Saving Seafood

ALASKA: Halibut gets bump; salmon prices soar

February 1, 2017 — More Pacific halibut will be going to market this year due to an overall boost in the harvests for the West Coast, British Columbia and Alaska. The coastwide catch of 31.4 million pounds reflects a 5.1 percent increase, and for the first time in decades, not a single fishing region met with a decline in halibut catches.

The heartening news was released on Jan. 27 by the International Pacific Halibut Commission, overseer of the stocks since 1923.

Halibut catch limits are determined by summer surveys at more than 1,200 stations from Oregon to the Aleutians. In 2016, the results showed the stock had remained stable over a span of three years, although the fish remained small for their ages.

Alaska always gets the lion’s share of the Pacific halibut catch and a take of 22.62 million pounds this year adds up to an extra million pounds for longliners who hold quota shares of the fish.

The good news has been dampened somewhat by a potential delay to the March 11 start of the fishery due to the bureaucratic freeze by our new president.

Read the full story at the Alaska Journal of Commerce 

USDA Declines to Institute Grade A Catfish Program; Elects to Continue USDC Grading

January 31, 2017 — SEAFOOD NEWS — The USDA published a federal register notice today that it will not go forward with a Grade A catfish inspection program. Instead it urges users to continue to use the USDC Grade A catfish inspection program run by the National Marine Fisheries Service.

The Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (2008 Farm Bill) and the Agricultural Act of 2014 (2014 Farm Bill) directed the Secretary of Agriculture to establish within USDA a voluntary, fee-based grading program for catfish. Since passage of the 2008 and 2014 Farm Bills, and particularly since the publication of the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) final rule, “Mandatory Inspection of Fish of the Order Siluriformes and Products Derived From Such Fish,” which defined catfish (80 FR 75589), AMS has engaged the U.S. catfish industry and other stakeholders to seek input on requirements for voluntary U.S. standards for grades of catfish.

During the 60-day comment period, four responses were submitted–two from catfish importers, one from an industry institution, and one from a U.S. catfish producer/processor. One importer stated support for a USDA grading program if it included all Siluriformes species (currently, imported products of many varieties of Siluriformes are not eligible to be graded under the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) Standard). Two additional responses did not support USDA’s development of voluntary U.S. standards or a grading program. One pointed out the duplicity of creating these under AMS when they already exist under NFMS, noting the unnecessary use of resources to develop a program “and market to a consuming [public] that is not demanding a new U.S. Grade Standard;” the other recommended the use of the NMFS standards and grading program, as these are already familiar to the industry and their customers.

Based on the responses received from the Notice as well as additional feedback from stakeholders through other avenues, including two industry workshops coordinated by AMS and academia and an industry-wide conference call held by AMS in May 2016, AMS has concluded that there is not sufficient interest in USDA-AMS standards for catfish or an AMS-administered grading program at this time.

It is important to note that a standard for catfish, and associated voluntary grading services, are currently available to the industry through NMFS. NMFS maintains the “United States Standards for Grades of North American Freshwater Catfish and Products Made Therefrom” and provides grading and certification services on a fee-for-service basis. Graded catfish and catfish products may bear official marks, including `U.S. Grade A,’ `Processed Under Federal Inspection,’ and `Lot Inspection.’ Additional services provided by NMFS include system and process audits, product inspection, and export certification.

In light of the response from industry stakeholders indicating there is no current need for USDA-AMS standards nor a subsequent AMS-administered grading program for catfish, AMS will discontinue the initiative to establish either at this time. AMS stands ready to assist agricultural industries in establishing voluntary standards and grading programs for commodities for which it has authority to do so; the catfish industry retains this option should the need arise.

This story originally appeared on Seafoodnews.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.

Fishing industry backs Chris Oliver for NMFS director

January 27, 2017 — A coalition of commercial fishing, Native and environmental entities is backing Chris Oliver, executive director of the North Pacific Fishery Management Council, to become the next head of the National Marine Fisheries Service.

The more than four dozen signers of a letter sent to the Trump administration on Jan. 23 included processors Trident Seafoods and Icicle Seafoods, Alaska Bering Sea Crabbers, Alaska Marine Conservation Council, At Sea Processors Association, Bristol Bay Economic Development Corp., Fishing Vessel Owners Association, Pacific Seafoods Processors Association, United Catcher Boats, and United Fishermen’s Marketing Association.

