Saving Seafood

Feds shut down Gulf of Maine herring fishery to protect fish population

August 31, 2020 — A major fishery off New England will be slowed down considerably in September in an attempt to protect the fish’s population.

Atlantic herring are the target of a large fishing industry. They’re used for food as well as bait. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said the inshore Gulf of Maine’s fishery for herring will be effectively shut down until Sept. 30.

The fishery is being shuttered for the month because fishermen are approaching a quota limit, the agency said. The shutdown began Aug. 23.

Read the full story at the Bangor Daily News

Atlantic Herring Days Out Call on August 21 – Canceled; Area 1A Fishery Moves to Zero Landing Days for Season 1 on August 23; and Eastern Maine Spawning Closure in Effect Starting August 28

August 20, 2020 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

Season 1 Landing Day Adjustment/Canceled Call

The Area 1A (inshore Gulf of Maine) Atlantic herring fishery is projected to have harvested 92% of the Season 1 allocation by August 20, 2020. Beginning at 12:01 a.m. on Sunday, August 23, 2020, the Area 1A fishery will move to zero landing days through September 30, 2020, as specified in Amendment 3 to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Herring. Therefore, the previously scheduled Days Out call on August 21, 2020, at 8:30 AM has been canceled.

Vessels participating in other fisheries may not possess more than 2,000 pounds of Atlantic herring per trip per day harvested from Area 1A. In addition, all vessels traveling through Area 1A must have all seine and mid-water trawl gear stowed.

The Atlantic Herring Management Board members from Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts are expected to reconvene in September via conference call to set effort controls for the 2020 Area 1A fishery for Season 2 (October 1 – December 31). An announcement will be issued once the meeting is scheduled.

Eastern Maine Spawning Closure

Additionally, the Area 1A fishery regulations include seasonal spawning closures for portions of state and federal waters in Eastern Maine, Western Maine and Massachusetts/New Hampshire. The Commission’s Atlantic Herring Management approved a forecasting method that relies upon at least three samples, each containing at least 25 female herring in gonadal states III-V, to trigger a spawning closure. However, if sufficient samples are not available then closures will begin on predetermined dates.

There are currently no samples from the Eastern Maine spawning area to determine spawning condition. Therefore, per the Addendum II default closure dates, the Eastern Maine spawning area will be closed starting at 12:01 a.m. on August 28, 2020 extending through 11:59 p.m. on October 9, 2020. Eastern Maine spawning area includes all waters bounded by the following coordinates:

Maine coast     68° 20’ W

43° 48’ N          68° 20’ W

44° 25’ N         67° 03’ W

North along the US/Canada border

The same 2,000 pounds incidental bycatch allowance applies for non-directed fisheries that are fishing within the Eastern Maine spawning area during a spawning closure.

For more information, please contact Max Appelman, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator, at 703.842.0740 or mappelman@asmfc.org.

NEFMC Seeks Applicants for Whiting and Herring Advisory Panels

August 19, 2020 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council is soliciting applicants to fill one vacancy on its Whiting Advisory Panel and another vacancy on its Herring Advisory Panel (AP). The appointments will run through December 2022. The application deadline is Friday, September 4, 2020.

Advisory panel members reflect a wide range of expertise covering different gear types, user groups, geographic locations, and social and economic perspectives.

“We’re looking for applicants who understand the whiting and herring fisheries and are ready to commit to an active role on an AP,” said Council Executive Director Tom Nies. “We recognize that being an AP member can be challenging and sometimes time-demanding, but the Council benefits from the expertise of its AP members and genuinely appreciates their involvement in the development of our actions.”

Read the full release here

ASMFC: August 7 Atlantic Herring Days Out Call Canceled; Next Call Scheduled for August 14

August 5, 2020 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s (Commission) Atlantic Herring Management Board members from Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts set effort control measures for the Area 1A fishery via Days Out webinars. Current effort controls for Season 1 (June – September) are detailed in Memo 20-50 which is available on the Commission’s website (click here).

The previously scheduled Days Out call on August 7, 2020 at 8:30 AM has been cancelled. Given the current rate of landings in the Area 1A fishery, and that the weekly landings limit has not been fully harvested by all vessels, the states have decided a Days Out call is not warranted at this time.

