Saving Seafood

Mayor Mitchell warns of ‘potentially consequential’ impacts if leasing is approved

May 25, 2022 — Mayor Jon Mitchell is “deeply concerned” about the “potentially consequential” impacts leasing could have in the scallop fishery, according to a letter he submitted to a fishery council ahead of its second and final public meeting in New Bedford Wednesday.

“There is no denying that there will be costs and impacts associated with the leasing program,” Mitchell wrote. “The playing field will be tilted on day one, perhaps irrevocably so, and the transformation of the scallop fishery from a ‘community fishery’ to a ‘corporate fishery’ may become all but inevitable.”

He went on to write, “as the most valuable fishing port in the nation, New Bedford has, without a doubt, more at stake in this matter than any community in the nation.”

At the close of his nearly four-page letter, he echoed local state representatives in requesting the council decline to proceed with drafting an amendment for leasing.

“I am hopeful that the Council will decline to proceed with the proposal before it, based on the vigorous opposition presented by New Bedford stakeholders.”

Included in his letter is an 11-page review, commissioned by the New Bedford Port Authority, on the potential impacts leasing could have.

Read the full story at the New Bedford Light

NEFMC Seeks Contractor to Conduct Prototype MSE for Ecosystem-Based Fishery Management

May 18, 2022 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council seeks the services of an independent contractor to develop and conduct a prototype management strategy evaluation (MSE) for Georges Bank.  The protype MSE will be based on the ecosystem-based fishery management (EBFM) strategy in the Council’s example Fishery Ecosystem Plan (eFEP).

This is a short-term, temporary contractor role, commencing on or about August 1, 2022 and ending in January 2023.  The intended completion date will depend on the scope and complexity of the work and the MSE proposed by the applicant. The deadline for submitting letters of interest and supporting materials is Wednesday, June 30, 2022 at 5:00 p.m.

The purpose of the prototype MSE is to:

  • Showcase a simplified prototype MSE framework and demonstrate how MSE will be used to evaluate EBFM management strategies for a Georges Bank Ecosystem Production Unit, using what we learn to communicate with the public about MSE for EBFM;
  • Act as an educational dry run from both a development and an operational perspective;
  • Provide an opportunity for the Council and its EBFM Committee to gain experience with the MSE process;
  • Identify and work through the types of decisions to be made during an MSE; and
  • Identify data sources and develop the models and analyses that will support a full EBFM MSE with broader stakeholder participation in the next phase of the Council’s EBFM development strategy.

The prototype MSE results, while intended to be realistic, are not meant to be actionable in a fishery ecosystem plan. Rather, the results will be used as the basis for a full MSE, which is the next step.

Working with Council staff, the Council’s EBFM Plan Development Team, and a limited number of appointed stakeholders, the contractor will:

  • Develop new or expand existing operating models that represent the productivity of and trophic relationships among managed stocks on Georges Bank;
  • Identify and apply existing estimation (assessment) models;
  • Identify management objectives and candidate management procedures (e.g., harvest control rules) based on the Council’s ecosystem cap and ceilings and floors approach for stock complexes; and
  • Provide concise and approachable summaries that show the trade-offs between alternative management procedures to meet multiple objectives.

Complete details about the project background, prototype MSE objectives, statement of work, expected responsibilities and deliverables, desired experience and demonstrated skills, and application submission information can be found in the request for proposals.

‘I don’t want to be a Wal-Mart fisherman’: Scallopers sound off about permit leasing

May 13, 2022 — The New England Fishery Management Council held a scoping meeting Wednesday at the New Bedford Whaling Museum on its proposed Scallop Fishery Management Plan adjustment.

Should it go through, the plan would allow scallopers to lease out portions of their days at sea license to other boats, causing concern among small fisherfolk and portside business-owners alike.

“I was born a fisherman’s daughter and became a fisherman’s wife,” said Evelyn Sklar at the meeting. “And now I’m a fisherman’s mother and a fisherman’s grandmother.

“I hope I can die in peace, because this doesn’t belong in the fishing family industry.”

Permit licensing

The current permitting scheme came into force in 1994 as Amendment 4 to the Scallop Fishery Management Plan. It intended to control access to the fishery as well as equipment used to allow for an overfished population.

The regulations included restrictions on gear, fishing trip duration and catches. Most notably, they created limited-access zones where fishing would be monitored and restricted based on the scallop population.

Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times

Scallopers in New Bedford tell fishery managers they don’t want leasing

May 12, 2022 — Scallop fishermen and captains told fishery management staff in no uncertain terms that they do not want to change current regulations to allow permit-holders to lease their fishing allocations.

More than 110 attendees — a mix of fishermen, shoreside business owners, marine scientists, attorneys and vessel owners — filled a meeting room at the Whaling Museum on Wednesday for the first of two public meetings in New Bedford on the leasing proposal. Those who spoke in opposition drew loud applause, while those who spoke in support drew little or none.

“There was a time in this industry when a father owned a boat and he taught his son, and his son was able to rise up … buy and operate his own boat, and you know, those days are gone,” said Tyler Miranda, a New Bedford captain of two scallopers. “I think that if [leasing] does move forward and is developed, it will take even further away from the family and community dynamic that fishing is and always was — and will make it more corporate.”

New Bedford for two decades has been the nation’s highest-value fishing port, in large part due to its scallop landings.

Current regulations in the limited access scallop fishery allow one permit per vessel, which entitles a boat to a certain number of days at sea and access area trips to harvest scallops. A leasing program could enable a permit-holder to lease trips and days at sea from another permit-holder, or lease to themselves and fish two allocations with a single boat, for example.

While a lobbying effort is advocating for specific ideas for leasing, the New England Fishery Management Council is taking a broader view and seeking comment on not only whether such a program is needed, but also what it should look like.

Read the full story at the New Bedford Light

Scallop Research Share Days: Tune in on May 5th and May 6th; Lineup Includes Enhancement Projects, Turtles, Offshore Wind

May 3, 2022 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council will be hosting two Scallop Research Share Days on Thursday and Friday, May 5 and May 6, 2022. These are half-day webinar sessions that begin at 9:00 a.m. and are scheduled to run until approximately 12:30 p.m. each day.

Share Days provide an opportunity for scallop researchers – and especially award recipients of the Scallop Research Set-Aside (RSA) Program – to “share” their findings with the Scallop Plan Development Team (PDT), fishery managers, fishermen, colleagues, and interested members of the public.

Presenters cover projects that focus on scallop research priorities identified by the Council. One of the objectives of this event is to better inform scallop managers of the status of current research and help identifyfuture research priority recommendations for the Council’s consideration.

The Council will identify 2023-2024 priorities for the next round of solicitations under the Scallop RSA Program duringits June 2022 meeting. Here are the Council’s 2022-2023 scallop research priorities.

Read the full release from the NEFMC

Groundfish: NEFMC Initiates Framework Adjustment 65 with Specifications, Rebuilding Plans, and Management Measures

April 22, 2022 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council initiated Framework Adjustment 65 to the Northeast Multispecies Fishery Management Plan when it met April 12-14, 2022 for a hybrid meeting in Mystic, CT. The framework will contain the following components:

  • Revised status determination criteria specifying when overfishing is occurring or a stock is overfished;
  • Revised rebuilding plans for Gulf of Maine cod and Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic winter flounder;
  • Fishing year 2023 and 2024 total allowable catches for the U.S./Canada management units of Eastern Georges Bank cod and Eastern Georges Bank haddock, as well as Georges Bank yellowtail flounder;
  • Fishing year 2023 and 2024 specifications for Georges Bank yellowtail flounder and Georges Bank cod, including a cod catch target for the recreational fishery;
  • Fishing year 2023, 2024, and 2025 specifications for 14 groundfish stocks – Georges Bank haddock, Gulf of Maine haddock, Cape Cod/Gulf of Maine yellowtail flounder, Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic yellowtail flounder, Georges Bank winter flounder, Gulf of Maine winter flounder, Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic winter flounder, American plaice, witch flounder, pollock, white hake, Atlantic halibut, ocean pout, and Atlantic wolffish;
  • Additional measures to promote stock rebuilding for Gulf of Maine cod and Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic winter flounder, and
  • Revised acceptable biological catch (ABC) control rules in consultation with the Council’s Scientific and Statistical Committee.

Read the full release from the NEFMC

 

Scallop leasing on the table? New England council starts scoping meetings

April 21, 2022 — The possibility of allowing leasing in the Atlantic scallop fishery will be explored by the New England Fishery Management Council in the coming weeks.

A preceding publicity campaign aims to get everyone in the industry out to comment in public meetings. It’s a first step for the council to investigate whether a days-at-sea and access area leasing program is needed in the limited access component of the scallop fishery.

Depending on what they learn, council members could vote to initiate a leasing amendment to the scallop management plan when they meet Sept. 27-29 in Gloucester, Mass.

Leasing has been suggested by some scallop operators, and the council approved a scoping plan at its April 12-14 meeting in Mystic, Conn. It calls for public meetings from Gloucester to New Bern, N.C., starting April 27, plus two online webinars in June, to gauge opinions.

The proposal could have broad effects, so the council is looking to go in depth.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

NEFMC Approves Scallop Leasing Scoping Document; Readies for Seven In-Person Meetings and Two Webinars

April 19, 2022 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council: 

The New England Fishery Management Council will hold seven in-person scoping meetings and two webinars over the next two months to solicit public input on whether a leasing program is needed in the limited access component of the Atlantic sea scallop fishery.

The Council approved the scoping document during its April 12-14, 2022 hybrid meeting, which was held in Mystic, CT. In addition, the Council received short updates on:

Scoping Meetings Kick Off April 27th in Gloucester

The first scoping meeting for limited access leasing will be held on Wednesday, April 27, 2022 in Gloucester, Massachusetts at the Cruiseport beginning at 5:00 p.m.

Other in-person meeting locations run from New Bedford down to New Bern, North Carolina. The in-person meetings will not have a remote participation option, but two separate webinar scoping meetings are scheduled for June 17 and June 24, 2022.

Read the full release from the NEFMC

Monkfish: Council Initiates Framework 13 with Fishing Year 2023-2025 Specifications and Other Management Measures

April 15, 2022 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council initiated Framework Adjustment 13 to the federal Monkfish Fishery Management Plan when it met April 12-14, 2022 in Mystic, Connecticut. This was a hybrid meeting with both in-person and remote participation by webinar.

Framework 13 will include specifications for the 2023-2025 monkfish fishing years and consider the development of alternatives for:

  • Revising days-at-sea allocations and possession limits, including the incidental possession limit
  • Management measures to reduce monkfish discards in the Southern Fishery Management Area
  • Requiring 12” mesh for monkfish gillnets; and
  • Requiring vessel monitoring systems (VMSs) across the monkfish fishery.

Gillnet usage is more prevalent in the southern management area. In the north, monkfish tends to be caught more often in trawl gear.

Read the full release from the New England Fishery Management Council

Longtime New England council economist honored

April 14, 2022 — Lou Goodreau, a New England Fishery Management Council staffer who played a key role in its successful turnaround of the East Coast scallop fishery, was honored by the council for his 45-year career there.

Goodreau, an economist and information technology specialist, came on the council in March 1977 soon after it was formed under the original legislation now known as the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act.

According to a statement from the council, Goodreau is the third longest-serving staff member among the nation’s eight regional councils. At the New England council he worked under four executive directors and two acting executive directors, with a hand in creating the council’s information and computer systems and key fishery management plans.

Read the full story at National Fisherman