Saving Seafood

White House Touts President Trump’s Actions on Fishing

October 24, 2018 — The following was released by The White House:

“An ever-growing maze of regulations, rules, restrictions has cost our country trillions and trillions of dollars, millions of jobs, countless American factories, and devastated many industries.”

REAL RESULTS: President Trump’s efforts to cut burdensome and unnecessary red tape are bringing real change and delivering real results for Americans.

  • The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has taken action to free our fishermen from burdensome red tape while also promoting responsible fishing practices.
    • For instance, areas off the coast of New England have been opened to commercial sea scallop harvesting for the first time in years, netting an economic benefit of $654 million.

Read the full release here

South Atlantic Vermilion Snapper Commercial Trip Limit Reduced to 555 Pounds Whole Weight on October 26, 2018

October 23, 2018 — The following was released by NOAA:

WHAT/WHEN:
  • The daily trip limit for the commercial harvest of vermilion snapper in federal waters of the South Atlantic is reduced from 1,110 to 555 pounds whole weight, or from 1,000 to 500 pounds gutted weight, effective 12:01 a.m., local time, on October 26, 2018.  
WHY THIS TRIP LIMIT REDUCTION IS HAPPENING:
  • When commercial landings of South Atlantic vermilion snapper reach or are projected to reach 75 percent of the quota, regulations are in place to reduce the daily trip limit.
  • The trip limit reduction is necessary to slow the rate of commercial harvest to avoid exceeding the quota.
AFTER THE TRIP LIMIT REDUCTION:
  • The 555-pound whole weight or 500-pound gutted weight trip limit will remain in effect until the end of the current fishing season on December 31, 2018, or when 100 percent of the quota is reached or projected to be reached, whichever occurs first.  The 2019 January through June vermilion snapper fishing season in the South Atlantic will open at 12:01 a.m., local time, on January 1, 2019, with a 1,110-pound whole weight or 1,000-pound gutted weight trip limit.

This bulletin provides only a summary of the existing regulations.  Full regulations can be found in the Federal Register or at http://www.ecfr.gov.

MASSACHUSETTS: Portsmouth boat captain falsified fishing logs to get disaster funds

October 23, 2018 — A fishing boat captain, with a home port of Portsmouth, agreed to plead guilty to a federal charge stating he provided false fishing logs to state Fish and Game officials to fraudulently obtain fishery disaster-relief funds.

The captain, David Bardzik, endorsed the federal plea agreement with his attorney Jerome Blanchard on Oct. 10 and neither could immediately be reached for comment. Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Rombeau is prosecuting the case and a spokesman for the federal prosecutor’s office did not return a request for additional information.

The plea agreement, however, summarizes the case and a plea hearing is scheduled for Oct. 30 in U.S. District Court of New Hampshire.

Bardzik signed the agreement noting prosecutors could prove he operated the “for hire” sport fishing boat Ultimate Catch, “generally catering to small outings such as family day trips or bachelor parties.” The federal record notes in May 2015 Bardzik was notified that, based on a review of his records, he was not qualified to receive disaster-relief funds implemented after the fishing industry was impacted by Hurricane Sandy and in anticipation of quota cuts for groundfish stocks.

Fisheries directors from New England, in partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, distributed about $33 million of the disaster-relief funds, the plea agreement states. To qualify in New Hampshire, commercial and for-hire fishermen were required to have taken at least 15 trips in each of the calendar years 2010-2013 and have Fishing Vessel Trip Reports (FVTR) showing at lease one ground fish species was recorded as harvested.

In an appeal to the denial of federal funds, Bardzik submitted FVTRs documenting several 2013 fishing trips, several of which “were false or altered,” the plea agreement states. The reports are originally completed in triplicate and must account for every day in a fishing season, even if to report no trip was taken, the federal record notes.

When the state compared Bardzik’s original filings, with his filings on appeal for the federal money, “they noticed substantial discrepancies,” Bardzik’s plea agreement states.

Read the full story at Seacoast Online

After decades of rescuing stranded sea turtles, NOAA’s Galveston lab plans to scale back

October 22, 2018 — The sea turtle was almost dead, stranded at the high tide line on a Galveston beach.

It had a thick coating of algae growing on its outer shell. Its body was thin, its eyes sunken. It wasn’t moving.

