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WPRFMC Responds to News Media Series, Acts on Kona Crab Fishery, Protected Species

June 28, 2019 — SEAFOOD NEWS — The Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council fired back at a local non-profit news service when the Council met this week in Honolulu.

The online news outlet Civil Beat recently published a lengthy three-part series suggesting members of the Council’s Executive Committee engaged in decision-making for self-profit. The non-profit media service says, “Our goal is to challenge our leaders to do better. We are the watchdogs of the public’s trust and we take seriously the mission to educate our citizens on important public issues.”

However, the Council Executive Committee saw it differently, according to a WPRFMC press release.

Vice Chair John Gourley, representing the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, said the Civil Beat articles implied that funding he received from the Sustainable Fisheries Fund for fish biosampling continued after he became a Council member. Honolulu Civil Beat statements about Gourley were included in a section titled “Conflicts of Interest.” Gourley said he received no such funding after he became a Council member and there was no conflict of interest. He said he feels Civil Beat has possibly damaged his reputation and that of his environmental consulting business.

Council Vice Chair Michael Duenas, Guam, said the news outlet also got it wrong when it wrote about the development of an American Disability Act-compliant fishing platform. Civil Beat said Duenas was behind the push to develop the platform, but Duenas said it was then-Gov. Eddie Calvo who favored the platform and members of the Guam Organization of Saltwater Anglers who were the driving force to get it built.

“What these articles and the routine criticism by special interest groups overlook is the many successes the Council has had in balancing the complexities of environmental stewardship and commercial use, which are both recognized as important considerations by the [Magnuson-Stevens Act],” the Council said in a June 20 response to Civil Beat. “The Council’s mission is to ensure fisheries are managed at optimum yield, consistent with the conservation needs of fish stocks and protected species. To that end, the Council is doing its job and doing it well.”

The news outlet printed the Council’s response but edited out some of the comments directed at correcting inaccuracies (the full Council response can be found here ). It also, according to Council Chair Archie Soliai, American Samoa, insisted on modifying his response to questions from Civil Beat.

Civil Beat asked Soliai to address these and other allegations against individual Council members and contractors but Civil Beat did not publish that section of his response. However, it is posted on the Council’s website at www.wpcouncil.org.

Council Vice Chair Dean Sensui, Hawaii, producer of Hawaii Goes Fishing and a 25-year veteran of journalism, said, to say someone “did not beat his wife today and has remained sober for the past three months” may be the truth but such statements suggest “guilt” by omission.

In an ongoing effort to correct the news outlet’s claims, the Council plans to send a letter to the Hawai’i Board of Land and Natural Resources to address inaccuracies published in Civil Beat. For example, Civil Beat reported that bottomfish “are in significant decline,” when, in fact, the most recent stock assessment by the National Marine Fisheries Service Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center shows the stock as healthy. PIFSC Director Mike Seki has even described it as “flourishing,” noted Council member Edwin Watamura, who served for three years on a working group comprised of bottomfish fishermen, scientists and Hawai’i Division of Aquatic Resources staff to refine the stock assessment.

Watamura said for Civil Beat to suggest that Council Executive Director Kitty Simonds forced the State of Hawai’i to remove four of the state’s Bottomfish Restricted Fishing Areas was unfair. Watamura said the Hawaii Fishermen’s Alliance for Conservation and Tradition, bottomfish fishermen, State legislators and many others had advocated for opening of all of the BRFAs.

In other action this week, the Council:

-requested NMFS provide the Council and its Scientific and Statistical Committee the new abundance estimates for the pelagic stock of false killer whales based on a 2017 survey of the US exclusive economic zone around Hawai’i. The Council additionally asked for an update on the date potential for reopening the Southern Exclusion Zone, taking into consideration the new abundance estimates for the pelagic stock. The 132,000-square-mile SEZ was closed to the Hawai’i deep-set longline fleet on Feb. 22, 2019, after the fishery interacted with two false killer whales. Closure of the SEZ coupled with the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument, which prohibits fishing in the U.S. EEZ out to 200 miles from shore throughout the entire 1,200-mile Northwestern Hawaiian Islands chain, leaves only 17 percent of the U.S. EEZ around Hawai’i open to the local longline fishery.

