Saving Seafood

Fishing Leaders Seek Public Support for Herring Trawler Buffer Zone

November 26, 2018 — Local fishing industry leaders are seeking public support to finalize regulations that would push midwater herring trawlers at least 12 miles off the coast of Cape Cod.

The New England Fishery Management Council voted in September to recommend the measure in an effort to help protect the struggling fishery.

Local fishermen and the Cape Cod Commercial Fishermen’s Alliance supported pushing the midwater trawlers back 50 miles to avoid localized depletion.

That concept is defined as a reduction of fish population, independent of the overall status of the stock, over a relatively small area as a result of intensive overfishing.

The new buffer zone would be estimated to reduce midwater trawler revenue by about 30 percent.

The midwater trawlers, which usually work in tandem, use large nets to scoop up entire schools of herring, which local fishermen have said negatively impact the local fishing industry and related economies.

Atlantic herring is a food, or forage fish for many larger fish species and whales which feed in the area. Herring is also an important bait fish in the New England lobster industry.

Cape Cod Commercial Fishermen’s Alliance CEO John Pappalardo says the restrictions now head to the National Marine Fisheries Service for review.

“I’m very confident that if all the people who helped us get a positive vote out of the council will one more time put effort in to making sure that the National Marine Fisheries Service adheres to the recommendation I am very confident we will end up with a positive result,” Pappalardo said.

Fisherman Charlie Dodge says the local industry and the public need to keep the pressure on at the political level to ensure the trawlers are pushed back.

“We’ve seen things before get to this point but even with keeping focus on it sometimes they never come to fruition,” Dodge said.

Read the full story at CapeCod.com

NEFMC SSC Peer Review – Listen Live – November 30, 2018, Groundfish Data

November 20, 2018 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

An ad-hoc sub-panel of the New England Fishery Management Council’s Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) will meet on Friday, November 30, 2018 to review a report from the Fishery Data for Stock Assessment Working Group (FDSAWG).  The public is invited to attend in person or listen live via webinar or telephone.  Here are the details.

MEETING LOCATION:  Hotel Providence, 139 Mathewson Street, Providence, RI.  Hotel information is available here.

START TIME:  9:00 a.m.

WEBINAR REGISTRATION:  Online access to the meeting will be available at Listen Live.  There is no charge to access the meeting through this webinar.

CALL-IN OPTION:  To listen by telephone, dial +1 (415) 930-5321.  The access code is 178-698-691.  Please be aware that if you dial in, your regular phone charges will apply.

AGENDA:  The SSC ad-hoc sub-panel will review the FDSAWG’s work on the following tasks:

  • Explain how fishery dependent and fishery independent data are used in stock assessments, including how different data elements are used and interact in an age-based analytic assessment;
  • Summarize the theoretical utility and limitations of using catch per unit effort (CPUE) and landings per unit effort (LPUE) as indexes of abundance for Northeast multispecies (groundfish) stocks;
  • Identify the fishery factors and fishery dependent data needed to create a CPUE that would be a reliable index of abundance for Northeast multispecies stocks – without regard to existing fishing practices, regulations, or monitoring systems; and
  • Compare the desired factors identified with existing conditions and data for the fishery through a gap analysis of factors and data needed, as well as the analytical approaches necessary, to create a CPUE that would be a reliable index of abundance for Northeast multispecies stocks.

MATERIALS:  Meeting materials will be posted on the Council’s website at SSC Peer Review November 30, 2018 documents.

 

New England Council eying more monitoring of some fisheries

November 16, 2018 — The New England Fisheries Management Council wants to standardize future industry-funded monitoring incorporated into other fisheries beyond the Northeast multispecies groundfishery and the scallop fishery.

The council is soliciting public comment on a proposal to increase industry-funded monitoring in certain fisheries “to assess the amount and type of catch and reduce uncertainty around catch estimates,” according to the summary of the proposed rule published in the Federal Register.

The proposal specifically would increase industry-funded monitoring in the Atlantic herring industry, as well.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily News

Lobster industry chief expects bait crunch

November 15, 2018 — An expected cutback of the Atlantic herring catch quota is causing concern among lobster fishing interests, which largely rely on herring as bait.

“We obviously have to be looking at different sources of bait,” Kristan Porter, president of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association, told the Bangor Daily News this week. He added that a quota cut could drive up bait costs.

Fishermen’s Voice reported that at the September meeting of the New England Fishery Management Council, Patrice McCarron, executive director of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association, said: “We predict it’s going to be devastating.”

Tuna fishing interests said the expected cutback will affect them, too. At that meeting, the council decided to adopt a rule that would slash the fishing quota for the Atlantic herring fishery for fishing years 2019 through 2021. It also decided to ban boats using midwater trawl gear from within 12 miles of the shore from the Canadian border to Connecticut. The actions are part of the Amendment 8 to the Atlantic herring fishery management plan.

Read the full story at MaineBiz

Whiting webinar to address limiting fishery access

November 14, 2018 — The New England Fishery Management Council has reopened the comment period on the proposal that could establish limited entry into the whiting fishery and is holding a webinar Wednesday for interested stakeholders.

The extended comment period, necessitated by discrepancies in early draft documents, will close on Nov. 23. The council expects to take final action on the amendment at its meetings Dec. 4 to 6 in Newport, Rhode Island, according to Janice Plante, council spokeswoman.

The amendment, referred to as Amendment 22, proposes a limited access plan for the small-mesh, multispecies fishery. It targets three stocks collectively considered whiting — northern silver hake, southern silver hake and offshore hake — as well as northern red hake and southern red hake.

The amendment delves into three areas: limited access qualification criteria; whiting and red hake possession limits; and permit conditions that would apply if the council approved a limited access program.

The council, however, has made clear its lack of enthusiasm for restricting access to the fishery. Last December, it voted for “no action” as its preferred alternative when the proposal initially went out for public comment.

Stakeholders interested in participating in the webinar, which is set to run 3 to 5 p.m., may do so online or via telephone.

The online link may be accessed through the council’s website or directly at https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/843126117. The phone number is 872-240-3311, with an access code of 843-126-117.

Comments also will be accepted by email at comments@nefmc.org or by traditional mail to Tom Nies, executive director, New England Fishery Management Council, 50 Water St., Mill 2, Newburyport, MA 01950.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times

Feds eye improved fishing monitoring off East Coast states

November 12, 2018 — Federal ocean managers are looking to increase the amount of monitoring that goes on while fishing boats are out at sea.

Many fisheries are subjected to monitoring, which collects valuable data that inform regulations and catch quotas. The New England Fishery Management Council says it’s looking at ways to beef up monitoring in some fisheries to get an idea of the amount of catch and reduce uncertainty about estimates.

The Federal Register states that the goal of the effort is to “ensure consistency in industry monitoring programs.” It’s also aimed at increasing monitoring in the Atlantic herring fishery, which is a major source for bait fish and food on the East Coast.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at WBNG

MASSACHUSETTS: Gov. Baker urges Interior: Keep NY turbines out of prime fishing grounds

November 5, 2018 — Gov. Charlie Baker wrote to Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke on Thursday to ask him to consider eliminating the highest-priority fishing areas from future leases for offshore wind, particularly in the New York Bight, a heavily fished area south of Long Island.

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has begun evaluating potential locations in the New York Bight for wind.

“Some of the areas under consideration for leasing represent very productive and high-value grounds for fishermen from Massachusetts and other states,” Baker said in the letter.

He cited an assessment of fish landings earlier this year by the National Marine Fisheries Service and the New England and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Councils that calculated the value of fishing within the proposed areas at more than $344 million from 2012 to 2016.

“Views of the fishing industry must be valued, which has been fundamental to the successful process in Massachusetts,” he said.

New Bedford fishermen and city officials expressed serious concerns about the New York locations in a meeting with BOEM in September. At the time, vessel owner Eric Hansen said 40 to 50 percent of the scalloping grounds fished by New Bedford scallopers are within that area.

Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times

Maine Outdoor Heritage Fund grant improves Marine Patrol surveillance abilities

November 2, 2018 — AUGUSTA — With a $3,200 grant from the Maine Outdoor Heritage Fund and matching funds of $2,339.50 from the Maine Department of Marine Resources, the Maine Marine Patrol has purchased binoculars that will improve officers’ ability to conduct surveillance for enforcement and search and rescue.

The new 14×40 Fujinon Image Stabilization binoculars have been distributed to the Marine Patrol’s fleet of large patrol vessels throughout the state, replacing previous models that had only 7x magnification.

“The enhanced magnification allows Marine Patrol officers to survey more area in greater detail,” said Marine Patrol Colonel Jon Cornish. “This is especially important as more fishing activity is moving farther offshore.

Read the full article on Bangor Daily News

Fish council to review catch share regulations

November 1, 2018 — In May 2010, the world of the Northeast groundfishermen experienced a seismic transformation, as federal fishery managers ditched days-at-sea as its primary management tool and implemented a sector system centered on an expanded catch share program.

Now, nearly nine years later, the New England Fishery Management Council said it will conduct its first comprehensive evaluation of the groundfish catch share program to determine whether it is meeting its goals and objectives to improve the management of the fishery.

The review, according to council Executive Director Tom Nies, is not connected to any specific event or issue within the fishery, such as the widescale cheating, sector manipulation and ultimate conviction of New Bedford fishing kingpin Carlos A. Rafael.

“It’s not a response to Carlos, but it may help us identify areas related to his activities that we can address,” Nies said Wednesday.

The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s own catch share policy actually mandate that the councils periodically produce “a formal and detailed review … no less frequently than once every seven years” on catch share programs.

“This is the first review, really, since catch shares originally were implemented in 2004, and more importantly, expanded in 2010,” Nies said. “It’s been on our radar for a couple of years. The next step is to assemble a staff and get the report written.”

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times

NEFMC Update – October 31, 2018

October 31, 2018 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council will hold several committee and advisory panel (AP) meetings in November, as well as a webinar for Whiting Amendment 22.  Here’s a run-down of what’s happening.  Committee and AP meeting presentations and documents will be posted on the Council website as they become available.  Two additional events that pertain to Council activities also are listed.

The full Council will meet December 4-6, 2018 at the Hotel Viking in Newport, RI.  An agenda will be posted in the near future at NEFMC Newport, RI 2018 meeting webpage.