Saving Seafood

As Warming Oceans Bring Tough Times to California Crab Fishers, Scientists Say Diversifying is Key to Survival

February 1, 2021 — California’s Dungeness crab fishermen have had a rough year. Poor meat quality, endangered whales migrating too close to shore and price disputes with wholesalers kept crab pots on boats for nearly two months. The delays left families without their cherished holiday centerpiece and fisherman without the funds that normally pay their bills the rest of the year.

But as rising ocean temperatures threaten to make fishery closures routine, it will be even harder to count on crab for holiday meals—or livelihoods. Over the past decade, warming sea waters have produced harmful algal blooms that contaminate crab meat with domoic acid, a neurotoxin that can cause seizures, memory loss and other serious symptoms and has been blamed for poisoning and stranding scores of sea lions in California every year. State officials delayed three out of the last six crab seasons to protect public health after an unprecedented multiyear marine heat wave, dubbed “the blob,” hit the north Pacific Ocean in 2013.

The blob precipitated a series of extraordinary events: it caused a massive harmful algal bloom that led to record-breaking domoic acid concentrations, which in turn caused first-of-its-kind closures of the West Coast’s most valuable fishery, from southern California to Washington state. But in doing so, it also set up a natural experiment that researchers harnessed to reveal strategies that could help food-producing communities recover from climate-driven disturbances.

Read the full story at Inside Climate News

MASSACHUSETTS: Statewide Ban on Lobstering Approved, With Exemption for Vineyard

February 1, 2021 — State fishing regulators overwhelmingly approved a first-of-its-kind seasonal lobstering ban to protect the North Atlantic right whale on Thursday — but exempted Vineyard and south shore waters from the restrictions after local fishermen expressed concerns about the proposal.

The new regulations, which ban commercial lobstering from Feb. 1 through May 15 in all state waters north and east of Cape Cod — but not the Island — were approved in a 6-1 vote with one abstention by the state Marine Advisory Commission during a dramatic hearing Thursday morning. The new rules differ substantially from an initial Department of Marine Fisheries recommendation that would have banned lobstering statewide.

Regulators also rejected a measure that would have barred lobstering vessels over 29 feet from using single pot lines, partially at the urging of Vineyard representative on the commission Dr. Shelley Edmundson, who asked to form a committee on the proposal. Other approved regulations include weaker rope and a recreational ban in all state waters from Nov. 1 through May 15.

The new seasonal commercial ban comes as a flurry of lawsuits and right whale deaths from entanglement have forced federal and state regulators to act fast in an effort to preserve the species and fall in line with the Environmental Protection Act. State regulators hope to use the new conservation measures to obtain an Incidental Take Permit from the National Marine Fisheries Service, which is required for the continued operation of the lobster fishery.

Read the full story at the Vineyard Gazette

Black sea bass more abundant in Long Island Sound as water warms

January 29, 2021 — Scientists at the Northeast Fisheries Science Center’s Milford Laboratory in Connecticut documented a distinct shift in Long Island Sound fish abundance, with black sea bass showing up in increasing numbers while winter flounder declined.

The findings recently published in Fishery Bulletin are another confirmation of the steady spread northward of black sea bass – now extending into the Gulf of Maine – as waters warm off the Northeast coast.

According to a narrative issued Thursday by the National Marine Fisheries Service, two warm-adapted species: black sea bass, a commercially and recreationally important fish, and oyster toadfish became more abundant in recent samples.

Oyster toadfish prefer rocky habitats and are not often captured by trawl surveys. Meanwhile, cold-adapted species, including cunner and grubby, declined in numbers over the course of the study.

Winter flounder, also a commercial species, and rock gunnel were notably absent in more recent years. Long-term trawl data collected by the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection suggests winter flounder abundance has been declining in the Sound for 20 years. The scientists found no consistent trend in the abundance of tautog and scup, two temperate residents of Long Island Sound. The species are often captured on video by our GoPro Aquaculture Project.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

Outgoing NOAA leaders see ‘solid progress that helps commercial and recreational fishing industries’

January 28, 2021 — As our tenure in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) ends, we want to share the progress our agency team has accomplished. Working with the National Marine Fisheries Service leadership, we sought to increase fishing opportunities, reduce unnecessary burdens, expand market access, and continue to improve the status of fish stocks. As NOAA transitions to a new political leadership team, it is important to build upon the achievements of these past four years, and continue to support the commercial and recreational fishing sectors:

Advance fisheries conservation.

NOAA continued to make significant progress working with fishermen to improve the status of U.S. fish stocks. Two additional fish stocks were rebuilt last year, making a total of 47 fish stocks rebuilt since 2000. The overfishing list dropped to 22 stocks, setting an all-time low. Ninety-three percent of the stocks managed by NOAA are not subject to overfishing and 81 percent are not overfished.

Cooperate with the regional fishery management councils to reduce regulatory burden.

A total of 62 deregulatory actions were finalized between fiscal years 2017 and 2020, saving fishermen over $50 million per year. More importantly, there are approximately 30 deregulatory actions currently in the pipeline within NOAA fisheries. Further, under section 4 of Executive Order 13921, Promoting American Seafood Competitiveness and Economic Growth, NOAA fisheries is required to review and add new deregulatory actions to its agenda that are recommended by the councils, and report annually for the next 3 years on their status.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

Halibut Area 2A License Applications Open for Submission for 2021

January 27, 2021 — The International Pacific Halibut Commission has opened the license application period for fishermen in Area 2A, Washington, Oregon and California.

While the IPHC sets the overall total fishery removals (mortality limit) for the area, the Pacific Fishery Management Council and National Marine Fisheries Service adopts a catch-sharing plan for all three states to further allocate the amount of fishery removals between sectors.

Read the full story at Seafood News

NEFMC Signs Off on Scallop Framework 33 with Fishing Year 2021 Allocations and Defaults

January 27, 2021 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council has selected final measures for Framework Adjustment 33 to the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery Management Plan and voted to send the framework to the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS/NOAA Fisheries) for review and implementation.

The framework includes: (1) specifications for the 2021 scallop fishing year; (2) default specifications for the 2022 fishing year; and (3) measures to minimize impacts on Georges Bank yellowtail flounder and northern windowpane flounder.

For 2021, full-time limited access vessels will be allocated:

  • 1 trip to the Mid-Atlantic Access Area;
  • 1.5 trips to Nantucket Lightship South;
  • 1.5 trips to Closed Area II (Southwest and Extension) with a seasonal closure from August 15 through November 30 to reduce flatfish impacts;
  • and 24 open area days-at-sea.

Read the full release here

Report: Speed compliance to save rare whales could be better

January 25, 2021 — Compliance with speed rules designed to protect rare whales has increased in recent years but could still be higher, according to a report from the federal government.

The slow speed zones are implemented to protect North Atlantic right whales, which number about 360 and are vulnerable to collisions with ships. The National Marine Fisheries Service implemented seasonal, mandatory vessel speed rules in some areas along the East Coast in 2008 to try to help the whales.

A report released by the service this week states that the level of mariner compliance with the speed rule increased to 81% in 2018-19. That was the highest level on record.

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

Follow-up survey of fishermen and covid-19 impact begins

January 25, 2021 — The National Marine Fisheries Service and the University of Florida are conducting a second national telephone survey of fishermen, seafood dealers and processor to assess the effects of covid-19 during the second half of 2020.

A report on findings from the first survey reported the pandemic crushed industry revenues by a combined 29 percent from March into July, as the seafood industry reeled from U.S. restaurant closures and export markets drying up.

University of Florida researchers are working with NMFS on the project, and organizers urge fishermen to be on the lookout for calls coming to their phones from the Florida 352 area code.

“Phone survey participants were selected using carefully designed random sample. If you were selected, you will receive a phone call from the University of Florida with a 352 area code,” according to a statement Friday from NMFS. “Your response is very important to the success of this survey. It will take less than 10 minutes, and the information you provide is strictly confidential.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

NMFS reports fishing revenue crashed 29 percent in pandemic

January 19, 2021 — The U.S. fishing industry lost nearly one-third of its revenue in the first seven months of 2020 as the covid-19 pandemic vaporized its major markets, according to a new analysis by NMFS.

The year started on a high note, with revenues up 3 percent in January and February – before diving 19 percent in March and cratering at 45 percent less in July, said Paul Doremus, deputy administrator for operations at NMFS, in a telephone conference with reporters Friday.

Cumulatively, “over those seven months we’re looking at a 29 percent decrease,” said Doremus.

The agency mobilized its economic experts and government and academic partners in March to document the impact of the pandemic and begin preparing “as comprehensive an account as we could,” said Doremus.

The findings were compiled in a report with more than 100 pages of supporting documents, including detailed region-by-region breakdowns, by authors and economists Rita Curtis of the NOAA Fisheries Office of Science & Technology and Steve Kasperski of the agency’s Alaska Fisheries Science Center.

While the report only documents the industry’s situation up through July, “we’ve already initiated the work to do that next update,” said Curtis. The goal is to continue monitoring economic impacts and fishermen’s response, drawing lessons and strategies for making fishing communities more resilient, said Doremus.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

CARES Act relief funding straggles into 2021

January 19, 2021 — As 2020 drew to a close, one-third of the USD 300 million (EUR 246 million) in aid set aside for the fishing industry through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act remained for delivery as states labored to complete distributions.

Lagging farthest behind were Alaska and Washington state, the nation’s top volume seafood producers, and at USD 50 million (EUR 41 million) each the largest designated shares of the aid package. The states finally released their final draft spending plans on 7 December and 8 December, for approval by NMFS.

Read the full story at Seafood Source