Saving Seafood

Aquaculture Rule Changes up for Public Comment in Maine

January 14, 2019 — Maine fisheries managers are looking to make a number of changes to aquaculture rules in the state, and are asking for feedback from the industry and the public about the potential changes.

The Maine Department of Marine Resources is considering a proposal that would make changes to the leasing procedures it uses for farmers of seafood. The new rules would also clarify that an emergency lease could be used when the safety of consumers is threatened, and they would establish minimum lease maintenance standards.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at U.S. News

Maine proposal would encourage more shellfish research

January 14, 2019 — Maine might be the site of more shellfish research if a proposal before a state legislative committee is successful.

Democratic Rep. Robert Alley of Beals has issued the proposal, titled “An Act To Encourage Applied Shellfish Research.” The bill proposes a tweak to municipalities’ shellfish conservation ordinances, which currently regulate possession of shellfish and where they can be taken.

Alley’s proposal would allow research entities to contact research in conjunction with the Maine Department of Marine Resources to support shellfish conservation. It would also require annual reports about research findings.

Read the full story at the Associated Press

MAINE: Scallop prices variable, but comparable to last year

January 10, 2019 — The price of scallops caught in Maine waters is comparing well with previous years.

The Ellsworth American reported that harvesters were receiving prices as high as nearly $14 per pound. But in some cases, harvesters received $8.75 to $10.75 per pound, depending on meat size.

That compares with the 2017-18 scallop season, which started off with prices that were down $2 to $3 from 2016-17’s average of $12.77.

In 2017, Maine scallop harvesters landed the most scallops since 1997, bringing ashore 793,544 meat pounds, a nearly 45% jump from 2016. At $9.3 million, scallop landings had the highest overall value since 1993.

The 2018-19 season began Dec. 1. By Jan. 4, the Maine Department of Marine Resources had begun implementing its emergency rulemaking authority to implement conservation closures along parts of the coast to protect the scallop resource from the risk of depletion of broodstock and seed scallop. Called “targeted conservation closures,” they’re determined by the marine resources commissioner based on depletion, seed, the presence of spat-producing scallops and other factors.

Read the full story at Maine Biz

MAINE: Whale rule changes coming on two tracks

January 9, 2019 — Maine lobstermen and their representatives, along with state fisheries regulators, continue in the trenches of debates about how much the Maine lobster fishery is implicated in the decline of the North Atlantic right whale.

Ongoing efforts to protect the whales from entanglement with fishing gear may result in two different new sets of regulations, Sarah Cotnoir, resource coordinator for the Maine Department of Marine Resources, and Patrice McCarron, executive director of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association, told the Zone B Council last week.

The two sets of regulations come from parallel processes under two federal laws, the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and the Endangered Species Act (ESA).

Read the full story at The Ellsworth American

MAINE: Good scallop season may be bound for a change

January 9, 2019 — Maine’s scallop season got off to a good start last month, with supplies plentiful and a strong price, but that may be about to change.

Early on, according to Melissa Smith, the scallop resource manager at the Department of Marine Resources, along most of the coast between Penobscot Bay and Cobscook Bay landings varied were “variable depending on the location.”

Scallop meat sizes also ranged from quite large to relatively small depending on where they were brought up, “as is the norm for any fishing year.”

Harvesters were generally able to get their daily limits — three 5-gallon buckets or about 135 pounds of shucked scallop meats — by the early afternoon or even earlier.

Read the full story at The Ellsworth American

Conflict Over Herring Quotas Breaks Out Between New England Council and NMFS

January 9, 2019 — SEAFOOD NEWS — Herring fishery reductions have become a point of conflict between the New England Fishery Management Council and NMFS.

In September, the council recommended an extreme reduction in herring catch to 15,065 tons, based on recent stock assessments.  The assessments put the overfishing limit at 30,668 tons, and the council recommended an allowable biological catch of 21,266 tons, and reserved 6200 tons for uncertainty in the survey data, as a precaution.

This action was projected to decrease the herring fishery 86%, and was projected to have a strong impact on the price and availability of lobster bait, which is the principle utilization of New England Atlantic herring.

The lobster industry in Maine was dead set against this reduction since it would impact their bait costs, and NMFS in Washington listened to those in the industry who might be hurt.

Instead of accepting the council recommendation, NMFS in a highly unusual move increased the ABC to the overfishing limit of 30,668 tons.  This had the immediate result of adding over 9000 tons of quota to the 2019 season.

The council reiterated its opposition to this in a vote in December, saying in a letter that they had attempted to apply the new Amendment 8 control rules which are coming into effect in 2020, but are not yet in place for 2019.

The council argues that this decision will crash the stock in 2020, and lead to a high probability of overfishing, which if determined will reduce the quota in 2020 by 18,000 tons.  Although the council motion calls for less fishing in 2019, it smooths out the projected decline more than the NMFS proposal.  Over two years, the council projects its approach leads to a 68% reduction, while the NMFS approach will lead to a 75% reduction in ABC.

Patrick Keliher, the newly re-appointed Maine commissioner of Marine Resources said he struggled with the issue and the short-term and medium-term impacts of both proposals, particularly with regard to the economic impacts to both Maine’s herring and lobster industries.

