Saving Seafood

Newcomers may find themselves shut out of Maine’s pogie fishery

February 11, 2022 — The number of Maine fishermen who can catch menhaden — more commonly called pogies in Maine — could soon be limited to only those who have historically gone after the increasingly important baitfish.

The state Department of Marine Resources submitted a proposal to the state legislature that would, starting in 2023, only allow fishermen to obtain commercial menhaden licenses if they’ve held the license in one of the last six years and caught at least 25,000 pounds of pogies during one of those years.

The bill, which was heard by a legislative committee earlier this week, has sparked a debate over who should be allowed to catch the small, oily fish.

Menhaden are schooling fish that can be found up and down the east coast. Maine lobstermen have started to rely on them as bait in the last few years as herring quotas have been cut and some have invested in expensive gear to fish for them themselves.

Read the full story at the Bangor Daily News

 

MAINE: Sen. Collins continues efforts to support Maine lobster industry

February 10, 2022 — U.S. Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) recently joined a bipartisan, bicameral effort with several Maine lawmakers to continue advocating for their home state’s lobstermen and women, who are working to meet new federal requirements by May 1 that are expected to increase their financial losses.

The lawmakers expressed “renewed urgency” in requesting a delay in the National Marine Fisheries Service’s (NMFS) implementation of the new Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Plan final rule, which requires U.S. lobster and Jonah crab fisheries to modify their gear by May 1, according to a Feb. 7 letter they sent to U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.

“The economic harm imposed by the gear conversion deadline will be severe, and the scarcity of required gear is making it difficult — if not impossible — for lobstermen to achieve timely compliance,” wrote Sen. Collins and her Maine colleagues, who included U.S. Sen. Angus King (I-ME), U.S. Reps. Chellie Pingree (D-ME) and Jared Golden (D-ME), and Maine Gov. Janet Mills (D).

Read the full story at the Ripon Advance

Maine Forum to Host Northern Gulf of Maine Scallop Webinar on February 17; Fisheries Leadership Session on March 23

February 10, 2022 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The Maine Fishermen’s Forum will be hosting two webinars of direct interest to the New England Fishery Management Council’s stakeholders. One will focus on the Northern Gulf of Maine (NGOM) scallop fishery and the other will provide an opportunity for fishermen and other webinar participants to have an open dialogue with NOAA Fisheries leadership.

Due to COVID-19 concerns, the forum’s board of directors canceled the March 2022 in-person event but made way for educational virtual seminars with remote participation by those who tune in via Zoom. Here are the details for the webinar lineup.

NORTHERN GULF OF MAINE SCALLOP FISHERY: This webinar, which is titled “Upcoming Changes to the Management of the Federal Scallop Fishery in the Northern Gulf of Maine,” will take place on Wednesday, February 17, 2022 from 3:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

WHO ARE THE PANELISTS?

• Jonathon Peros, scallop lead for the New England Fishery Management Council and organizer of this webinar session;

• Travis Ford, scallop lead for the Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office (GARFO) of the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS/NOAA Fisheries); and

• Jessica Blaylock, industry-funded scallop observer program lead at the Northeast Fisheries Science Center of NOAA Fisheries.

Read the full release from the NEFMC

Maine lawmakers consider legal fund for lobster industry ahead of new whale protections

February 10, 2022 — Maine lawmakers are considering establishing a legal defense fund for the lobster fishing industry to help them navigate upcoming regulations meant to protect critically endangered North Atlantic right whales.  

Republican state representative and lobsterman William Faulkingham proposed the measure, which would establish the fund — supported by license surcharges and lobster trap tag sales — and form a commission to govern it, The Associated Press reported. In a public hearing Tuesday, Faulkingham said the industry is facing “crippling regulations and industry collapsing lawsuits.”

Read the full story at The Hill

 

Committee puts off decision on $30M fund for Maine lobster fishers

February 9, 2022 — A Maine legislative committee on Tuesday put off its vote on a plan to create a $30 million fund to help fishermen cope with new fishing rules meant to protect whales.

The Maine lobster fishery is subject to new rules designed to protect North Atlantic right whales from entanglement in gear. A bill proposed by Democratic Rep. Holly Stover would create the relief fund to help fishermen hurt economically by the new rules pay for expenses such as boat payments and gear.

Read the full story at the AP

MAINE: Proposal for lobster industry legal defense fund gets divided response

February 9, 2022 — A bill that would set up a legal defense fund to help the Maine lobster industry fight a series of impending regulatory changes was met with mixed reaction from lawmakers and industry participants during a public hearing Tuesday.

