Saving Seafood

SAFMC: South Atlantic Bite – Newsworthy Notes

March 17, 2021 — The following was released by the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

Gut Check: What is DNA Barcoding Telling Us about What Red Snapper Are Really Eating?
Tuesday, March 30, 2021
2 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. via webinar

  • Join in as the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council hosts a presentation from Kevin Spanik with the S.C. Department of Natural Resources on recent diet analysis of Red Snapper conducted in the South Atlantic region. This seminar is open to the public. Register now.

Sea Change: Using Citizen Science to Inform Fisheries Management

  • A new article published in BioScience highlights the development of the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council’s Citizen Science Program and the use of citizen science in marine fisheries. Check out the article and see the amazing work done by a variety of teams and advisors from across the world! The article shares best practices, support resources, and recommendations compiled to create this unique Citizen Science Program. Learn more

USDA Seeks Comments, Will Host Listening Sessions on Support for Seafood Producers

  • The U.S. Department of Agriculture is soliciting input from seafood producers and processors impacted by COVID-19. A Listening Session for those impacted in the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico will be held March 18, 2021from 2 p.m. until 5 p.m. Registration is required the day before the session to provide oral comments. Written comments are being accepted until March 31, 2021 at AMSCOVIDStimulus@usda.gov. Questions should also be sent to the same email address.

Executive Order on Tackling Climate Change

  • NOAA Fisheries is seeking public input on how to make fisheries and protected resources more resilient to climate change. The agency is taking this step in response to Section 216(c) of President Biden’s Executive Order issued on January 27, 2021 titled Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad. Stakeholders nationwide are invited to join conference calls on March 23 and April 1 to provide suggestions. March 25 is for state and tribal governments. Comment deadline is April 2, 2021.

Slow Zones Extended Protect Right Whales: Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket

March 17, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

On March 16, 2021, the New England Aquarium aerial survey team observed two aggregations of right whales. The aggregations were observed south of Martha’s Vineyard, MA and south of Nantucket, Island, MA. Both the Martha’s Vineyard, MA and Nantucket Island, MA Slow Zones are extended through March 31, 2021.

Mariners are requested to route around these areas or transit through it at 10 knots or less.

Slow Zone Coordinates:

South of Martha’s Vineyard, MA, March 7-31, 2021

41 21 N
40 41 N
070 15 W
071 06 W

South of Nantucket, MA, March 7-31, 2021

41 23 N
40 40 N
069 39 W
070 35 W

See the coordinates for all the slow zones currently in effect.

Read the full release here

Northwest’s Iconic Salmon Face Tough Conditions During Ocean Journey

March 16, 2021 — Ocean conditions can be integral to salmon survival. And in 2021, the Pacific Northwest’s iconic fish will face a mixed bag: some good and some bad conditions while out at sea.

Salmon survive best when the water is cooler along the coast and warmer farther out. Colder La Niña conditions have also led to higher salmon counts. Right now, that’s exactly what’s happening. But things will likely change over the summer.

“The next few months look pretty good. However, things are expected to change. A lot of the warm water we’ve seen the past couple of years is not gone completely. It’s just not at the surface,” says Brian Burke, a research fisheries biologist with NOAA Fisheries.

The mixed messages the ocean is sending for salmon survival could be frustrating for fisheries managers, who are trying to figure out how many fish will return to fresh waters.

Warm water may come close to the coastline this July through September, which spells trouble for salmon in the ocean.

Read the full story at KLCC

MASSACHUSETTS: Speaking to call of the sea

March 15, 2021 — The voices of Gloucester fishermen and those that process their catch along the city’s historic waterfront now can be heard anywhere and for posterity.

The voices speak to the experience of living and fishing in America’s oldest commercial seaport, of the challenges and the joys of working on the waters of Cape Ann and beyond. They are at once a snapshot and endurable timeline collected into recorded interviews and fashioned into an integrated story map of the Gloucester fishing and community experience.

