July 18, 2017 — The U.S. Department of Commerce says its top official was right to reverse a decision about flounder fishing regulations made by an interstate commission.
NEW JERSEY: Trump official’s fish ruling could harm conservation
July 17, 2017 — A row with an appointee of President Donald Trump’s administration over the regulation of flounder fishing off New Jersey jeopardizes conservation of marine species all along the East Coast, interstate fishing managers said Monday.
The flatfish in question is the summer flounder, which is popular with sport fishermen and commercial fishermen from Maine to Florida. The regulatory Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission announced in June that it had found New Jersey out of compliance with management of the summer flounder fishery.
But Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross needed to sign off on the ruling, and he instead reversed it. The commission said in a statement that Ross’ ruling represents the first time since passage of the Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Cooperative Management Act in 1993 that a commerce secretary has failed to uphold such a noncompliance recommendation.
Ross’ ruling has the potential to soften the regulatory authority of the commission, which is tasked with managing fisheries along the coast, said Toni Kerns, director of the interstate fisheries management program for the Atlantic States.
The Atlantic States found that New Jersey was not implementing conservation measures, and Ross could have called for a federal moratorium on fishing for summer flounder in New Jersey’s state waters, Kerns said. Instead, his reversal sends a message that Atlantic States’ rulings lack teeth, she said.
“If the secretary of commerce isn’t agreeing to use that tool, then other states will see that and start not implementing measures,” Kerns said.
Read the full story from the Associated Press at The News & Observer
ASMFC Reacts to Commerce Secretary Decision to Reject Commission Advice on Summer Flounder
July 14, 2017 — ARLINGTON, Va. — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:
On July 11th, Secretary of Commerce, Wilbur Ross, notified the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission that he has found the State of New Jersey to be in compliance with Addendum XXVII to the Summer Flounder Fishery Management Plan. According to the letter sent to the Commission, Secretary Ross’s decision was based on the assertion that “New Jersey makes a compelling argument that the measures it implemented this year, despite increasing catch above the harvest target, will likely reduce total summer flounder mortality in New Jersey waters to a level consistent with the overall conservation objective for the recreational fishery.” This is the first time since passage of the Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Cooperative Management Act (Atlantic Coastal Act) in 1993 and the Atlantic Striped Bass Conservation Act in 1984 that the Secretary of Commerce failed to uphold a noncompliance recommendation by the Commission.
“The Commission is deeply concerned about the near-term impact on our ability to end overfishing on the summer flounder stock as well as the longer-term ability for the Commission to effectively conserve numerous other Atlantic coastal shared resources,” stated Commission Chair Douglas Grout of New Hampshire. “The Commission’s finding of noncompliance was not an easy one. It included hours of Board deliberation and rigorous Technical Committee review, and represented, with the exception of New Jersey, a unanimous position of the Commission’s state members. Our decision was based on Technical Committee’s findings that New Jersey’s measures were not conservationally-equivalent to those measures in Addendum XXVIII and are projected to result in an additional 93,800 fish being harvested. Additionally, we had an obligation as a partner in the joint management of summer flounder with the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) to implement measures to end overfishing immediately or face the possibility of summer flounder becoming an overfished stock.”
Based on the latest stock assessment information, summer flounder is currently experiencing overfishing. Spawning stock biomass has been declining since 2010 and is just 16% above the threshold. The vast majority of fishery-independent surveys show rapidly declining abundance. Any increase in overall mortality puts the stock at risk for further declines and increases the probability of the stock becoming overfished. If the stock falls below the biomass threshold, the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act requires the Council to initiate a rebuilding program, which could require more restrictive management measures.
New Jersey was not the only state to be concerned about the impact of the approved measures to its recreational fishing community. Two other states submitted alternative proposals that were rejected in favor of the states equally sharing the burden of needed reductions. Those states, as well as other coastal states, implemented the approved measures in order to end overfishing and support the long-term conservation of the resource.
“The states have a 75-year track record of working together to successfully manage their shared marine resources,” continued Chairman Grout. “We are very much concerned about the short and long-term implications of the Secretary’s decision on interstate fisheries management. Our focus moving forward will be to preserve the integrity of the Commission’s process, as established by the Atlantic Coastal Act, whereby, the states comply with the management measures we collectively agree upon. It is my fervent hope that three-quarters of a century of cooperative management will provide a solid foundation for us to collectively move forward in achieving our vision of sustainably managing Atlantic coastal fisheries.”