-recommended an annual catch target of 25,491 pounds for Hawai’i Kona crab during fishing years 2020 to 2023. The fishery effort and participation levels have been in decline over decades. While the 2018 stock assessment indicates a maximum sustainable yield for the commercial fishery of 25,869 pounds, recent average catches have been approximately 2,256 pounds. The no-take of female Kona crabs coupled with the minimum harvest size has deterred fishermen from entering the fishery, several members noted. Council Member and fisherman McGrew Rice said all the Kona crab fishermen he knows are about 75 years old. Ryan Okano, Hawai’i DAR aquatic biologist representing Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources said DAR favors removal of the regulation forbidding the take of female Kona crabs, but the regulation was made by the Hawai’i State Legislature so would require legislative action to change. The Council reiterated its previous recommendation requesting DAR work with the Legislature in removing the no-take of female statute to allow the redevelopment of the commercial Kona crab fishery.

-will encourage DAR to establish a process through Chapter 91 of the Hawai’i Revised Statutes to close state waters once the ACT of Kona crab is projected to be reached in order to attain consistency in the management of the stock between the state and federal waters. The Council will also encourage the state, as part of the Chapter 91 process, to consider bringing the monthly reporting requirement to trip level similar to the Hawai’i fishery for seven deep-water bottomfish species. Under this proposal, DAR would provide the Council and NMFS monthly summaries of numbers caught, pounds caught, number of trips and number of licenses to track fisheries performance for in-season monitoring for the Kona crab fishery, relative to its ACT. The Council recommended DAR provide similar trip reporting for uku (Aprion virescens or green jobfish) relative to its annual catch limit and that it reinitiate the collection of fishery data for crustaceans from the non-commercial fisheries as part of the certification process of the Hawaii Marine Recreational Fishing Surveys.

-requested NMFS provide regular updates at future Council meetings on the status of recovery plan implementation for Pacific green turtle populations, including the outlook for considering downlisting of distinct population segments occurring in the Marianas and American Samoa.

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

Hawai’i Longline Fishery for Swordfish Poses No Jeopardy to Sea Turtles, Federal Managers to Finalize Turtle Interaction Measures This Summer

June 28, 2019 — The following was released by the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council:

A long-awaited final biological opinion (BiOp) on the Hawai’i shallow-set longline fishery was released today by the National Marine Fisheries Service. It shows the fishery does not jeopardize loggerhead or leatherback sea turtles.

The Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council has deferred making final recommendations on the management of loggerhead and leatherback sea turtle interactions in the fishery three times since October 2018 as it awaited the final document. Today it again deferred action as the 500-page document was provided to them only 30 minutes before it took up this item on its agenda.

Council Member Michael Goto noted the gravity of the BiOp. The fishery, which accounts for half of the US swordfish production, is currently closed due to a settlement made in the 9th Circuit Court, which found inconsistencies in the previous 2012 BiOp. Goto argued against making “a snap decision on a process that took almost a year to complete. … In my opinion, the review can’t be done within the course of day,” he said.

To ensure Council members have time to read the 500-page document, the Council will take up final action during a special meeting to be held by teleconference in late July or early August 2019. In advance of this meeting, the Council will convene its Scientific and Statistical Committee and the Hawai’i Advisory Panel to review and make recommendations for Council consideration.

The Council’s initial recommendation was to manage the fishery under annual fleet-wide limits of 16 leatherbacks and 36 loggerheads. It also recommended trip limits of two leatherback and five loggerheads per vessel. Once either limit is reached, the vessel would be required to immediately return to port after which they may resume shallow-set fishing. The fishery has 100 percent observer coverage to monitor every turtle interaction encountered by a shallow-set vessel.

The final BiOp released today authorizes the accidental hooking and subsequent release of 21 leatherbacks and 36 loggerheads. However, if the fleetwide leatherback interaction reaches 16, the BiOp requires that the fishery be closed for the remainder of the calendar year. The final BiOp also includes the Council’s recommended trip limit of two leatherbacks or five loggerheads per vessel per trip. However, one a vessel reaches this trip limit twice in a year it can no longer shallow-set fish for the remainder of the year. Furthermore, the following year that vessel would be allowed to reach the trip limit only once before it is prohibited from shallow-setting for the remainder of the year. There is no hard cap required in the new BiOp for loggerhead turtles, which has a stable and increasing population.

