Saving Seafood

NOAA Fisheries Approves Electronic Reporting Requirements for Mid-Atlantic and New England Commercial Vessels

November 13, 2020 — The following was released by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

NOAA Fisheries has approved a recommendation from the Mid-Atlantic and New England Fishery Management Councils to require federally permitted commercial fishing vessels to submit vessel trip reports electronically as eVTRs within 48 hours of the end of a trip. This requirement will take effect November 10, 2021.

This action affects all commercial vessels holding federal permits for any species managed by the Mid-Atlantic or New England Fishery Management Councils (see this bulletin for a complete list of species). The requirement will also be extended to vessels issued for-hire (charter/party) permits for New England Council-managed fisheries (i.e., Northeast multispecies). Vessels issued a Mid-Atlantic Council for-hire permit have been required to submit vessel trip reports electronically since March 2018.

The effective date of this action is being delayed for 1 year, until November 10, 2021, to allow ample time for training on the various electronic reporting applications and to allow vessel owners and operators the time to find the appropriate application for their operations. Information on eVTR applications is available on the GARFO website. Additional information on training opportunities will be posted on the Mid-Atlantic Council’s Commercial eVTR page throughout the upcoming year.

Additional Information

Questions?

  • Fishermen: Contact Moira Kelly, Sustainable Fisheries, 978-281-9218
  • Media: Contact Jennifer Goebel, Regional Office, 978-281-9175

NOAA Fisheries Announces Proposed 2021 and 2022 Golden Tilefish Specifications and Emergency Action

November 13, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA Fisheries is proposing the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council’s recommended catch specifications for the 2021 Northeast/Mid-Atlantic golden tilefish fishery. These proposed catch limits are mostly status quo, with only a slight change in the final incidental quota to account for updated discard estimates. The quota for the individual fishing quota (IFQ) fishery would remain status quo. A summary of the Council’s recommended specifications is shown in the following table.

ABC=Acceptable Biological Catch, ACL=Annual Catch Limit, ACT=Annual Catch Target, TAL=Total Allowable Landings

Additionally, the Council requested NOAA Fisheries take emergency action to allow a one-time 5-percent carryover of unharvested IFQ quota into the 2021 fishing year to help mitigate the adverse impact of unprecedented regional closures of restaurants and fish markets during 2020.  This proposed rule includes temporary measures that would allow tilefish IFQ quota shareholders to carryover unharvested IFQ quota up to a maximum of 5 percent of their initial 2020 IFQ allocation.

All other management measures and requirements would remain unchanged. This includes the incidental landing limit of 500 lb (whole weight) or 50 percent (by weight) of all fish being landed, including tilefish, whichever is less. The recreational trip limit of eight fish per angler is also unchanged.

For more details on the proposed specifications, read the proposed rule as published in the Federal Register, and submit your comments through the online portal. The comment period is open through November 30, 2020.

Read the full release here

Celebrating Veterans Serving in Habitat Conservation

November 12, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

This Veterans Day, join us in honoring military veterans who have served in the United States Armed Forces and learn how NOAA and our partners work with veterans to build a community of habitat restoration practitioners across the nation. Our conservation and veteran corps community is made up of veterans, young adults, and others. These partnerships recruit, train, mentor, and employ workers to implement habitat restoration projects in support of long-term coastal restoration.

NOAA’s Veterans Corps partnerships are building on 8 years of growth, supporting habitat and fisheries restoration projects on the west coast.

Learn more about NOAA’s Veterans Corps partnerships

Read the full release here

National Fish Habitat Partnership Recognized by Congress

November 12, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

On October 30, 2020 the National Fish Habitat Partnership (NFHP) was recognized by Congress with the signing of America’s Conservation Enhancement Act. The new law expands NFHP Board membership, authorizes funding to partner organizations, adds Congressional reporting requirements, and more.

The National Fish Habitat Partnership is a science-based, state-led initiative to protect, restore, and enhance aquatic ecosystems across the United States. It leverages the resources and expertise of federal, state, and tribal governments, and non-governmental and research organizations to achieve on-the-ground results for fish and aquatic habitats. This unique national partnership consists of a network of 20 state-led Fish Habitat Partnerships (FHPs). Each FHP focuses on improving fish habitat and aquatic communities at regional and local levels. Collectively, they have completed more than 1,000 projects in 50 states.

NOAA Fisheries has been a committed partner of NFHP since its inception in 2006. Through our participation, we conduct and fund projects that support our mission to achieve healthy coastal and estuarine ecosystems, productive and sustainable fisheries, conservation of protected resources, and resilient coastal communities.

“NOAA Fisheries is excited for the National Fish Habitat Partnership to be recognized by Congress,” said Samuel Rauch, Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, NOAA Fisheries. “We look forward to continuing to protect, enhance, and restore important fish habitats across the coastal United States in support of sustainable fisheries and communities as a proud NFHP partner.”

In addition to serving as a member of the NFHP Board, NOAA Fisheries provides scientific and technical assistance and supports research and restoration efforts. We also provide in-kind support via Board staff and various committees in many of the 10 coastal FHPs.

Read the full release here

NOAA Fisheries Announces Proposed Adjustments to the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council’s Risk Policy

November 12, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA Fisheries seeks comment on a proposed rule that would adjust the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council’s risk policy. This action would adjust the Council’s risk policy by accepting a higher level of risk for stocks that are at or above biomass targets, resulting in the ability for the Council to set higher catch limits for healthy fisheries. This action would also remove the typical/atypical species designation when applied to the current risk policy allowing the Council to better use improvements in stock assessment and modeling approaches that can more appropriately account for and address overfishing vulnerability.

For more details, please read the rule as published in the Federal Register. You can provide comments through our online portal. Comments are due by November 26, 2020.

Read the full release here

U.S. coral reefs’ health assessed for the first time on a national scale

November 11, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA:

Coral reefs in both the Pacific and Atlantic oceans received a “fair” score in the first-ever condition status report for U.S. coral reefs released by NOAA and the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science (UMCES) today. While the overall scores were “fair,” the report highlights coral reefs are vulnerable and declining. This is the first time coral reefs in all U.S. states and territories have been assessed using standardized monitoring data, creating datasets that offer a baseline of coral health on a national scale.

The U.S. Coral Reef Condition Status Report was developed by NOAA’s National Coral Reef Monitoring Program and UMCES’s Integration and Application Networkoffsite link using data collected between 2012 and 2018. The scores are denoted as “very good,” “good,” “fair,” “impaired,” and “critical.” The report was based on four categories when assigning a score: corals and algae abundance, reef fish populations, influence of climate on coral reefs, and human connections to reefs.

“Considering the more than $3.4 billion in annual economic benefits of coral reefs, these reports and the policy actions that they will inform are critical to our American Blue Economy,” said retired Navy Rear Adm. Tim Gallaudet, Ph.D., assistant secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and deputy NOAA administrator.

Coral reefs near higher density human populations are degraded, which is likely due to local stressors including land-based sources of pollution and damaging impacts from fishing.

“To conserve and restore coral reefs, we need to understand the overall condition of these  ecosystems,” said Jennifer Koss, director of NOAA’s Coral Reef Conservation Program. “This report represents a snapshot of reef condition and is a great resource for communities and decision-makers throughout the nation. We hope the report starts a dialogue about the various factors and potential solutions to the threats affecting coral reefs.”

Greatest among the threats to coral reefs is climate change, according to the report. Warmer, more acidic seawater is negatively affecting coral reefs globally, no matter how remote they are.

“These status reports clearly show the impacts people are having on coral reef ecosystems,” said Heath Kelsey, director of UMCES’s Integration and Application Network. “Our work in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans shows a dire outlook for coral reef ecosystem health, from warming ocean waters, fishing, disease, and pollution from the land. Of all of these, climate change is the single biggest threat to shallow water coral reefs in the U.S., and worldwide.”

Read the full release here

Protecting the Critical Value of Nearshore Habitat

November 11, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

No habitat in Puget Sound is more valuable to threatened Chinook salmon than nearshore habitat. No habitat is more degraded, either.

Nearshore habitat is shorthand for tidal marsh, wetlands, and river estuaries where land and water combine to support life of all kinds, from shorebirds to juvenile salmon and steelhead. Juvenile Puget Sound Chinook salmon spend their first critical months in saltwater feeding and growing in the sheltered water of nearshore habitat.

Their growth in that pivotal window determines in large part whether they will make it back to rivers as adults to spawn. With nearshore habitat dwindling, most do not.

When reviewing projects, NOAA Fisheries is updating its efforts to avoid further losses of nearshore habitat.

“It is important for projects to have a path forward, while we also need to stem the losses of this habitat that we have already lost so much of,” said Kim Kratz, Assistant Regional Administrator in NOAA Fisheries West Coast Region.

More than 95 percent of the most valuable nearshore habitat in Puget Sound is gone and is especially scarce in the south Sound, according to an analysis by the Puget Sound Nearshore Ecosystem Restoration Project. Scientists described it as a “dramatic change in the historic occurrence [of] these once-prominent nearshore ecosystems.”