The Commission is currently reviewing its options in light of Secretary Ross’s action, and the member states will meet during the Commission’s Summer Meeting in early August to discuss the implications of the Secretary’s determination on the summer flounder resource and on state/federal cooperation in fisheries management under the Atlantic Coastal Act.
For more information, please contact Toni Kerns, Director, Interstate Fisheries Management Program, at tkerns@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740.
Lobster season slow, prices holding steady for seafood fans
July 13, 2017 — New England’s summer lobster season is off to a slow start, but consumers are paying a little bit less for the critters than they were a year ago.
The annual summer boom in lobster catch has yet to arrive, lobster fishermen and distributors said. Lobster catch typically picks up in the warm months when many lobsters shed their shells and reach legal harvesting size.
So far, supply is lower than recent years, but that hasn’t translated into higher prices for consumers. The wholesale price for 1¼-pound hard shell lobsters was $7.63 per pound in early July, business publisher Urner Barry reported. The price was a little more than $8 per pound at the same time last year.
Members of Maine’s lobster industry said they still expect a healthy catch this year, but it appears to be arriving somewhat late compared to recent years, when the catch has soared.
“It’s starting to trickle in. It has just been a slow start to the season. It’s reminiscent of an old-fashioned season,” said Bill Bruns, operations manager for The Lobster Co. in Arundel. “We’re starting to see some signs of life.”
American lobster, most of which comes ashore in Maine, has been booming in terms of volume of catch in recent years. Maine’s lobster catch exceeded 130 million pounds for the first time last year, and has surpassed 100 million pounds for six years in a row after previously rarely reaching 80 million.
The value of the crustaceans has also been high, and consumers and wholesalers have frequently been paying more for them, partly because of increased interest in U.S. lobster from China.
This year, stores in New England are selling them for $8 to $13 per pound depending on how large they are and whether they are hard shell or softshell. Hard shell lobsters tend to be more expensive. Those prices are about in line with recent years.
“When there is just a slow and steady delivery that is not too great and not too little, it leads to a much more stable sort of market,” said John Sackton, who publishes the SeafoodNews.com website.
The other coastal New England states, New York and New Jersey also have lobster fisheries, with Massachusetts having the second-largest lobster catch in the country. The crustacean is also the subject of a large fishery in Canada.
Read the full story from the Associated Press at the San Francisco Chronicle
NEW JERSEY: Rep. LoBiondo Applauds Decision on Summer Flounder
July 13, 2017 — After months of fighting against proposed reductions on summer flounder harvest limits for New Jersey commercial and recreational fishermen, U.S. Representative Frank A. LoBiondo (NJ-02) applauded U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross’ decision late last night to accept New Jersey’s management plan.
“Commerce Secretary Ross’ decision to adopt New Jersey’s conservation equivalency plan for summer flounder signals a win-win for our fishing industry and conservation efforts,” said LoBiondo. “For months I have argued that NOAA and ASMFC were flawed in their data and decision-making process, creating a significant and arbitrary disadvantage to New Jersey fishermen. Going forward we must reform the use of questionable methodologies and outdated science by federal bureaucrats that, left unchecked, will again threaten fishing operations in South Jersey. I will continue to work with my colleagues and Commerce Secretary Ross to protect the critical fishing industry in South Jersey as well as the summer flounder stocks.”
Earlier this month LoBiondo joined with fellow New Jersey Representative Chris Smith (NJ-04) and other members of the Congressional delegation to urge delaying 2017-2018 restrictions on New Jersey fishermen proposed by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC).
The letter requested Commerce Secretary Ross consider the management plan proposed by the state of New Jersey, and urged him to, “work administratively with the State of New Jersey to approve, implement and enforce New Jersey’s 2017 Summer Flounder regulations.” The full letter is available here.
How Trump administration ended great New Jersey fish fight
July 11, 2017 — President Donald Trump’s administration sided with New Jersey Tuesday in a dispute over catch limits for summer flounder that threatened to shut down the entire fishing season.
Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross approved the state’s Marine Fisheries Council proposal for 24 fewer fishing days but a smaller minimum size for fish, rather than the limits imposed by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission.
Rep. Chris Smith (R-4th Dist.) called Ross’s decision “great news for the state of New Jersey, our fishing community, our economy and all who visit the shore.”
Members of the state’s congressional delegation had opposed the more stringent limits of a 19-inch minimum, with a three fish limit per trip over a 128-day season.
At one point, the fisheries commission threatened to impose a moratorium on all fishing.
“The decision to not institute a fishing moratorium, and instead accept New Jersey’s more balanced and reasonable summer catch standards, will sustain New Jersey’s summer flounder industries while upholding conservation standards,” Smith said.