During public comments on this item, Eric Kingma, Hawaii Longline Association executive director, said that, since 2004, the fishery has been operating under the most restrictive regime possible for the fishery, including hard caps for sea turtle interactions, 100 percent observer coverage, gear and bait requirements, release and handling requirements, set limits and set certificates. Those measures reduced the fishery’s interactions with sea turtle by more than 90 percent and are now the standards internationally for shallow-set fisheries for swordfish.

“This fishery is not jeopardizing the continued existence of these sea turtle populations, or any other ESA-listed population,” Kingma said. He described the measures as “overly punitive” and “not consistent with the impact. … [We] have a highly regulated fishery, one of the most regulated fisheries in the world, the most highly monitored regime, 100 percent observer coverage. You can’t get any more certain than that. … And we know the impact. The impact on these species is non-jeopardy.”

Kingma said that HLA supports the trip limits but not the hard caps because they are “a blunt measure that is not the appropriate match to the impact.” He said that HLA supported the Council deferring because “no one should be put in that position where they have to make a decision upon receiving a 500-page document.”

In related matters, the Council today alsorequested that NMFS complete ESA Section 7 consultations for the Hawai’i deep-set and American Samoa longline fisheries by Sept. 1, 2019, and for the US tropical purse-seine fishery by Oct. 1, 2019. The Council further requested that NMFS provide the Council with any draft Reasonable and Prudent Measures or Reasonable and Prudent Alternatives prior to the release of the entire draft BiOp, as well as the full draft BiOp.

Under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976, the Council has authority over fisheries seaward of state waters in Hawaiʻi and other US Pacific Islands. For more information, go to www.wpcouncil.org; email info@wpcouncil.org or phone (808) 522-8220.

Hawaii’s Longliners Could Soon Be Allowed To Catch 18 Million Pounds Of Tuna

June 27, 2019 — Hawaii’s longline fishermen will be able to catch nearly 18 million pounds of bigeye tuna next year under a recommendation adopted Wednesday by the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council.

That’s more than double the limit set by the international body that regulates fishing in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean, but they skirt that by allocating the additional catch to U.S. Pacific island territories.

Federal and industry scientists said the bigeye stock in the region will remain sustainable, and that their modeling does not suggest the increased quota will lead to overfishing.

That’s good news for poke bowl fans and lovers of fresh ahi sashimi. Wespac members said it could mean more stable prices and better availability in local and national markets.

But an increase in fishing concerns environmental groups who highlight how the longliners accidentally catch endangered turtles, dolphins, albatrosses and sharks while targeting tuna.

David Henkin, Honolulu-based staff attorney for Earthjustice, said the longline tuna fishery’s indiscriminate fishing methods — miles of line and thousands of hooks are strung off each boat — kill and injure countless non-target marine species each year.

Wespac’s science committee recommended last week that the full council should let Hawaii’s longliners allocate up to 2,000 tons (4.4 million pounds) in additional catch to each of the three territories.

The Hawaii Longline Association, which represents most of the fleet, had supported that decision as well. Executive Director Eric Kingma said it would be a “wise choice” that provides more flexibility to the industry and more utilization of a resource that is not being overfished.

He was one of the scientists who produced the paper on which the recommendation was made.

Read the full story at the Honolulu Civil Beat

Scientists Recommend Removing Catch Limits for Pacific Territory Longline-Caught Bigeye Tuna

June 24, 2019 — SEAFOOD NEWS — The Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council’s Scientific and Statistical Committee made recommendations regarding bigeye tuna catch limits and allocation amounts for the U.S. Participating Territories for the fishing years 2020 to 2023 when it met last week in Honolulu.

For bigeye tuna, the SSC recommended no catch limit be set for longline-caught bigeye tuna in the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) convention area from 2020 to 2023 for any U.S. Pacific territory. It also recommended that each territory be allowed to allocate up to 2,000 metric tons (mt) to federally permitted Hawai’i longline vessels.