The stories — and the voices which tell them — are contained in the newest online chapter of the Voices of Oral History Archives organized and produced by NOAA Fisheries’ Northeast Fisheries Science Center.

It’s titled “Strengthening Community Resilience in America’s Oldest Seaport” and is a collaboration between the oral history archive and the Cape Ann Partnership for Science Technology and Natural Environment.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times

Scallop Research Set-Aside Program Supports 13 Projects for 2021-2022; Focus on Surveys, Bycatch Reduction, Turtles

March 15, 2021 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The Atlantic Sea Scallop Research Set-Aside (RSA) Program will support 13 new projects under the 2021- 2022 award cycle. The awards are expected to generate approximately $12.5 million, including $3 million to fund the research and $9.5 million to compensate industry partners who harvest the set-aside scallops. The selected projects address scallop research priorities identified by the New England Fishery Management Council during its June 2020 meeting. The projects focus on resource surveys, bycatch reduction, seed scallop habitat, loggerhead turtles, and data collection by fishermen.

The awards were announced on March 15, 2021 by the Northeast Fisheries Science Center and the Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office, which both are part of NOAA Fisheries. The Council and NOAA Fisheries work together to support the research set-aside program. The Council sets priorities, and NOAA Fisheries manages the RSA competition and administers the program.

RSA-funded scallop surveys have become increasingly important in:

  • Providing information that directly helps scientists determine the status and distribution of the resource; and
  • Guiding the Council in management decision-making.

Read the full release here

2021-2022 Sea Scallop RSA Projects Selected

March 15, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA Fisheries has selected 13 projects for 2021-2022 awards through the Sea Scallop Research Set-Aside (RSA) Program. The selected projects focus on research priorities identified by the New England Fishery Management Council, which established the Sea Scallop RSA Program in 1999. The council sets priorities, and NOAA Fisheries manages the RSA competition and administers the program.

NOAA Fisheries expects to make final awards later this month. A list of selected projects and more can be accessed here.

Questions?

Contact Cheryl Corbett, Northeast Fisheries Science Center Cooperative Projects Coordinator

NOAA Plays Pivotal Role in Combating Illegal, Unregulated, and Unreported Fishing Globally

March 15, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Combating illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing is a top priority for the United States. NOAA Fisheries is proud to be a leader in the nation’s comprehensive approach to this battle. It includes many government agencies working in concert to identify bad actors, suspect vessels, and ports that have no interest in protecting the integrity of the seafood supply. IUU fishing damages nations’ economies, threatens marine resources, and harms U.S. fishing fleets and consumers. Due to the inherent nature of IUU fishing, it is almost impossible to accurately quantify the full global economic impacts resulting from these activities. However, there is little disagreement that it is in the billions, or even tens of billions, of dollars each year.

The scope of IUU fishing can also be broad, occurring at various points throughout the world’s massive seafood supply chain. That means our efforts to combat IUU fishing must be multi-pronged. We work with U.S. and state agencies to promote compliance with import requirements that help prevent IUU fish and fish products from entering U.S. markets. We also work with foreign governments and regional fisheries management organizations to promote international cooperation to achieve effective, responsible marine stewardship and ensure sustainable fisheries management.​

In 2018, NOAA Fisheries established the U.S. Seafood Import Monitoring Program. SIMP mandates permitting, reporting, and recordkeeping requirements for importers of certain seafood products. It supports the identification of IUU fish and fish products and misrepresented seafood while complementing existing NOAA traceability programs for imported seafood products. The program requires documentation from the point of harvest to the point of entry into U.S. commerce for 13 seafood species. These species were identified as particularly vulnerable to IUU fishing and/or seafood fraud. SIMP seeks to trace seafood entering our domestic supply chain—deterring and combating IUU fishing and seafood fraud. Our continued implementation of SIMP includes:

  • Modernizing and integrating the technology system that supports SIMP
  • Focusing on the interplay between audits and enforcement
  • Making any necessary changes, both programmatic and regulatory, to more effectively implement the program 

