Saving Seafood

Voicing the Stories of Women in Alaska Fisheries

October 2, 2019 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Alaska women’s experience and knowledge are fundamental to the social, cultural, economic, and ecological sustainability of Bristol Bay salmon fisheries, a new NOAA Fisheries study finds.

This study used oral history and visual ethnography methods to provide a means for women to voice their stories about the importance of fishery resources in their communities. We used this approach to capture their knowledge to inform fisheries management, preserve cultural diversity, and share with communities. The interview audio and video shorts are available on NOAA’s new Voices from the Fisheries website.

The study, a collaboration with the Bristol Bay Native Association (BBNA), is focused on the daily life and fishing practices of Alaska Native fisherwomen in the Bristol Bay area.

“Bristol Bay is an ideal place to explore women’s roles in fisheries because women are highly engaged in its salmon fisheries,” said Anna Lavoie, a scientist with NOAA Fisheries who led the research. “Women own over 30% of commercial set net permits there. In Alaska women are very proactive in promoting conservation and sustainability. There should be avenues for incorporating women’s knowledge into resource management. They are actively engaged in fisheries but there is very little information available about their experience and contributions.”

Read the full release here

NOAA awards $10.2 million for harmful algal bloom research

October 2, 2019 — The following was released by NOAA:

NOAA will fund 12 new research projects around the country to better understand and predict harmful algal blooms (HABs) and improve our collective response to them.

NOAA’s National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) is allocating $10.2 million in FY 2019 to fund HAB research across the nation. Approximately $8.4 million of that will cover the first year of new 3- to 5-year projects, and $1.78 million will go to 3-year projects already in process. Funded under NOAA’s ECOHAB and MERHAB programs, new projects will begin in Alaska, California, Chesapeake Bay, Florida, the Great Lakes, New England and the Pacific Northwest. A full list of the new grant awards is available online.

Award recipients will conduct research to identify conditions that increase bloom toxicity; model toxin movement from the water into shellfish, fish and marine mammals; and improve toxin monitoring and forecasts. NCCOS research programs help states and regions around the nation mitigate the effects of HABs, which can include contaminated drinking water, fisheries closures and disruption to recreation and tourism.

Read the full release here

NOAA Offers Reward for Information Regarding Unreported/Misreported Landings of Summer Flounder

October 2, 2019 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

The NOAA Office of Law Enforcement is offering a reward of up to $20,000 in exchange for information leading to the successful prosecution of individuals suspected of being involved in significant unreported or misreported landings of summer flounder (fluke) in New York and New Jersey.

NOAA officials seek information from anyone who may have details of these incidents.

Anyone with information is asked to please call OLE’s Northeast Division at 908-339-1148, or the NOAA Enforcement Hotline at 1-800-853-1964.

Tips may be anonymous, however anyone providing information must leave their name and contact information to be eligible for the reward.

Effective today, the Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office has a new website

October 1, 2019 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

We are very pleased to announce that as of today, we are formally launching a new website for the Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office, and our old website is offline.

What about my bookmarks to your website?

Everyone will be automatically redirected to our new homepage or associated topic page. We looked at our website analytics and created automatic redirects from frequently visited pages on our old website to the corresponding pages of our new website. For example, if you have our Atlantic spiny dogfish page bookmarked, you will automatically be sent to the Atlantic spiny dogfish species profile on our new site. However, be sure to update your bookmarks and links as you navigate through the new site.

Why are we making this transition?

NOAA Fisheries launched a new and improved website two years ago that was developed based upon feedback from our customers and taking a hard look at our website analytics. The goals of the new site are to captivate our visitors, make it easier for users to search for information and navigate through our website, make our website mobile friendly, and improve the quality of our content.

Not sure where to start? Check out this video tutorial.

Although the bulk of the work is done, we are still transitioning some lesser viewed pages. So please be patient with us! We appreciate continued feedback, and want to know if you have suggestions for improvement, find broken links, or simply can’t find something you’re looking for.

Comments or questions?

Contact Jennifer Goebel, Regional Office, 978-281-9175

Serving Up Seafood: National Seafood Month

October 1, 2019 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

October is National Seafood Month, and a fitting time to celebrate that the United States is recognized as a global leader in sustainable seafood—both wild-caught and farmed. U.S. fishermen and fish farmers operate under some of the most robust and transparent environmental standards in the world.

NOAA Fisheries works to advance and export sustainable management practices internationally, establish and maintain a level the playing field for our fishermen and fish farmers, and maintain confidence in U.S. seafood products and access to the global marketplace. The recipe for sustainable seafood includes strong science, responsive management, and enforced compliance.

FishWatch is the go-to source for up-to-date information on the science, status, and management of U.S. seafood

Read the full release here

MASSACHUSETTS: Cape herring fishery could rebound with new regs

October 1, 2019 — Fatter trophy fish, and a healthier ecosystem overall, are in the offing if the public supports recently approved regulations.

“After 10 years of debate, the New England Fishery Management Council has finally accepted the proposals favored by Cape communities and what would keep midwater trawls off our coast year round. It will have benefits for all our commercial and recreational fisheries and the nearshore ecosystem,” said John Pappalardo, chief executive officer of the Cape Cod Commercial Fishermen’s Alliance, in a press release.

