Saving Seafood

North Pacific Council to Hear From Alaska Charter Operators on Halibut Catch Limits

January 30, 2020 — This week the North Pacific Fisheries Management Council (NPFMC) will hear from eminent scientists about prioritized research in Alaska that is underfunded, ways to change data reporting that maintains “best science available” standards, how to best fund the all-important observer program in areas not yet 100% covered, how to balance bycatch with directed halibut fishing, and what will done about the sablefish overage from last year, among other agenda items.

The solidly-packed agenda is not unusual, but among those weighty issues, the one that has illicited the most comments from industry — 62 compared to 5 for the next most commented-on topic — was the halibut catch limit for Gulf of Alaska (Area 3A) charter operators.

Read the full story at Seafood News

Russian cod and halibut get MSC certification

January 9, 2020 — Members of the Russia-based Longline Fishery Association (LFA) have earned Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification for their Pacific halibut and Pacific cod fisheries in three zones of the Bering Sea.

Six fisheries got certificates: Interrybflot, YAMSy, Polaris, Sigma Marine Technology, Tymlatsky rybokombinat, and Dalrybprom. The certification covers the Chukchi, West Bering Sea, and East Kamchatka fishery zones of the Bering Sea.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

PFMC: Reminder: Area 2A Pacific Halibut Manager’s Webinar Meeting to be held on January 7, 2020

December 31, 2019 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council (Pacific Council) will host a webinar meeting of the Area 2A Pacific halibut governmental management entities on Tuesday, January 7, 2020 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Pacific Standard Time, or until business for the day is completed. No management actions will be decided by the attendees.  The webinar will be open to the public, and the agenda, which will be posted on the Pacific Council website prior to the meeting, will provide for a public comment period.

Please see the Area 2A Pacific Halibut Manager’s webinar notice on the Council’s website for participation details.

For further information:

  • Please contact Pacific Fishery Management Council staff officer Ms. Robin Ehlke  at 503-820-2410; toll-free 1-866-806-7204.

Atlantic Halibut Subject of NOAA Research

December 9, 2019 — NOAA Fisheries is working with fishermen across Cape Cod to see if the Atlantic halibut is showing signs of recovery in the Gulf of Maine as well as the New England region.

A three-part study is currently underway to see if the halibut population is rebuilding after the size of the fish shrunk over centuries.

The Northeast Fisheries Science Center is working with local fishermen to understand the life history, stock structure, and movement patterns of the Atlantic halibut.

Read the full story at CapeCod.com

Halibut in steady decline throughout Pacific, says commission

December 6, 2019 — Lower catches for Pacific halibut are in the forecast for the foreseeable future.

That was the message from the International Pacific Halibut Commission at its November meeting in Seattle. The commission oversees halibut stock research and sets catch limits for nine fishing regions ranging from northern California to British Columbia to the Bering Sea.

There are fewer of the prized flatfish (down 4 percent), they weigh less (down 5 percent) and no big pulses appear to be coming into the stock, according to the grim summary of the 2019 halibut fishery. The assessment included the results of summer-long surveys at nearly 1,370 fishing stations, including 89 added to the Central Gulf of Alaska, the biggest halibut fishing hole.
The numbers of spawning halibut also appeared to continue their decline over the past year, said the commission’s lead scientist Ian Stewart.

The commission calculates the amount of removals of halibut over 26 inches for commercial, recreational, sports charter, subsistence and bycatch in other fisheries, called a total constant exploitation yield. For 2019, the coastwide TCEY was 38.61 million pounds. The decline was projected, Stewart said.

“This has been predicted for several years. This is projected to continue for all 2020 [Total Constant Exploitation Yields] greater than approximately 18.4 million pounds,” Stewart said. “It’s essentially the breakeven point over the next three years. So, we’re looking at a period of relatively low productivity for the Pacific halibut stock over the next three years.”

Read the full story at National Fisherman

PFMC: Area 2A Pacific Halibut Manager’s Webinar Meeting to be held on January 7, 2020

December 3, 2019 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council (Pacific Council) will host a webinar meeting of the Area 2A Pacific halibut governmental management entities on Tuesday, January 7, 2020 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Pacific Standard Time, or until business for the day is completed. No management actions will be decided by the attendees.  The webinar will be open to the public, and the agenda, which will be posted on the Pacific Council website prior to the meeting, will provide for a public comment period.

Please see the Area 2A Pacific Halibut Manager’s webinar notice on the Council’s website for participation details.

For further information:

  • Please contact Pacific Fishery Management Council staff officer Ms. Robin Ehlke  at 503-820-2410; toll-free 1-866-806-7204.

PFMC OKs a 3-day Halibut Season for the Area 2A Directed Commercial Fishery

November 29, 2019 — SEAFOOD NEWS — It has taken a few years, but it is likely the West Coast directed commercial halibut fishery will be longer than a 10-hour season in 2020.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council in November approved a 3-day fishery for the non-tribal fishery in 2020, starting at 8 a.m. on the first day and concluding at 6 p.m. on the third day. The season would begin on the fourth Monday in June 2020 and subsequent periods would be scheduled as necessary to achieve the allowable catch level. It’s now up to the International Pacific Halibut Commission to approve.

This change is a critical first step in a transition to the U.S. taking over management of the fishery from the IPHC. The IPHC has proposed the change for the last few years.