A beachgoer spotted the creature earlier this month and called a hotline for reporting stranded sea turtles. As soon as the phone rang, the NOAA Fisheries laboratory in Galveston sprang into action.

An employee collected the 40-pound turtle from the beach and brought it back to the lab. It was a Kemp’s ridley turtle — a critically endangered species — and it didn’t look good.

“It was basically one step away from being comatose,” said Ben Higgins, who manages the sea turtle program at the Galveston lab. “At one point, the staff came and got me and said, ‘We think it might be dead.’”

But it wasn’t dead. The NOAA staff put the turtle in a van and drove it to Houston. By the next morning, the turtle was sprawled out on an exam table at the Houston Zoo, letting senior veterinarian Dr. Joe Flanagan prod at it with purple-gloved fingers. The turtle got X-rays, blood work and a full physical exam.

The diagnosis: Dehydration and a touch of pneumonia.

“We got it just in time,” Higgins said. “It was very close to leaving us.”

But with some squid in its system and a prescription for antibiotics, the turtle was taken back to Galveston to recover in NOAA’s lab.

It’ll spend the winter in the lab, getting food and medicine and a heated tank. And if all goes well, it will be released back into the Gulf of Mexico sometime after the winter, when it can survive in the wild again.

Read the full story at the Houston Chronicle

NEFMC Seeks Contractor for Groundfish Catch Shares Program Review

October 22, 2018 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council is seeking the services of an independent contractor to assist the Council and its technical working group with conducting a review of the groundfish sector system, which is a catch share program under the Northeast Multispecies Fishery Management Plan (FMP). Letters of interest and supporting materials must be received by November 30, 2018.

WHAT’S INVOLVED: The successful candidate’s primary role will be to support the technical working group conducting the Groundfish Catch Shares Program Review. The working group includes members from the Council, Northeast Fisheries Science Center, and Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office staff. The contractor will:

  • Facilitate working group meetings;
  • Research and summarize pertinent information and coordinate working group review documents;
  • Assist with developing and writing the draft Catch Shares Program Review document;
  • Present the draft document to the Groundfish Plan Development Team, Groundfish and Recreational Advisory Panels, Scientific and Statistical Committee, Groundfish Committee, and the full Council;
  • And, among other tasks, prepare the final review document and presentations.

FOCUS OF REVIEW: The evaluation period for this review is focused strictly on fishing years 2010 to 2015, spanning from May 1, 2010 through April 30, 2016. This period covers the first six years of the catch share program under Amendment 16 to the Northeast Multispecies FMP. Information prior to program implementation also will be included for fishing years 2007 to 2009, covering May 1, 2007 through April 30, 2010.

TIMELINE: The contractor’s role is a short-term, temporary position that will begin on or about December 15, 2018 and end when the Council and the technical working group complete the review, tentatively in June 2019.

WHY IS THIS HAPPENING: The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) catch share policy states that Councils periodically should review catch share programs to evaluate whether a program is meeting its goals and objectives. NOAA’s guidance is that “a formal and detailed review” should occur “no less frequently than once every seven years” for all limited access privilege programs (LAPPs) established after January 12, 2007. More information is available at NOAA Catch Share Policy.

APPLICATION DETAILS: Interested professionals are encouraged to submit a letter of interest, current resume or curriculum vitae, examples of similar work completed for other organizations or publications, and a budget with expected expenses by November 30, 2018.

  • Interested candidates also should describe the approach that would be used to meet the requirements of the project, including deliverables.
  • NOTE: Candidates employed by advocacy organizations or by organizations that are parties in fishery lawsuits will not be considered.

SOLICITATION NOTICE: Additional information and application mailing/email addresses are contained in the full solicitation notice, which is available here and at announcement.

QUESTIONS: For more information, contact New England Fishery Management Council Deputy Director Chris Kellogg at (978) 465-0492 ext. 112, ckellogg@nefmc.org.

Sea Grant Announces 2018 Aquaculture Research Awards

October 22, 2018 — The following was released by NOAA:

NOAA Sea Grant announces the award of $11 million in grants for 22 projects to further advance the development of a sustainable marine and coastal aquaculture industry in the U.S.

