Saving Seafood

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.

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 include the following, among others:

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.

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

Summary of Action Items for the 178th Meeting of the WPRFMC

June 5, 2019 — The following was published by the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council:

The 178th meeting of the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council will convene June 25-27, 2019, at the Laniakea YWCA, Fuller Hall, Honolulu, Hawai’i. The Council will consider and may take action on the issues summarized below, including any public comments on them. Written public comments should be received by the Council’s executive director by 5 p.m. (Hawai’i time), Thursday, June 20, 2019, by postal mail, fax or email as indicated below. After June 20, it is the submitter’s responsibility to provide at least 40 copies of the written comment to Council staff at the Council meeting.

Mail: Ms. Kitty M. Simonds
Executive Director
Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council
1164 Bishop Street, Suite 1400
Honolulu, HI 96813

FAX: (808) 522-8226
E-mail: info.wpcouncil@noaa.gov

Action Item Summaries
A
1. Specifying Harvest Limits for the Main Hawaiian Islands Kona Crab

The Council will consider specifying multi-year harvest limits for the main Hawaiian Island Kona crab for fishing years 2020-2023. The best scientific information available is the 2019 benchmark stock assessment with catch projection to 2026[1]. Based on this updated information, the maximum sustainable yield was estimated to be at 73,609 pounds and the overfishing limit at 33,989 pounds. The Council’s P* and SEEM* Working Groups and the Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) evaluated the scientific, social, ecological, economic, and management uncertainties and recommended a risk level for the Council to consider. The SEEM* working group used a new standardized process developed by the Social Science Planning Committee (SSPC), in which the social, ecological, and economic dimension is used to determine the risk of overfishing, and the monitoring and compliance/management criteria are used to determine management uncertainty. The risk of overfishing informs the Council’s consideration of annual catch limit (ACL) specification, and the management uncertainty informs the Council’s consideration in setting the annual catch target (ACT).

The Council will evaluate the following options:
1) No Action. No harvest limits will be specified for fishing year 2020-2023.
2) Specify the previous harvest limit at 3,500 pounds using the 2015 assessment (Thomas et al. 2015) for fishing year 2020-2023.
3) Specify the ACL equal to the acceptable biological catch (ABC) at P*=38 percent at 30,802 pounds and set an ACT at P*=30 percent at 28,324 pounds based on the P* and SEEM* Analysis using the 2019 benchmark stock assessment.
4) Specify the ACL equal to the ABC at P*=38 percent at 30,802 pounds and set an ACT 10 percent lower than the SEEM* analysis at P*=20 percent at 25,491 pounds using the 2019 benchmark stock assessment
5) Specify the ACL equal to the ABC at P*=38 percent at 30,802 pounds and set an ACT 20 percent lower than the SEEM* analysis at P*=10 percent at 21,243 pounds using the 2019 benchmark stock assessment

At its 178th meeting, the Council will consider taking final action to specify the harvest limits and the accountability measure that will prevent the fishery from overfishing the stock.

citation
[1]Kapur MR, Fitchett MD, Yau AJ, Carvalho F. 2019. 2018 Benchmark Stock Assessment of Main Hawaiian Islands Kona Crab. NOAA Tech Memo. NMFS-PIFSC-77, 114 p. doi:10.25923/7wf2-f040

B
2. Hawai’i Fishery Ecosystem Plan Amendment to Precious Coral Essential Fish Habitat

The Council at its 173rd meeting in June 2018 directed staff to develop options to redefine essential fish habitat (EFH) and any habitat areas of particular concern (HAPC) for precious corals in Hawai’i for Council consideration for a Fishery Ecosystem Plan (FEP) amendment. EFH information was reviewed through the 2015 and 2016 annual Stock Assessment and Fishery Evaluation (SAFE) report cycles and an options paper was developed for the 174th meeting in October 2018.

New observations of precious corals have occurred throughout the region, with research concentrated in the Hawai’i Archipelago. Observations in the territories and of the larval phase of precious corals are rare or nonexistent. However, new information exists to refine the habitat characteristics and geographic extent of deep- and shallow-water precious coral EFH in the Hawai’i Archipelago. Narrative information on which the EFH designations are based and information to fulfill the EFH requirements of fishery management plans may also be used to update the archipelagic FEPs. The redefinition of precious corals EFH is framed in three separate actions: refinement of deep-water species complex EFH; refinement of shallow-water precious coral species complex EFH; and update of the narrative information.