Read the full release here

Reopening of the Commercial Golden Tilefish Longline Component in South Atlantic Federal Waters on March 20, 2021, for 11 Days

March 12, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

WHAT/WHEN:

The commercial longline component for golden tilefish in South Atlantic federal waters will reopen for 11 days beginning on March 20, 2021.  Commercial harvest for the longline component will reopen at 12:01 a.m., local time, on March 20, 2021, and close at 12:01 a.m., local time, on March 31, 2021.  During the 11-day reopening, the commercial trip limit for the commercial longline component for golden tilefish is 4,000 pounds gutted weight or 4,480 pounds whole weight.

WHY THIS REOPENING IS HAPPENING:

The 2021 golden tilefish commercial catch limit for the longline component is 248,805 pounds gutted weight.  On February 10, 2021, the catch limit for the commercial longline component for the 2021 season was projected to be met, and NOAA Fisheries closed the season.  However, a subsequent landings update indicates that the golden tilefish longline component catch limit has not been met, and reopening will allow the commercial longline component to reach its catch limit.

AFTER THE REOPENING AND SUBSEQUENT CLOSURE:

  • Only golden tilefish longline endorsement holders are allowed to harvest golden tilefish with longline fishing gear.
  • Golden tilefish harvested with longline fishing gear may not be sold or purchased after the closure. The prohibition on sale or purchase during the subsequent closure does not apply to fish that were harvested, landed ashore, and sold prior to 12:01 a.m., local time, on March 31, 2021, and were held in cold storage by a dealer or processor.
  • During the longline closure, a vessel with a golden tilefish longline endorsement may not commercially harvest golden tilefish using hook-and-line fishing gear, and is limited to the golden tilefish recreational bag and possession limits when the recreational sector is open, without regard to where the golden tilefish was harvested (i.e. in state or federal waters).
  • A vessel that does not have a longline endorsement, but has a commercial South Atlantic snapper-grouper unlimited permit, may commercially harvest golden tilefish with hook-and-line fishing gear until the hook-and-line catch limit is reached.
  • The 2022 fishing season for the golden tilefish commercial longline sector opens at 12:01 a.m., local time, on January 1, 2022.

This bulletin provides only a summary of the existing regulations.  Full regulations can be found in the Federal Register or at  https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=383bc195ccbeab4fd6bec1c24905df34&node=sp50.12.622.i&rgn=div6#_top.

NOAA Fisheries Approves Monkfish Quotas for 2021

March 11, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Effective May 1

NOAA Fisheries is implementing monkfish quotas for the 2021 fishing year based on specifications approved by the New England and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Councils. There were no overages in 2020, and there is no new biological information, so we are now finalizing the 2021 quotas that were previously announced in September 2020. The quotas are the same as the 2020 quotas and are in place until April 30, 2022.

Table 1.  Monkfish Specifications for Fishing Year 2021

All other requirements remain the same.

For more details, read the rule as filed in the Federal Register and the permit holder bulletin.

Questions?

Industry: Contact Allison Murphy, Regional Office, 978-281-9122

Media: Contact Jennifer Goebel, Regional Office, 978-281-9175

NOAA Fisheries Announces Adjustments to the Possession and Trip Limit for the Common Pool Groundfish Fishery

March 10, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Effective on March 11, 2021, the new common pool possession and trip limits for Georges Bank (GB) cod, Gulf of Maine (GOM) cod, GOM haddock, Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic (SNE/MA) winter flounder, American plaice, and witch flounder are summarized in the tables below.  These increases are in effect through the end of the fishing year on April 30, 2021.

New FY 2020 Possession and Trip Limits

This action is intended to provide additional fishing opportunities and facilitate harvest of the common pool quotas.

For more details, please read the rule as filed in the Federal Register, and our permit holder bulletin.

Questions?

Industry: Contact Spencer Talmage, Regional Office, 978-281-9232

Media: Contact Jennifer Goebel, Regional Office, 978-281-9175