Saving Seafood

Release of the North Atlantic Right Whale Scenario Planning Summary Report

March 22, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA has released the North Atlantic Right Whale Scenario Planning Summary Report, which provides the discussions and recommendations from a NOAA Fisheries-led exercise. During the exercise, experts explored plausible future conditions for North Atlantic right whales and developed possible options to address these conditions to improve recovery. This exercise complements and enhances the many important ongoing efforts to recover right whales.

NOAA Fisheries will consider the priority actions identified from this exercise, as well as other relevant information, in its efforts to help with right whale recovery. NOAA will continue to work with our partners to optimize North Atlantic right whale recovery in the future.

Questions?

Contact Diane Borggaard, NOAA Fisheries Greater Atlantic Region or Dori Dick, NOAA Fisheries Office of Protected Resources.

NOAA’s Paul Doremus: Seafood aligns well with Biden’s sustainability goals

March 22, 2021 — Senior officials from NOAA Fisheries speaking at the Seafood Expo North America Reconnect event on Thursday, 18 March, said U.S. President Joe Biden’s emphasis on action on climate change could align well with support for the domestic seafood industry.

The new administration has not even been in office for two month and still have several political appointments waiting to be confirmed. However, NOAA Fisheries Acting Assistant Administrator Paul Doremus told the audience numerous synergies exist between the fishing industry and climate interests in Biden’s “building back better” resiliency plan.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Recreational Gulf of Maine Cod and Haddock Season Opens April 1

March 22, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Recreational anglers and for-hire vessel operators are reminded that this year cod may be harvested from the Gulf of Maine from April 1 through April 14. Anglers may harvest 1 cod per day with a minimum length of 21 inches during this season.

Additionally, anglers may begin harvesting haddock in the Gulf of Maine on April 1, with a limit of 15 haddock per angler per day, and a minimum length of 17 inches. Fishing for groundfish, including cod and haddock, is prohibited in the “Whaleback” Closure from April 1 through June 30.

The harvest of cod and haddock is permitted year-round outside the Gulf of Maine.

Anglers must release all cod and haddock that do not meet the minimum size requirements, or during seasons or in areas where their harvest is prohibited. Anglers are encouraged to use circle hooks to minimize discard mortality of released fish, and are also encouraged to target haddock or other abundant stocks to minimize unintended cod mortality. Anglers interested in targeting haddock this season are encouraged to use Massachusetts DMF’s Haddock Fishing Guide.

The New England Fishery Management Council has made recommendations for status quo recreational measures for Gulf of Maine cod and haddock for fishing year 2021, starting May 1, 2021. We are still considering the Council’s recommendation, and will make a determination soon.

Anglers can find out more about recreational groundfish regulations, including bag limits and seasons in federal waters, on our website. Other resources for recreational anglers in the Greater Atlantic Region can be found here.

Read the full release here

Alaska Fisheries Science Center 2020 Year in Review

March 22, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

The Alaska Fisheries Science Center was able to accomplish a lot in FY 2020 despite the need to cancel some important field research and fish, crab and marine mammal surveys due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

It was a year of perseverance, creative thinking, and flexibility.

Our scientists took major steps to adjust the way we do business, protecting staff, communities and research partners while delivering critical science to support resource management and conservation efforts in FY20-21.

Some Highlights:

  • Set up makeshift, home-based labs to conduct critical process studies to provide age and diet information to inform fish and marine mammal stock assessments.
  • Employed innovative technologies to collect and more efficiently analyze data safely (e.g., sea going and aerial drones, artificial intelligence, remote camera and underwater acoustic monitoring systems, and sophisticated camera systems that simultaneously collect color, infrared, and ultraviolet images, etc.)
  • Substantially overhauled standard operating procedures to work with fisheries observer provider companies to deploy Federal fisheries observers on fishing vessels and in seafood processing facilities to collect needed data so fisheries could continue to operate and provide seafood to the nation and the world throughout the pandemic
  • Designed new modeling approaches to estimate fish and crab abundance to account for data limitations due to some cancelled surveys and research activities
  • Provided critical socio-economic analyses of COVID-related impacts on the commercial and recreational fishing industries
  • Increased collaboration with research, co-management and industry partners to monitor and collect data safely for bowhead whales, humpback whales, harbor seals, gray whales, Steller sea lions, northern fur seals, California sea lions, and commercially valuable pollock, red king crab and sablefish
  • Organized and safely supported a major ecosystem survey in the Bering Sea and Chukchi Sea during the pandemic
  • Completed a successful environmental DNA (eDNA) proof of concept in the inshore waters around Juneau, AK
  • Enlisted the help of state and academic scientists, Alaska Indigenous communities, private companies and others to collect ecosystem information and provide critical context for resource management decisions this year

Read the full release here

East Coast Fishermen Call for Fair Monument Policy From Biden Administration

March 19, 2021 — Over a dozen representatives of the New England and Mid-Atlantic seafood industry met with members of the Department of Interior and NOAA Fisheries officials, including Sam Rauch, Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs last Friday to hear their case for a fair and science-based marine monument policy.

East Coast industry members specifically asked to allow commercial fishing in areas within the monument as stated in an Executive Order from last June. That order, issued by the Trump Administration, was an amendement to the Obama Executive Order that created the monument on the basis of the Antiquities Act. President Obama’s proclamation prohibited commercial fishing, with a phase-out period for American lobster and red crab fisheries, within the monument’s boundaries.