The protections were vetted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and were recently published on the Federal Register for final comment.

“This is it,” said Pappalardo. “We need people to speak out for herring one more time to make sure these important rules become a reality.”

Read the full story at Wicked Local

Why Whales Are Worrying Lobstermen in Maine

October 1, 2019 — Along the rocky coast of Maine, lobstermen are worried new federal requirements to clear fishing lines from the path of endangered whales will damage their iconic New England industry.

A National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration agency is trying to save North Atlantic right whales that are dying at an alarming rate in U.S. and Canadian waters, often after getting tangled in fishing gear or hit by ships. The still-forming federal regulations will cover other parts of New England, but Maine, where lobstermen dangle more than 800,000 lines from buoys to ocean-floor traps in their busiest months, has the most at stake.

Meeting an aggressive federal target for reducing whale hazards could mean pulling half those lines from the water. The state’s lobster industry and political leaders say this is untenable for the armada of mostly small lobster boats fishing the Gulf of Maine. It also misses the target, they say, since most dead whales have recently turned up in Canada, and none in Maine.

“We’re not unwilling to adapt, we just want to adapt in a way that will actually benefit the species,” said Chris Welch, a 31-year-old lobsterman from Kennebunk, Maine, regarding the whales. “We don’t want to go extinct, either.”

Read the full story at The Wall Street Journal

As bluefin recover, a new fight about how to fish for them

September 30, 2019 — A federal plan that could loosen the rules about fishing for one of the most debated species in the ocean has attracted the attention of fishermen and environmentalists, some of whom fear years of conservation work could be undone.

Preservation of the Atlantic bluefin tuna has long been a subject of international debate, and sometimes discord. The giant sushi fish, which occasionally sell for more than $1 million and often weigh several hundred pounds, are at a fraction of historical population levels but have shown positive signs in recent years.

The federal government is considering some changes to the way the fish are managed. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has said some of the changes would give fishermen who use longlines, a method of fishing used to catch large fish, more flexibility by increasing their amount of open fishing area, including in the Gulf of Mexico.

The Gulf of Mexico is a critical spawning area for bluefin, and parts of it are closed down to longliners in the spring to protect the fish. Reopening it to fishing could jeopardize the bluefin stock in U.S. waters and beyond, said Shana Miller, senior officer for international fisheries conservation with the Ocean Foundation.

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

Temporary Increase in Atlantic King Mackerel Commercial Trip Limit in the Atlantic Southern Zone Beginning October 1, 2019

September 30, 2019 — The following was released by the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

KEY MESSAGE:

  • NOAA Fisheries announces a temporary rule to increase the commercial king mackerel trip limit from 50 to 75 fish in the Atlantic Southern Zone during Season 2 (October 1, 2019, through February 29, 2020).
  • The commercial trip limit will increase in federal waters in the areabetween the Flagler/Volusia County, Florida, boundary and the Miami-Dade/Monroe County, Florida, boundary.

    WHEN RULE WILL TAKE EFFECT:

  • This change to the commercial trip limit will be effective on October 1, 2019.

WHAT THIS MEANS:

  • At their June 2019 meeting, the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council requested an emergency rule to increase the commercial trip limit for king mackerel in the Atlantic southern zone during Season 2 (October-February) of the 2019/2020 fishing year.
  • From October 1, 2019, through February 29, 2020, the commercial trip limit for Atlantic king mackerel will be 75 fish in federal waters between the Flagler/Volusia County, Florida, boundary and the Miami-Dade/Monroe County, Florida, boundary.
  • The temporary rule will also remove the potential for a trip limit reduction in February 2020 from 75 to 50 fish when 70 percent of the quota is reached.
  • There are no changes to the Season 2 trip limit in federal waters north of Volusia County, Florida.
  • The increase in trip limit is necessary to prevent unnecessary economic losses and will substantially increase the likelihood of achieving optimum yield for king mackerel in the 2019/2020 fishing year.
  • The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council is currently developing a framework amendment to consider changes to the commercial king mackerel trip limits in Season 2 in the Atlantic Southern Zone in future years.

This bulletin serves as a Small Entity Compliance Guide, complying with section 212 of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996.

For more information on the emergency rule, you may contact the following:

NOAA Fisheries, Southeast Regional Office

By Mail: Karla Gore

NOAA Fisheries, Southeast Regional Office

Sustainable Fisheries Division

263 13th Avenue South

St. Petersburg, Florida 33701-5505

By Phone: (727) 824-5305, By FAX: (727) 824-5308

NOAA Fisheries announces an increase in the commercial scup quota and possession limit for the 2019 Winter II Period (October 1-December 31)

September 27, 2019 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

We are rolling over the unused quota from the Winter I Period (January 1-April 30) to the Winter II period (October 1-December 31).

Only 51 percent of the 10,820,000 lb Winter I quota was harvested in 2019, leaving 5,267,671 lb available for transfer to the Winter II quota. As a result, the revised Winter II commercial scup quota is raised to 9,090,487 lb. The revised commercial scup possession limit for the Winter II season is 27,000 lb, per trip, up from 12,000 lb.

When state and federal possession limits are different, fishermen with both state and federal permits are required to abide by the more restrictive of the two.

For more details, read the Federal Register notice as filed today, and the Permit Holder Bulletin on our website.

Read the full release here