The SSC concluded its three-day meeting and will make these and other recommendations to the Council at its 178th meeting in Honolulu this week, June 25-27.

The Commission is an international fishery management organization that develops quotas and other management measures for tuna fisheries in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean. Under WCPFC, Small Island Developing States and Participating Territories (such as the three U.S. territories in the Pacific: American Samoa, Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands) do not have longline-caught bigeye quotas. However, under an amendment to the Council’s Pelagic Fishery Ecosystem Plan, the National Marine Fisheries Service has the authority to specify annual catch and allocation limits for the U.S. Territories. In recent years, each U.S. territory had a 2,000 mt limit and authority to allocate up to 1,000 mt.

Prior to making its decision, the SSC reviewed stock projections through 2045, which showed that catch limit and allocation scenarios of up to 3,000 mt per Territory were not significant enough to cause the stock to go over any limit reference points adopted by the WCPFC.

Other outcomes of the SSC meeting included the following:

Hawaiʻi Kona Crab: Based on updated information from a 2018 benchmark stock assessment and other reports, the SSC set the acceptable biological catch (ABC) for the main Hawaiian Islands Kona crab commercial fishery at 30,802 pounds for 2020 to 2023. This decision accounted for the scientific uncertainties with an estimated risk of overfishing of 38 percent. The Council will utilize the ABC to specify the annual catch limit for the stock.

Shifting Distributions and Changing Productivity: A NMFS Office of Science and Technology representative reported on the major challenges and potential solutions in addressing both shifts in stock distributions as well as changing stock and ecosystem productivity. The presentation identified six steps to account for and respond to climate impacts on fisheries and recommended ways to account or prepare for distribution and productivity shifts. These recommendations are intended to serve as a guide for each region in the development of fishery management actions.

SSC member Ray Hilborn noted, “… where you close [fisheries] now is not where the species are going to be in 20 years.” He also pointed out that non-governmental organizations strongly push for permanently closed areas rather than considering adaptive spatial management.

Spatial Management: A working group of the SSC reported on its efforts to define benefits and limitations to spatial management actions relative to pertinent regional fishery issues and management objectives. The working group discussed the development of a workshop on “Spatial Management of Blue Water Ecosystems” with a broad spectrum of participants to be held in 2019 or 2020. The SSC recommended tht the Council endorse the workshop with the themes of 1) spatial management objectives and performance metrics; 2) alternative approaches to spatial management; 3) evaluation and monitoring; and 4) policy and outreach approaches to spatial management.

The Council will consider these and other SSC recommendations when it meets this week in Honolulu. Action items on the Council agenda include the U.S. Territory bigeye tuna catch and allocation limits; catch limits and options for specifying annual catch limits for main Hawaiian Islands Kona crab; managing loggerhead and leatherback sea turtle interactions in the Hawai’i-based shallow-set longline fishery; and a Hawai’i Archipelago Fishery Ecosystem Plan amendment to precious coral essential fish habitat. The Council will also have a presentation from Global Fishing Watch, an organization that uses technology to visualize, track and share data about global fishing activity.

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

Western Pacific council’s science panel makes recommendations for bigeye

June 24, 2019 — The scientific and statistical committee (SSC) for the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council (WPRFMC) has recommended that no catch limits be set for longliners pursuing bigeye tuna near the three US territories in Pacific Ocean — American Samoa, Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands — from 2020 until 2023.

The panel also recommended that each of the territories be allowed to allocate up to 2,000 metric tons to federally permitted Hawaii longline vessels.

The SSC’s recommendations came during a three-day meeting concluded in Honolulu, Hawaii, on Thursday, and preceded a meeting by the WPRFMC to be held in the same city, June 25-27, where bigeye tuna catch and allocation limits will be on the agenda.

Small, developing states in the Pacific don’t have longline-caught bigeye quotas, the council explains on its website, but under an amendment to its pelagic fishery ecosystem plan, the US’ National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has the authority to specify annual catch and allocation limits for the three US territories. In recent years, each US territory had a 2,000t limit and authority to allocate up to 1,000t.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

Hawaii longline fleet still vulnerable to forced labor issues

June 24, 2019 — Three years after allegations of labor abuses in the Hawaii longline fishing fleet came to light, foreign workers continue to be excluded from the legal protections afforded to U.S. workers, according to a new report from the Georgetown Law Human Rights Institute.

