Saving Seafood

Fishermen backing surf clammers in fight over harvest area

December 4, 2018 — Groundfish stakeholders are supporting the surf clam industry’s efforts to retain fishing rights in pockets of the Great South Channel of the Nantucket Shoals as long as the approved management policy does not prompt “mitigations or further habitat restrictions on the groundfish fishery.”

In a letter to the New England Fishery Management Council, and in a later interview, the executive director of the Northeast Seafood Coalition said the coalition has supported efforts by Gloucester-based Intershell and the rest of the Northeast surf clam industry to keep fishing rights off Nantucket as the final piece of the Omnibus Essential Fish Habitat Amendment 2.

On Tuesday, the New England Fishery Management Council, meeting in Newport, Rhode Island, is expected to decide whether one of the more lucrative fishing grounds for the surf clam fishery — 10 to 20 miles east and southeast of Nantucket — will remain open to surf clamming or restricted or closed as part of a protectionist effort to designate the full area as an essential fish habitat that would be off limits to surf clamming dredging gear.

“During the development of OHA 2, NSC supported the clam dredge industry’s need to preserve access to distinct areas within the larger habitat closure areas under consideration,” Jackie Odell, NSC executive director, wrote to council Chairman John Quinn. “NSC continues to support endeavors to identify areas within the Great South Channel HMA that balances the conservation objectives of OHA2 with the economic realities of the fishery in a manner that is both fair and equitable to the fisheries that already have been impacted under OHA 2.”

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times

Upcoming vote could be ‘devasting’ for New England clams

December 3, 2018 — While New Bedford gains its notoriety as the scallop capital of the world, Massachusetts is known for its clam chowder.

A New England Fisheries Management Council meeting in Newport scheduled for Tuesday could affect the latter.

An afternoon agenda item will discuss the possibility of closing an area in Nantucket Shoals, that the clam industry calls vital to its survival.

“If they close this down, it will be devastating to the whole industry,” Vice President of Operations for Nantucket Sound Seafood LLC Michael Costa said.

To prevent the action, the surf clam industry has rallied together and sought the legal services of former New Bedford mayor and attorney Scott Lang.

The coalition consists of Atlantic Capes, Seawatch International, Nantucket Sound Seafood, and Intershell Seafood International.

Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times

Clam controversy: Prime area may be closed to save fish

November 29, 2018 —  In June, at the Intershell dock on Commercial Street, owners Monte and Yibing Gao Rome launched their new 55-foot surf clam boat, F/V Bing Bing, amid the hoopla and happiness associated with a new Gloucester boat going into the water.

The Bing Bing sitting pretty at the dock that day was the most recent, and perhaps most palpable, reflection of Intershell’s commitment to the surf clam fishery. The metal-hulled boat, built in Mississippi in 1977 and just off a 10-month retrofit, became the third surf clam boat in the Intershell fleet.

But on Tuesday, in a ballroom of the aptly named Viking Hotel in Newport, Rhode Island, Intershell and the other major surf clammers along the Northeast will find out if they still have a surf clam fishery to call home in the lucrative and historically rich Great South Channel of the Nantucket Shoals.

The New England Fishery Management Council, in a trailing action to its Omnibus 2 Essential Fish Habitat Amendment, will decide if a large swath of the current surf clam fishery, 10 to 20 miles east and southeast of Nantucket, will remain open to surf clamming or possibly be closed as part of a protectionist move to designate the full area as an essential fish habitat.

If designated as a full essential fish habitat, the whole Great South Channel would be closed to surf clammers and their hydraulic water-pressure dredging gear, as it already has been to all other types of mobile, bottom tending gear.

The clammers initially got a one-year extension to continue fishing when the council designated the Great South Channel Habitat Management Area. That exemption is set to expire April 9, 2019.

“The Nantucket Shoals are one of the premium, large-scale harvest areas on the East Coast and not an essential fish habitat,” Monte Rome said Wednesday as workers buzzed around the the sprawling Intershell facility in the Blackburn Industrial Park. “We’ve been going to habitat committee meetings and plan development meetings for months and they have constantly revealed that right now there is not anywhere near enough data to make a decision on whether this is an essential fish habitat. They say it might be. We say there is essentially no fish habitat within the area where we have fished for surf clams for the past 30 years.”

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times

NEFMC Seeks Fishery Specialist with Experience in Economics

November 29, 2018 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) is seeking candidates for a Fishery Specialist with experience in economics. This is a highly visible, demanding position. The specialist will assist in the preparation of fishery management plans and be expected to conduct numerous economic analyses that require a broad range of technical and communications skills.

RESPONSIBILITIES: The successful candidate will work closely with the Council staff, as well as with other professionals from state agencies, the federal government, fishery user groups, and academic institutions, and be required to:

Assist in the preparation of documents, including Environmental Impact Statements for fishery management plans and amendments;

Compile and analyze fisheries, environmental, biological, socio-economic, or other technical data using appropriate database and statistical analysis software;

Prepare meeting summaries and assist in the conduct of public meetings;

Develop economic analyses of fishery management alternatives, including cost-benefit analyses or analyses of cost effectiveness;

Communicate economic concepts effectively to decision-makers and the public;

Work collaboratively with other fisheries scientists, economists, and social scientists; and

Conduct other tasks as assigned.

QUALIFICATIONS: Applicants should have: (1) a solid grounding or experience in the management of fisheries in federal waters; (2) experience working cooperatively with small teams to complete high-pressure tasks under demanding deadlines; (3) a demonstrated ability to explain complicated issues to diverse audiences; and (4) a Master of Science Degree in economics with experience in resource or fisheries-related economic analysis.

ANALYTICAL AND COMMUNICATION SKILLS: This position requires numerous analytical and communication skills, which are described in detail in the vacancy announcement.

APPLICATION DEADLINE: By January 22, 2019, applicants must submit a cover letter, writing examples, and a brief résumé detailing education and experiences that clearly support the position requirements. Submission details can be found in the vacancy announcement. The anticipated hiring date is March 2019.

QUESTIONS: Contact Council Deputy Director Chris Kellogg at (978) 465-0492, ext. 112; ckellogg@nefmc.org.

NEFMC December 4-6, 2018, Newport, RI, Listen Live, View Documents

November 27, 2018 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council will hold a three-day meeting from Tuesday, December 4 through Thursday, December 6, 2018. The public is invited to listen-in via webinar or telephone. Here are the details.

MEETING LOCATION: Hotel Viking, One Bellevue Avenue, Newport, RI 02840; Hotel Viking.

START TIME: The webinar will be activated at 8:00 a.m. each day. However, please note that the meeting is scheduled to begin at 9:00 a.m. on Tuesday and 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday and Thursday. The webinar will end at approximately 6:00 p.m. EST or shortly after the Council adjourns each day.

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

CALL-IN OPTION: To listen by telephone, dial +1 (562) 247-8422. The access code is 301-888-168. Please be aware that if you dial in, your regular phone charges will apply.

AGENDA: The agenda and all meeting materials are available on the Council’s website at December 4-6, 2018 NEFMC Newport, RI.

WHITING: The Council’s Whiting Committee and Advisory Panel will meet jointly on Monday, December 3, 2018 at the Hotel Viking to review public comments and develop recommendations on Amendment 22 to the Northeast Multispecies Fishery Management Plan. The full Council will take final action on the amendment the following day and decide whether or not to limit access to five stocks of small-mesh multispecies. More information is available at Whiting Committee/AP meeting.

SPECIAL EVENT: Following the close of Council business on Tuesday, December 4 and Wednesday, December 5, NOAA Fisheries will hold feedback sessions to solicit suggestions for improving communication and utilization of results achieved by the Saltonstall-Kennedy (S-K) Grant Program. For more information, contact S-K National Program Manager Cliff Cosgrove at (301) 427-8736, clifford.cosgrove@noaa.gov. View the invitation at attend a feedback session.

THREE MEETING OUTLOOK: A copy of the New England Council’s Three Meeting Outlook is available HERE.

COUNCIL MEETING QUESTIONS: Anyone with questions prior to or during the Council meeting should contact Janice Plante at (607) 592-4817, jplante@nefmc.org.

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