Saving Seafood

Reminder: Historic Shipwreck Avoidance on Stellwagen Bank

April 9, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA Fisheries, in conjunction with NOAA Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, requests that vessels avoid shipwreck sites on southern Stellwagen Bank within the Sanctuary by keeping gear 400 feet away from each of the site locations listed below.

We recognize that fishermen want to avoid shipwrecks to ensure the safety of the crew and because of the risks of damaging their gear when the gear gets hung up on a wreck or other objects on the ocean floor.  Hanging up on a wreck can also cause serious damage to shipwrecks that have historical significance.

For more information read the permit holder bulletin posted on our website.

Read the full release here

Whale strandings may be sign of recovery

April 8, 2020 — A die-off of several hundred gray whales last year might, in fact, represent a promising future for the creatures, according to an expert in marine mammals.

According to NOAA Fisheries, there were 215 gray whale strandings on the Pacific coasts of the United States, Canada and Mexico during 2019, which the administration classified as an unusual mortality event, defined as “a stranding that is unexpected, involves a significant die-off of any marine mammal population and demands immediate response.” A previous gray whale mortality event in 1999 saw an even higher number of strandings.

Bruce Mate has researched marine mammals for more than 50 years and is the former director and endowed chair of the Marine Mammal Institute at Oregon State University.

He said the gray whale population had been reduced to between 1,000 and 2,000 animals by 1900 due to commercial whaling. The 20th century brought protections against over-exploitation of whales, first through the League of Nations and, later, by the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling. The United States also protected them though the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 and the Endangered Species Act of 1973, all of which helped reduce risks for the population.

Read the full story at the Newport News Times

Saving Seafood Urges Industry to Comment on NOAA’s Emergency Rule Regarding Observer Waivers

April 8, 2020 — On March 27th, NOAA Fisheries published an Emergency Rule regarding the circumstances by which observer coverage would be waived.

In the opinion of a number of our Saving Seafood coalition members, the emergency rule does not provide sufficient protections to ensure the health and safety of the captains and crew of commercial fishing vessels.

The conditions proposed for the waivers leave an opportunity for continued observer coverage. Many of our members feel at this time a permanent waiver should be granted for 90 days. State and Federal entities have made it perfectly clear that serious precautions should be taken to control the spread of this virus.

Given the inherent nature of the fishing industry, close quarters on fishing vessels and the potential spread of the virus to entire crews, and their families, many of our members believe the cost is too great.

Please use the Federal Register notice to submit comments and share your personal experience and concerns.

In addition, the emergency rule indicates that some of the observer training and requirements may be waived to make sure there is sufficient personnel available to act as observers.

We encourage industry members to provide your own thoughts on that topic, as you have all had your own experience with the observers.

Comment on the emergency rule here

New State of the Ecosystem Reports Document “Big Picture” Around Fishing

April 7, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Two newly issued reports provide a snapshot of the Northeast U.S. Shelf Ecosystem. They look at everything from phytoplankton production at the bottom of the food web to the fishery harvests at the top. One report focuses on Georges Bank and the Gulf of Maine the other on the waters of the Mid-Atlantic Bight. These are the three major regions within the Northeast U.S. Continental Shelf Large Marine Ecosystem.

These annual reports are part of a larger, ongoing NOAA-wide initiative. It provides a consistent national approach to managing ecosystems that is flexible enough to accommodate regional needs. This Integrated Ecosystem Assessment approach is intended to help resource managers integrate physical, biological, economic, and social components of ecosystems into their decision-making. This will help them to balance trade-offs and determine which approaches are more likely to achieve their desired goals. The 2020 State of the Ecosystem Reports inform the New England and the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Councils.

“This approach has helped give the council structure with specific steps to define what our management goals and objectives are, figure out how we can address them, and understand what that means for areas such as economics,” said Brandon Muffley, a fishery management specialist at the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council.

The State of the Ecosystem reports were produced by the Northeast Fisheries Science Center, with additional collaborators from academic research institutions, non-profit organizations, and state agencies.

Read the full release here

NOAA Fisheries Seeks Comments on Proposed 2020 Recreational Rules for Summer Flounder

April 6, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

We propose to continue the conservation equivalency approach for the summer flounder recreational fishery, in which states or regions develop minimum sizes, possession limits, and fishing seasons that will achieve the necessary level of conservation. Both the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission recommended continuing conservation equivalency in 2020.

