Saving Seafood

NORTH CAROLINA: Bluefin tuna season off to a good start in Carteret County

December 14, 2020 — As winter weather sets in, the season for Atlantic bluefin tuna has arrived along the North Carolina coast, and the early season has been good so far for at least two Carteret County charter businesses.

Bluefin tuna are a commercially valuable and highly sought-after fish, with individual fish selling for thousands of dollars on the international market. The fish are managed by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas in two stocks, the eastern stock and the western stock, though the two often intermingle. In the U.S., according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service, the baseline annual quota for bluefin tuna is 1,247.86 metric tons; this quota is further divided into sub quotas based on types of gear. The general category, which covers commercial handgear, has a sub quota of 555.7 metric tons.

Bluefin tuna traditionally show up on the North Carolina coast in December through early winter, and according Fish Whistle Fishing Charters of Morehead City’s Capt. Mike Ajamian, as of Tuesday he’s caught four.

Read the full story at the Carteret County News-Times

NOAA Fisheries Implements Amendment 21 to the Summer Flounder, Scup and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management Plan

December 11, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Effective January 1, 2021

NOAA Fisheries is implementing Amendment 21 to the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management Plan, also known as the Summer Flounder Commercial Issues Amendment. This final rule implements the measures in the amendment.

Amendment 21 changes the state-by-state commercial quota allocations when the coastwide quota exceeds 9.55 million lb, and updates the fishery management plan goals and objectives for summer flounder. When the coastwide quota is 9.55 million lb or less, the quota would be distributed according to the current allocations. In years when the coastwide quota exceeds 9.55 million lb, any additional quota beyond this threshold would be distributed in equal shares to all states except Maine, Delaware, and New Hampshire, which would split 1 percent of the additional quota.

Read the full release here

NMFS announces snowy grouper commercial harvest closing Dec. 12

December 11, 2020 — Local commercial fishermen have until Saturday to harvest snowy grouper.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service announced Monday the commercial harvest of snowy grouper in federal waters of the South Atlantic, including those waters off North Carolina, will close at 12:01 a.m. Saturday. During the closure, all sale or purchase of snow grouper is prohibited. Harvest or possession of snowy group in or from federal waters is limited to the recreational bag and possession limits while the recreational sector is open.

The closure is happening because commercial landings are projected to reach the increased July through December commercial catch limit. According to the accountability measure, commercial harvest must close to prevent the catch limit from being exceeded.

Read the full story at the Carteret County News-Times

Whales get a break as pandemic creates quieter oceans

December 10, 2020 — When humpback whales migrated to Glacier Bay in Alaska this year to spend the long summer days feeding, they arrived to something unusual: quieter waters.

As the COVID-19 pandemic slows international shipping and keeps cruise ships docked, scientists are finding measurably less noise in the ocean. That could provide momentary relief for whales and other marine mammals that are highly sensitive to noise.

Through networks of underwater hydrophones, scientists are hoping to learn how the mammals’ communication changes when the drone of ships is turned down, potentially informing new policies to protect them.

“More needs to be done,” says Jason Gedamke, who manages the ocean acoustics program at NOAA Fisheries. “When you have animals that for millions of years have been able to communicate over vast distances in the ocean, and then once we introduce noise and have increased sound levels and they can’t communicate over those distances, clearly there’s going to be some impact there.”

Read the full story at OPB

WA submits draft plan to distribute $50 million in federal relief funding to commercial fishing, shellfish and charter industry members

December 10, 2020 — The state announced this week that it has submitted a draft plan for how to distribute $50 million in federal relief funding to members of Washington’s commercial seafood, shellfish and charter industries to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration-Fisheries (NOAA-Fisheries) for review and approval.

Under Section 12005 of the CARES Act, Congress provided $300 million to states to distribute to fisheries participants with Washington and Alaska receiving the highest allocation of $50 million each.

“The pandemic had early and dramatic impacts to shellfish and commercial fishing businesses. These activities play an outsized role in our state, especially in our tribal and natural resources dependent economies,” Gov. Jay Inslee said. “I am pleased that we will soon have more assistance available to help these hurting businesses recover.”

“Submitting this plan for federal review brings us one step closer to getting this funding into the hands of commercial fishing and shellfish industry members who need it most,” said Ron Warren, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) fish policy director. “We applaud Washington’s congressional delegation for securing this relief for members of Washington’s commercial seafood, shellfish and charter industries.”

Read the full story at KBKW

Extended: Slow Speed Zone Southeast of New York City to Protect Right Whales

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

NOAA Fisheries is extending a Slow Zone (voluntary vessel speed restriction zone) southeast of New York City, New York.

This Slow Zone was in already in effect when the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute acoustic monitoring buoy again detected right whales in the New York Bight on December 9.

Mariners, please go around this area or go slow (10 knots or less) inside this area where right whales have been detected.

The New York Bight Slow Zone is in effect through December 24 for waters bounded by:

40 41 N
40 01 N
073 03 W
073 55 W

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

Read the full release here

New Tool Available to Explore Effects of Offshore Wind on Fisheries

December 8, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Factors to Consider

In a busy ocean, finding the right spot for offshore wind farms isn’t easy. There are a lot of factors to consider besides the windiest spots.

  • What marine life is in the proposed areas?
  • Is the area a productive scallop ground or other important fishing spot?
  • Do endangered whales or sea turtles rely on this area for food or migration?
  • Will fishermen and other vessel traffic be able to navigate safely?

Currently, there are more than 16 offshore wind energy areas in various stages of planning and development from Maine through North Carolina. These projects may install more than 2,100 turbines from 2021–2029.

New Online Tools

To help better understand the impacts offshore wind development will have on Atlantic coast fisheries, we developed some new tools and analyses.

Some of the information you can find for the currently proposed offshore wind energy areas includes:

  • Amount of individual species landed
  • Landings revenue
  • Gear types used
  • Number of vessels fishing
  • Number of fishing trips
  • Communities affected

To gather this information, we combined vessel logbooks, dealer reports, and observer data to come up with fishing footprints. We then compared them to the proposed offshore wind energy project areas.

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management is the federal agency responsible for reviewing and permitting offshore energy projects. It has used this information in its analysis of the Vineyard Wind Project.

Anyone can download the data and generate summary reports using our query tool.

We will further develop these tools based on public input and ongoing efforts to integrate other data sources.Both the summary reports and underlying data will be continuously updated as we obtain this additional information. We are currently working on integrating party/charter vessel logbook data and data from vessels that fish for highly migratory species and for species managed in the South Atlantic. Learn more about the work we’re doing to monitor and analyze the potential fishery impacts from offshore wind development.

Questions?

Fisheries Data: Benjamin Galuardi, Regional Office, (978) 281-9187

Offshore Wind and Fisheries: Doug Christel, Regional Office, (978) 281-9141

Texas Organizations Help Cold-Stunned Sea Turtles from Massachusetts

December 8, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

On Monday, December 7, 120 sea turtles flew south thanks to Turtles Fly Too. These sea turtles were found on Cape Cod, Massachusetts beaches suffering from hypothermia and other complications in recent weeks. They will continue to receive treatment and care from seven facilities in Texas.

Of the more than 500 cold-stunned sea turtles that have washed up so far this year, the vast majority are endangered Kemp’s ridleys. Green and loggerhead sea turtles have been rescued, as well. Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary responds to all of these cold-stunned turtles. They transport live turtles to two Massachusetts rehabilitation facilities: the New England Aquarium and the National Marine Life Center.

Sea turtles are cold-blooded and rely on heat from their environment to maintain their body temperatures. When water temperatures drop rapidly, they become lethargic and unable to swim due to the cold. Many of the turtles have pneumonia, and some have other medical conditions or injuries from being washed against rocks. They require expert care—but with so many turtles, the rehabilitation facilities are filling up. And it’s only early December. The cold-stun season usually lasts until late December or early January.

Read the full release here

NOAA Fisheries Establishes Recreational Fishing Survey and Data Standards

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

Today, NOAA Fisheries established a set of standards to guide the recreational fishing surveys administered and funded through the agency’s Marine Recreational Information Program. The standards reflect federal guidelines and best practices for the dissemination of statistical information, and will further ensure the integrity of data collection efforts, the quality of recreational fisheries statistics, and the strength of science-based management decisions.

Most of the standards are already in use by the program and its partners, including the:

  • Adoption of quality assurance plans
  • Adherence to certification guidelines
  • Production of key statistics needed for the assessment and management of fish stocks

The transition to these standards is a key milestone in the Marine Recreational Information Program’s recently released 2021 Implementation Plan.

“These standards set clear criteria for what NOAA Fisheries considers a sound recreational fishing survey management practice,” said Evan Howell, Director of NOAA Fisheries’ Office of Science and Technology. “By establishing these standards, we have removed ambiguities about whether a practice should be considered a recommendation or a requirement. That will support sound survey design and high-quality data.”

Read the full release here

As COVID impacts continue to hurt US fisheries, CARES Act funding still stuck in limbo

December 7, 2020 — Almost exactly seven months after USD 300 million (EUR 247 million) in funds were released to U.S. fisheries through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), over one-third of the money slated for distribution hasn’t even had its method of distribution decided on.

The funds, released on 7 May, were announced by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce for disbursement in state-by-state amounts. The funds were to be distributed through NOAA, with each state charged with creating and executing its own individual spend plan.

Read the full story at Seafood Source