Saving Seafood

NOAA asks mariners to stay clear of right whales

January 30, 2019 — The federal government has asked mariners to slow down in, or avoid altogether, a protected area off Nantucket set up to keep endangered right whales safe.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration recommends vessels voluntarily travel at 10 knots or less until Feb. 11 The request came after 100 North Atlantic right whales were spotted south of the island on Jan. 15.

“We are also asking commercial fishermen to be vigilant when maneuvering to avoid accidental collisions with whales, remove unused gear from the ocean to help avoid entanglements, and use vertical lines with markings, weak links, and breaking strengths,” NOAA officials said in a statement.

About 20 of the whales were spotted in the 2,800-mile area on Sunday , said Jennifer S. Goebel, a spokeswoman for NOAA’s Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office.

Read the full story at the Boston Globe

 

Voluntary Vessel Speed Restriction Zone South of Nantucket to Protect Right Whales

January 29, 2019 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

A voluntary vessel speed restriction zone (Dynamic Management Area – DMA) has been established south of Nantucket for 100 right whales sighted in this area on January 15.

This DMA is in effect through January 30, 2019.

Mariners are requested to route around this area or transit through it at 10 knots or less.

Nantucket DMA coordinates:

41 12 N
40 28 N
070 36 W
069 31 W

See a map.

Right Whales Are Migrating

North Atlantic right whales are on the move along the Atlantic coast of the U.S. With an unprecedented 20 right whale deaths documented in 2017 and 2018, NOAA is cautioning boaters to give these endangered whales plenty of room as they migrate south. We are also asking commercial fishermen to be vigilant when maneuvering to avoid accidental collisions with whales, remove unused gear from the ocean to help avoid entanglements, and use vertical lines with required markings, weak links, and breaking strengths.

Right Whales in Trouble

North Atlantic right whales are protected under the U.S. Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act. Scientists estimate there are slightly more than 400 remaining, making them one of the rarest marine mammals in the world.

In August 2017, NOAA Fisheries declared the increase in right whale mortalities an “Unusual Mortality Event,” which helps the agency direct additional scientific and financial resources to investigating, understanding, and reducing the mortalities in partnership with the Marine Mammal Stranding Network, Canada’s Department of Fisheries and Oceans, and outside experts from the scientific research community.

More Info

Recent right whale sightings

Find out more about our right whale conservation efforts and the researchers behind those efforts.

Download the Whale Alert app for iPad and iPhone

Acoustic detections in Cape Cod Bay and the Boston TSS

Send a blank message  to receive a return email listing all current U.S. DMAs and SMAs.

Details and graphics of all ship strike management zones currently in effect.

Reminder: Approaching a right whale closer than 500 yards is a violation of federal and state law.

Questions? Contact Jennifer Goebel, Regional Office, at 978-281-9175

Read the full release here

NOAA Asks Mariners to Avoid Group of 100 Endangered Whales

January 29, 2019 — The federal government says there is a large aggregation of an endangered species of whale south of Nantucket, and mariners should avoid it for the safety of the animals.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says the group of 100 North Atlantic right whales was seen in the area in mid-January. It’s asking mariners to route around the area or transit through at 10 knots or less. The management area is in effect until Wednesday.

Read the full story at CapeCod.com

Government shutdown delays meetings between fishermen, Vineyard Wind

January 29, 2019 — Despite the partial federal government shutdown ending, public comment meetings led by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management regarding Vineyard Wind’s plan to construct an offshore wind-turbine farm have been indefinitely postponed, according to David Bernhardt, acting secretary of the interior.

Meetings were scheduled Jan. 8, 9, 15, 16 and 17 but were continually pushed back as the government shutdown extended and BOEM workers were forced to stay home. Bernhardt tweeted Jan. 24 that BOEM would “reschedule public meetings for the Vineyard Wind offshore renewable project very soon,” but gave no timeline on the issue.

Despite the delay in public comment meetings, “construction activities on the site will begin by the end of this year” if all permits are secured, Vineyard Wind spokesman Scott Farmelant said. “Every single permit is expected to be getting in by the end of the third quarter or early in the fourth quarter,” he added. Vineyard Wind has a tax credit from the federal government should they begin building in 2019, so the timeline for construction is crucial. “They’re eligible for 12 percent tax credit if they begin construction this year,” Farmelant said. “That program is expiring as of right now.”

Vineyard Wind is confident the project will remain on schedule despite the effects of the shutdown, Farmelant said.

Read the full story at The Brown Daily Herald

NOAA after shutdown: Priority getting fishermen back to work

January 29, 2019 — Furloughed NOAA Fisheries staffers returned to work Monday from the partial shutdown of the federal government and commenced the task of playing catchup as a new fishing season beckons.

In Gloucester, the furloughed workers, sent home 35 days ago, resumed their duties at the Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office on Great Republic Drive as Regional Administrator Mike Pentony acknowledged the shutdown’s impact on fishing stakeholders and set the overarching agenda moving forward.

