Saving Seafood

The training and safety of observers

March 25, 2026 — The loss of an observer aboard the groundfish dragger Lily Jean out of Gloucester, Mass., has increased scrutiny of the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) observer program. The incident, one of approximately seven observer deaths in 50 years, illustrates how observers share many of the same risks as fishermen.

The NMFS observer programs began three years after President Richard Nixon and the US Congress established the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in 1970, and the existing Bureau of Commercial Fisheries was renamed the National Marine Fisheries Service. In 1973, NMFS started putting observers aboard foreign vessels as part of the North Pacific Foreign Fisheries Observer Program.

Initially, observers were placed on vessels only by invitation from host countries,” says the NOAA website on the history of its observer programs. After the 1976 passage of the Magnuson Stevens Act, foreign vessels had to accept observers, and by 1986, with the foreign vessels gone, NMFS began putting observers on U.S. boats.

Read the full article at The National Fisherman

US lawmakers introduce bill to reauthorize NOAA’s Chesapeake Bay Office

March 24, 2026 — U.S. lawmakers have introduced legislation to reauthorize NOAA’s Chesapeake Bay office and bolster restoration efforts in the bay’s watershed.

“The Chesapeake Bay is the heart of so many Virginia communities, supporting fisherman and local businesses, offering unique educational opportunities to students, and serving as a hotspot for recreation,” U.S. Senator Mark Warner (D-Virginia) said in a release. “I’m proud to introduce this legislation that works to ensure the Bay remains a resource for generations to come.”

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

MASSACHUSETTS: More than 100 right whales spotted south of Island

March 23, 2026 — Scientists in the New England Aquarium’s Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life, who conduct aerial surveys to collect data on the presence of marine animals, photographed more than 100 unique North Atlantic right whales over six weeks in waters south of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket.

The aquarium team and another survey team from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) flew six surveys between Feb. 5 and March 18 and photographed more than 115 right whales in that stretch, about a quarter of the current population of 380. Seventy individuals were sighted on March 2 alone, which the aquarium said is the highest number of individual right whales they’ve ever documented; their regular surveys began in 2011.

Many of the right whales, identified by unique marks on their heads called callosities, were deep below the surface, which scientists noted could indicate that food is abundant south of the islands, especially in the Nantucket Shoals area.

Read the full article at The Martha’s Vineyard Times

SSC Reviews Science Priorities as NOAA Funding Tightens

March 19, 2026 — The following was released by the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council:

At its meeting yesterday, the Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) of the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council reviewed a preliminary National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) risk/value matrix intended to align science and management priorities under reduced funding and staffing, while continuing to meet Magnuson-Stevens Act (MSA) mandates.

The regional fishery management councils and associated science centers and regional offices are asked to identify fisheries that may require a narrower science and management focus. Considerations are to be given to operational or management changes and actions needed to implement them. The matrix is intended to guide resource allocation for fiscal year 2027 and beyond for future survey, assessment and analysis cycles. In the Western Pacific, Council and NMFS staffs are developing a regional application of the framework, with a final proposal expected at the June Council meeting.

SSC members noted differences between the Council and NMFS on where certain fisheries fall within the matrix, reflecting differing views of risk and value as well as ambiguity in the guidelines. 

“The current matrix is still insufficient to support prioritization of funding for species-specific stock assessments,” said SSC member Shelton Harley.

Members said that criteria for cultural value and ecosystem importance are not captured for fisheries such as Hawai‘i Kona crab, deepsea shrimp and precious corals. Comparing each fishery’s data collection and analytical needs would improve the framework. Although Western Pacific fisheries like bottomfish and Kona crab are underutilized, their price per pound, contribution to island food security and cultural relevance make their overall value significant. NOAA’s current risk guidance also does not account for economic vulnerability.

Council obligations under the MSA remain unchanged despite any reduction in resources. Regional councils are responsible to manage fisheries for optimum yield and comply with the MSA’s National Standards, which include annual catch limits and accountability measures. Complete, transparent information, including funding, is needed to realistically align and prioritize management and science in this region. Applying the matrix could lead to management changes such as extending stock assessment or annual catch limit cycles, or reclassifying certain stocks as ecosystem component species.

The SSC formed two new working groups of members, Council staff and Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center staff – one to develop research priorities in light of budget constraints and help avoid interruptions in critical data streams, and another on “social valuation” to quantify the sociocultural and economic value of fisheries.