But a special visa allowing workers to temporarily enter the U.S. could improve conditions by allowing workers to more easily access medical care and legal resources.

The report characterized working conditions as “extremely harsh,” but did not determine specific instances of labor abuse. Instead, the report concluded that foreign fishermen in the industry are vulnerable to forced labor.

About 700 foreign fishermen work on U.S. longline vessels in Hawaii, catching tens of millions of pounds of fish every year. The fishermen are confined to the pier area in Honolulu because of an odd visa system that technically denies them entry to the U.S., while allowing them to fish in a U.S. fleet.

The report relied on interviews with 43 fishermen, among other sources, and was produced by 10 Georgetown Law students.

“They cannot go ashore to seek legal counsel, visit doctors regularly (or) buy their own food,” Ashley Binette Armstrong, a co-instructor for the class and the Dash-Muse teaching fellow at Georgetown, told SeafoodSource. “Their lack of legal status also affects the long and arduous path they must take to arrive in Hawaii, as well as the limitations on how often they can return home to see their families.”

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Scientists Recommend Removing Catch Limits, Increasing Allocation Limits for US Pacific Territory Longline-Caught Bigeye Tuna

June 21, 2019 — The following was released by the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council:

The Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) of the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council concluded a three-day meeting today in Honolulu recommending bigeye tuna catch limits and allocation amounts for the US Participating Territories for the fishing years 2020 to 2023. This and other recommendations by the Council’s SSC will be considered by the Council at its 178th meeting in Honolulu on June 25-27. Under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976, the Council has authority over fisheries seaward of state waters in Hawaiʻi and other US Pacific Islands.

Bigeye Tuna: The SSC recommended that no catch limit be set for long-line caught bigeye tuna in the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) convention area from 2020 to 2023 for any US Pacific territory. It also recommended that each US Pacific territory be allowed to allocate up to 2,000 metric tons (mt) to federally permitted Hawai’i longline vessels.

The WCPFC is an international regional fishery management organization that develops quotas and other management measures for tuna fisheries in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (WCPO). Under WCPFC, Small Island Developing States and Participating Territories (such as the three US territories in the Pacific) do not have longline-caught bigeye quotas. However, under an amendment to the Council’s Pelagic Fishery Ecosystem Plan, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has the authority to specify annual catch and allocation limits for the US Participating Territories of American Samoa, Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). In recent years, each US territory had a 2,000 mt limit and authority to allocate up to 1,000 mt.

Other outcomes of the SSC meeting include the following, among others:

Ray Hilborn, SSC member, noted, “… where you close [fisheries] now is not where the species are going to be in 20 years.” He also pointed out that non-governmental organizations strongly push for permanently closed areas rather than considering adaptive spatial management.

Spatial Management: A working group of the SSC reported on its efforts to define benefits and limitations to spatial management actions relative to pertinent regional fishery issues and management objectives. The working group discussed the development of a workshop on “Spatial Management of Blue Water Ecosystems” with a broad spectrum of participants to be held in 2019 or 2020. The SSC recommended that the Council endorse the workshop with the themes of 1) spatial management objectives and performance metrics, 2) alternative approaches to spatial management, 3) evaluation and monitoring, and 4) policy and outreach approaches to spatial management.

The Council will consider these and other SSC recommendations when it meets next week in Honolulu. Action items on the Council agenda include the US Territory bigeye tuna catch and allocation limits, catch limits and options for specifying annual catch limits for main Hawaiian Islands Kona crab, managing loggerhead and leatherback sea turtle interactions in the Hawai’i-based shallow-set longline fishery, and a Hawai’i Archipelago Fishery Ecosystem Plan amendment to precious coral essential fish habitat. The Council will also have a presentation from Global Fishing Watch, an organization that uses technology to visualize, track and share data about global fishing activity.

The Council Standing Committees meet June 24 at the Council office, 1164 Bishop St., Suite 1400, and the full Council meets June 25-27 at the YWCA Fuller Hall at 1040 Richards St. A Fishers Forum on Emerging Technologies in Fisheries will be held on June 25 from 6 to 9 p.m.at the Ala Moana Hotel’s Hibiscus Ballroom, 410 Atkinson Dr., as part of the Council meeting. The public is invited to all of these meetings. For more information on the SSC and Council meetings, go to www.wpcouncil.org; email info@wpcouncil.org or phone (808) 522-8220.

Loss Of NOAA’s Primary Honolulu Ship A Setback For Research

June 18, 2019 — Honolulu’s flagship National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration research vessel — the Hiʻialakai — has spent the last several months rusting in an Oregon boat dock, and there are no plans to return it to service.

While in Hawaii, the Hi’ialakai harnessed its specialized scuba diving capabilities to perform a variety of missions, including monitoring deep-sea wildlife and cleaning up fishing debris from the shores of the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument.

NOAA discovered structural issues — including extensive corrosion, pipe failures and propulsion problems — during an inspection late last year, according to David Hall, public affairs specialist at NOAA’s Office of Marine and Aviation Operations.

Read the full story at the Honolulu Civil Beat

Kona Crab, Bigeye Tuna Among Fishery Science Discussions Next Week in Honolulu

June 11, 2019 — The following was released by the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council:

Renowned scientists from throughout the Pacific will meet June 18-20 in Honolulu to consider a range of issues facing the offshore fisheries of Hawai’i and the US Territories of American Samoa, Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Recommendations from this group known as the Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) will be forwarded to the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council, which meets in Honolulu on June 25-27. The Council develops fishery management measures for the fisheries, which are transmitted to the US Secretary of Commerce for approval and implemented by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS).

Kona Crab: SSC members will hear reports to inform their setting the acceptable biological catch for the main Hawaiian Islands Kona crab. Updated information is now available from a 2019 benchmark stock assessment with catch projection to 2026. The SSC’s recommendation, including a new way to incorporate management uncertainties and risk of overfishing, will help the Council specify multi-year harvest limits for fishing years 2020-2023.

Bigeye Tuna: In December 2018, the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission agreed to limit the US longline bigeye tuna catch in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean to 3,554 metric tons annually in 2019 and 2020. In 2014, an amendment to the Council’s Pelagic Fishery Ecosystem Plan in part provided NMFS with the authority to specify annual catch limits in US participating territories. It also allows NMFS to specify a limit, recommended by the Council, authorizing a US participating territory to allocate a portion of that specified catch limit to eligible US vessels through a fishing agreement. The SSC will decide on potential catch and/or allocation limits to recommend to the Council, in addition to considering if the limits should be re-evaluated annually or after multiple years.

Other Issues:

The SSC will review and provide input on a NOAA Fisheries framework for determining that stock status determinations and catch specifications are based on the best scientific information available.
A working group of the SSC will seek to define benefits and limitations to spatial management actions, both existing and potential, relative to pertinent regional fishery issues and management objectives.
The SSC will review and may endorse a process developed by its working group to comply with the Modernizing Recreational Fisheries Act (2018) requirement for greater incorporation of non-governmental information sources into federal fisheries management.

HAWAII: Talk on marine debris is Friday

June 7, 2019 — Kilauea Point Natural History Association, which provides support to the Kauai National Wildlife Refuge Complex, has teamed up with Kristen Kelly of the state Department of Land and Natural Resources Division of Aquatic Resources, Marine Wildlife Program, to present a talk on ocean debris in celebration of World Oceans Day 2019.

The talk will focus on marine debris in the uninhabited Northwestern Hawaiian Islands and its impacts on wildlife in the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument at a free event Friday from 7 to 8 p.m. at the Princeville Community Association clubhouse.

“The problem of plastic pollution in the environment is a global one. In Hawaii, we feel the impacts all along our beaches and shorelines,” said a press release.

“From ghost nets and ropes that entangle wildlife, to plastic bits that find their way into the bodies of our ocean-dependent animals, to the littered beaches where we all love to spend time, it is becoming impossible to ignore this environmental crisis.”

Read the full story at The Garden Island