The research will address specific priorities of the 2018 Sea Grant National Aquaculture Initiative including, supporting the development of emerging systems or technologies that will advance aquaculture in the U.S., developing and implementing actionable methods of communicating accurate, science based information about the benefits and risks of U.S. marine aquaculture to the public; and increasing the resiliency of aquaculture systems to natural hazards and changing conditions. The projects, which will be conducted over a three year period, include a 50% match by non-federal partners. One hundred proposals were submitted requesting a total in $48 million in federal grant funds.

Sea Grant’s investment in aquaculture research, outreach and education programs continues to produce results for coastal communities and their economies. Between February 2017 and January 2018, Sea Grant invested $11 million in aquaculture research, with additional funds and resources dedicated to outreach and technology transfer, and reported $78 million in economic impacts, including support of 792 businesses and 1,387 jobs.

As part of the Department of Commerce, NOAA facilitates the growing uses of and demands on our ocean resources. One of the most urgent opportunities in the “Blue Economy” is the need to expand sustainable seafood production in the U.S. —both through the better utilization of our wild-capture fisheries and the expansion of marine aquaculture.

See some of the impacts resulting from Sea Grant-funded aquaculture research and learn more about aquaculture in the U.S. 

UMaine team gets help in battle with salmon-ruining lice

October 19, 2018 — The University of Maine is getting a boost from the federal government for a pair of aquaculture projects, one of which addresses a pest problem in worldwide salmon farming.

The money is coming from NOAA Sea Grant, which supports fishery and coastal projects. The university says three researchers at its Aquaculture Research Institute will receive more than $700,000 to work on new approaches to address sea lice in salmon operations.

The lice are a major problem for salmon farms in Maine, Canada and around the world as they render the fish impossible to sell. The industry is struggling with resistance to pesticides used to control the lice.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at The Washington Times

Rep. Zeldin Announces $182,000 Grant for New York Sea Grant Program

October 19, 2018 — Congressman Lee Zeldin (R, NY-1), co-chair of the bipartisan Long Island Sound Caucus and member of the Congressional Shellfish Caucus, announced today that New York State Sea Grant has been awarded $182,000 in federal funding by the NOAA National Sea Grant Program. This funding will be used to support the seafood and aquaculture industry, as well as to foster relationships between the industry and next generation of fishermen and other seafood professionals. New York Sea Grant (NYSG) is headquartered at SUNY Stony Brook in New York’s First Congressional District.

Congressman Zeldin said, “New York Sea Grant is a critical program that provides resources to our local anglers and businesses, and this federal funding will help them carry out this important mission. Their vital work helps preserve and support our local fishing industry. With 90% of consumed American seafood imported, we must ensure Long Island fishermen and shellfish farmers have access to the resources they need to sustain and grow their businesses.”

Interim Director of the New York Sea Grant Program Katherine Bunting-Howarth JD PhD said, “NYSG is pleased to partner on a project that promotes sustainable and healthy seafood—seafood that is produced in a manner that protects the environment, invigorates the economy and provides a vital source of protein for our diets.”

National Sea Grant and this $182,000 grant was funded through $72.5 million in federal funding, which Congressman Zeldin helped secure by leading a bipartisan effort of 95 Members of Congress.

Read the full story at LongIsland.com

Lower herring quotas squeeze lobster trade

October 19, 2018 — Nothing new, but for the fishing industry nothing is as constant as change.

Last year, according to the Department of Marine Resources, lobster was Maine’s most valuable fishery with landings of 110,819,760 pounds — the sixth highest ever — worth some $450,799,283.

Despite all the talk about high value species such as scallops and elvers, according to DMR herring were the state’s second most valuable commercial fishery in 2017.

Herring boats like the Sunlight and the Starlight owned by the O’Hara Corp. in Rockland or the Portland-based trawler Providian landed some 66,453,073 pounds of herring worth about $17.9 million at a record price of 27 cents per pound.

Most of those landings went to the dealers who supply herring — the primary source of bait for the lobster industry — to fishermen up and down the coast. And most of those herring came from what is known as “Area 1-A,” the inshore waters of the Gulf of Maine.

All that is going to change.

Faced with data that indicates the herring population, an important source of food for whales, tuna and seabirds, among other species, regulators at the New England Fisheries Management Council last week recommended drastic steps to reduce the amount of herring that fishermen will be allowed to catch.

If approved by NOAA Fisheries, the 2019 landings quota for herring would be set at just 14,558 metric tons (about 32 million pounds). That cut comes on top of an already sharp reduction imposed this past summer.

In the middle of the year, the quota was cut by more than half, from 110,000 metric tons (242.5 million pounds) to about 50,000 metric tons (some 110.2 million pounds).

Maine lobstermen were already worried about what last summer’s cut would do to bait availability. Last week’s decision suggests that herring will be in extremely short supply and that what is available will be extremely expensive.

In 2013, Maine Lobstermen’s Association Executive Director Patrice McCarron said, fishermen were paying $30 a bushel for bait. Last summer, a bushel cost about $45 on the coast, $60 on the islands.

On the O’Hara Lobster Bait website this week, the price of herring was quoted at $175 for a 400-pound barrel (44 cents per pound) or $690 for an 1,800-pound tank (about 38 cents per pound).

Whatever the cost, lobstermen use a lot of bait — thousands of pounds in a year.

Read the full story at The Ellsworth American

Sea Grant Funds New Technology to Monitor for Harmful Algal Blooms

October 18, 2018 — A new system using next-generation robotic sensors to monitor coastal waters for disease-causing microalgae has been funded by the NOAA Sea Grant Program as part of a national strategic investment in aquaculture.

The PhytO-ARM (Phytoplankton Observing for Automated Real-time Management), under development by a team led by Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) biologist Mike Brosnahan, will vastly improve our ability to detect harmful algal blooms (HABs) and the toxins they produce and provide aquaculturists, resource managers, and others detailed, real-time information about the bloom using a web-based, user-friendly dashboard.

“Clams and oysters grown in our coastal waters depend on phytoplankton as an important food source, yet some phytoplankton produce toxins, which accumulate in shellfish and pose a threat to humans and other animals that consume them,” says Brosnahan. “The information the system provides is very powerful and holds great potential for protecting human health and maximizing aquaculture operations.”

The project’s intent is to streamline the system so that it can be adapted for a range of uses, including by farmers to protect and maximize their shellfish yields; resource managers anticipating and responding to outbreaks to protect human health, and scientists working to better understand HAB dynamics in our changing environment.

In its most sophisticated form, the PhytO-ARM system couples two powerful sensors: the Imaging FlowCytobot (IFCB), which continuously records microscope images of phytoplankton and identifies them in real time; and a new high capacity Environmental Sample Processor (ESP), a “molecular lab in a can” that can positively identify species and toxins. “This system will provide rapid biotoxin measurements, alerting managers to the presence of biotoxins that cause severe, even fatal reactions in humans,” says Brosnahan.

A smaller scale version of the system couples the IFCB with a profiling conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) probe to provide rich pictures of the distribution of phytoplankton around shellfish beds, which can inform and trigger management actions.

“Many harmful algal bloom species migrate vertically through the water column,” says Brosnahan. “By combining these sensors we can focus sampling on where cells are most abundant. Knowledge of the vertical distribution of cells may also enable farmers to tweak nursery operations to limit the exposure of juvenile animals to harmful algae.”

Another powerful aspect of the system is in monitoring not only the organisms that are known to have caused problems for many decades, but also for detecting species that are nascent problems for the aquaculture industry. New England has a well-established biotoxin problem with Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning caused by the phytoplankton Alexandrium. But the region is experiencing emergent problems with biotoxins from Pseudo-nitzschia and Dinophysis, both of which have caused shellfish bed closures in recent years. With real-time data from PhytO-ARM sensors, resource managers can detect and monitor potentially toxic phytoplankton cells that are normally not part of their monitoring program.

Brosnahan has first-hand experience with this. In 2015, working with a proto-type PhytO-ARM system in Nauset Marsh on Cape Cod, Brosnahan and his team spotted some unusual cells. “We had finished with our work with the Alexandrium bloom and our IFCB was showing relatively high numbers of Dinophysis acuminata – a dinoflagellate that causes diarrhetic shellfish poisoning or DSP,” he says. “We were able to continue monitoring the development of the Dinophysis bloom throughout the summer and alerted the Massachusetts Department of Marine Fisheries and collaborators at FDA to a potential hazard, which ultimately resulted in the first closure of a shellfish bed due to DSP in the northeast U.S.”

Read the full story at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute