Saving Seafood

NOAA research zeroes in on saving right whales

November 23, 2018 — Why is the endangered western North Atlantic right whale population growing far more slowly than those of southern right whales, a sister species also recovering from near extinction by commercial whaling?

NOAA Fisheries researchers and colleagues looked more closely at the question and have concluded that preserving the lives of adult females in the population is by far the most effective way to promote population growth and recovery.

North Atlantic right whales are frequently seen in the waters off the Cape, and most deaths are attributed to entanglement in fishing gear and collisions with ships, says NOAA.

Eighty-three percent of all individual North Atlantic right whales have been entangled in fishing gear at least once in their lives, and 59 percent have been entangled two or more times, the research found.

The energy demands from the drag associated with entanglement can reduce the likelihood that a female can successfully reproduce.

Years between births also increases for females, given the recovery period needed from the physical costs of entanglements, which can last from months to years.

Read the full story at Wicked Local Harwich

 

MASSACHUSETTS: Liasion picked for wind farms, fishermen

November 21, 2018 — The New Bedford Port Authority will serve as the designated fisheries representative for offshore wind developers in the Rhode Island and Massachusetts markets.

The Port of New Bedford announced the agreement Tuesday, saying the authority will fill a role that’s required under federal guidelines issued by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.

The port authority will serve as the fishing community’s primary point of contact for communicating project-related concerns to the developers, port officials said.

Vineyard Wind and Orsted are pursuing commercial energy projects in the waters off Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

According to the port authority, it will act as a clearinghouse for information, facilitate talks between fishermen and developers, and advocate for ways to mitigate impacts on commercial fishing from wind turbines.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times

 

Vineyard Wind loses backing of a fishing board, decision may have serious consequences for proposed offshore wind farm

November 21, 2018 — Vineyard Wind is facing an uphill battle to secure a key approval from Rhode Island coastal regulators for its 800-megawatt offshore wind farm after a state fishing board refused to back the $2-billion project.

The Fishermen’s Advisory Board, which advises the Coastal Resources Management Council on fishing issues related to offshore wind, voted unanimously Monday to deny its support out of fear that the layout of the project’s 84 towering wind turbines in Rhode Island Sound would close off fishing grounds that are considered some of the most productive for the state’s commercial fleet.

The proposal is now set to go before the coastal council on Nov. 27, with what’s known as a “consistency certification” on the line. Vineyard Wind has asked for a stay in proceedings, but CRMC executive director Grover Fugate made it clear at the meeting on Monday that the current layout doesn’t fit within the Rhode Island policy that guides offshore development.

“Because of the [Ocean Special Area Management Plan], we’re there to protect the [fishing] industry,” he said. “We’re there to ensure that it continues into the future.”

Even though the Vineyard Wind project would supply power to Massachusetts and be located in federal waters far from the Rhode Island coast, the state has jurisdiction through the consistency process. Under federal law, if a project would impact Rhode Island coastal resources or activities, such as fishing, it must be carried out in a way that is consistent with state policies.

Read the full story at the Providence Journal

 

MASSACHUSETTS: New Bedford Port Authority to become fisheries rep to offshore wind

November 21, 2018 — The New Bedford Port Authority has reached an agreement with all offshore wind developers operating in the Massachusetts/Rhode Island market to serve as the designated Fisheries Representative of the commercial fishing industry to each of the development companies, according to a news release.

Under federal guidelines issued by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management offshore wind developers must establish a fisheries representative to be the fishing community’s primary point of contact for communicating project-related concerns to the developer.

“The NBPA has been contracted by the developers to represent the interests of commercial fishermen, and to be a conduit of information between the developers and the commercial fishing industry as offshore wind farms are developed on the Outer Continental Shelf,” said Port Authority Director Ed Anthes-Washburn in a statement. “We’re very excited to have all three developers on board for this timely announcement. Adequate and sustained engagement with the fishing industry will translate into more conciliatory communications and interactions with fishing communities up and down the eastern seaboard as the offshore wind industry begins in the United States.”

In this role, the Port Authority will act as a central clearinghouse of information, convene stakeholders, facilitate dialogue between fishermen and respective developers, and advocate for ways to mitigate impacts of wind projects on commercial fishermen, according to the release. The Port Authority will also work with state and federal agencies to adopt policies and regulations needed to ensure the viability of commercial fishing operations.

Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times

 

Reduced speed zone to protect whale in effect to December

November 20, 2018 — NANTUCKET, Mass. — The federal government is asking mariners to slow down off of Massachusetts to help protect a severely endangered species of large whale.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says it’s applying the voluntary vessel speed restriction zone in an area 21 nautical miles south of Nantucket. The designation is intended to protect a group of four North Atlantic right whales seen in the area on Sunday.

NOAA says the speed restriction zone will be in effect until Dec. 3. Mariners are asked to avoid the area or go through it at 10 knots or less.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at the Gloucester Daily Times

 

Regional Regulators Vote For 3-Year Closure Of Maine Shrimp Fishery

November 19, 2018 — A panel of regulators from Maine, New Hampshire and Massachusetts voted Friday to put a three-year moratorium on the commercial fishery for Northern Shrimp, also known as Maine shrimp. Maine’s representatives at the meeting in Portland wanted some type of season preserved, but they were outnumbered.

The decision came after Katie Drew, a scientist with the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, told the panel there was virtually no chance the shrimp would bounce back from depleted levels before 2022 and, in fact, might never recover. Above all, she says, the Gulf of Maine, has warmed to the limits of the shrimp’s reproductive capacity.

“The warmer the waters the less baby shrimp you have the next year,” says Drew. “And so we’ve had a lot of warm waters, and we’re just not getting a enough baby shrimp into the population. And in addition a lot of things like to eat northern shrimp.”

Predators such as red hake, spiny dogfish and squid, which are growing more abundant in some parts of the Gulf. The pressure they are putting on shrimp is a growing problem, even though one top predator, humans, haven’t been in the picture since 2014.

Historically, the commercial shrimp fishery, which traditionally started in December, has been dominated by boats from Maine. But it’s been closed for four consecutive years.

Panel member Mike Armstrong, assistant director in the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries, says the regulators should bow to reality and proposed the three-year closure.

Read the full story at Maine Public

 

Regulators close Maine’s shrimp fishery for next 3 years

November 19, 2018 — PORTLAND, Maine — Regulators voted Friday to close the Gulf of Maine winter shrimp season for another three years, raising fears that the fishery decimated by rising water temperatures may never bounce back.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission has been taking a year-to-year approach to determining whether to allow a winter season, but the panel decided to shut it down for 2019, 2020 and 2021 after receiving a dismal report on the depleted fishery.

The last time the fishery was open was 2014 in Maine, New Hampshire and Massachusetts.

“The stock has shown very little signs of recovery. It’s considered a depleted resource,” said Tina Berger, spokeswoman for the agency.

Fishermen, the bulk of them from Maine, used to catch millions of pounds of the shrimp every winter.

But the warming ocean and predation have decimated the shrimp fishery. The shrimp are especially sensitive to changes in water temperature, Berger said.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at The Washington Post

MASSACHUSETTS: Bay State Wind to host open house

November 19, 2018 — Bay State Wind will host an open house on Wednesday, Dec. 5, to hear from the public about the development of an offshore wind project off the southern Massachusetts coast, according to a press release. The open house will run from 4 to 6 pm at the Loft Restaurant, with a brief presentation about the project at 4:30 pm. Guests will hear about the status of the project and offshore wind in the region from Orsted staff and have a chance to discuss the environmental, economic, and technical issues, and to visit an offshore wind farm through a virtual reality experience, as well as to voice their opinion about Bay State Wind’s project.

Read the full story at The MV Times

Climate Change Looms as a Long-Term Threat to Aquaculture

November 16, 2018 — Aquaculture is on the rise in Massachusetts.  For many entering the business, shellfish farming seems like a more secure option than the marine fisheries.  But climate change looms as a long-term threat over the industry.

Paul Wittenstein always wanted to be a commercial fisherman.

Growing up in Harwich, he worked summer jobs at fish markets and on chartered fishing boats. In college, he started out studying fisheries technology, but it was a bad time for the industry. “All the while I was in school, I was watching the fishing industry struggling,” he said.  “I watched the cod disappear. I watched small boats battling big boats. At the same time, I saw this tiny little shellfish industry start to take hold.”

Read the full story on WCAI