“The economic impact, both to the herring fleet and the lobster industry, is very, very real,” said Keliher. “I’m trying to figure out if there’s some relief here and trying to balance these two things. But we’re in a pretty difficult spot.”

Keliher voted for the initial council motion in September, but declined to vote for the December motion opposing the change made by NMFS.

In essence the argument is over risk and uncertainty.  Speaking to the Fishermen’s Voice, several council members gave their rationales.

Peter Kendall, chairman of NEFMC’s Herring Committee, said he didn’t support the NMFS proposal.

“I stand by what the council voted on in September,” Kendall said.

NEFMC member Matthew McKenzie said he agreed with the council decision and with Kendall.

“Given the level of uncertainty we have and the heavily declined state of the stock, we need to be more cautious than that in this period of transition,” he said.

NEFMC vice chairman Terry Stockwell said he also agreed with Kendall.

“We’re trying to provide stability for the industry, but that’s not the proper way to do business,” he said of the NMFS proposal.

NEFMC member Vincent Balzano said he understands NMFS’s reasoning, given the horrifying” impacts of the quota cuts on the fishery. But, he said, “If we take all this fish up front, there’s no guarantee we’ll get to the fish in the back. That’s my biggest concern. I agree it’s devastating to the herring and Maine lobster fisheries. But if we get stuck with 12,000 or 15,000 metric tons after this, that’s beyond devastating.”

“What we do in 2019 has an effect on whether we get the bounceback that we’d like to see begin in 2021,” said NEFMC member Michael Sissenwine.

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

New Maine governor Mills renominates Keliher for state fishing commissioner

January 7, 2019 — The commercial fishing industry, including lobster harvesters, in the US state of Maine, got one of their holiday presents delivered a bit late. Newly elected governor Janet Mills, a Democrat, announced Thursday that she has renominated Patrick Keliher as commissioner of the Department of Marine Resources, the Portland (Maine) Press Herald reports.

Keliher was appointed to the post in 2011 by Republican governor Paul LePage and was not a sure bet to retain the position, though he has received significant industry support. The leaders of eight commercial fishing groups in the US’ second-largest seafood state wrote Mills in late November to express their support for his retention.

Mills has been filling out her cabinet in recent days, but saved the Keliher news to near the end. His name was included in an announcement that also noted the renominations of Ann Head as commissioner of Professional and Financial Regulation, and Maj. Gen. Douglas Farnham as commissioner of Defense, Veterans and Emergency Management.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

Fishing industry lobbies for Maine commissioner to retain his post

January 1, 2019 — The leaders of Maine’s fishing industry want Patrick Keliher to stay on as head of the state’s Department of Marine Resources under incoming governor Janet Mills.

“Our industries are confronted by major issues on the water, in international waters, and within several regulatory arenas that have major consequences for our ability to do business and remain profitable,” industry leaders wrote in a rare joint letter to Mills. “The future success of Maine’s seafood industry depends on the continued strong leadership, stability, institutional knowledge and political capital that only Commissioner Keliher possesses.”

There is no word on whether Mills, who worked with Keliher as state attorney general, wants the seven-year commissioner to stay in his appointed post. Mills is taking the industry’s recommendation into consideration, spokesman Scott Ogdon said Monday. She expects to make an announcement on Keliher’s fate soon, as well as other remaining Cabinet positions, so her administration can “hit the ground running,” he said.

At a campaign forum in October, Mills said she wanted honest, hard-working commissioners with expertise in their fields and willingness to enforce state laws. She said the ideal candidate would understand all the state’s fishing industries, including aquaculture, and would have “come up through the ranks.” Most importantly, Mills said her DMR commissioner must be a good communicator with consumers, industry and policy makers. “There’s been too little of that in the last eight years,” Mills told the forum, which was organized by the seafood industry. “We need openness and transparency.”

Read the full story at the Portland Press Herald

Maine begins scallop fishing area closures for ’18-’19

January 2, 2019 — Maine fishery regulators are shutting down a couple of scallop fishing areas for the first time this season.

Maine’s home to some of the most lucrative scallops in the country, and the state maintains the population of the shellfish by closing some areas to fishing over the course of the season. The Maine Department of Marine Resources says it’s closing Machias and Little Machias Bays for the rest of the season.

The closures went into effect on Dec. 30.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at The Miami Herald

MAINE: Fishermen speak out against proposed oyster farm in Maquoit Bay

November 21, 2018 — A local group of commercial fishermen asked the Maine Department of Marine Resources to throw out Mere Point Oyster Co.’s application for a 10-year, 40-acre lease in the middle of Maquoit Bay on the grounds that they are “rightfully entitled to use this space for fishing.”

“Why should we go away so a couple of people can use it exclusively?” Tom Santaguida asked the department at a public hearing Monday night.

The meeting marked the second night of the hearing over the company’s proposed expansion, which would increase its annual oyster harvest from about 60,000 this year to more than 1.5 million within three years. The department will evaluate the lease on factors like navigation, fishing and other uses, as well as noise and visual impact. The hearing will stretch into a third night, which has not yet been scheduled. The Concerned Citizens of Maquoit Bay, who began their testimony on Thursday, will resume at the next hearing.

The commercial fishermen, represented by Santaguida and John Powers, argued that the proposed 40-acre site is one that is fished often and at different times can be extremely lucrative.

Read the full story at The Portland Press Herald