Read the full story at The Cordova Times

New England Fishery Management Council Selects Industry-Funded Monitoring Alternatives for Omnibus Amendment, Atlantic Herring Category A and B Boats

January 25, 2017 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Managment Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council yesterday selected preferred alternatives for the region’s Industry-Funded Monitoring (IFM) Omnibus Amendment, which is being developed jointly with the Mid- Atlantic Council, along with considerable administrative help from the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). The Council also picked preferred alternatives for an IFM program for the Atlantic herring fishery but made clear that the measures – if approved and implemented – would apply only to Category A and B herring vessels.

The IFM Omnibus Amendment has two core components.

  • The first focuses on proposed alternatives to modify all New England and Mid-Atlantic Council fishery management plans (FMPs) so that both Councils have a standardized, streamlined process in place for developing future FMP-specific industry-funded monitoring programs.
  • The second part of the amendment contains alternatives that specifically would apply to the Atlantic Herring and Atlantic Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish FMPs upon implementation of the IFM Omnibus Amendment.

Monitoring alternatives for other fisheries are not part of this amendment, and existing IFM programs for the Atlantic sea scallop and groundfish fisheries are not affected.

The Mid-Atlantic Council voted in mid-December to postpone further action on the Omnibus Amendment and the mackerel alternatives pending completion of an ongoing electronic monitoring (EM) pilot project. NMFS is currently conducting the project with 12 volunteer vessels in the Atlantic herring and mackerel midwater trawl fisheries to evaluate the utility of EM as a monitoring tool. The project will run through most of 2017.

The New England Council, however, opted to move ahead with its portion of the decision-making process here at its Portsmouth, NH meeting.

The Council selected Alternative 2 for the first half of the Omnibus Amendment – the part that establishes the basic foundation of the amendment to standardize cost responsibilities and administrative requirements for industry-funded monitoring service providers.

The Council made clear that any new IFM programs developed under this portion of the Omnibus would need to be crafted through a full amendment, which has an extensive public hearing process, rather than a framework adjustment. Once an IFM program is in place, the Council did agree that a framework could be used to establish a quota set-aside program to help fund IFM measures. The Council further supported using a “Council-led deliberative prioritization process,” which means the Council, possibly in conjunction with the Mid-Atlantic Council, would prepare analyses and set priorities for IFM issues rather than having NMFS take the lead. The Council also decided that any federal money used to fund administrative costs associated with IFM programs should be “equally weighted” among all the industry- funded monitoring programs that are in place for various fisheries.

Herring Alternatives: Next, the Council selected IFM alternatives for the Atlantic herring fishery – as allowed under the second half of the Omnibus Amendment – and reiterated that the measures apply only to Category A and B vessels using midwater trawl, purse seine, and small-mesh bottom trawl gear. The measures do not apply to “wing vessels” that don’t carry fish, and, to be clear, also do not apply to Category C and D boats.

Once the Council determines that electronic monitoring and portside sampling are an acceptable alternative to at-sea monitoring, then Category A and B vessels will be able to choose either:

  • At-sea monitoring with a “combined coverage” target of 50% between the IFM and Standardized Bycatch Reduction Methodology (SBRM) programs; or
  • A combination of EM and portside sampling with a coverage target of 50% in addition to SBRM.

The Council additionally supported: (1) the issuance of waivers if coverage is not available due to funding or logistical problems; (2) an exemption from IFM

Requirements for vessels that land less than 25 metric tons of herring; (3) applying 100% Northeast Fisheries Observer Program-level observer coverage for midwater trawl vessels fishing in groundfish closed areas; and (4) a reevaluation of the IFM herring requirements two years after implementation.

The New England Council will revisit the Omnibus Amendment in April, when it is expected to take final action to submit the document to NMFS. The Council also will discuss “next steps” with the Mid-Atlantic Council since action by both Councils is required before Omnibus alternatives can be implemented.

See the full release at the NEFMC

This forecasting tool aims to keep ships and blue whales from colliding

January 16, 2017 — A new forecasting tool will help scientists predict blue whale traffic, as the ocean behemoths make their annual migration.

The tool allows researchers to post online maps showing likely “hot spots” for blue whales that will help ship captains avoid collisions with the animals.

“We can both see where they go and when they go,” said Elliot Hazen, a research ecologist with the National Marine Fisheries Service, who developed the forecasting program. “We can take their movements and combine that with remotely sensed oceanographic data, to find out not only where they go, but also some of the oceanographic conditions that trigger that.”

When the whales travel up the California coast, they navigate a marine highway of shipping vessels, fishing boats and cruise liners. There are several reported ship strikes per year, but there may be many more than that, said Helen Bailey, a research associate professor at University of Maryland, Center for Environmental Science, who coordinated the forecasting process.

“We’re probably underestimating the number that have been hit by ships, because they sink and don’t float,” Bailey said.

Blue whales are the largest creatures ever to live on the planet, with silvery bodies that can grow more than 80 feet and up to 165 tons. But there are just under 2,000 of them, and their numbers aren’t growing, Bailey said.

Read the full story at The San Diego Union-Tribune

Effort continues to replace humans with cameras on fishing boats

January 9, 2017 — Several years into the controversial effort to bolster Alaska’s fisheries observer program, a top federal fisheries official defended the work at a Seattle gathering of fishermen.

Eileen Sobeck, the NOAA Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, took the stage this past Nov. 18 to talk to fishermen gathered for the annual Fish Expo event to recap the program.

Observers are the eyes and ears on boats, collecting a range of data, she explained.

“We have been monitoring fisheries for decades, and we do it in a lot of different ways,” Sobeck said.

But the details of the program have been under fire over the past few years. Federal efforts to put a human on smaller boats was met with concerns about safety and efficiency, and fishermen’s requests to use cameras have had logistical difficulties.

Over the past few years, the effort to use cameras has increased nationwide, and the National Marine Fisheries Service has been tasked with sorting out how to make that work, both logistically and cost-wise.

Over 10 years, the National Marine Fisheries Service has helped fund more than 30 electronic monitoring, or EM, pilot programs. Expenses include the cost of cameras, the cost to install them, and the cost of going through the immense amount of data they can collect.

“We have, collectively, an interest in being as cost-effective as we can possibly be,” Sobeck said.

That effort has translated into regional electronic monitoring plans that were finished more than a year ago, and are now being implemented with plans for regular reviews, said George LaPointe, one of the point people on the project.

Although monitoring in some fisheries has developed successfully, like in the groundfish fisheries, LaPointe said, the agency is still working toward certain implementation, such as in Alaska’s small boat fixed gear and pot fisheries, where the target date is 2018.

Read the full story at the Alaska Journal of Commerce

Regulators changing fishing rules to protect endangered tuna

January 4, 2017 — PORTLAND, Maine — The federal government is changing some of the rules about how fishermen harvest tuna in an attempt to protect one of the species of the fish.

The National Marine Fisheries Service says the rule change is designed to steer fishermen who catch yellowfin tuna and swordfish via longline away from bluefin tuna.

Atlantic bluefin tuna are listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Fishing boats sometimes catch them incidentally while targeting other species.

The fisheries service says the rule change will modify the way it handles distribution of quota transfers in the longline tuna fishery. The service says that flexibility will improve fishing opportunities while limiting the number of bluefin tuna that are incidentally caught.

Read the full story at The Washington Post

Sea turtles, shrimp fishermen tangled in government’s net proposal

December 29, 2016 — It’s hard to think of two species more beloved on the North Carolina coast than shrimp and sea turtles.

A generations-old low country diet had turned shrimp into a multi-million dollar industry for North Carolina fishermen. Sea turtles, on the other hand, have become the symbol of coastal conservation and a tourist draw at nest-hatchings and aquariums.But to a fishing net, all animals are the same. To protect endangered sea turtles, many shrimp boats in the Southeast are equipped with “turtle excluder devices” (TEDs), barred openings that let captured turtles shimmy out of nets.

TEDs are not required on some shrimp boats, but a rule proposed this month by the National Marine Fisheries Service would put them on more shrimp trawlers from North Carolina to Texas.

The proposal comes after a 2015 lawsuit from environmental group Oceana, which accused the federal government of violating the Endangered Species Act by not regulating shrimp fishing more stringently. Fishermen, for their part, say they are regulated enough and have gone out of their way to help turtle populations recover up and down the coast.

“North Carolina shrimp is our biggest-selling item in all markets, our most important product,” said Joe Romano, a commercial fisherman and co-owner of Wilmington-based Seaview Crab Company. “We have a system to do this and it’s already working.”

Read the full story at the Star News Online

Mid-Atlantic Council Initiates Action in Response to Overage of Black Sea Bass Catch Limit

December 21st, 2016 — The following was released by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council: 

On December 15, 2016, at their meeting in Baltimore, Maryland, the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council initiated a framework action to review and modify accountability measures (AMs) for the commercial black sea bass fishery. The Council initiated this action in response to new information from the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) indicating that commercial catch in 2015 exceeded the annual catch limit due to higher than anticipated discards. On December 21, NMFS announced a rule which reduced the 2017 commercial quota by 34% in response to this overage, as required by the Council’s AMs.