“We will have three priorities as we ramp back up to full and normal operations: getting fishermen back to work; completing consultations so federally permitted projects in your communities can move forward; and ensuring that adequate monitoring and protections are in place for our protected resources,” Pentony said in a statement.

Pentony conceded the shutdown has left the agency behind schedule for completing several essential actions as the 2018 fishing season winds down and the May 1 start of the 2019 season moves closer.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times

‘We need to fish’ New Bedford fishermen tell toll of shutdown

January 28, 2019 — Many things fell into place Friday that led to the government reopening, including the words of a New Bedford scalloper in the nation’s capital.

Capt. Jack Morris, director of operations for FV Holdings LLC, spoke on a panel conducted by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce as the shutdown prevented one of his vessels from fishing.

“We’re bleeding,” Morris said. “We need to go fishing.”

Hours later, President Donald Trump announced a deal had been struck to reopen the government through Feb. 15.

The shutdown didn’t allow Morris to transfer a license from an out-of-service vessel to a new one.

“It’s a simple application that’s done all the time, and it’s sitting on the desk of the permit office in Gloucester,” Morris said. “There’s nobody at that desk. It’s empty.”

Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times

You could soon grow shrimp at home, UNH researchers say

January 28, 2019 — We have a tradition that we follow every year when the Super Bowl rolls around. We ignore it for as long as possible.

We avoid all mention of the big game until as close to kickoff as we can manage. Otherwise, you just drown in the endless drek of mindless and irrelevant reports about teams we already know way too much about.

Still, people tell us things. We don’t encourage it, but there you are. They tell us the big game will pit the Patriots of New England against the Rams of Los Angeles (by way of Cleveland, Los Angeles (the first time), Anaheim and St. Louis).

Well, that sounds like a corker. Feel free to invite us to your Super Bowl party. We’ll bring Kenny Rogers Roasters chicken. The man, as Newman attested, makes a pretty strong bird.

What we won’t be bringing is our home-grown shrimp. Didn’t know you could grow shrimp at home? Well, according to researchers at the University of New Hampshire, you can.

“Researcher Michael Chambers says the shrimp can be cultivated in any larger container or tank, or even in a backyard kiddie pool, at a relatively low cost,” according to a story in the Boston Globe. “Chambers said people could make $40,000 or more a year if they invested in a large-scale operation. The homegrown shrimp could replace frozen or processed shrimp found in supermarkets during the winter.”

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times

MASSACHUSETTS: Gloucester looks to up seafood matchmaking

January 28, 2019 — The city continued its outreach to Gloucester seafood businesses on Thursday, hoping to bolster its presence — and the array of fresh Gloucester seafood products — at the upcoming Seafood Expo North America in Boston.

Mayor Sefatia Romeo Theken and other city officials met at City Hall with executives from Mortillaro Lobster Inc., Intershell and Cape Seafoods and its North Atlantic and Pacific Seafood subsidiary to expound on the benefits of attending one of the largest seafood shows in the world.

In a sense, the city was preaching to members of the choir. Intershell and Cape Seafoods already have booked their own booths at the show, which is set to run March 17 to 19 at the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center in South Boston.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times

New Bedford Fishing Captains Discuss Impacts of Shutdown

January 28, 2019 —  Jack Morris and Justin Dube, scallop boat captains fishing out of New Bedford, Massachusetts, shared with Saving Seafood how the recent federal government shutdown negatively affected their businesses.

Capts. Morris and Dube discussed how the closure of NOAA offices prevented them from getting necessary permits from the agency for their scallop fishing vessels. Without these permits, they were unable to fish during the shutdown, negatively impacting their livelihoods and those of their crews.

The captains were in Washington for a Chamber of Commerce event where people from around the country shared how they were negatively affected by the 35-day shutdown.

View the full interview here

Vineyard Wind offers concessions to fishermen, environmentalists

January 25, 2019 — Vineyard Wind officials are not waiting for federal officials to return to their desks: The company has reached an agreement with environmental groups to protect North Atlantic right whales and has offered Rhode Island fishermen a $6.3 million deal to compensate them for any economic damages they may incur from the wind farm’s construction and operations.

“We have not voted yet,” said Lanny Dellinger, chairman of a fisheries advisory board of the Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council. “We are currently in the process of reviewing (the Vineyard Wind) proposal.”

On both fronts the company’s intention, in part, is to pave a smooth path for the 800-megawatt wind farm project planned south of Martha’s Vineyard, which is on a tight schedule to take advantage of federal investment tax credits that are expiring at the end of the year.

The 84-turbine wind farm is expected to deliver enough electricity to power about 400,000 homes in Massachusetts via an underwater, high-voltage cable that will land on a Barnstable beach, company officials said. As planned, it could be the nation’s first industrial-size offshore wind project.

Read the full story at the Cape Cod Times