Summer flounder remains big hit throughout New Jersey
July 10, 2017 — Summer flounder seem to be holding on to their ranking as the fan favorite against a number of contenders.
Last week, Bill Mendenhall Sr. and Jr. made their trek from Downingtown, Pennsylvania, to the back bays of Margate, like they have done since forever.
They racked up 94 fish with regular partner Skip Van Lew on a rental boat from Ray Scott’s Dock in Margate to come away with two keepers both at the minimum 18 inches.
The Mendenhalls were back Monday with another fishing partner and topped both of those amazing numbers with 112 flounder and three keepers. Bill Sr. was high hook with all three keepers (picture on B8), one 20 inches long, and he racked up four doubleheaders, according to Robin Scott.
A signficant number of flounder are being caught throughout the back bays, inlets and inshore waters, but there sure seems to be a carpet of fish under the 18-inch minimum there and on the inshore lumps in the ocean.
One of the quality catches recently was reported by Sue Burns at Point Tackle in Somers Point. Dave Filarski weighed a 7.8-pound flounder he caught with a mackerel strip near the Longport Bridge. Filarski docks at Seaview Harbor Marina in Great Egg Inlet.
Another was recorded at Avalon Hodge-Podge by Rob Myers,of Pittsburgh. He weighed a 5.5-pound flounder caught in the back bays of Avalon with a minnow.
Noel Feliciano weighed five flounder Sunday, including a 4.7-pounder.
US squid fishery looks to tackle a world first
July 10, 2017 — The Northeast United States longfin inshore squid fishery is on its way to becoming the first of its kind in the world to undergo a successful Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification assessment, Lund’s Fisheries and The Town Dock announced on 7 July.
Lund’s, based out of of Cape May, New Jersey, and The Town Dock, based out of Point Judith, Rhode Island, have requested the assessment, which is being conducted by independent auditor SCS Global Services. Following a positive pre-assessment completed in January, the requesting companies decided to go ahead with submitting the longfin squid fishery, which dates back to the late 19th century, for MSC certification.
“Throughout our 37 years of business, our goal has always been to provide customers with a healthy and sustainable seafood product,” said Katie Almeida, fishery policy analyst at The Town Dock, which is the largest supplier of longfin squid in the United States. “By certifying longfin squid, we hope to take that promise of sustainability a step further, and to provide our customers with squid for many years to come.”
“For over 60 years, we have constantly strived to improve the quality and sustainability of our products to meet the high standards of our customers,” added Jeff Kaelin, government relations coordinator at Lund’s Fisheries. “Our effort to certify longfin and Illex squid as sustainable is another example of our commitment to producing the best, most responsibly sourced seafood possible for our customers.”
New Jersey’s fluke question will be answered next week
July 7, 2017 — New Jersey will get an answer to the question of whether the state is out of compliance with its 18-inch summer flounder regulation next week.
State officials from the Department of Environmental Protection were able to plead their case to NOAA Fisheries on a June 27 conference call.
“We were able to go into great detail about the data behind New Jersey’s management measures that will conserve more fish and reduce the number of larger breeding females removed from the fishery, and therefore provide stronger recruitment for the future,” said NJDEP Spokesperson Bob Considine.
Biologists with the DEP’s Division of Fish and Wildlife have provided NOAA information demonstrating that an 18-inch size limit would result in far fewer discard mortalities than the 19-inch limit, which was the regulation adopted by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission on Feb. 2, in order to reduce the coastwide catch of summer flounder by 30 percent.
NJ adopted its own summer flounder rules in May. In June the ASMFC made a recommendation to the U.S. Secretary of Commerce to find New Jersey out of compliance with those rules.
Toni Kerns, the ASMFC’s director of the interstate fisheries management plan, said the ruling is expected on or about July 12.
Increased whale sightings in New York City waters a sign of cleaner waters
July 6, 2017 — New video shows a diver off the coast of Tasmania coming face to face with a whale recently in a once-in-a-lifetime encounter.
But you don’t have to travel to Australia to see these marine giants–they’re now in the waters off New York City.
Though the Hudson River was once a national symbol for pollution, humpback whales have become a more common sight around New York and New Jersey, reports CBS News correspondent Jeff Glor.
A whale sighting may look like an acrobatic display with its fluke set against the city’s skyscrapers, but they’re actually lunge feeding–attacking fish called menhaden.
“One of the things that brings everything together is this food chain,” said Paul Sieswerda, the president of the non-profit Gotham Whale. He says menhaden are thriving because the water is cleaner.
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