President Biden asked the Secretary of the Interior to “… conduct a review of the monument boundaries and conditions that were established by … Proclamation 10049 of June 5, 2020 (Modifying the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument), to determine whether restoration of the monument boundaries and conditions that existed as of January 20, 2017, would be appropriate.”

Industry members raised concerns about creating marine monuments without input from the regional councils, without a basis of the best scientific advice available, and when the final economic and social impacts on the area’s communities would be negative.

They noted that allowing fishing in the Atlantic monument area is consistent with the Biden Administration’s goals of following the best available science, as well as its commitment to economic and environmental justice.

Read the full story at Seafood News

Water Clarity Study Sheds Light on Bering Sea Change

March 18, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

In 2004, Alaska Fisheries Science Center biologists began attaching light sensors to Bering Sea survey bottom trawls to evaluate the effects of light on fish catchability. Fifteen years later, researchers looked at this unique dataset in a new light to reveal much more about the dynamic Bering Sea ecosystem.

NOAA Fisheries scientists collaborated with our partners to develop an automated process to translate these data into the first long time series of subsurface water clarity for the eastern Bering Sea.

“Until now, there was very little long term information on subsurface water clarity in the Bering Sea,”  said Sean Rohan, the NOAA Fisheries Alaska Fisheries Science Center biologist who led the study. “Working with the annual surveys provided unprecedented spatial coverage and resolution over a span of 15 years.”

Their approach provides a tool that expands possibilities for research in other regions. Their findings reveal patterns and trends in water clarity over depth and time that enhance our understanding of recent and future changes in the Bering Sea.

Read the full release here

NOAA to Host Listening Sessions on Section 216(C) of the Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis

March 18, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA is seeking public input in response to an Executive Order issued on January 27, 2021, titled Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad.

Section 216(c) of the Executive Order Directs NOAA to collect recommendations on how to make fisheries—including aquaculture—and protected resources more resilient to climate change, including changes in management and conservation measures, and improvements in science, monitoring, and cooperative research.

NOAA requests written input on 216(c) from interested parties on how best to achieve the objectives of the as described in the Executive Order. Interested persons are invited to submit comments by email by April 2, 2021 to OceanResources.Climate@noaa.gov.

National Stakeholder Calls

We are also hosting three national stakeholder calls—two are open to all stakeholders and one is specifically for state and tribal governments.

March 23, 2021: Conference call open to all stakeholders nationally
Time: 12:00 to 2:00p.m. EST
Dial in: (888) 769-8793 (toll-free); or (212) 547-0306
Passcode: 4379815#
Time limit: 3 minutes per person; additional rounds as time allows
This call will be recorded

March 25, 2021: Conference call open to all state and tribal governments
Time: 1:30 to 3:00 p.m. EST
Dial in: (877) 716-4288 (toll-free); or (312) 470-7386
Passcode: 6268962#
This call will be recorded

April 1, 2021: Conference call open to all stakeholders nationally
Time: 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. EST
Dial in: (800) 857-9693 (toll-free); or (630) 395-0354
Passcode: 5473603#
Time limit: 3 minutes per person; additional rounds as time allows
This call will be recorded

Read the notice as filed in the Federal Register.

For further information:

Heather Sagar, heather.sagar@noaa.gov, 301-427-8019.

Wicker, Cantwell Reintroduce Fishery Disasters Bill

March 18, 2021 — The following was released by the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation:

U.S. Sens. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., ranking member and chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, today reintroduced legislation to reform the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA)’s Fishery Resource Disaster Relief program of the National Marine Fisheries Service. This legislation, the Fishery Resource Disasters Improvement Act, will make improvements to provide fishermen with disaster relief more quickly.

“I have met with local officials and seen firsthand how extensive flooding in Mississippi has created an economic and environmental emergency for my state and its coastal fisheries,” said Wicker. “Freshwater has devastated our seafood industry and spurred the growth of Harmful Algal Blooms, further hurting our coastal economy. This legislation would expedite the process by which fishermen receive disaster relief. I hope my colleagues will move quickly to pass this bill and help our fishermen.”

“In Washington, fisheries are a cornerstone of our maritime economy. Its related businesses and seafood processors, ship builders, gear manufacturers, support 60 percent of our maritime economy, which is about 146,000 jobs and 30 billion in economic activity,” said Cantwell. “Washington has experienced 17 fishery disasters since 1992, including crab, groundfish, and salmon. There are several pending fishery disaster determinations for my state, and our bipartisan bill includes deadlines to ensure that those fishery disasters are elevated and declared in a reasonable timeframe. Fishermen are tired of waiting.”

The Fishery Resource Disasters Improvement Act would:

  • Maintain the authority of the Secretary of Commerce to determine the existence of a fishery disaster, after which the Secretary would make funds available to be used by state or regional groups to assess the impacts of the disaster and conduct other activities that support fishing activity;
  • Assign a 120-day timeline for the Secretary to evaluate a request, either upon receipt or immediately after the close of the fishery season; and
  • List the eligible uses of fishery disaster relief funds, including direct payments to affected members of the fishing community, habitat restoration and conservation, management improvements, job training, public information campaigns, and preventative measures for future disasters. It would prioritize hiring fishermen displaced by the fishery disaster for these tasks.

To read the full bill, click here.

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