Saving Seafood

Atlantic fishing commission ignores New Jersey criticism and adopts cuts to flounder quota

February 2, 2017 — A proposal that likely will force New Jersey to make changes to its fishing regulations for summer flounder was advanced by a coastal fisheries management board Thursday despite strong opposition from state officials.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, a regional agency that helps set fishing quotas for the 15 East Coast states, voted 10-2 to adopt the controversial new flounder rule, called Addendum XXVIII, which would drastically reduce New Jersey and other coastal states’ flounder catch limits.

The vote followed nearly three hours of debate among the coastal states’ representatives and fishery managers from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which is responsible for federal fisheries management.

New Jersey and Rhode Island were the only states to vote “no” on the proposal, which likely would force New Jersey to adopt its most stringent fishing regulations ever for anglers, such as a 19-inch minimum size limit, as well as a shortened season and reduced daily catch limit.

Read the full story at the Burlington County Times

NOAA Fisheries – FB17-006: Delay in Implementation of a Final Rule for Black Sea Bass and for Dolphin in Federal Waters of the Atlantic

February 2, 2017 — The following was released by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration:

Delay in Implementation of a Final Rule for Black Sea Bass and for Dolphin in Federal Waters of the Atlantic   

KEY MESSAGE: 

NOAA Fisheries has delayed the effectiveness of two final rules affecting fishermen in Atlantic waters: a requirement to mark buoy lines for black sea bass pots in the South Atlantic with purple marks, and a 4,000-pound whole weight trip limit for dolphin in the Atlantic after 75 percent of the commercial sector annual catch limit has been met or projected to be met. The delay is in accordance with a memorandum dated January 20, 2017, issued by the White House.     

HOW LONG WILL THE DELAY LAST: 

The delay in effectiveness began on January 20, 2017, and ends on March 21, 2017.

WHAT THIS MEANS:

Black Sea Bass: 

  • The requirement to mark buoy lines for black sea bass pots with purple marks is not effective now, but will be effective on March 21, 2017.
  • The final rule for Regulatory Amendment 16 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Snapper-Grouper Fishery published on December 29, 2016 (81 FR 95893).
  • The required additional buoy line markings for black sea bass pot gear (50 C.F.R. Part 622.189(g)) would have been effective on January 30, 2017.
  • This final rule also revised the seasonal prohibition on the use of black sea bass pot gear in the South Atlantic (effective December 29, 2016). The delay in effectiveness of the buoy line markings does not affect the modifications to the seasonal prohibition. Therefore, fishers can continue fishing with black sea bass pots as per the final rule for Regulatory Amendment 16.

Dolphin: 

  • The commercial trip limit for dolphin of 4,000 pounds whole weight after 75 percent of the commercial sector annual catch limit has been met or projected to be met is not effective now, but will be effective on March 21, 2017.
  • The final rule for Regulatory Amendment 1 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Dolphin and Wahoo Fishery of the Atlantic published on December 30, 2016 (81 FR 96388).
  • This commercial trip limit for dolphin (50 C.F.R. Part 622.278(a)(3)(i)) would have been effective January 30, 2017.

FORMAL FEDERAL REGISTER NAME/NUMBER: Memorandum announcing the delay in implementation of regulations (82 FR 8346, published January 24, 2017). Notice announcing the delay in implementations of final rules for black sea bass (Regulatory Amendment 16) and dolphin (Regulatory Amendment 1) (82 FR 8820, published January 31, 2017). 

‘Chevron Deference,’ Key Issue in Fisheries Management, Questioned by Supreme Court Nominee

February 2, 2017 (SAVING SEAFOOD) — On January 31, President Donald Trump nominated Judge Neil Gorsuch of the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals to fill the vacant seat on the Supreme Court. If confirmed, the Court may potentially reexamine the legal principle of Chevron deference, a principle that has heavily impacted fisheries management.

Chevron deference is a legal principle established in 1984, in the Supreme Court case of Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council. It states that in cases when the meaning of federal laws is unclear, courts should prioritize the interpretations of the regulatory agencies, such as NOAA. Practically, this has the effect of bolstering the influence of the federal bureaucracy at the expense of judicial review. In the case of fishery management, this has resulted in several instances where courts have upheld agency decisions whose legality has been disputed by the fishing community.

Most notably, in Lovgren v. Locke the plaintiffs (including fishermen and several municipalities in New England) challenged the establishment of catch shares management in New England in 2010 as being in violation of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Reauthorization Act. The First Circuit Court of Appeals relied on Chevron in ruling in favor of the Commerce Department. This principle also was cited last year by District Court for the District of New Hampshire as a reason why the lawsuit against NOAA’s at-sea monitoring industry funding requirements failed.

While the Supreme Court – including Justice Scalia – has previously applied Chevron deference on several occasions, Judge Gorsuch has expressed trepidation about its merits. In his concurring opinion for Gutierrez-Brizuela v. Lynch, Gorsuch wrote:

“What would happen in a world without Chevron? […] Surely Congress could and would continue to pass statutes for executive agencies to enforce. And just as surely agencies could and would continue to offer guidance on how they intend to enforce those statutes. The only difference would be that courts would then fulfill their duty to exercise their independent judgment about what the law is.”

While Judge Gorsuch has only been nominated recently, should he ascend to the High Court, look for a reexamination of the principle of Chevron deference in the coming years.

2015/2016 California Dungeness crab season ‘a fishery resource disaster’

February 1, 2017 — A long-awaited declaration by U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker defines the 2015 to 2016 California Dungeness crab season as a fishery failure.

A Jan. 18 press release from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) states that under fishery management laws, the secretary of commerce can make the declaration “due to a fishery resource disaster.”

That opens the door for – but does not guarantee – congressional approval of disaster relief funding.

“If Congress appropriates funds to address these fishery failures, NOAA will work closely with members of Congress … to develop a spending plan to support activities that would restore the fishery, prevent a similar failure, and assist affected communities,” the release states.

Last year’s season was delayed by several months due to the presence of domoic acid, a naturally-produced toxin related to algae blooms.

The Dungeness season’s off-the-boat crab landings revenue amounted to $37.6 million, far less than the $60 million or so that each season has yielded in recent years. If the revenue loss had equated to 80 percent of an average season’s total, a disaster declaration would have been automatic.

Read the full story at the Mad River Union

NOAA Fisheries Reminds Commercial HMS Permit Holders of U.S. Coast Guard Commercial Fishing Vessel Dockside Safety Examination Requirements

January 31, 2017 — The following was released by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration:

NOAA Fisheries is reminding commercial Highly Migratory Species (HMS) vessel permit holders that they are required to obtain a United States Coast Guard (USCG) Commercial Fishing Vessel Dockside Safety Examination.

Effective October 15, 2015, the law requires completion of a mandatory dockside safety exam at least once every five years.  See USCG Marine Safety Information Bulletin, or MSIB, 12-15 for clarification about the five-year mandatory dockside safety exam.

Commercial fishing means a vessel that commercially engages in the catching, taking, or harvesting of fish which, either in whole or in part, is intended to enter commerce through sale, barter, or trade. 

So, whether your vessel is USCG documented or State registered, if you catch fish beyond 3 nautical miles with the intent to sell them, you are operating a commercial fishing vessel.  The USCG categorizes vessels that hold one or more of the follow HMS permits as commercial fishing vessels subject to mandatory dockside safety exams:

  • Atlantic Tunas General Category
  • Atlantic Tunas Harpoon Category
  • HMS Charter/Headboat Category
  • General Commercial Swordfish
  • Atlantic Tunas Longline
  • Atlantic Tunas Purse Seine
  • Atlantic Shark Directed Limited Access
  • Atlantic Shark Incidental Limited Access
  • Atlantic Smoothhound
  • Atlantic Swordfish Directed Limited Access
  • Atlantic Swordfish Incidental Limited Access
  • Atlantic Swordfish Harpoon Limited Access

Commercial fishing vessels are required to comply with the commercial fishing vessel safety regulations found in 46 CFR Part 28.

For more info about dockside safety exams and how to obtain a decal: https://www.uscg.mil/msib/docs/012_15_10-20-2015.pdf

USCG has a helpful tool to assist vessel owners/operators prepare their fishing vessel prior to examination.  Commercial Fishing Vessel Checklist Generator: https://www.uscg.mil/d13/cfvs/test/1ChecklistCover.html

This notice is a courtesy to commercial HMS permit holders to help keep you informed about the fishery.  For additional information, call (978) 281-9260, or go to hmspermits.noaa.gov.  Official notice of Federal fishery actions is made through filing such notice with the Office of the Federal Register.

Atlantic Spanish Mackerel Southern Zone Commercial Trip Limit Reduction to 1,500 pounds on February 6, 2017

February 1, 2017 — The Following was released by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration:

Atlantic Spanish Mackerel Southern Zone Commercial Trip Limit Reduction to 1,500 pounds on February 6, 2017     

WHAT/WHEN: 

  • The daily trip limit for the commercial harvest of Atlantic Spanish mackerel in the southern zone is reduced from 3,500 to 1,500 pounds, effective 6:00 a.m. on February 6, 2017.
  • The southern zone includes federal waters off the states of South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida. The boundary for the southern zone is the North Carolina/South Carolina border and the Monroe/Miami-Dade Counties, Florida, border.

WHY THIS TRIP LIMIT REDUCTION IS HAPPENING: 

  • When landings of Atlantic Spanish mackerel in the southern zone reach or are projected to reach 75 percent of the adjusted quota, accountability measures 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 adjusted quota.

AFTER THE TRIP LIMIT REDUCTION:

  • The 1,500 pound trip limit will remain in effect until the end of the current fishing season on February 28, 2017, or when 100 percent of the adjusted quota is reached or projected to be reached, whichever occurs first. The commercial trip limit becomes 500 pounds after 100 percent of the adjusted quota is reached or projected to be reached.

This bulletin provides only a summary of the existing regulations. Full regulations can be found in the Federal Register or at by clicking here 

Another alarm for scientists: Trump’s pick to guide NOAA transition

January 30, 2017 — President Donald Trump is taking aim at one of the federal government’s main agencies for climate change research – the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration – and NOAA employees are girding for drastic changes in how they conduct science and report it to the public.

Trump has appointed a leading denier of climate change, Kenneth Haapala of the Heartland Institute, to serve on the administration team handling appointments for the U.S. Department of Commerce, the federal agency that oversees NOAA. Haapala will be in a position to help choose top administrators at NOAA, an agency that conducts atmospheric research and, among other duties, also oversees the National Weather Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service.

One NOAA employee said he and many of his colleagues are alarmed by Haapala’s selection.

Trump’s top 5 decisions impacting seafood

January 31, 2017 — Since his swearing-in less than two weeks ago, United States President Donald Trump has not been afraid to act quickly and boldly – some might argue rashly – to make good on promises he made during his campaign.

The seafood industry already has much to digest in its analysis of how Trump’s policies will affect its bottom line. Many of Trump’s early moves have represented sharp deviations from American policy over previous decades, especially in regard to trade. Trump has hinted that he will also loosen environmental regulations with the intent of boosting domestic natural resource extraction.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

DAVID F. LIPTON: Christie should advocate for N.J. fishing industry

January 31, 2017 — President Donald Trump is going to reverse (“undo”) job-killing, industry-destroying regulations in dozens of huge federal administrative agencies like the EPA, the FCC and the National Labor Relations Board.

Trump campaigned on the promise to help us all take our country back by eliminating these business-stifling rules put in place by Barack Obama and his minions.

We need help in New Jersey right now since the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which oversees the managed fisheries, is getting ready to cripple the New Jersey fishing industry when it receives a recommendation from the Atlantic States Fisheries Commission and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Council that will vote Thursday to reduce the flounder quotas in New Jersey, crippling the fishing business on “bad facts” presented to the agency.

Read more at the Asbury Park Press

Fishing industry backs Chris Oliver for NMFS director

January 27, 2017 — A coalition of commercial fishing, Native and environmental entities is backing Chris Oliver, executive director of the North Pacific Fishery Management Council, to become the next head of the National Marine Fisheries Service.

The more than four dozen signers of a letter sent to the Trump administration on Jan. 23 included processors Trident Seafoods and Icicle Seafoods, Alaska Bering Sea Crabbers, Alaska Marine Conservation Council, At Sea Processors Association, Bristol Bay Economic Development Corp., Fishing Vessel Owners Association, Pacific Seafoods Processors Association, United Catcher Boats, and United Fishermen’s Marketing Association.

Read the full story at The Cordova Times