Saving Seafood

Federal rules are sinking Maine’s lobster industry

October 25, 2021 — As a lifelong Maine lobsterman, I understand the inherent dangers of my job. I keep watch on the forecast knowing that sudden weather changes can make the difference between a successful day at work and putting my crew’s life at risk. These days, however, the hazard posed by Mother Nature does not compare with the perfect storm of regulations coming out of Washington that threaten my job, our way of life and may eventually sink a fishery that has supported communities and generations of families here in Maine.

In May, National Marine Fisheries Service released a nearly 1,000-page document outlining a 10-year plan that mandates a seemingly unreachable goal to reduce risk from our industry to the endangered North Atlantic right whale by 98 percent. This not only affects me, but nearly 10,000 other men and women who make their living hauling traps.

The fisheries service rolled out the first phase of this plan in August, requiring new gear modifications to add more traps to each buoy line while simultaneously making each line weaker. These measures reduce risk by removing a lot of rope from the ocean and help any entangled right whale to break free from the lines that remain, but they will most certainly make a lobsterman’s already dangerous job even more so.

Recently, a federal judge in Bangor temporarily delayed a seasonal closure of more than 950 square miles of prime lobstering ground off Maine. While we are relieved with this decision, the proposed closure reflects just one in a long line of decisions in the government’s plan that is supposed to protect right whales. The problem is this misguided plan takes aim at the wrong target and may destroy our industry while doing little to help protect the whale.

Read the full opinion piece at the Bangor Daily News

 

Amendment 23 Implementation Outreach Workshops

October 21, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

The New England Fishery Management Council developed Amendment 23 to the Northeast Multispecies Fishery Management Plan to revise the groundfish sector monitoring program. The Council’s selected measures include a requirement for 100 percent of sector groundfish trips to be monitored, if the agency can reimburse industry’s costs. Sectors would be able to use either human at-sea monitors or either of two electronic monitoring options, or a combination of those options, to meet their monitoring requirement.

While NOAA Fisheries reviews Amendment 23, we are determining how to implement the measures if they are approved. On October 12, we hosted an informational webinar and we have scheduled a series of virtual workshops this fall to assist industry in preparing for the implementation of Amendment 23, if approved. The informational webinar focused on presenting information about the new Maximized Retention Electronic Monitoring model, implementation decisions made to date, a timeline for additional implementation decisions, and our outreach plan to engage constituents in collaboratively planning implementation details.

Informational Webinar

October 12, 2021:  2-3:30 p.m.

Click here for a recording of the webinar.

Virtual Workshops

We are also planning a series of virtual workshops, with multiple webinars to allow each to focus in-depth on a limited number of topics. We will limit the number of attendees for each webinar to ensure that all participants have an opportunity to engage in the discussion. Topics will be chosen based on public feedback so that we focus on the issues of interest to our constituents.

We will be rescheduling the first workshop, initially scheduled for October 27, to a later date this fall.  Next week we will post an agenda for the November 3 workshop.

Please email us to register for a workshop webinar, suggest topics for a workshop agenda, or to provide other feedback for the workshops.

For more information on the webinar and virtual workshops, visit the event page.

Questions?

Media: Contact Allison Ferreira, Regional Office, 978-281-9103

 

US Pacific Fishery Managers Recommend Quota for American Samoa Bottomfish

October 20, 2021 — The following was released by the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council:

Today, the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council recommended the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) implement a 5,000-pound annual catch limit (ACL) for the American Samoa bottomfish stock complex. According to a 2019 NMFS assessment, the 11-species bottomfish complex is overfished and the fishery is experiencing overfishing. A 10-year rebuilding plan is required by the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act. Federal waters will be closed to bottomfishing when the ACL is projected to be reached. With 85% of the bottomfish habitat located within territorial waters, it is critical that federal and local fishery management efforts are coordinated.

The American Samoa Department of Marine and Wildlife Resources presented a draft Bottomfish Management Plan to the Council that was developed with input from fishing communities in Tutuila and Manu‘a. The plan includes mandatory catch reporting; fisher and fish dealer licensing; vessel registration; seasonal, area-based and catch-based closures; and size limits.

In his remarks to open the Council meeting, American Samoa Governor Lemanu Mauga said fishing is a way of life in the islands and a vital aspect of his culture. He noted that only a tiny portion of the bottomfishers’ catch is sold—most is “eaten, shared and distributed among families, especially during fa‘alavelaves (cultural events, funerals, weddings, etc.) and holidays. Perhaps, it is also high time to explore more culturally appropriate ways of managing this type of small, cultural and subsistence fishery.”

“The dilemma that we are facing in American Samoa is the difficulty of melding Western ways with cultural ways we live by every day,” said Kitty Simonds, Council executive director. Simonds pointed out the Council has worked for many years to develop a management system without strict regulations that better fits the Western Pacific Region.

Manny Dueñas, Council vice chair from Guam, supported the recommendation, but with reservations about the health and welfare of the American Samoa community. He commented he would hate to be in Council Chairman Soliai’s shoes when he tells the community to stop catching fish for their festivities. The Guam bottomfish fishery is overfished according to a 2019 NMFS stock assessment.

The territory has a population of approximately 58,000 people, with more than 54% living under the poverty level. The ACL for the bottomfish stock complex specified in 2017 was 106,000 pounds.

The Council manages federal fisheries operating in waters offshore of the State of Hawai‘i, the Territories of American Samoa and Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) and the U.S. Pacific Remote Islands Areas.

 

Maine Lobstering Union Lands Injunction to Halt Right Whale Lobster Fishing Area Closure

October 19, 2021 — The Maine Lobstering Union (MLU) was granted emergency relief by U.S. District Judge Lance E. Walker on October 16 to halt an impending closure of a lobster fishing area off Maine.

The closure was set to be implemented as part of the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS)’s Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Plan Modifications announced at the end of August.

After learning of the closure, the MLU, along with other industry groups including the Maine Lobstermen’s Association (MLA), sued the NMFS over the right-whale related rule changes.

According to the MLU, the closure would have impacted a large area of “prime lobstering territory.”

Read the full story at Seafood News

 

On the Water: A Look at Life as an Observer October 13, 2021

October 18, 2021 — Keenan Carpenter has always loved being on the water. Growing up in Florida, he dreamed of a pro fishing career. Today, you can often find him casting his rod from the beach or on a kayak in his spare time. But as he moved through his studies in marine sciences at Jacksonville University, he found another way to channel his affinity for fishing and his background in sciences—as an observer for NOAA Fisheries.

“I watch what gets taken out of the ocean to ensure there’s more to get taken out later,” Carpenter says of his work. As one of about 850 observers contracted by NOAA Fisheries, Carpenter acts as the agency’s eyes and ears on the water. Observers collect data from commercial fishing vessels on what’s caught and what’s discarded, and track interactions with seabirds, sea turtles, and marine mammals. The data are critical “puzzle pieces of the whole picture,” as Carpenter says, underpinning the decisions made for sustainable fisheries management.

Read the full story from NOAA Fisheries

 

NOAA Fisheries Announces Atlantic Mackerel Fishery Closure

October 14, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA Fisheries is closing the entire Atlantic mackerel fishery in federal waters through the end of the fishing year on December 31, 2021.

Effective at 0001 hour on October 15, 2021, vessels are prohibited from fishing for or landing more than 5,000 lb of Atlantic mackerel per trip in or from federal waters through December 31, 2021. Vessels may not land Atlantic mackerel more than once per calendar day.

The most recent management track assessment from the Northeast Fisheries Science Center concluded that the species remains overfished and overfishing increased slightly. We are implementing this closure to minimize additional catch for the remainder of the current fishing year.

If you have started a trip prior to October 15, 2021, you may offload and sell more than 5,000 lb of Atlantic mackerel from that trip, as long as the vessel entered port before 0001 hr on October 15, 2021.