The Council at its 174th meeting reviewed the following options for each of the three actions:
Action 1 – Update EFH for deep-water precious coral species
Options
1) No change (status quo)
2) Revise EFH by depth range
3) Refine the geographic boundary of existing precious coral beds
4) Refine the geographic boundary of existing beds and add new beds

Action 2 – Update EFH for shallow-water precious coral species:
Options
1) No change (status quo)
2) Update geographic extent and habitat characteristics.

Action 3 – Update EFH narrative information
Options
1) Update the FEP narrative information on EFH
2) Do not update the FEP narrative information on EFH

The Council took initial action at its 174th meeting directing staff to prepare an amendment to the Hawai’i FEP to revise the Precious Corals EFH and selected the following preliminary preferred options:

Action 1 – Option 4: Refine the geographic boundary of existing beds and add new beds.
Action 2 – Option 2: Update geographic extent and habitat characteristics.
Action 3 – Option 1: Update the FEP narrative information on EFH.
At its 178th meeting, the Council will consider taking final action to amend the Precious Coral EFH section of the Hawai’i FEP.

C
3. Managing Loggerhead and Leatherback Sea Turtle Interactions in the Hawai’i-Based Shallow-Set Longline Fishery

The Council at its 173rd meeting in June 2018 recommended amending the Pelagic FEP to establish a management framework for the Hawai’i shallow-set longline fishery that consists of 1) annual limits on the number North Pacific loggerhead and leatherback turtle interactions consistent with the anticipated level of annual interactions that is set forth in the current valid biological opinion (BiOp) and 2) individual trip interaction limits for loggerhead and leatherback turtles. The Council also recommended specifications under the framework as follows: 1) annual limits of 37 North Pacific loggerhead turtles and 21 leatherback turtles; and 2) individual trip limit of five North Pacific loggerhead turtles.

The Council’s recommendation for specifying the loggerhead and leatherback turtle annual limits was based on the anticipated level of interactions analyzed in the biological evaluation (BE) initiating reconsultation of the Hawai’i shallow-set longline fishery under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) Section 7 consultation process. As part of its recommendation, the Council noted that it would review its recommendation if the new BiOp from the ongoing consultation results in a jeopardy decision or otherwise results in a different incidental take statement for North Pacific loggerheads or leatherbacks. The new BiOp was originally scheduled to be completed by Oct. 31, 2018, but the draft was not completed in time for the October SSC and Council meeting. Following the October meetings, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) Pacific Islands Regional Office (PIRO) set a new timeline to deliver the draft BiOp by Jan. 31, 2019, and a final BiOp by Feb. 28, 2019. Due to the federal government shutdown, the draft BiOp timeline was further delayed to March 25, 2019.

At its October 2018 meeting, the SSC received a presentation from the NMFS Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC) on the population viability analysis (PVA) for loggerhead and leatherback turtles prepared for the ongoing Section 7 consultation. The modeling was conducted in response to a request by the PIRO Protected Resources Division for the purpose of examining the long-term viability of the species. PVA results indicate that the North Pacific loggerhead population has a mean estimated population growth rate of 2.4 precent, while the Western Pacific leatherback turtle population has a mean estimated population growth rate of 5.3 percent. The growth rates reflect long-term population trends based on nesting beach data representing approximately 52 percent of the North Pacific loggerhead turtle population and approximately 85 percent of the Western Pacific leatherback turtle population.

The Council at its 174th meeting in October 2018 reviewed the approach to the assessment for the BiOp and considered the SSC’s report regarding the PVA. The Council recommended convening an interim Council meeting, if needed, to review draft BiOp and consider any revisions to its June 2018 recommendations based on the BiOp and stated that it will reconsider a specification of leatherback individual trip limits if necessary.

The Council convened its 175th Meeting on Dec. 17, 2018, to consider final action on additional mitigation measures for the Western Pacific leatherback turtles in advance of the draft BiOp completion, taking into consideration the results of the PVA model indicating a continuing long-term declining trend of the population. The Council deferred action until the draft BiOp and more complete information on the impacts of the fishery on the Western Pacific leatherback turtles are available to fully inform the Council decision.

The draft BiOp was provided to the Council on March 28, 2019. The Council convened its 177th meeting on April 12, 2019, to review its recommendations on the management framework from the 173rd meeting for consistency with the draft BiOp and to consider taking final action on the management framework. The draft BiOp concluded that the shallow-set longline fishery is not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of ESA-listed species, including loggerhead and leatherback turtles. However, the draft BiOp also contained Reasonable and Prudent Measures (RPMs) that were inconsistent with the Council’s recommended framework. The Council at its 177th meeting maintained its management framework recommendation from the 173rd Council meeting, additionally recommended an individual trip limit of two leatherback turtles and requested that NMFS consider revising the RPMs for consistency with the Council recommended action.

