishing under an Individual Fishing Quota scallop permit (Limited Access General Category A), any pounds landed under a state waters only trip will still be deducted from the vessel’s allocation.

Exemption for Limited Access Vessels Fishing Compensation Trips Under the Scallop Research Set-Aside Program

This closure does not affect the Limited Access fleet that was allocated a separate Total Allowable Catch of 97,500 lb for the 2021 fishing year under Framework 32 to the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery Management Plan. The Limited Access Total Allowable Catch will be harvested by vessels that are participating in the 2021 scallop Research Set-Aside Program.

Read the full release here

Mills files proposed moratorium on wind power in heavily fished waters off Maine’s coast

April 30, 2021 — Democratic Gov. Janet Mills is seeking a temporary ban on the development of offshore wind in waters managed by the state.

On Wednesday, Mills introduced legislation – sponsored by Sen. Mark Lawrence, D-York, chairman of the Legislature’s Energy, Utilities and Technology Committee – that would impose a 10-year moratorium on new wind power projects in state waters.

In a statement, Mills said the state is “uniquely prepared to grow a strong offshore wind industry, create good-paying trades and technology jobs around the state, and reduce Maine’s crippling dependence on harmful fossil fuels” but not at the expense of the state’s storied fishing industry.

“We will focus these efforts in federal waters farther off our coast, as we responsibly pursue a small research array that can help us establish the best way for Maine to embrace the vast economic and environmental benefits of offshore wind,” she said.

Lawrence said the proposal “strikes the right balance to protect Maine’s fisheries and coastal waters, while continuing to advance the great energy and economic potential for offshore wind energy in federal waters of the Gulf of Maine.”

Read the full story at The Center Square

Update on the Northern Gulf of Maine Scallop Fishing Season

April 30, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

The 2021 Northern Gulf of Maine (NGOM) scallop fishery opened on April 1, 2021, under default specifications set by Framework 32. We are reviewing the final 2021 specifications (i.e., Framework 33) and, if approved, will implement them as soon as possible. The limited access general category (LAGC) portion of the NGOM total allowable catch (TAC) that would be implemented through Framework 33 (119,222 lb) is lower than the Framework 32 default TAC (167,500 lb).

The NGOM remains open to fishing. However, we project that the Framework 33 fishing year 2021 TAC (119,222 lb) has been reached. Framework 33 has not been approved, so we are monitoring the NGOM fishery based on the Framework 32 default TAC (167,500 lb).

If Framework 33 is implemented and the LAGC NGOM fleet exceeds its portion of the TAC, any overage would result in a pound-for-pound deduction against the NGOM TAC in a future year. Further, an overage could have a detrimental impact on the scallop resource on Jeffreys Ledge and in Ipswich Bay.

For landings and trip information visit our quota monitoring page.

Read the full release here

Maine lobstermen rally to stop offshore wind power

April 29, 2021 — The Maine Legislature is about to see a battle over offshore wind power in the Gulf of Maine, two high-profile combatants: Governor Janet Mills facing off against Maine’s lobster industry.

An estimated 400 lobstermen or more left the docks for a rally Wednesday outside the Augusta Civic Center, where the Legislature was meeting, to voice their anger about the proposed development of offshore wind power.

Like South Bristol fisherman Adam Gamage, they say that development is a threat.

“Here we are, we have a very sustainable fishery,” Gamage said, “It’s too bad it’s come to this where they are trying to put an industrialized piece of machinery out in the middle of the ocean (and) they don’t really know what is going to do.”

There is currently a plan by New England Aqua Ventus to build one very large, floating platform with a massive wind turbine mounted on top. It would be located a little more than two miles off Monhegan Island in a site approved by the Maine Legislature more than 10 years ago for that purpose.

The project is designed as a full-size test of a floating platform design from the University of Maine, but also to test how large wind turbines perform in the moving and often harsh environment of the open sea.

Read the full story at News Center Maine

MAINE: Gov. Mills seeks to broker peace between fishing, wind power

April 28, 2021 — Maine’s governor introduced a proposal on Wednesday that would establish a decade-long moratorium on new offshore wind projects in state waters.

Democratic Gov. Janet Mills, a proponent of wind power, made the proposal as members of the state’s fishing industry raised questions about locating wind turbines in the Gulf of Maine. The gulf is a critical fishing ground for lobster harvesters and other fishermen.

Mills said in a statement that her moratorium would “preserve state waters for valuable fishing and recreation, while reaffirming Maine’s priority of locating offshore wind projects in federal waters of the Gulf of Maine.” She cited the fact Maine has proposed the first research array for floating offshore wind technology in those waters.

Mills also said she crafted the proposal, which was submitted to the Maine Legislature, in response to concerns from the fishing industry. Most lobster fishing takes place in state waters, she said.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at the Caledonian Record

Atlantic Herring Area 1A 2021 Effort Controls

April 23, 2021 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Atlantic Herring Management Board members from Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts set the effort control measures for the 2021 Area 1A (inshore Gulf of Maine) fishery for June 1 – September 30.

The Area 1A sub-annual catch limit (ACL) is 1,453 metric tons (mt) after adjusting for the carryover from 2019, the 30 mt fixed gear set-aside, and the fact that Area 1A closes at 92% of the sub-ACL. In October 2020, the Board established the following seasonal allocations for the 2021 Area 1A sub-ACL: 72.8% available for season 1 (June 1 – September 30) and 27.2% available for season 2 (October 1 – December 31).

Days Out of the Fishery

  • Landing days will be set at zero from June 1 until the start of the fishery on June 13 at 6:00 p.m.
  • Vessels with an Atlantic herring Limited Access Category A permit that have declared into the Area 1A fishery may land herring five (5) consecutive days a week. One landing per 24 hour period. Vessels are prohibited from landing or possessing herring caught from Area 1A during a day out of the fishery.
  • Landing days begin on Sunday of each week at 6:00 p.m. starting June 13.

Weekly Landing Limit

  • Vessels with an Atlantic herring Category A permit may harvest up to 240,000 lbs. (6 trucks) per harvester vessel, per week starting June 13.

At-Sea Transfer and Carrier Restrictions

The following applies to harvester vessels with an Atlantic herring Category A permit and carrier vessels landing herring caught in Area 1A to a Maine, New Hampshire, or Massachusetts port.

  • A harvester vessel may transfer herring at-sea to another harvester vessel.
  • A harvester vessel may not make any at-sea transfers to a carrier vessel.
  • Carrier vessels may not receive at-sea transfers from a harvester vessel.

Fishermen are prohibited from landing more than 2,000 pounds of Atlantic herring per trip from Area 1A until June 13, 2021 at 6:00 p.m. Landings will be closely monitored and the fishery will be adjusted to zero landing days when the season 1 quota is projected to be reached.

For more information, please contact Emilie Franke, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator, at efranke@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740.

The announcement can also be found at http://www.asmfc.org/files/AtlHerring/AtlHerring2021Area1A_DaysOutMeasures_Aprl2021.pdf

NOAA Fisheries Releases New Species in the Spotlight Priority Action Plans

April 21, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Today, NOAA Fisheries released nine new Species in the Spotlight Priority Action Plans, two of which are for species in the Greater Atlantic Region. These plans highlight the most vital actions that NOAA Fisheries and our partners can take to reverse the declining populations of nine endangered marine species that are most at risk of extinction. Building on the successes of the past five years, NOAA Fisheries is renewing the initiative through 2025 to sustain momentum toward recovery.

GARFO’s two Species in the Spotlight are:

  • Atlantic Salmon Gulf of Maine Distinct Population Segment (DPS)
  • North Atlantic Right Whale (added in 2019)

NOAA’s seven other Species in the Spotlight are:

  • Central California Coast Coho Salmon Evolutionary Significant Unit (ESU)
  • Cook Inlet Beluga Whale DPS
  • Hawaiian Monk Seal
  • Pacific Leatherback Sea Turtle
  • Sacramento River Winter-run Chinook Salmon ESU
  • Southern Resident Killer Whale DPS
  • White Abalone

Established in 2015, the Species in the Spotlight initiative has since helped us achieve important milestones toward recovery. Watch the video.

We invite you to review the Species in the Spotlight Action Plans for 2021-2025 and learn more about our partners and what we have accomplished in the past 5 years. We appreciate all of our current partners and collaborators, as the steps we need to take to stabilize these species would not be possible without them.

Read our webstory to learn more.

Read the full release here

MAINE: Digital platform program will bolster seafood industry

April 19, 2021 — The Economic Development Administration has awarded the Gulf of Maine Research Institute nearly $750,000 to help connect small businesses and entrepreneurs with leaders in the seafood industry to create digital platforms to promote growth, job creation and resiliency.  

U.S. Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Angus King (I-Maine) announced the award on Monday that will establish the institute’s Gulf of Maine Blue Innovation Recovery program.  

“Maine’s working waterfront is central to the livelihoods of families, communities, and small businesses throughout our state,” the senators said in a statement.  “We welcome this investment in the Gulf of Maine Research Institute, which will help our seafood industry weather the coronavirus pandemic through innovative technology.” 

The seafood industry has been hit hard by the pandemic, with restaurants closed, trade disrupted and new safety protocols put in place.  

Read the full story at the Mount Desert Islander

Get your Maine scallops while the season lasts

April 16, 2021 — With just a couple weeks of April left, if you like Maine scallops, you had better take the opportunity to get them while you can. Otherwise, you’ll be waiting for the fishery to re-open in December. Unlike many other types of Maine seafood, scallops are only available seasonally. It’s a little confusing, though, because there are two different seasons. That’s because there are two parts of the fishery, one closer to shore and one further offshore. Scallops are a highly valuable species, so managing them well provides substantial income for the state’s economy

The state fishery, which opens in December, takes place inshore of the three-mile state water limit. It is managed by the Maine Department of Marine Resources (DMR). They issue licenses by lottery for two types of license – one for dragging, the primary means of harvesting, and one for divers who collect scallops by SCUBA. The season is slightly different for each type. The inshore fishery is divided into zones that are closed when harvesting limits are reached.

The federal fishery, which takes place out past three miles from shore, is managed by the New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC). That fishery requires a separate license and each permit is specific to a designated area. We are part of the Northern Gulf of Maine (NGOM) area. The state scallop season is often the one people think of and associate with Maine fishermen, but around 40 Maine boats fish in the NGOM.

Read the full story at the Portland Press Herald