The SSC also reviewed the scientific basis for Guam’s draft territorial reef fish fishery management plan (FMP), following a request from the Guam Department of Agriculture for an independent evaluation of the data and assessment reports informing the plan. University of Guam Marine Laboratory researchers presented a weight-of-evidence approach using multiple datasets and methods to assess reef fish species. SSC members broadly supported the work as informative for the FMP and highlighted the importance of practical, enforceable measures, clear communication of uncertainty, and the use of local and fisher knowledge, especially for data-poor species.

 Tomorrow, the SSC will finalize their recommendations to the Council for fishing in the Pacific Islands Heritage Marine National Monument and protected species issues, among others (https://tinyurl.com/159SSCMtg).

ALASKA: NOAA releases Aquaculture Atlas for Gulf of Alaska

March 16, 2026 — A new Aquaculture Atlas for the Gulf of Alaska says the state’s aquaculture sector may be uniquely positioned to adapt to future climate scenarios, but that risks remain.

Shifts in water quality, disease outbreaks and intensified harmful algal bloom levels could threaten production and public health, the NOAA report said.

Additionally, expanding and shifting ranges of non-native or invasive species can affect ecosystem health and aquaculture viability in the future, according to the report.

The time series data used in the document, which was released in February, are relatively short, as they were not intended to distinguish climate-scale changes over time. Integrating longer-scale datasets, climate scenarios, and techno-economic modeling into future planning will be essential for building a resilient aquaculture industry, researchers said.

Read the full article at The Cordova Times 

West Coast groundfish fishery completes historic comeback

March 12, 2026 — After decades of restrictions that idled vessels, slashed quotas, and forced fishermen out of the industry, the West Coast groundfish fishery has fully rebuilt, and the men and women who stuck it out say the turnaround is nothing short of remarkable.

In Oct. 2025, federal fishery officials declared yelloweye rockfish rebuilt, marking the recovery of the last of 10 groundfish species that were once fished to below a quarter of their healthy levels. The announcement came years ahead of schedule- regulators had not expected the slow-growing species to rebound until 2084.

“These fish were really severely limited to us,” Aaron Longton, founder of Port Orford Sustainable Seafood in Oregon, told Mongabay. “Now, we have huge quotas.”

The milestone caps a 25-year effort that began in 2000, when then- Commerce Secretary William Daley declared the West Coast groundfish industry a federal disaster. The declaration triggered an immediate reduction in catch quotas for the 10 overfished species. The Pacific Fishery Management Council advised NOAA to close nearly 20,000 square miles of ocean to trawlers, effectively shutting down most of the fishing grounds.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

NOAA may modify vessel speed limits for right whales

March 5, 2026 — The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration could change its vessel speed rules where North Atlantic right whales migrate along the East Coast, potentially easing seasonal speed restrictions and adopting new technology to help avoid vessel strikes, the agency said March 3.

The proposed “deregulatory action” by NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service aims to “reduce unnecessary regulatory and economic burdens on the regulated community…with alternative management areas and advanced, technology-based, strike-avoidance measures that maintain or enhance conservation efficacy for the endangered North Atlantic right whale,” according to an agency notice in the Federal Register.

History and tradition hold that right whales were a preferred target of early American whalers for their habit of swimming on the sea surface, where they could be pursued by harpooners in small boats. Today the whales’ habits leave them vulnerable to accidental collision with vessels ranging from large sportfishing boats to commercial cargo ships.

The agency has used 10-knot speed limit advisories in waters off the East Coast during periods of higher right whale activity, aiming to reduce the chances of ship strikes.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

NASA Earth Science Researchers Join Science Center for Marine Fisheries; Will Integrate Satellite Data Into Fisheries Research

March 4, 2026 — The following was released by the Science Center for Marine Fisheries:

The Science Center for Marine Fisheries (SCEMFIS) is pleased to announce that researchers from NASA’s Earth Science Division have joined SCEMFIS as the latest members of its Industry Advisory Board (IAB). The partnership will create new opportunities to integrate NASA’s Earth observations into future SCEMFIS research, allow for closer collaboration with NASA scientists, and further SCEMFIS’ mission to support groundbreaking marine science research.

For decades NASA’s satellites have measured the biological and physical characteristics of the global ocean, information that has been integral to Earth science research broadly, and fisheries research in particular. The temperature of the surface ocean, for example, can influence the distribution and potential health of commercially important species such as menhaden and illex squid.

Another measurement, termed ocean color, is a key indicator of ocean health and food availability to various fish species. Because different particles and organisms in the water absorb and reflect different frequencies of light, the color of the ocean can tell us the locations and prevalence of microscopic phytoplankton. As the tiny “plants” of the sea, phytoplankton directly or indirectly feed nearly all ocean life and provide up to half the oxygen we breathe.

NASA’s decades of phytoplankton and other ocean measurements have advanced our understanding of the biological activity and overall health of the ocean, information critical to supporting coastal economies and our seafood supply chain.

NASA recently expanded ocean observation capabilities in 2024, with the launch of its PACE (Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem) mission. PACE can observe the ocean in a finer range of ultraviolet, infrared, and visible light wavelengths compared to previous missions. Seeing the ocean with hundreds of colors instead of 20 or 30 enables PACE to identify different types of phytoplankton across the globe each day, a capability unavailable on previous missions. Advanced phytoplankton measurements can help fisheries better respond to ever-changing ocean conditions and improve detection of phytoplankton that may be harmful to fish populations or seafood consumers.

By partnering with SCEMFIS, researchers at NASA will collaborate to apply this information to a new range of fisheries research projects. The partnership will allow for expanded commercial applications for existing NASA data and create a more formal collaborative relationship.

“Collaborating with NASA researchers to integrate these data into our future research will give us new insights into our oceans and the marine species that are important to us, and will benefit the finfish and shellfish fisheries and our industry partners,” said Joe Myers, Senior Director of Innovation & Sustainability at Sea Watch International, and the current chair of the SCEMFIS IAB.

“NASA Earth Science is a perfect fit for SCEMFIS’ mission, which is identifying and supporting the latest breakthroughs in marine science,” said Dr. Eric Powell of the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory at the University of Southern Mississippi, and the Director of SCEMFIS. “The broad portfolio of ocean observations from NASA, and the advanced data from PACE in particular, will be an integral part of future SCEMFIS research.”

About SCEMFIS
The Science Center for Marine Fisheries (SCEMFIS) brings together academic and industry expertise to address urgent scientific challenges facing sustainable fisheries. Through advanced methods, analytical tools, and collaborative research, SCEMFIS works to reduce uncertainty in stock assessments and improve the long-term sustainability of key marine resources.

SCEMFIS is an Industry-University Cooperative Research Center supported by the National Science Foundation. Industry organizations join SCEMFIS through an Industry Membership Agreement with one of the center’s site universities and contribute both financial support and valuable expertise to help shape research priorities.

Its university partners include the University of Southern Mississippi (lead institution) and the Virginia Institute of Marine Science at the College of William and Mary. The center also collaborates with scientists from a broad network of institutions, including Old Dominion University, Rutgers University, the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth, the University of Maryland, and the University of Rhode Island. These researchers bring deep expertise in finfish, shellfish, and marine mammal science.

Demand for SCEMFIS’ services continues to grow, driven by the fishing industry’s need for responsive, science-based support. The center provides timely access to expert input on stock assessment issues, participates in working groups, and conducts targeted studies that lead to better data collection, improved survey design, and more accurate modeling-all in service of sustainable, science-driven fishery management.

NOAA announces planned rollback of North Atlantic right whale protections

March 4, 2026 — The National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration has announced plans to roll back protections for North Atlantic right whales as part of the Trump Administration’s ongoing efforts to deregulate across multiple government sectors.

There are fewer than 380 right whales left in the world, with roughly 70 females capable of bearing young. North Atlantic Right Whales, one of the most endangered species in the world, are frequently spotted by the dozens in the Gulf of Maine.

Vessel strikes and equipment entanglement are the leading causes of death, Rachel Rilee of the Center for Biological Diversity told Maine Public.

Read the full article at NEPM

Young Fishermen’s Development Act renewed

March 4, 2026 — U.S. fishing organizations are applauding the passage of legislation renewing a key workforce training program for the commercial fishing industry.

The Fishing Communities Coalition (FCC) announced March 3 that H.R. 3692 has passed in the U.S. House of Representatives, reauthorizing the Young Fishermen’s Development Program (YFDP) through fiscal year 2031.

Administered through NOAA’s Sea Grant Program, the YFDP supports training opportunities for early-career commercial fishermen, focusing on marine safety, business management, and navigating the fishery management process.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman