Saving Seafood

CHRISTIAN PUTNAM: Balancing good news with bad

September 13, 2016 — Due to budgetary constraints and other factors, in recent years the federal surveys of fish stocks have been reduced and carried out by a single vessel, the Fisheries Survey Vessel (FSV) Henry B. Bigelow. The way a survey is done is like regular commercial fishing in that the survey vessel tows gear similar to commercial fishing gear in order to determine how many fish are in the area and what species. The reduced surveys and limited areas surveyed have been the subject of considerable criticism by the commercial fishing industry and local politicians.

Taking a page from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts fisheries regulators, last month NOAA Fisheries announced the agency is looking for one to three trawler-type fishing vessels to handle “part or all” of the spring and fall surveys for the next five years.

NOAA Fisheries states this action is to get more consistent and expansive results from the surveys. Perhaps this will avoid recurrence of the disastrous quota reductions, such as the nearly 90 percent reduction in cod quota over the past couple years. This action also shows that NOAA Fisheries is beginning to listen to the criticism of the stakeholders that suffer the results of their decisions and wishes to build some trust in the science and processes used to make quota decisions.

It also makes sense to allow the under-utilized fishing fleet to operate for these purposes so that the fishermen can create revenue through survey research, as they are not able to fish on a consistent basis these days. It is encouraging to see what appears to be a change toward better policy and perhaps a more rational approach to gathering the information needed to make important decisions about the natural resources that belong to the public and are relied up by many of our neighbors to make a living.

Read the full story from the Scituate Mariner

Northern Pacific Fishery Management Council 40th Anniversary Celebration

September 12, 2016 — The following was released by the Northern Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council will be celebrating 40 years of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act on Thursday, December 8, 2016 at the Captain Cook Hotel from 6 to 10 pm. Seating is limited. Registration opens October 10. More information will follow at the October Council meeting.

Feds take most humpback whales off endangered species list

September 7, 2016 — HONOLULU — Federal authorities took most humpback whales off the endangered species list Tuesday, saying their numbers have recovered through international efforts to protect the giant mammals.

Known for their acrobatic leaps from the sea and complex singing patterns, humpback whales were nearly hunted to extinction for their oil and meat by industrial-sized whaling ships well through the middle of the 20th century. But the species has been bouncing back since an international ban on commercial whaling took effect in 1966.

The moratorium on whaling remains in effect, despite the new classifications.

The National Marine Fisheries Service said it first had evidence to indicate there were 14 distinct populations of humpback whales around the world. It then said nine of these populations have recovered to the point where they no longer need Endangered Species Act Protections. These include whales that winter in Hawaii, the West Indies and Australia.

Before, the agency classified all humpback whales as one population. They had been listed as endangered since 1970.

“Today’s news is a true ecological success story,” Eileen Sobeck, assistant administrator for fisheries at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, said in a statement.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at the New Bedford Standard-Times

NOAA ship back after extensive trip

September 6, 2016 — NEWPORT, RI — Research scientists recently had the first confirmed sighting of a True’s beaked whale that was combined with a verified recording of the whale’s sounds.

“The whales are very far offshore and can spend one to three hours below the surface without coming up,” said Debra Palka, a research biologist with the Northeast Fisheries Science Center in Woods Hole, Mass. “The whales are not seen very often.”

Palka was among a team of scientists that just completed a 54-day trip at sea aboard the 209-foot National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration research vessel Henry B. Bigelow, which was welcomed back home Friday at a ceremony that featured U.S. Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I.; Rear Adm. Anita Lopez, deputy director for operations in NOAA’s Office of Marine and Aviation Operations; and Lt. Cmdr. Jeffrey Taylor, Bigelow’s commanding officer, as the speakers.

Reed announced in April that Bigelow’s new home port would be Newport, moving here permanently from Woods Hole. He lobbied for several years to have the ship here because the waterfront at Naval Station Newport is an integral part of operations for both NOAA and Coast Guard vessels, he said.

Read the full story at The Westerly Sun

Bottom trawlers sought for NOAA surveys

September 2, 2016 — NOAA Fisheries is looking for a few good boats.

The federal fishing regulator’s Northeast Fisheries Science Center in Woods Hole seeks one to three commercial fishing boats to participate in the agency’s bottom trawl survey in the waters of the mid-Atlantic and New England regions of the Atlantic Ocean.

The use of the commercial vessels to help supplement — or in some cases, supplant — the work of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s survey vessel, the FSV Henry B. Bigelow, is one of the first steps in NOAA’s recently announced plan to incorporate more commercial boats in the trawl survey.

NOAA announced on Aug. 3 that it plans to shift “part or all” of its spring and fall trawl surveys to fishing industry boats over the next five years in an attempt to get more consistent and expansive coverage and to bridge the current gap between what fishermen say they are seeing on the water and what NOAA is reporting from its trawl surveys.

“The goal is to build trust in the best science through cooperative and collaborative research and improving both the communication and transparency with the fishing industry,” Bill Karp, the director of the Northeast Fisheries Science Center, said at the announcement.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Times

NPFMC October 2016 Agenda

September 2, 2016 — The following was released by NOAA:

The Council meets the week of October 3, 2016 at the Hilton Hotel in Anchorage, Alaska.

The AGENDA and SCHEDULE are now available. Alaska Airlines offers Travel Discounts to the meetings. Documents will be posted through the links on the Agenda. The deadline for public comments is 5:00 PM (AST) Tuesday, September 27, 2016.

Submit comments to npfmc.comments@noaa.gov

NOAA grants to aid marine mammal rescue and stranding programs

September 2, 2016 — NOAA Fisheries awarded nearly $3 million in grants Sept. 1, 2016, to support the conservation and recovery of protected marine species through stranding response and marine mammal rescue and rehabilitation.

Through the John H. Prescott Marine Mammal Rescue Assistance Grant Program, NOAA awarded 32 grants to nonprofit organizations, aquariums, universities, and coastal state, local and tribal governments that are members of the National Marine Mammal Stranding Network.

Recipients will use their award funds to respond to marine mammal strandings, improve capacity at their facilities, and conduct scientific investigations into the causes of stranding events and unusual mortality events. Funding will also be used to help recover marine mammals that NOAA Fisheries has designated “Species in the Spotlight,” all of which have a high risk of extinction in the near future.

“Our stranding network partners provide us valuable environmental data by collecting information from stranding and rescue events,” said Eileen Sobeck, assistant NOAA administrator for fisheries. “They help NOAA establish links between marine mammal health and the health of coastal ecosystems and communities.”

The stranding network’s trained professionals and volunteers serve as the first responders to marine mammals in distress and work to provide humane care to animals in need. They also investigate causes of disease, injury, or illness. NOAA Fisheries relies on its partnership with the network’s members to collect research about marine mammal health needed to develop effective conservation programs for marine mammal populations.

Read the full story at The Examiner

Nautilus Finally Moves toward Endangered Species Protection

September 1, 2016 — The world’s most mathematically perfect marine species moved a little bit closer to protection last week when the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration agreed to consider listing the chambered nautilus (Nautilus pompilius) under the Endangered Species Act.

The move comes after several years of hard work on the part of conservationists and federal agencies to understand the massive scope of the nautilus trade and how it impacts wild populations. According to that research, nearly 1.7 million of these mollusk shells—the natural embodiment of the Fibonacci spiral—have been imported into the U.S. alone over the past 16 years, where they’re sold for anywhere between $15 and $200. The trade in nautilus shells is so bad that it has all-but depleted many populations of these ancient animals.

Further imports as well as interstate trade would become illegal if the species does gain Endangered Species Act protection.

Read the full story at Scientific American

FLORIDA: Red Snapper Season Reopens In September

August 31, 2016 — The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is opening up weekends in September and October for recreational red snapper fishing in the Gulf of Mexico. Residents will be able to fish Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays starting Sept. 2 and on Labor Day.

The daily bag limit is two fish per person with a fish minimum size limit of 16 inches.

In May, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration kept commercial and recreational red snapper fishing in South Atlantic federal waters closed. This was due to exceeding the allowable catch limit in the 2015 season.

Read the full story at WFSU

NOAA Fisheries Announces Availability of Draft Ecosystem-Based Fisheries Management Road Map for Public Comment by October 15, 2016

August 30, 2016 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Resilient, productive ocean fisheries are critical to our economy and way of life.  Managing these fisheries over the long-term means taking into account more than just one species at a time. It requires a holistic, science-based approach that looks at the entire ecosystem. This approach is known as Ecosystem-based Fisheries Management (EBFM).

NOAA Fisheries has developed an agency-wide EBFM policy, which outlines a set of principles to guide our actions and decisions over the long-term. It directs continued progress toward development and implementation of EBFM approaches. It also ensures our commitment to incorporate EBFM into the agency’s resource management decisions.

NOAA also recently released a EBFM draft “road map” to guide implementation of the EBFM policy over the next five years. The road map outlines actions we can take now to further the policy’s 6 guiding principles:

  • Implement ecosystem-level planning
  • Advance understanding of ecosystem processes
  • Assess risks and vulnerabilities
  • Explore trade-offs
  • Incorporate ecosystem considerations into management advice
  • Maintain ecosystem resilience and social well-being

Interested parties can send their comments on the draft road map no later than October 15, 2016 to Heather.Sagar@noaa.gov and Jason.Link@noaa.gov.  Further information can be found online here.