The Atlantic Herring Management Board members from Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts are scheduled to reconvene via conference call to review fishing effort on:

  • Friday, August 14, at 8:30 – 10:00 am
  • You can join the meeting from your computer, tablet or smartphone at the following link:https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/924867957. If you are new to GoToMeeting, you can download the app ahead of time (click here) and be ready before the meeting starts. The meeting will be using the computer audio (VoIP), but if you are joining the webinar from your phone only, you can dial in at +1 (646) 749-3122 and enter access code 924-867-957 when prompted. The webinar will start at 8:00 a.m., 30 minutes early, to troubleshoot audio as necessary.

If it is decided that this meeting is also not needed, it may be canceled. Please contact Max Appelman, FMP Coordinator, at mappelman@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740 for more information.

NEFMC August-September 2020 Meeting Lineup – Skates, Scallops, Groundfish, Herring, and More

August 3, 2020 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council has scheduled numerous public hearings, advisory panel meetings, and committee meetings throughout August and September to address actions related to Atlantic sea scallops, groundfish, Atlantic herring, skates, habitat, ecosystem-based fishery management, and more. Webinar registration links and related documents are – or soon will be – posted on each of the respective hearing/meeting webpages. Here’s the lineup.

SKATES – Thursday, August 6: The Council’s Skate Committee will meet by webinar at 9:00 a.m. to continue developing and clarifying the problem statement, goals, and objectives for Amendment 5 to the Northeast Skate Complex Fishery Management Plan (FMP). This action is considering whether to limit access to the skate wing and bait fisheries. Meeting materials and the webinar registration link are at Skates August 6.

Read the full release here

CANCELED: July 31 Atlantic Herring Days Out Call

July 30, 2020 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s (Commission) Atlantic Herring Management Board members from Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts set effort control measures for the Area 1A fishery via Days Out webinars. Current effort controls for Season 1 (June – September) are detailed in Memo 20-50 which is available on the Commission’s website (click here).

The previously scheduled Days Out call on July 31, 2020 at 8:30 AM has been cancelled. Given the current weekly landings limit in the Area 1A fishery has not been fully harvested by all vessels and catch rates have not exceeded projections, the states have decided a Days Out call is not warranted at this time.

The Atlantic Herring Management Board members from Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts are scheduled to reconvene via conference call to review fishing effort on:

  • Friday, August 7 at 8:30 – 10:00 am
  • You can join the meeting from your computer, tablet or smartphone at the following link:https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/924867957. If you are new to GoToMeeting, you can download the app ahead of time (click here) and be ready before the meeting starts. The meeting will be using the computer audio (VoIP), but if you are joining the webinar from your phone only, you can dial in at +1 (646) 749-3122 and enter access code 924-867-957 when prompted. The webinar will start at 8:00 a.m., 30 minutes early, to troubleshoot audio as necessary.

If it is decided that this meeting is also not needed, it may be canceled. Please contact Max Appelman, FMP Coordinator, at mappelman@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740 for more information.

A copy of this announcement, can be found here – http://www.asmfc.org/files/Meetings/AtlHerringDaysOutMeetingCanceled8_30_20.pdf

Mills, Collins Call On Federal Government To Provide Disaster Assistance To Maine Herring Industry

July 24, 2020 — Democratic Gov. Janet Mills and Republican U.S. Sen. Susan Collins are calling on the federal government to provide disaster assistance to the state’s herring industry in the wake of what they call the fishery’s failure.

The herring population off New England’s coast has nosedived in recent years, and federal regulators have drastically reduced commercial catch limits by more than 80 percent. That has driven prices for the vital food-chain fish ever higher, and sent lobstermen scrambling for alternatives to what had been their go-to bait.u.s.

Earlier this month Mills asked the U.S. Secretary of Commerce to formally declare the regional fishery a failure, and this week Collins backed her up. In her letter, Collins says it is unclear how the industry will survive without immediate financial assistance.

Read the full story at Maine Public

Status Quo Effort Controls Maintained for the 2020 Atlantic Herring Area 1A Fishery for Season 1

July 23, 2020 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s (Commission) Atlantic Herring Management Board members from Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts met via webinar on July 23rd, and decided to maintain status quo effort control measures for the 2020 Area 1A fishery for Season 1 (June 1 – September 30). Current effort controls for the 2020 Area 1A fishery are detailed in M20-50 which is available on the Commission’s website (click here).