AMs are measures that are implemented if annual catch targets are exceeded and are intended to mitigate the negative biological impacts of such overages. Commercial AMs for black sea bass currently require pound for pound paybacks through quota deductions in following years, regardless of the circumstances of the overages. The Council initiated a framework action to consider adding flexibility in the commercial AMs based on stock status. The Council intends to develop and implement this framework by mid-2017.

Black sea bass management measures for 2017 may also be modified as a result of a new benchmark stock assessment, which was peer-reviewed this month. According to this assessment, black sea bass are not overfished and overfishing is not occurring. The Council’s Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) will meet in January 2017 to review the assessment and determine if it can be used to inform the Council’s management decisions. If so, the SSC will recommend acceptable biological catch limits for black sea bass for 2017-2019. At their February 2017 meeting in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, the Council plans to recommend commercial and recreational black sea bass catch and landings limits for 2017-2019 based on this new information. These recommendations are expected to result in a revised 2017 commercial quota that could reduce the magnitude of the reduction needed to address the overage of the 2015 annual catch target.

NMFS Chief Scientist Writes on Changing Climate, Oceans and America’s Fisheries

December 20th, 2016, Seafoodnews.com — Across America, changes in climate and oceans are having very real and profound effects on communities, businesses and the natural resources we depend on, according to Dr. Richard Merrick is the chief scientist for NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service.

 Fishing communities face extra challenges, as droughts, floods, rising seas, ocean acidification, and warming oceans change the productivity of our waters and where wildlife live, spawn and feed. And there is much at risk – marine fisheries and seafood industries support over $200 billion in economic activity and 1.83 million jobs annually.

NOAA last year set out a national strategy to help scientists, fishermen, managers and coastal businesses better understand what’s changing, what’s at risk and what actions are needed to safeguard America’s valuable marine resources and the revenues, jobs and communities that depend on them. Today, NOAA released regional action plans with specific actions to better track changing conditions, provide better forecasts, and identify the best strategies to reduce impacts and sustain our marine resources for current and future generations. Implementing these actions will give decision-makers the information they need now to sustain our vital marine resources and the many people that depend on them every day. 

We are seeing dramatic changes, particularly in cooler-ocean regions like New England and Alaska where warming waters over the last twenty years are pushing fish northward or deeper to stay in cooler waters. In New England, known for its cod and lobster fishing, ocean temperatures have risen faster than many other parts of the world. Changes in the distribution and abundance of these and other species have affected where, when and what fishermen catch, with economic impacts rippling into the coastal communities and seafood businesses that depend on them. With better information on current and future shifts in fish stocks, fisheries managers and fishing industries can better plan for and respond to changing ocean conditions.

But not all change is bad: As southern fish species like black sea bass spread northward along the East Coast, they may provide opportunities for additional commercial or recreational fisheries. Changing conditions may also stimulate more opportunities for other marine related businesses, such as fish and shellfish farming. Better information on when, where and how marine resources are changing is critical to taking advantage of future opportunities and increasing the resilience of our fisheries and fishing-communities.

 Communities and economies in southern states are also being impacted by changing climate and ocean conditions. Louisiana loses a football field size area of coastal wetlands to the sea every hour due to rising seas and sinking lands. The loss of these essential nursery areas for shrimp, oysters, crabs and many other commercial or recreationally important seafood species has significant impacts on fisheries, seafood industries and coastal communities. Better information and on-the-ground action can reduce these impacts and help sustain these vital habitats and the many benefits they provide. 

In the Pacific and Caribbean, we’re seeing bleaching and destruction of vitally-important coral reef environments associated with warming seas. Covering only one percent of the planet, coral reefs are the home to 25 percent of all marine species, and upwards of 40 billion people rely on coral reefs for the fish and shellfish they eat. The loss of coral reefs also makes coastal communities more vulnerable to storm events. Coral reefs in Puerto Rico, for instance, help prevent an estimated $94 million in flood damages every year.  NOAA’s Coral Bleaching Early Warning System has already helped decision-makers take action to try and increase resilience of valuable reef ecosystems to warming seas and other threats.

While these challenges may seem daunting, with better information on what’s changing, what’s at risk and how to respond decision-makers can find ways to reduce impacts, increase resilience and sustain America’s vital marine resources and the millions of people who depend on them.

We are committed to sustaining the nation’s valuable marine resources and the many people, businesses and communities that depend on them for generations to come.

This story originally appeared on Seafoodnews.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.