The IPHC — and industry — voiced concerns in the past about the safety of the 10-hour season openings. Fishermen are keen to fish the lucrative 10-hour opening, despite the weather.

Going into the November PFMC meeting, suggestions for the status quo fishery and a 5-day fishery were on the table. Industry members said they would prefer a 5-day season, even though the individual vessel limits would likely be lower since the fleet would be afforded more time to catch the overall quota and attainment would be very likely.

However, the PFMC’s Enforcement Consultants, consisting of U.S. Coast Guard and state fish and wildlife law enforcement, proposed keeping the status quo, 10-hour fishery. A 5-day season would stretch enforcement beyond its targeted enforcement duties and officers would have to depend instead on spot checks and random patrols.

The Council motion to approve the 3-day fishery was unanimous. The IPHC will consider approving it at its annual meeting in February.

This story was originally posted on SeafoodNews.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.

Pacific halibut scientist warns of lower yields over next three years

November 27, 2019 — Expect lower halibut catches on the Pacific Coast of North America in 2020 and beyond, based on the presentation given Monday at the International Pacific Halibut Commission (IPHC) meeting, in Seattle, Washington, by lead scientist Ian Stewart.

Based on a report by Alaska Fish Radio, Stewart — who was summarizing the outlook for commercial halibut fisheries from Northern California, in the US, and British Columbia, Canada, to the Bering Sea of Alaska — said:

“In short, the model survey trends as you’ve seen from the previous presentations are down both in numbers and weight per unit of effort. And what we’ve seen from the commercial fishery’s CPUE (catch per unit of effort) is we have mixed trends, however relatively flat at the coast-wide levels with some brighter spots and some not so good spots across the coast.”

Stewart said the central Gulf of Alaska (Area 3A) showed the biggest decreases in all measures based, but added that the spawning biomass of the coastwide Pacific halibut stock decreased from 2018 to 2019, as previously predicted.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

Russian Pacific cod MSC approval has catchers eyeing more EU, US sales

October 18, 2019 — A portion of the Russian longline Pacific cod and halibut fishery has been certified as sustainable to the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) standard, meaning the country’s catchers are set to further target the European and US markets.

The approval took place on Oct. 9 and this means all cod and halibut from the certified management areas caught after Aug. 1 this year can be sold as MSC certified, Sergey Sennikov, director of sustainability for Norebo Holding, Russia’s largest fishing company, during the 2019 Groundfish Forum in Berlin, Germany.

“We can target Europe and the US as well, as Pacific cod is well known in the US. It’s about having more access to the market,” he said. This places Russian Pacific cod more closely in competition with product from the US. The US fishery has been MSC certified for many years, but catch allocations have been coming down.

According to the public certification report on the Russian fishery, the portion of the total allowable catch (TAC) for Pacific cod covered by the MSC approval is 31.8%. The report only gives a TAC for 2016-2017, which was 140,000 metric tons, meaning 25,200t of this would be eligible for sale as MSC-approved.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

PFMC: November 14-20, 2019 PFMC Meeting Notice and Agenda Now Available

October 10, 2019 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) and its advisory bodies will meet November 14‐20, 2019 in Costa Mesa, California, to address issues related to groundfish, salmon, Pacific halibut, highly migratory species, coastal pelagic species, habitat, and administrative matters. The meeting of the Council and its advisory entities will be held at the Hilton Orange County/Costa Mesa Hotel, 3050 Bristol Street, Costa Mesa, CA 92626; telephone, 714‐540‐7000.

Please see the November 14-20, 2019 Council Meeting notice on the Council’s website for meeting detail, schedule of advisory body meetings, our new E-Portal for submitting public comments, and public comment deadlines.

Key agenda items for the meeting include Council considerations to:

  • Adopt Final Salmon Methodology Changes for 2020 and Beyond
  • Adopt Final 2020 Salmon Preseason Management Schedule and Consider an Annual Management Cycle Amendment
  • Review Updated Risk Assessment and Provide Final Recommendations for Southern Residence Killer Whale Endangered Species Act Consultation, as Appropriate
  • Adopt Final Changes for the 2020 Pacific Halibut Catch Sharing Plan and Annual Fishery Regulations
  • Adopt Final Regulations for the 2020 Commercial Directed Pacific Halibut Fishery and Scope Future Transition of Management
    Provide Final Recommendations on Revised Electronic Monitoring Guidelines and Draft Program Manual and Provide Guidance on Implementation
  • Adopt Final Preferred Alternatives for 2020 Harvest Specifications for Cowcod and Shortbelly Rockfish
  • Adopt Final 2021‐2022 Groundfish Harvest Specifications and Preliminary Management Measures
  • Adopt Pacific Whiting Yield Set‐Asides for 2020 and Final Action on Groundfish Fishery Inseason Adjustments
  • Scope a Highly Migratory Species Plan Amendment Authorizing Shallow Set Longline Gear Outside of the Exclusive Economic Zone
  • Review Methodologies for Estimating Nearshore Abundance of the Central Subpopulation of Northern Anchovy, Consider the Frequency of Review of Overfishing Limits, and Consider Alternatives for Accountability Measures

For further information:

Please contact Pacific Fishery Management Council staff at 503-820-2280; toll-free 1-866-806-7204.