The Legislature’s Marine Resources Committee also tabled a vote on another bill that would create a $30 million economic relief fund for lobstermen, paid out of the state’s general fund.

The push for legal and economic relief comes in advance of new federal rules that will require lobstermen in the Gulf of Maine to adopt special ropes and other equipment and techniques designed to reduce mortality risk to the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale. Those rules are set to take effect May 1, although the industry is seeking a 60-day extension.

Unlike the proposed economic relief fund, which would rely on taxpayer money, the legal defense fund would be paid for with surcharges on lobster trap tags and licenses. Those fees would generate an estimated $807,000 a year for the fund, but would divert money away from other industry causes.

Read the full story at the Portland Press Herald

Maine delegation, lobstermen ask feds to postpone whale protection rules, citing rope shortage

February 9, 2022 — Maine lobstermen say there’s a critical shortage of specialized trap-gear they need to comply with new federal whale protection rules that go into effect this spring. The industry and Maine political leaders are asking the feds to postpone the deadline by two months. But some gear-makers and suppliers say they can make it available, if only someone would order it.

As of May 1, the new federal rules will require lobstermen to use rope that’s weak enough to allow endangered North Atlantic right whales to break through it without danger of deadly entanglements. Alternatively, lobstermen can install weak links in their existing traplines to achieve the same result.

“At this point, the beginning of February, I don’t have access to any type of equipment to modify my gear,” says Friendship lobsterman Dustin Delano, the vice president of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association. He says he’s been looking for gear that would make sense for his boat and his 800 lobster traps — but so far, no luck. And he’s anxious to get going on the time-consuming task of hauling and converting his gear.

“There’s a few options that exist but you can’t get that equipment,” he says. “I’ve looked into it myself, there isn’t enough, it doesn’t exist. So we can be told we need to comply by May 1, but if I can’t buy the stuff what am I supposed to do?”

Gov. Janet Mills and Maine’s Congressional delegation recently sent a joint letter to the Secretary of Commerce, Gina Raimondo, asking to delay the gear-conversion deadline until July 1.

“That would save the industry more than $7 million in lost fishing time, and we believe it would have no or negligible impact on risk reduction,” says Sen. Susan Collins.

Read the full story at WBUR

MAINE: Local lobstermen hear mostly bad news at Zone B Council meeting

February 8, 2022 — Area lobstermen heard little good news at a Jan. 31 Zone B Council meeting as Department of Marine Resources Commissioner Patrick Keliher shared information presented earlier at a December 2021 Lobster Advisory Council meeting. 

New gear, reporting and trap line regulations and the temporary closure of local waters to lobster fishing – all aimed at protecting the endangered North Atlantic right whale – are changing how lobstermen fish today and in the future. But greater challenges will play out in federal courts, as lawsuits levied by well-funded environmental groups could shut the fishery completely down. 

“This represents the greatest threat to the industry,” Deputy Commissioner Meredith Mendelson said. 

If the federal court rules to vacate the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)’s biological opinion, as one lawsuit requests, on grounds that it violates the Endangered Species Act and the 1946 Administration Procedures Act (which governs how federal agencies develop and issue regulations), then NOAA’s National Fisheries Marine Service (NFMS) could not legally authorize the fishery to operate. 

Read the full story at the Mount Desert Islander

Productive Maine Scalloping Grounds Might Close for Year

February 8, 2022 — Maine ocean regulators might close the state’s most productive scallop fishing grounds for the year.

The state is home to a winter scallop fishing industry that takes place in nearshore waters. The most fertile scalloping grounds in the state are in Cobscook Bay in rural Down East Maine.

The Maine Department of Maine Resources said the area is showing signs of pressure from the scallop harvest and will be evaluated for closure this week.

Read the full story from the AP at U.S. News & World Report

Maine governor, delegation want whale protections delayed

February 7, 2022 — Maine’s governor and congressional delegation are calling on the federal government to push back new fishing rules designed to protect whales so fishermen can comply with them.

New lobster fishing rules require fishermen to start using weakened rope or special inserts to weaken existing rope beginning in May in some waters. That’s to protect critically endangered North Atlantic right whales.

Democratic Gov. Janet Mills and the four members of the delegation said Monday the federal government should push the conversion deadline from May 1 to July 1. They said a lack of compliant gear is making it hard for harvesters to comply with the rules.

Read the full story at AP News