For more information, please read the notice as filed in the Federal Register, and the permit holder bulletin posted on our website.

Questions?

Fishermen: Contact Alyson Pitts, Regional Office, 978-281-9352

Media: Contact Allison Ferreira, Regional Office, 978-281-9103

U.S. waterways plan draws lawsuit over species impacts

October 13, 2021 — A U.S. plan to expand the commercial use of navigable waterways increases risks to already imperiled species like the North Atlantic right whale, an environmental group claims in a lawsuit filed in Newport News, Virginia federal court on Tuesday.

The Center for Biological Diversity accuses the U.S. Maritime Administration, part of the Department of Transportation, of violating the Endangered Species Act (ESA) with its America’s Marine Highway program by failing to consult with the Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service to ensure the program does not jeopardize species protected under the statute.

The Center for Biological Diversity says that many of the marine highways are located in critical habitats for ESA-listed species, including humpback whales and leatherback sea turtles.

Read the full story at Reuters

Please Join the Discussion: NOAA’s Southeast For-Hire Electronic Reporting Program in the South Atlantic

October 8, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

What:

NOAA Fisheries newly appointed Southeast Regional Administrator, Andy Strelcheck will provide an update and take questions about the agency’s Southeast For-Hire Electronic Reporting Program. The call is moderated by an operator with callers being placed into a queue to ask questions after a few opening remarks.    

When:

Thursday, October 14, from 12-2pm EST

Where:

Dial 1-888-282-0362

Passcode: 8210831   

Get Involved:

The next South Atlantic Fishery Management Council Meeting will be December 6-10 at the Beaufort Hotel in Beaufort, NC

https://safmc.net/safmc-meetings/council-meetings/

 

Maine Lobstermen’s Association: Maine lobstermen frustrated by whale rules

October 7, 2021 — On Aug.31, the National Marine Fisheries Service released the long-awaited final rule which outlines measures for the Northeast lobster fishery to reduce the risk of entangling right whales by 60 percent. The Maine Lobstermen’s Association is committed to action to recover the North Atlantic right whale, but the species cannot rebuild without a conservation plan supported by scientific evidence and comparable measures implemented in Canada and the U.S. shipping industry. The MLA remains extremely concerned that NMFS is placing an unwarranted burden on the Maine lobster fishery.

The U.S. lobster fishery implemented new regulations more than a decade ago which have reduced known right whale entanglement in U.S. lobster gear by 90 percent.

“According to NMFS data, the Maine lobster fishery has not had a documented entanglement with a North Atlantic right whale in over 17 years and has never been known to kill or seriously injure a right whale,” said Patrice McCarron, executive director of the MLA.

By comparison, an historic number of right whales have died in Canadian waters over the past five years, and Canada has yet to implement protections comparable to the U.S. Moreover, the most current, best available scientific evidence documents a change in right whale migration patterns away from Maine waters and into Canada and other areas.

Read the full article at National Fisherman

 

Resources Available to Assist Fishermen with Transition to Electronic Reporting

October 7, 2021 — The following was released  by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA Fisheries is moving away from paper vessel trip reporting requirements in the Greater Atlantic Region. Beginning on November 10, 2021, most fishermen permitted to fish federal marine waters from Cape Hatteras, North Carolina to the Canadian border will be required to submit their vessel trip reports electronically. They must be submitted to NOAA Fisheries within 48 hours of the conclusion of a fishing trip. The new reporting requirement applies to all federally permitted vessels except those holding only a permit for American lobster.

There is a wealth of information for fishermen making the transition from paper to electronic reporting, including a number of detailed tutorials and recordings of previously held training webinars. Learn more and watch a new short video on how to use the new eVTR app on our website.

If you have additional questions about electronic reporting requirements in the Greater Atlantic region:

•Contact the Industry Support Line at (978) 281-9188.

•Contact your local Port Agent.

Read the full release from the NOAA Fisheries