At its 178th meeting, the Council will review the final BiOp for consistency with the 177th meeting recommendations and may consider taking additional final action if any discrepancies remain with the previously recommended action.

D
4. US Participating Territory Longline Bigeye Catch/Allocation Limits

Bigeye tuna comprises a Pacific-wide population that is internationally managed and assessed as separate stocks in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (WCPO) and Eastern Pacific Ocean (EPO) by the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) and the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Association (IATTC), respectively. The best scientific information available indicates that both stocks are not subject to overfishing nor are they overfished, according to the stock status determination reference points in the FEP for Pelagic Fisheries of the Western Pacific Region. The scientific bodies of the WCPFC and IATTC will consider new benchmark stock assessments for both stocks in 2020.

In December 2018, the WCPFC agreed on CMM 2018-01, which limits the US longline bigeye tuna catch in the WCPO to 3,554 metric tons (mt) in 2019 and 2020. CMM 2018-01 does not establish an individual limit on the amount of bigeye tuna that may be harvested annually in the Convention Area by Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and Participating Territories, including American Samoa, Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). Limits are not provided to the SIDS and Participating Territories in recognition of their fisheries development aspirations.

In 2014, Amendment 7 to the Council’s Pelagic FEP was approved and implemented (50 CFR 665.819). It established the territorial catch/effort and allocation limit measure that provides NMFS with authority to:
Specify annual catch or effort limits for a US Participating Territory, as recommended by the Council, not to exceed any WCPFC-adopted limits;
Specify a limit recommended by the Council authorizing a US Participating Territory to allocate a portion of that specified catch or effort limit to eligible US vessels through a specified fishing agreement; and
Review and approve specified fishing agreements for consistency with the Pelagic FEP and other applicable laws.

The Council must annually review the conservation status of the fishery resource, the needs of fishing communities dependent on the particular fishery resource and consistency with the Pelagics FEP and other applicable laws in considering its recommendations for territorial catch, effort and allocation limits as well as its review of specified fishing agreements. Amendment 7 also established a territorial longline bigeye tuna catch limit of 2,000 mt for each territory and an allocation limit of 1,000 mt for each territory. At its 173rd meeting in June 2018, the Council took final action to modify the territorial catch/effort and allocation limit measure and implementing regulations. Should NMFS approve the action, it will amend the Pelagic FEP to remove the requirement for establishing separate total catch or effort limits for the US Participating Territories in order to establish an allocation limit and also would allow multi-year limits. The Council would annually review any established limits to determine whether the best available scientific information or the needs of fishing communities warrant modifying or rescinding such limits.

At its 178th meeting, the Council will consider recommending territorial bigeye tuna catch and/or allocation limits to take effect beginning in 2020, given the Council’s recommended modification of the territorial catch, effort and allocation limit measure. The Council will consider the following options:
1. No catch or allocation limits (no action)
2. 2,000 mt catch and 1,000 mt allocation limits
3. No catch limit and up to 2,000 mt allocation limits

The Council will also consider the fishing years in which the limits will take effect or expire, in consideration of the requirement for annual review, availability of new scientific information and potential for multi-year limits.

WPRFMC 2019 Public Meetings Notice & Agenda Summaries

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

The Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council will hold the following meetings on offshore fisheries
management of Hawai’i, American Samoa, Guam, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) and Pacific Remote Island Areas. Unless otherwise noted, the meeting will be held at the Council office, 1164 Bishop St., Suite 1400, Honolulu. For more information and complete agendas, go to www.wpcouncil.org, email info.wpcouncil@noaa.gov, fax (808) 522-8226 or call (808) 522-8220.

Mariana Archipelago Fishery Ecosystem Plan (FEP)-Guam Advisory Panel (AP)
Guam Division of Aquatics and Wildlife Resources Conference Room, 163 Dairy Road, Mangilao, Guam
June 6 (Th) 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Major agenda items: Territorial bigeye action item; AP Plans; Guam fishery issues.

American Samoa (AS) Archipelago FEP AP
Native American Samoa Advisory Council Building, Pava’iai’i Village, Tutuila, AS
June 12 (W) 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Major agenda items: Territorial bigeye action item; AP Plans; AS fishery issues.