The proposed rule contains additional details on conservation equivalency, including what measures would be put in place if the Commission does not ultimately recommended conservation equivalency.

If approved conservation equivalency expires at the end of the fishing year (December 31).  The non-preferred coastwide measures become effective January 1.

Read the proposed rule as published in the Federal Register today.

The comment period is open through April 21. Submit your comments through the e-rulemaking portal.

NOAA Fisheries Seeks Comments on Proposed Rule: Removal of Regulations Implementing the Closed Area I Hook Gear Haddock Special Access Program

April 6, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

We are seeking public comment on an action that would eliminate the regulations implementing the Closed Area I Hook Gear Haddock Special Access Program.

The Special Access Program was implemented to provide groundfish vessels additional opportunity to harvest healthy stocks within year-round groundfish Closed Area I if they complied with certain gear and other restrictions.  The Omnibus Essential Fish Habitat Amendment eliminated Closed Area I on April 9, 2018.  As a result, the Program no longer provides access or allows activity otherwise prohibited by any closed or gear restricted area.  No vessel has participated in the Program since the start of fishing year 2018.

Restrictions and requirements related to the Program, including reporting requirements and possession/trip limits, are now unnecessary and confusing. Removing the Program from the regulations will help avoid confusion and inconsistency with other regulations.

For more details, please read the rule as published in the Federal Register.

The comment period is open through May 6.

Submit your comments through the e-rulemaking portal.

NOAA Fisheries’ Procedural Directive on Data Retention for 3rd-Party EM Programs

April 6, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA:

NOAA Fisheries has reviewed the feedback and developed final guidance for Councils and NOAA Fisheries to develop data retention requirements for EM programs. As part of this guidance, our recommendation is that programs retain electronic monitoring (EM) data for at least 12-months once fishing is over and the catch monitoring processes are completed. This recommendation balances the fishing industry’s request to reduce unnecessary costs, while considering the length of time data must be retained to meet various program objectives. As noted in this guidance, as we learn more about program functions and costs, we can revisit this guidance in the future. The final procedural directive is published here and is attached.

NOAA Fisheries published a draft procedural directive in August 2019 on how long to retain data collected under an EM service provider “third-party” model. In these programs, the fishing industry is responsible for the data storage costs. As you know, the use of EM is an effective tool for collecting critical fishery-dependent data for science and management purposes. Unlike traditional means of data collection in fisheries (e.g., via at-sea observer programs or logbooks), the raw EM data video, imagery, or sensor data during fishing operations—can require substantially more storage capacity and make up a large portion of EM costs. We appreciate the expressed concerns over EM data storage costs, received and responded to input, and expect this guidance will resolve some uncertainty as EM programs continue development. We recognize there are other remaining questions too, such as retention of federal records. NOAA Fisheries is working on this issue and will provide an update shortly.

West Coast Salmon Fishing and Southern Residents: Part 1

April 3, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Southern Resident killer whales have long pursued the biggest and most nourishing Chinook salmon from coastal Pacific waters. Chinook salmon fishing is also a mainstay of the West Coast economy, generating nearly $72 million in income last year.

Is there room for both?

The answer is yes, with safeguards. NOAA Fisheries prioritizes the needs of Southern Residents in setting salmon fishing seasons, as the Endangered Species Act requires. We also recognize the importance of salmon fisheries to port communities up and down the West Coast, as outlined by laws including the Magnuson Stevens Act.

We are working with states, tribes, and the Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council). We are examining in detail how West Coast fisheries affect prey for the Southern Residents. So far, the analysis has indicated that Council fisheries have been taking a small proportion of the available Chinook salmon each year.

Read the full release here

FishNews April 2, 2020

April 3, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

We recently stood up a team of experts from across the agency to collect and analyze COVID-19-related impacts on the U.S. commercial seafood industry, including wild harvest and aquaculture. We are interested in learning about the virus’ impacts on their employees, their business, the businesses they support, and the broader seafood supply chain.

We are also looking at impacts on the recreational, subsistence, non-commercial, and tribal fishing industries. With this effort, we are interested in assessing immediate and long-term needs to secure and enhance the resilience of the U.S. seafood and fisheries industries. We will continue to work with the Administration and Congress on this important, unprecedented COVID-19-driven effort.

Stakeholders interested in sharing information on the effects of COVID-19 on their businesses can submit that information to NMFS.COVID-19@noaa.gov.

Read the full release here