Saving Seafood

Study shows impact of climate change on fishing economy

December 26, 2019 — With the Gulf of Maine warming faster than 99% of the world’s oceans, it makes sense there would be impacts on fish stocks and the fishermen who depend on them for a living.

While several studies have demonstrated that marine inhabitants are on the move trying to find cooler water, the data on how climate change is affecting fishermen has been hard to come by. Other factors — cuts to fish quotas, the closing of more areas to fishing, and gear changes to rebuild fish stocks or protect endangered species such as the right whale — also could affect the fishing industry and disguise the impact of ocean warming.

But a new study by Kimberly Oremus, a researcher at the University of Delaware, used existing data to show that fishing jobs in New England’s coastal counties declined by an average of 16% between 1996 and 2017 due to climate variation.

Oremus focused her research on what is known as North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), the relative pressure differential between massive oceanic high pressure and low pressure systems in winter.

When the subtropical high pressure off the Azores is stronger than usual, there is a greater pressure differential with a low over Iceland. That means stronger winter storms crossing the Atlantic to Europe, and mild, wet winters in the eastern United States.

Read the full story at the Cape Cod Times

MAX SULLIVAN: Seabrook: Fishermen deserve voice in offshore wind plans

December 20, 2019 — Selectmen are abandoning a task force looking at offshore wind turbines in the Gulf of Maine, demanding their local fishermen have more direct inclusion.

The board voted unanimously Dec. 6 to send a letter to the New Hampshire Office of Strategic Initiatives announcing it would suspend its participation in the recently formed Intergovernmental Renewable Energy Task Force for the Gulf of Maine.

The task force is charged with considering the various impacts of offshore wind turbines, which are hoped to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while producing thousands of jobs across New England. Fishing communities like in Seabrook have expressed strong concerns about the turbines’ impact on the ocean and the fish they harvest for a living.

Seabrook selectmen said they value the fishing heritage in their town where many New Hampshire fishermen dock their boats. They said in their letter to the OSI they wanted fishermen to have a direct seat on the task force, which is comprised of elected officials from New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Maine.

“It is our firm belief that due to potential impacts to the fishing industry this task force should have representation from that industry,” selectmen said in a letter to Matthew Mailloux, energy adviser for the OSI. “Without a voice for fishermen we feel that the potential impacts to their livelihood may not be fully understood, or addressed, by this task force, as currently constituted.”

Read the full opinion piece at Sea Coast Online

Cod could choke catch of other fish

December 19, 2019 — It’s been a long road to setting final groundfish catch limits for the next three years in the Northeast Multispecies groundfishery and the journey isn’t quite over yet.

The New England Fishery Management Council approved the management framework that sets Northeast multispecies groundfish catch limits for 2020-2022 earlier this month. And local groundfishermen are looking at significant increases in several flounder stocks, American plaice and haddock.

But the state of the cod fishery in the Gulf of Maine and on Georges Bank remains a point of contention.

“Overall, it’s pretty rosy,” said Jackie Odell, executive director of the Northeast Seafood Coalition. “But the real issue is codfish, with catch limits that are going to be limiting and constricting when fishermen try to target other stocks.”

The council approved a 32% cut to Georges Bank cod to 1,073 metric tons per season and slashed the annual catch limit for Gulf of Maine cod by 24% to 275 metric tons per season.

Fishing stakeholders say those cuts reflect the continuing deep divide between what fishermen are seeing with cod on Georges Bank and in the Gulf of Maine and what NOAA Fisheries scientists include in their projections and assessments.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times

MAINE: Green Plate Special: Selling seafood that helps the fish – and the fishermen

December 16, 2019 — It’s an environmental idea that has taken off in recent decades. You can’t help an ecosystem if you don’t also account for the humans who rely on it. A new Portland-based company called Gulf of Maine Sashimi exemplifies the point. In order to help the ocean’s threatened fish populations, it works to help the fisherman, too.

To that end, a handful of Gulf of Maine fishermen supply the wholesale operation with fish species such as Acadian Redfish, flounder, Atlantic mackerel, haddock and white hake. The company’s niche is to wholesale pristine versions of these normally less valuable and more populous fish, so they can fetch better prices than they otherwise would. Then it passes along the extra revenue to the fishermen.

To ensure their catch makes the grade, the fishermen who sell whole fish to Gulf of Maine Sashimi employ two important measures: First, they use a Japanese technique for killing fish at sea called ike jime. A spike inserted quickly and directly into a fish’s hindbrain kills it instantly. Next, they submerge the fish in a slurry of seawater and ice to quickly bring its temperature to just above freezing and keep it there.

These measures combine to stem the flow of adrenaline, lactic acid and blood into the flesh of the fish, Gulf of Maine Sashimi CEO Jen Levin said, which preserves its pristine quality, improves its taste and increases its shelf life. The careful handling also ensures that the fish are not battered and bruised in sea transit, she said.

Read the full story at the Portland Press Herald

Effective Today: Closure of the Regular B Days-at-Sea Program

December 16, 2019 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Effective at 0845 hours on December 16, 2019, the Regular B Days-at-Sea (DAS) program is closed for the remainder of fishing year 2019, through April 30, 2020.  During this closure, Northeast multispecies vessels may not declare or use regular B days-at-sea.  We have closed the Regular B DAS program because 77 percent of the 242.5 lb Incidental Catch Total Allowable Catch (TAC) for Gulf of Maine cod is projected to have been caught.