Fewer than one percent of Puget Sound Chinook salmon juveniles that migrate to the ocean each year survive to return as adults. That means that already imperiled populations continue to decline. There are also repercussions for other species such as en

Read the full release here

ASMFC Seeks Proposals for Regional Pilot Projects in Support of Sustainable Aquaculture: Proposals Due January 15, 2021

November 11, 2020 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (Commission), in partnership with the NOAA Fisheries Office of Aquaculture, is issuing a Request for Proposals (RFP), seeking marine aquaculture pilot projects focused on sustainable aquatic farming techniques and regional business practices to grow U.S. domestic seafood. The geographic scope of the proposed projects is the U.S. East Coast states from Maine to Florida. The primary location of the proposed projects must be in the marine/estuarine environment.  Examples of the types of pilot projects being sought through the RFP follow:

  • Research and development related to the production and distribution of shellfish seed stock.
  • Finfish, shellfish (other than oyster*), and seaweed farming systems, especially for those species new to aquaculture in the region or that use novel production systems.
  • Identification and development of Aquaculture Development Zones with pre-planning and pre-permitting for a range of aquaculture activities.
  • Resolution of issues (e.g., enforcement, water quality, public trust concerns or impacts) related to open water finfish farming in state waters.
  • Business incubators
  • Regional market and economic impact studies
        • *Note: Proposals for oyster projects were already requested in a separate RFP (2019 Regional Oyster Aquaculture Research Consortia)
NOAA Fisheries, through the Commission, is making available $675,000 for the funding period of July 1, 2021 to June 30, 2022. Individual proposals should not exceed $200,000 or be less than $75,000. It is anticipated that approximately 4-6 projects will be funded. Eligible applicants include researchers at U.S. academic institutions, research laboratories, for-profit companies/firms, nonprofits, and state agencies.  Proposals from foreign entities are not eligible. Proposals involving multiple investigators are welcome. U.S. federal government agencies, including Regional Fishery Management Councils, are not eligible to receive funding through this solicitation. Federal staff may be collaborators on proposed projects, as long as they are not compensated for their contribution to the project.

Applicants seeking to apply to the RFP must submit, as a single file, an electronic proposal by email no later than 5:00 p.m. EST on January 15, 2021. Please see the RFP for complete proposal details, qualifying requirements, and submission instructions. The RFP is available athttp://www.asmfc.org/files/RFPs/ASMFC2021PilotAquacultureRFP_Nov2020.pdf.

For more information, please contact Dr. Louis Daniel at ldaniel@asmfc.org or 252.342.1478.

Herring Fishery to Slow Down for Rest of 2020

November 11, 2020 — The New England herring fishery is slowing down for the rest of the year because fishermen are approaching their quota for the fish.

Fishermen will be unable to fish for or possess more than 2,000 pounds of herring per trip in the inshore Gulf of Maine until Dec. 31, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has ruled. The rules went into effect on Wednesday.

Herring are the subject of a large fishery on the East Coast, but the industry has struggled in recent years due to a decline in population. Fishermen caught less than 25 million pounds of the fish last year after catching more than 96 million pounds during the previous year.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at U.S. News

North Slope Borough, NOAA, University of Washington and Cooperative Institute for Climate Ocean and Ecosystem Studies Scientists Collaborate to Monitor Whales in 2020 in Northern Alaska

November 10, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

In the Arctic, each year before daylight disappears and winter arrives, thousands of bowhead whales make their  fall migration across the Beaufort Sea off northern Alaska. The timing of the migration is something Alaska Indigenous communities and scientists can count on. However, 2019 was not a normal year.

What Happened in 2019?

The year 2019 was unusual in several ways. It was Alaska’s hottest year on record. Sea surface temperatures were significantly warmer than average. There also were salmon die-offs across the state as river temperatures, in some areas, hit 70 degrees Fahrenheit.

The timing of the bowhead whale migration was also different. By late October, the largely subsistence-based community of Utqiaġvik, Alaska, had seen few whales. Never in recent memory had whales come so late. NOAA researchers observed that both the edge of the sea ice and the bowhead whales were farther north than in previous years of surveying the area in Bureau of Ocean Energy Management-funded aerial studies.

“Whales are a vital part of our communities. Bowheads help us to feed our communities and are central to many of our cultural traditions. Hunting whales has been our way of life for thousands of years,” said North Slope Borough Mayor Harry K. Brower, Jr.

Read the full release here