Mariana Archipelago FEP-CNMI AP
Micronesian Environmental Services Conference Room, Garapan, Saipan
June 13 (Th) 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Major agenda items: Territorial bigeye action item; AP Plans; CNMI fishery issues.

132nd Scientific and Statistical Committee
June 18-20 (T-Th) 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Major agenda items: Setting the Acceptable Biological Catch for the main Hawaiian islands (MHI) Kona crab; Territory bigeye tuna catch/allocation limits.

Hawai’i Archipelago FEP AP
June 20 (Th) 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Major agenda items: MHI Kona Crab ACL; AP Plans; Hawai’i fishery issues.

Fishery Data Collection and Research Committee (FDCRC)
June 24 (M) 8:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Major agenda items: Regulations for mandatory license and reporting; Data collection improvement updates; Pacific insular fisheries monitoring and assessment planning summit; FDCRC strategic plan and Marine Recreational Information Program regional implementation plan updates.

Executive, Budget and Legislative Standing Committee
June 24 (M) 9 a.m. to 11 a.m.
Major agenda items: Financial and administrative matters; Council standard operating policies and procedures; Council family changes.
Note: A 9:30-10 a.m. litigation briefing will be closed to the public.

Pelagic and International Standing Committee
June 24 (M) 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.
Major agenda items: Managing loggerhead and leatherback sea turtle interactions in the Hawaii-based shallow-set longline fishery; Territory bigeye tuna catch/allocation limits.

178th Council Meeting
Laniakea YWCA, Fuller Hall, 1040 Richards Street, Honolulu, HI
June 25-27 (T-Th) 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Major agenda items: Options for specifying ACLs for the MHI Kona crab; Hawai’i FEP amendment to precious coral Essential Fish Habitat; Managing loggerhead and leatherback sea turtle interactions in the Hawai’i-based shallow-set longline fishery; Territory bigeye tuna catch/allocation limits.

Fishers Forum – Fishing in the Future: Emerging Technologies in Fisheries
Ala Moana Hotel, 410 Atkinson Dr, Honolulu, HI
June 25 (T) 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Tradition-Based Natural Resource Management: Practice and Application in the Hawaiian Islands

May 22, 2019 — The following was released by the Western Pacific Fishery Management Council:

Palgrave Studies in Natural Resource Management has just announced the release of “Tradition-Based Natural Resource Management: Practice and Application in the Hawaiian Islands” by Ed Glazier. The book offers an overview of bottom-up management of natural resource management that can be applied globally; spotlights Native Hawaiian advocacy for traditional management of the island’s natural resources; and provides a framework for resource managers, scientists and policymakers as well as indigenous populations. It highlights the Aha Moku system of natural resource management.

In the Foreword, Kitty M. Simonds, executive director of the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council, writes: “From the resurgence of non-instrument navigation and traditional voyaging canoes to familiar activities like baby lua’u and other pa’ina (celebratory feastings), Ed shows that continuing and reclaiming the indigenous culture occurs on many levels and involves both Native Hawaiians and those who have come to call Hawai’i home.”

For more information, go to https://www.palgrave.com/us/book/9783030148416

NOAA teams departing for expedition to Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument

May 15, 2019 — It’s time again for a team of researchers to head out to the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands at Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument, where they will set up camps for the next five months.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Ship Oscar Elton Sette departs on Wednesday for Papahanaumokuakea, one of the largest, protected marine conservation areas in the world and home to endangered Hawaiian monk seals, threatened green turtles and millions of seabirds.

NOAA researchers this year will conduct the usual tasks — measuring and tagging all weaned Hawaiian monk seal pups, conducting beach counts and removing marine debris. A team of biologists will also measure and tag basking and nesting sea turtles and monitor nesting activities at French Frigate Shoals.

Another field team, however, will focus on researching how animals responded to the loss of East Island at French Frigate Shoals, where a majority of Hawaii’s green sea turtles nest, and dozens of Hawaiian monk seals pup. East Island was washed away by Hurricane Walaka in October 2018.

Field researchers from NOAA, along with six partner organizations, will focus their research and conservation activities at French Frigate Shoals as well as Laysan Island, Lisianski Island, Pearl and Hermes Reef and Kure Atoll. They will also take day trips to survey Niihau, Nihoa, and Mokumanamana islands and Midway Atoll.

The NOAA Ship Oscar Elton Sette will transport state Department of Land and Natural Resources staff and supplies to Kure Atoll. At Lisianski Island, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will help the NOAA team find routes through the dense vegetation that blocks the shoreline and access to monk seals.

Read the full story at the Honolulu Star-Advertiser