Saving Seafood

NOAA Gives Final Approval to 2018 Scallop Plan Which Will Result in 60 Million Lb. Harvest

April 19, 2018 — SEAFOOD NEWS — NOAA Fisheries and NMFS have approved measures included in Framework Adjustment 29 to the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery Management plan. The final rule was published in the Federal Register on Thursday and sets an annual catch limit of 60 million pounds of scallops for FY 2018. In comparison, the 2017 fishing year was set at 51.7 million pounds.

Framework 29 sets management measures for the Atlantic Sea Scallop fishery for the remainder of the 2018 fishing year, which runs from April 19, 2018 to March 21, 2019. Northern Gulf of Maine management measures in Framework 29 were previously published on March 26, 2018 and were set to prevent overfishing and improve the yield-per-recruit and overall management of the Atlantic sea scallop resource in the Northern Gulf of Maine. Those measures went into effect on April 1, 2018. The Framework Adjustment 29 to the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery Management Plan is in addition to the March 26 final rule.

Framework 29 also “allocates effort into four rotational access areas (Mid-Atlantic, Nantucket Lightship-West, Nantucket Lightship-South, and Closed Area 1).” Both Closed Area 1 and Nantucket Lightship-West contain new area available to scallop fishing through the Omnibus Habitat Amendment. In addition, Framework 29 adjusts the scallop fleet’s accountability measures for Southern New England/ Mid-Atlantic yellowtail flounder and Georges Bank yellowtail flounder.

You can find the final rule in the Federal Register here.

This story was originally published by Seafood News, it is republished here with permission.

 

NOAA: New Voluntary Slow Speed Zone to Protect Right Whales

April 19, 2018 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA Fisheries announces that a voluntary vessel speed restriction zone (Dynamic Management Area  or DMA) has been established to protect a group of five right whales sighted 12 nautical miles east of Boston on April 18.

Mariners are requested to route around this area or transit through it at 10 knots or less.

VOLUNTARY DYNAMIC MANAGEMENT AREAS (DMAs)

Mariners are requested to avoid or transit at 10 knots or less inside the following areas where a group of right whales has been sighted. Find out more about ship strike reduction efforts.

East of Boston – In effect through May 3.

42 43 N
42 00 N
071 17 W
070 20 W

ACTIVE SEASONAL MANAGEMENT AREAS (SMAs)

Mandatory speed restrictions of 10 knots or less (50 CFR 224.105) are in effect in the following areas:

  • Cape Cod Bay SMA in effect through May 15, 2018
  • Block Island SMA in effect through April 30, 2018
  • New York, Philadelphia and Norfolk SMA in effect through April 30, 2018

Right Whales in Crisis

The year 2017 was devastating for North Atlantic right whales, which suffered a loss of 17 whales, plus an additional mortality in January 2018–about 4 percent of their population–an alarming number for such a critically endangered species with a population currently estimated at about 450 animals.

In August 2017, NOAA Fisheries declared the increase in right whale mortalities an “Unusual Mortality Event,” which helps the agency direct additional scientific and financial resources to investigating, understanding, and reducing the mortalities in partnership with the Marine Mammal Stranding Network, Canada’s Department of Fisheries and Oceans, and outside experts from the scientific research community.

More Info   

Recent right whale sightings

Download the Whale Alert app for iPad and iPhone

Acoustic detections in Cape Cod Bay and the Boston TSS

Send a blank message to receive a return email listing all current U.S. DMAs and SMAs.

Details and graphics of all ship strike management zones currently in effect.

Reminder: Approaching a right whale closer than 500 yards is a violation of federal and state law.

 

NEFMC Streamlines Scallop Specification Process and Ranks 2018 Priorities; Discusses Enforcement Issues

April 19, 2018 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

During its mid-April meeting in Mystic, CT, the New England Fishery Management Council took steps to streamline the process used to develop annual specifications for Atlantic sea scallops. It also reviewed, refined, and ranked its 2018 scallop priorities and voted to send letters to NOAA Fisheries on: (1) enforcement-related matters; and (2) implementation of real-time, online transfers of limited access general category individual fishing quota (IFQ).

The Council recognized that several basic scallop measures regularly are included in annual specifications without being modified from one year to the next. As a new work priority, the Council approved having its Scallop Plan Development Team (PDT) compile a list of these now-routine provisions with the intent of turning them into “standard default measures.” This way, the Council will be able to include default measures in specifications packages without having the PDT conduct extensive and repetitive analyses each year.

The Council determined that this move would:

• Help streamline the specification-setting process;

• Increase the prospect that final specifications will be implemented by the April 1 start of the scallop fishing year;

• Lighten the PDT’s analytical workload during the busiest time of the year for scallop analyses;

• Reduce the number of decisions the Council needs to make during final action; and

• Lead to more predictable outcomes for industry.

Given these considerable benefits, the Council readily agreed to add the item to its 2018 scallop priorities. It also voted to remove an item that initially was on the priority list – “gear modifications to protect small scallops.” While recognizing the importance of this work, the Council noted that gear modifications could be considered in future years and that several other actions were more pressing.

The Council then ranked the five items on its revised 2018 scallop priority list in the following order:

  1. Develop an action to modify scallop access areas consistent with the recently implemented Omnibus Essential Fish Habitat Amendment 2;
  2. Develop the newly approved “standard default measures” approach;
  3. Review and address monitoring and catch accounting provisions in the fishery, including those related to hail requirements, IFQ vessels exceeding their quota, and possession limit overages, among others;
  4. Consider limited access general category IFQ trip limit modifications; and
  5. Revisit and potentially modify Northern Gulf of Maine Management Area measures

In spite of this ranking, the Council emphasized that its most critical actions this year are focused on the 2018 scallop benchmark stock assessment and the specifications package for fishing year 2019 with default specifications for 2020. The Council then will work its way down the items on the list above, recognizing that work on several priorities may require more time to develop than is available this year.

As for the 2018 benchmark assessment, the Scallop Stock Assessment Workshop (SAW) Working Group, which includes several members of the Council’s PDT, is conducting the assessment as part of the 65th SAW/SARC. The SARC is the Stock Assessment Review Committee, which will peer review the new assessment.

The scallop working group held a data meeting in early February and then met again in late March. The next meeting is scheduled for April 30-May 4. The scallop assessment results will be peer reviewed during the June 26-29 SARC meeting. A benchmark stock assessment for Atlantic herring also will be reviewed at the same SARC meeting.

View the release in its entirety here.

 

Massachusetts: NOAA Plans Keep Sector IX Boats Moored

April 19, 2018 — MYSTIC, Conn. — Officials from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration say fishing vessels that transferred to Sector VII from Sector IX in New Bedford may have to wait until mid-summer to begin leasing quotas.

NOAA closed down fishing out of Sector IX in order to assess just how much quota was illegally used up by fishing magnate and now convicted “Codfather,” Carlos Rafael.

At a meeting of the New England Fishery Management Council on Wednesday, NOAA proposed a plan for Sector IX that would treat illegal catch in each fishing year as if it was known immediately after the end of the season, eliminating any carryover of unused quota into the next fishing season if there was any illegal fishing.

Read the full story at WBSM

Sustainable Shark Alliance Condemn Fin Ban, Push For Sustainable Shark Fisheries and Trade Act

April 18, 2018 — SEAFOOD NEWS — Should shark fin sales be banned in the U.S.? That’ the current debate.

On Tuesday members of the Sustainable Shark Alliance (SSA) testified before the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Power and Oceans to support legislation that would promote shark conservation and oppose the Shark Fin Sales Elimination Act.

As we previously reported, chefs and restaurant owners from over 30 states have sent a letter to Congress asking that they pass the Shark Fin Trade Elimination Act of 2017, which would ban the trade of shark fins nationwide. Shark finning is often cruel and wasteful, with some fishermen discarding the sharks at sea after cutting off their fins. Those sharks often drown, bleed to death, or get eaten alive by other fish.

The SSA is supporting the Sustainable Shark and Fisheries Trade Act (SSFTA), which would “incentivize” other nations to meet the same high standards of sustainability that U.S. shark fishermen follow.

“The SSFTA creates an incentive for other nations to end shark finning and meet the same high standards for marine conservation which the United States holds its fishermen,” SSA member and fisherman John Polston told the House Natural Resources Committee. “This bill recognizes the sacrifices our fishermen have made, and continue to make, to rebuild domestic shark populations by leveling the playing field with our foreign competitors.”

Dr. Robert Hueter, Director of the Center for Shark Research at Mote Marine Laboratory, added that the SSFTA would stop the importing and consumption of unsustainably fished shark on American soil, but not completely ban the sale of shark fins. The argument is that banning the sale of shark fins hurts U.S. fishermen who sustainably harvest and sell shark fins and other shark products.

“This bill punishes me and others in the shark fishery by taking away an important income source, undoubtedly pushing some small businesses into unprofitability,” said Polston. “It is an insult to American fishermen who have been required to give so much for decades to create a sustainable fishery.”

This story originally appeared on Seafood News, it is republished here with permission.

 

After a disastrous 2017 season, herring fishermen are cautiously optimistic

April 18, 2018 — As regulators consider alternatives to management of the Atlantic herring fishery — which extends from North Carolina to Maine — fishermen are cautiously hoping for a better year than recent ones.

In 2017, the New England Fishery Management Council released options that could affect the industry that provides food for consumption, fish oil and bait. The council will make a final decision this summer about possible changes regarding fishery catches and potential closures to address concerns about localized depletion and user conflicts.

Variation in the fishery, in terms of volume, area and season, is not uncommon, but what drives the swings depends on whom you ask.

In 2016, fishermen (mostly from Maine and Massachusetts) hit 60.4 percent of quota when they hauled in about 140 million pounds of herring — the lowest since 2002. But dockside, the catch was worth more than $28.8 million, among the highest value totals on record. In 2017, preliminary NOAA estimates indicate just 48.2 percent of herring’s annual catch limit was harvested from a quota just over 226 million pounds.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

 

Florida sets 40-day red snapper season

April 18, 2018 — TALLAHASSEE, Fl. — The state has set a 40-day red snapper season for recreational anglers in federal and state waters this year.

The season will run June 11 to July 21, which is significantly longer than the 24-day season — May 27 to mid-June — the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission originally had proposed. The season for-hire vessels, which includes charter boats and head boats, has not yet been announced and is still under the direction of the federal government.

“Florida is a premier fishing destination, and saltwater fishing in the Gulf of Mexico has a $7.6 billion economic impact in our state every year,” Gov. Rick Scott said in a press release announcing the season. “Adding additional opportunities for anglers to enjoy Florida’s world-class fishing not only benefits our visitors but also our Gulf Coast communities.”

The announcement marks the first time ever the state has been able to set the season for recreational anglers and non-reef-permitted charter captains in federal waters, as part of a two-year pilot program among the five Gulf states and the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

“We are going to give the states an opportunity to demonstrate effective management that improves recreational opportunities for all Americans,” Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross said in a press release.

Read the full story at the Panama City News Herald

 

NOAA Tells NE Management Council That Sectors 7 and 9 Plans May Not be Approved Until Mid-Summer

April 18, 2018 — SEAFOOD NEWS — NOAA is discussing the fate of the vessels in sectors 7 and 9 with the New England Fishery Management Council this morning.

This has been the subject of a stand-off in which NOAA has demanded the illegal fishing is sector 9 due to Carlos Rafael be accounted for before vessels, including those formerly in the sector, will be allowed to lease quota or operate.

Meanwhile, players in New Bedford who have been hurt by the enforcement action have been trying everything possible to start fishing operations again without any final decision by NOAA.

In their presentation which will be given to the Council this morning, NOAA lays out their plan and invites comments.

Their Sector 9 proposal is to treat illegal catch in each fishing year as if it was known immediately after the end of the season.   This would eliminate carryover of unused quota into the next season when illegal catch was involved.

Once the illegal catch was identified by year, and allocated, then the sector could repay that out of 2017 lease quota.  After the repayment, the sector would be free to lease its remaining quotas.

NOAA anticipates that if they conduct rulemaking this would happen by ‘mid-summer’.

Regarding sector 7, all of whose current roster transferred from sector 9, NOAA says they will not be allowed to start fishing on May 1st.

Instead, sector 7 allocations will be made through separate rule making.  This is because sector 7 is proposing substantive changes in their operational plans, including prohibiting any vessel owned by Carlos Rafael from fishing or leasing quota until it has ownership transferred.

NOAA will be holding meetings with the sectors to discuss the apportionment of overages.

This plan does not address the issue of whether these permits should have restrictions or even be allowed to be transferred.  The argument between New Bedford and some of the other New England Ports is whether the permits that are sanctioned should remain in New Bedford, be sold to the highest bidder no matter where they may operate, or be deactivated and the representative quota returned proportionally to all remaining quota holders.

This story originally appeared on Seafood News, it it republished here with permission.

 

New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell to NEFMC: Sector IX Closure Is Hurting New Bedford’s Economy

April 18, 2018 — The following statement was delivered to the New England Fishery Management Council today on behalf of New Bedford, Massachusetts Mayor Jon Mitchell. Mayor Mitchell also serves as Chairman of the New Bedford Port Authority:   

Thank you Chairman Quinn and Members of the Council for this opportunity to communicate about a matter of ongoing concern to the Port of New Bedford, namely the impact that the closure of Sector 9 of the Northeast Fishery is having on groundfishing operations in the Port.

The NOAA decision has had–and continues to have–troubling economic consequence for the Port of New Bedford and our local economy. It has triggered significant business losses among local companies that provide support services to the commercial fishing fleet, and has meant the loss of livelihood for dozens of local fishing families.

It is important for all parties to keep in mind the numerous New Bedford businesses and families who have played no direct role in the operation of Sector 9, but who now find themselves in severe financial distress as a result of the Sector’s closure.

While the significant human cost of the closure cannot be adequately measured, Professor Dan Georgiana of the School of Marine Science and Technology at the University of Massachusetts (SMAST) has used a standard NOAA economic impact model to estimate the economic damage being done to the Port of New Bedford. His analysis found that the Port suffered roughly $12 million in economic losses in just the first twenty-five days after the closure went into effort on November 20th of last year.

This week marks the fifth full month of the Sector 9 closure, and the losses continue to mount. If one extrapolates from Professor Georgiana’s original analysis, it is not unreasonable to suggest that the Port of New Bedford may now have cumulatively suffered tens of millions of dollars in losses in the last five months.

This figure includes the impacts on harvesting, processing, wholesale and retail market activity, but does not include the cost to the public of unemployment compensation or the impact on businesses that supply vessels or process groundfish.

None of this is to suggest that the one person at the center of the controversy should not be punished severely. Carlos Rafael should be held fully accountable for his actions. I emphasize rather that the Fisheries Service should undertake its rulemaking, as it is statutorily required, with the interests of the Port and its businesses in mind. At a minimum, this means that it should complete the rulemaking “expeditiously”–as NOAA’s notice of withdrawal said it would–so that the effected fishermen and businesses can get back to work without further delay.

The Service also noted it had to calculate the amount of “overage” to certain groundfish stocks caused by Rafael’s fraud before it completed its rulemaking. Yet the Service has had, for some time now, all the reasonably available information to complete this loss calculation. Again, I urge the Service to complete these calculations and its rule-making with all deliberate speed.

The clock is ticking against New Bedford fishermen and shore-side businesses. A resolution of this matter therefore cannot come soon enough for the Port of New Bedford. Thank you for your consideration.

 

Massachusetts: Lectures at New Bedford Whaling Museum will focus on restoring ocean health

April 18, 2018 — “Where the Land Meets the Sea,” a series of lectures at the New Bedford Whaling Museum in 2018, will feature projects, organizations and people who are working to restore and maintain ocean health and marine wildlife.

The series premieres April 26 with “Underwater Yellowstones.” Experts will explore marine sanctuaries off the coast and their associated benefits and challenges for fish, whales, scientists and humans. “Underwater Yellowstones” speakers are Benjamin Haskell, acting superintendent of Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, NOAA ; Jenni Stanley, marine scientist with Northeast Fisheries Science Center, NOAA; and Michelle Bachman, habitat coordinator for New England Fishery Management Council.

The lecture begins at 7 p.m. and will be preceded by a reception at 6. Tickets are $10 for museum members and $15 for nonmembers. To register call (508) 997-0046 (ext. 100) or visit whalingmuseum.org.

Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times