Saving Seafood

NMFS ends New Bedford groundfishing ban

July 23, 2018 — Nearly eight months after NMFS announced the decision to shut down Northeast Fishing Sector IX following the criminal trial of quota-skirting kingpin Carlos “the Codfather” Rafael, the agency lifted the ban that has kept at least 80 fishermen off the water and out of work.

NMFS announced the end of the ban on Thursday, approving lease-only operation plans for Sector IX and allocated quota for Sector VII.

When little headway was being made in lifting the ban this spring, 55 vessels in Sector IX, including four owned by Rafael, moved to be included in Sector VII for the 2018-19 fishing season in order to lease their quota and recoup losses from missed fishing time.

The process was slow moving, with quota remaining frozen while NMFS officials and the New England Fishery Management Council worked to review and approve a new operating plan.

NMFS’ final rule on the situation — published and opened for comment on Friday, July 20 — “determines the quota overages that Northeast Fishery Sector IX is responsible for paying back, allocates annual catch entitlements to Northeast Fishery Sectors VII and IX for the 2018 fishing year, approves a new lease-only operations plan for Northeast Fishery Sector IX, and approves a substantive amendment to Northeast Fishery Sector VII operations plan,” according to the Federal Register.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

Previously closed areas dominate as big US scallop sources in 2018

July 20, 2018 — There’s a good chance scallop boat captains in the US are going to be belting out an old Connie Francis tune when they head out to sea over the next few months, but changing a few words in the chorus. They’ll be singing instead, “Where the big scallops are”.

The answer is the previously shut down Nantucket Lightship Closed Area South (NLCA-S) and Closed Area 1, where it’s believed that many U-10s and U-12s still wait.

That’s what Undercurrent News learned when it reviewed New Bedford, Massachusetts, seafood auction data provided and organized by the global scallop titan Eastern Fisheries.

NLCA-S and Closed Area 1 were responsible for 1.3 million — roughly 54% — of the combined 2.4m pounds of U-10 and U-12 scallops harvested and sold at the Buyers and Sellers Exchange (BASE), another name for the auction, over the first three months of the season, April 1 to June 30, based on Undercurrent‘s review.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

Looming bait shortage poses another threat to Maine lobster industry

July 17, 2018 — Feeling pressure from trade tariffs and pending rules to protect right whales, Maine’s lobster industry is facing yet another threat: a severe bait shortage.

Regulators want to cap this year’s herring landings at last year’s levels, or 50,000 metric tons, and slash next year’s quota of the most popular lobster bait from 110,000 to 30,000 metric tons. They want to do this to offset record low numbers of newborn herring that are entering the fishery to replace those that are caught, eaten by other predators or die from natural causes.

The 2019 quota could fall even lower if regulators adopt a separate proposal to leave more herring in the sea to feed the fish, birds and marine mammals that eat them, including Gulf of Maine species such as cunner, cod, seals, whales, puffins and terns. The New England Fishery Management Council could decide the issue as early as September.

“We need to think about the realities of the 2019 lobstering season with eyes wide open,” Patrice McCarron, executive director of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association, said in the group’s July newsletter. “There will be an acute bait shortage and bait prices will be very high. … We must start now to think about how we fish and when we fish. We must think about how we can be more efficient.”

That will mean different things for different lobstermen, McCarron said – some will decide to use less bait in each trap, use a finer mesh bait bag or forgo the practice of dumping old bait and simply add to it with each haul. Some might switch baits, swapping out herring for pogies or redfish, even though a herring shortage will likely cause price spikes and shortages there, too.

Read the full story at the Portland Press Herald

NEFMC may limit access to whiting fishery

July 13, 2018 — The New England Fishery Management Council has scheduled five public hearings — including one in Gloucester — to collect public comment on a proposal that could establish a limited access program for five small-mesh stocks including whiting.

The Gloucester public hearing is set for next Thursday, July 19, at 4 p.m. at the state Division of Marine Fisheries’ Annisquam River Station on Emerson Avenue. The schedule calls for additional public hearings in Tinton Falls, New Jersey; Montauk, New York; Warwick, Rhode Island; and New Bedford.

The council already has demonstrated its lack of enthusiasm for the proposal contained in draft Amendment 22 to its Northeast multispecies fishery management plan. In its vote last December to send the amendment out for public comment, the council listed “no action” as its preferred alternative.

Still, in announcing the public hearings, the council said “public input is highly encouraged on all options.”

The amendment, which proposes a limited access plan for the three stocks collectively regarded as whiting — northern silver hake, southern silver hake and offshore hake — as well as northern red hake and southern red hake.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times

New online source shows East Coast offshore wind projects

July 13, 2018 — Mariners have a new source for information about offshore wind energy projects proposed off the East Coast.

Offshore Wind in the Northeast Region is a new webpage compiled by the New England and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Councils that shows all planned and potential offshore wind energy lease areas to date from southern New England to Cape Hatteras, N.C.

The page is intended as a one-stop information source, for mariners and other stakeholders with interests in how the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management plans leasing for offshore wind energy development on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS).

The page links to BOEM planning documents, government planning documents and studies, and wind developers’ information. It also maintains an updated list of public meetings and information sessions, like a series of meetings held this week in New York and New Jersey that were aimed at involving the recreational fishing sector.

Key links include the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic Ocean Data Portals, public websites that compile information about economic activity and environmental conditions off the East Coast. The websites’ mapping overlay capabilities allow shipping traffic, fishing activity and other uses to be compared to proposed wind farm sites – data that is shaping much of the debate over whether wind energy can be compatible with long-established commerce on the ocean.

Read the full story at WorkBoat

House kills Rhode Island’s push to join Mid-Atlantic Fishery Council

July 12, 2018 — The House on Wednesday rejected a push from Rep. Jim Langevin to let his state join the Mid-Atlantic Fisheries Management Council, which regulates several species of fish that are caught mostly by fishermen from Langevin’s home state of Rhode Island.

The amendment would have added two seats on the 21-seat council for the state of Rhode Island. But after explaining why his state should join the group, the House rejected Langevin’s amendment in a voice vote, and Langevin, a Democrat, didn’t demand a recorded vote.

Langevin said on the floor that Rhode Island fishermen catch a large amount of fish that are regulated by the council, including 85 percent of all east coast butterfish, and also catch half of all squid landed on the east coast. Langevin has been pushing for legislation to add Rhode Island to the mid-Atlantic group for at least six years so a representative from his state can have a voice on the council on matters related to these and other kinds of fish.

MAFMC and NEFMC Launch Northeast Offshore Wind Webpage

July 11, 2018 — The following was released by the Mid Atlantic Fishery Management Council & New England Fishery Management Council:

On July 11, 2018, the New England and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Councils launched a new webpage that’s designed to serve as a repository for information relevant to offshore wind development activities in the Northeast Region. The Councils worked closely with NOAA Fisheries on this collaborative effort. The easy-to-navigate webpage provides one-stop-shopping for fishermen and other stakeholders who are searching for essential resources associated with offshore wind energy production. The page provides direct links to government agencies, offshore wind developers, fishery liaisons, Council-developed comments, and more.

Take a look at Offshore Wind in the Northeast

Fishermen in the region are highly interested in better understanding the impacts of offshore wind development on both commercial and recreational fisheries. The New England and Mid-Atlantic Councils want to ensure that any potential impacts on Council-managed species and the marine environment are fully considered. In light of these factors, the Councils developed the offshore wind webpage as a tool to: (1) help facilitate the exchange of information; and (2) provide quick access to available resources.

Here’s the Webpage Address: http://www.mafmc.org/northeast-offshore-wind

Webpage Information Includes Links to:

  • The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), along with BOEM’s Fishing Industry Communication and Engagement page, BOEM’s State Activities page, and BOEM’s email updates registry;
  • Northeast offshore wind developers;
  • Mid-Atlantic and New England Council policies and comment letters on offshore wind issues;
  • Project-specific information on fisheries and the marine environment relative to wind activities and other ocean uses;
  • Mappers for Essential Fish Habitat and Endangered and Protected Resources, Regional Ocean Data Portals; and more.

NEFMC Sends Clam Dredge Framework Back to Habitat Committee to Develop New Alternatives

July 5, 2018 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council voted on June 14 to remand its draft Clam Dredge Framework Adjustment to the Habitat Committee for further development. The Council also issued a specific request to the surfclam industry to propose additional alternatives for consideration and analysis.

The Council initially was scheduled to select the framework’s range of alternatives, which then would have been analyzed in detail over the summer by the Habitat Plan Development Team (PDT). Under this timeline, the Council potentially could have taken final action on the framework in September.

However, during the Council’s recent meeting in Portland, ME, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS, NOAA Fisheries) Regional Administrator expressed concern that all of the alternatives proposed to date in the Clam Dredge Framework appeared to include a fair amount of “sensitive habitat” and may not meet the framework’s “purpose and need for action.”

The Regional Administrator recognized that additional analyses were forthcoming and stressed that no conclusive determination had been made.

Nonetheless, the Council clearly heard the words of caution, noting that NMFS may have a challenging time approving proposed surfclam hydraulic dredge exemption areas within the Great South Channel Habitat Management Area (HMA) if the framework’s purpose and need aren’t met.

Read the full release here

Whiting Amendment 22: NEFMC Schedules Five Hearings to Consider Limited Access Program for Small-Mesh Multispecies

July 6, 2018 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council has scheduled five public hearings on Draft Amendment 22 to the Northeast Multispecies Fishery Management Plan. This amendment proposes to establish a limited access program for five stocks of small-mesh species: northern silver hake, southern silver hake, and offshore hake – collectively referred to as “whiting” – as well as northern red hake and southern red hake.

The amendment contains three components: (1) limited access qualification criteria; (2) silver and offshore hake possession limit alternatives; and (3) permit “characteristics and conditions” that could apply if limited access is adopted. Although the Council voted in December 2017 to send Amendment 22 out to public hearing with “no action” as its preferred alternative, public input is highly encouraged on all options.

The Council is committed to hearing all points of view before making a final decision in September.

Public Hearing Schedule

  • Gloucester, MA – Thursday, July 19, Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries Annisquam River Marine Fisheries Station, 30 Emerson Avenue, 4 p.m.
  • Tinton Falls, NJ – Monday, July 23, DoubleTree by Hilton, 700 Hope Drive, 7 p.m.
  • Montauk, NY – Tuesday, July 24, Montauk Playhouse Community Center Foundation Inc., 240 Edgemere Street, 5 p.m.
  • Warwick, RI – Wednesday, July 25, Hampton Inn & Suites, 2100 Post Road, 7 p.m.
  • New Bedford, MA – Thursday, July 26, Fairfield Inn & Suites, 185 MacArthur Drive, 7 p.m.

Whiting Possession Limits by Permit Type

Amendment 22 proposes to: (1) retain or adjust whiting possession limits for vessels that qualify for a limited access permit; and (2) create an “incidental” possession limit for non-qualifiers. If the Council decides against establishing a limited access program, it still could adjust possession limits through this amendment. The new limits then would apply to any vessel with an open access Category K permit that operates in a small-mesh exemption program.

Read the full release here

Maine lobster industry braces for looming bait shortage

July 2, 2018 — Maine’s lobster industry is on watch as fisheries regulators weigh whether to make significant cuts to herring catch limits, which could drive up bait costs that have already seen a sharp increase over the past decade.

Maine’s lobstermen draw their bait from the Atlantic herring stocks, which are managed by the New England Fishery Management Council and National Marine Fisheries Service.

In recent updates, the council said it planned on setting a significantly lower herring catch quota in 2019 than in 2018. The catch limit for 2018 was 111,000 metric tons, the same as it was in 2017. But the herring fleet landed many fewer fish than that last year, harvesting just 50,000 metric tons.

The council also called for a reduction to the catch cap for the rest of 2018 amid concerns about low densities and slow replenishment in the fish stock.

“The decline of the most important forage stock in New England is a significant blow, not only for the lobster industry that uses it for bait, but also for those species that rely on herring as forage like groundfish, tuna, whales, and seabirds,” Ben Martens, executive director of the Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association, wrote in a recent post. “Without this motion, rumor has it that the herring fishery would need to be capped at 15 metric tons in 2019, far lower than the 100-metric ton fishery that has operated in recent years.”

A herring stock assessment group held meetings in late June to try to determine its next steps and come closer to determining what quota it might propose. The group should release more details about the expected catch limits in the fall.

“Everyone’s worried about the quota and what that’s going to be,” said Kristan Porter, a Cutler lobsterman and president of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association. “There’s bait around right now, but what happens in the fall? We just don’t know.”

Read the full story at the Bangor Daily News