The Area 1A sub-annual catch limit (ACL) is 2,957 metric tons (mt) after adjusting for the research set-aside, the 30 mt fixed gear set-aside, and the fact that Area 1A closes at 92% of the sub-ACL. The Board allocated 72.8% of the sub-ACL for Area 1A to Season 1 (2,152 mt). The Maine fishery began Sunday, July 19 (6:00 pm), and the New Hampshire/Massachusetts fishery began Monday, July 20 (12:01 am). Landings will be closely monitored and the fishery will be adjusted to zero landings days when 92% of the Season 1 quota is projected to be reached.

The Atlantic Herring Management Board members from Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts are scheduled to reconvene via conference call to review fishing effort on:

  • Friday, July 31, at 8:30 – 10:00 am
  • You can join the meeting from your computer, tablet or smartphone at the following link:https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/924867957. If you are new to GoToMeeting, you can download the app ahead of time (click here) and be ready before the meeting starts. The meeting will be using the computer audio (VoIP), but if you are joining the webinar from your phone only, you can dial in at +1 (646) 749-3122and enter access code 924-867-957 when prompted.

If it is decided that this meeting is not needed, it may be canceled. Please contact Max Appelman, FMP Coordinator, at mappelman@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740 for more information.

NEFMC SSC – Listen Live – Wednesday, July 29, 2020 – Atlantic Herring Focus

July 22, 2020 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council’s Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) will meet via webinar on Wednesday, July 29, 2020 to discuss issues related to Atlantic herring.  The public is invited to listen live.  Here are the details.

START TIME:  9:00 a.m.

WEBINAR REGISTRATION:  Online access to the meeting is available at Listen Live.  There is no charge to access the meeting through this webinar.

CALL-IN OPTION:  To listen by telephone, dial +1 (631) 992-3221.  The access code is 187-045-964.  Please be aware that if you dial in, your regular phone charges will apply.

AGENDA:  The SSC will meet to:

  • Recommend the overfishing limit (OFL) and acceptable biological catch (ABC) for Atlantic herring for fishing years 2021, 2022, and 2023 using (1) information provided by the Council’s Herring Plan Development Team, (2) results from the recent Atlantic Herring Management Track Stock Assessment, and (3) the ABC control rule selected by the Council in Amendment 8 to the Atlantic Herring Fishery Management Plan, which is expected to be implemented shortly; and
  • Discuss other business as necessary.
COMMENTS:  The deadline for submitting written comments for consideration at this meeting is 8:00 a.m. on Friday, July 24, 2020.  Address comments to Council Chairman Dr. John Quinn or Executive Director Tom Nies and email them to comments@nefmc.org.  Additional information is available in the meeting notice.

MATERIALS:  All documents for this meeting will be posted on the SSC July 29, 2020 webpage.

QUESTIONS:  Contact Joan O’Leary at (978) 465-0492 ext. 101, joleary@nefmc.org or Janice Plante at (607) 592-4817, jplante@nefmc.org.

Atlantic Herring Days Out Meeting Scheduled for July 23, 10 AM – Noon

July 7, 2020 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

Atlantic Herring Management Board members from the States of Maine and New Hampshire, and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts will meet on July 23, 2020 from 10 a.m. to Noon to review landings to date and discuss potential changes to days out measures for the 2020 Area 1A (inshore Gulf of Maine) fishery for Season 1. Days out measures can include specification of the number of consecutive landings days, weekly landings limits, and restrictions on at-sea transfers. This meeting will be held via webinar and conference call. The call and the webinar information are included below:

Atlantic Herring Days Out Meeting

July 23, 2020
10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.
Webinar link: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/7337839744604085772.

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email with information to connect to the webinar.

We strongly recommend connecting to the webinar using the computer audio (VoIP).

For those who will not be joining the webinar but would like to listen in, please refer to your confirmation email for dial-in information.

The 2020 Area 1A allowable catch limit (ACL) is 2,957 metric tons (mt) after adjusting for the research set-aside, the 30 mt fixed gear set-aside, and the fact that Area 1A closes at 92% of the sub-ACL. The Board established the following allocations for the 2020 Area 1A ACL: 72.8% available from June 1 – September 30 and 27.2% available from October 1 – December 31. In April, the Board set effort controls for Season 1 in Area 1A (refer to Memo 20-50 for specifics).

Please contact Max Appelman, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator, at 703.842.0716 or mappelman@asmfc.org for more information.

A PDF of the meeting notice can be found here.