The Regional Administrator is authorized to close the Regular B Days-at-Sea Program if it is projected that catch in the Regular B DAS Program cannot be constrained to the Gulf of Maine Cod Incidental Catch TAC.  With only two trip limits of catch available before the fishery meets or exceeds the Gulf of Maine Cod Incidental Catch TAC, we project that this criteria for closure has been met.

If you have crossed the vessel monitoring system demarcation line and are currently at sea on a groundfish trip declared under a regular B day-at-sea, you may complete your trip.

For more information see the rule as filed in the Federal Register today or our bulletin.

NEW HAMPSHIRE: Offshore Wind Task Force Meeting Draws Crowd; Sununu Pushes For Quick Development

December 13, 2019 — Northern New England began an ambitious planning process for offshore wind development in the Gulf of Maine Thursday.

More than 200 stakeholders packed into the first meeting of the new regional wind task force at UNH.

They say the new industry will take years to develop – but it could be a powerful way for Maine, Massachusetts and New Hampshire to fight climate.

The big turnout surprised organizers with the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. One facilitator said he’d never been to a standing-room-only task force meeting before.

Governor Chris Sununu was energized as he kicked off the day-long event. He says he intends to see offshore wind development succeed in the Gulf of Maine as quickly as possible.

Read the full story at New Hampshire Public Radio

States express support for offshore wind in Gulf of Maine

December 13, 2019 — Leaders in states bordering the Gulf of Maine expressed strong support Thursday for offshore wind, setting the region up to become the next battleground over the resource as some members of the area’s influential fishing industry voice objections.

Officials from Massachusetts and Maine, along with New Hampshire’s Republican Gov. Chris Sununu, said Thursday at the first meeting of the Agenda for the Intergovernmental Renewable Energy Task Force for the Gulf of Maine that they were optimistic =offshore wind could help them reduce greenhouse gas emissions while producing thousands of jobs across New England.

Led by the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, the task force must weigh concerns from commercial fishermen, environmentalists, coastal communities and other stakeholders before deciding where leases on the Outer Continental Shelf in the Gulf of Maine might be allocated and where they wouldn’t be allowed. There are also technical challenges, since the deep waters of the gulf may require floating platforms.

So far, there are no federal leases in the gulf, and the first offshore wind farm is still six to 10 years from operation. Still, officials estimate offshore wind could eventually be a critical energy source in New England.

Read the full story at the Associated Press

New Task Force Will Consider Leases For Offshore Wind Energy Developers In The Gulf Of Maine

December 12, 2019 — A new task force will convene for the first time Thursday to consider how and where to lease potentially vast swathes of the Gulf of Maine to offshore wind-energy developers. The outcome could have big consequences for Maine’s fishing industry, and for the state’s role in the next wave of renewable energy development.

An earlier round of auctions awarded leases in federal waters off southern New England, where several large-scale wind projects should soon start churning out thousands of megawatts of electricity — a big down payment on state commitments to ramp up the use of renewable energy.

Now, at New Hampshire Gov. John Sununu’s request, the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management is starting a new process to designate the best areas for offshore wind projects farther north — in the Gulf of Maine. Analysts say investments could be worth billions of dollars, with thousands of jobs in the offing.

“This is a really significant opportunity for our energy future and economy,” says Dan Burgess.

Burgess directs Maine Gov. Janet Mills’ energy office, and he is leading the state’s delegation to the intergovernmental task force that will advise the Bureau Of Ocean Energy Management. The panel also includes representatives from New Hampshire, Massachusetts, tribal governments and the feds.

Read the full story at Maine Public

Gulf of Maine Research Institute obtains grant to improve local seafood access

December 12, 2019 — The Gulf of Maine Research Institute (GMRI) – located in Portland, Maine – has obtained a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture in order to improve local access to seafood in New England.

The grant totals USD 480,000 (EUR 432,216), which is being matched by GMRI with USD 125,000 (EUR 112,556) in funding and staff time. That money will be invested back into smaller ports in New England in order to improve supply-chain logistics, boosting the quality of the seafood landed there.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Warren releases ‘Blue New Deal,’ a plan to help ailing oceans

December 10, 2019 — Senator Elizabeth Warren on Tuesday released an addendum to her vision for a Green New Deal: the Blue New Deal.

The new plan seeks to address how climate change is affecting oceans and other waters, while ensuring a vibrant marine economy, she said.

“While the ocean is severely threatened, it can also be a major part of the climate solution,” she wrote in a nine-page summary of the plan. “That is why I believe that a Blue New Deal must be an essential part of any Green New Deal.”

“Not being consulted on this isn’t a good start to the relationship,” said Drew Minkiewicz, an attorney for the Fisheries Survival Fund in Washington, D.C., which represents the scallop industry. “We expected something more well-thought-out from her.”

Annie Hawkins, executive director of the Responsible Offshore Development Alliance, a coalition of fishing industry associations and companies, said that “any large industrial project in the ocean will have significant impacts to the sustainability of established activities and the marine environment.”

“To me, it seems like it was written by staff, and they did a lot of Googling,” said Robert Vanasse, executive director of Saving Seafood, a Washington-based group that represents commercial fishermen. “It’s disappointing, because we know Senator Warren has a more sophisticated understanding of fisheries.”

Read the full story at The Boston Globe