Saving Seafood

Public can help fight climate change with new grants for citizen science projects

August 5, 2024 — The public can now help even more in the ongoing climate change battle after the Biden-Harris Administration and NOAA unveiled hundreds of thousands of dollars available in grants for citizen science projects.

On Monday, the Department of Commerce and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) announced $600,000 in grants is being made available to members of the public to conduct science experiments that help fisheries and fishing communities prepare for climate change.

NOAA Fisheries will offer funding between $75,000 and $200,000 for three to eight projects during 2025/2026 chosen from applications that are now open to the public. The deadline to apply is Nov. 4, 2024.

NOAA says they are seeking proposals for citizen science projects in an effort to find gaps in data on the health of marine fish stocks and/or how fisheries and fishing communities could be impacted by changing environmental conditions.

Read the full article at Sustainable San Diego

Biden-Harris Administration, NOAA to provide $600,000 for citizen science

August 5, 2024 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Today, the Department of Commerce and NOAA announced a $600,000 funding opportunity for members of the public to conduct science that helps fisheries and fishing communities prepare for climate change. These funds are made possible by the Biden Administration’s Inflation Reduction Act, the largest climate investment in U.S. history. 

NOAA Fisheries is seeking proposals for citizen science projects, marking a unique collaboration with members of the general public who will actively participate in the scientific process, alongside researchers, to address real-world questions. These projects aim to produce information that could help to address data gaps in assessing the health of marine fish stocks or how fisheries and fishing communities may be impacted by changing environmental conditions. 

By harnessing the power of citizen science, NOAA seeks to expand the breadth and depth of observations available, accelerating data collection and delivery. 

“Given the impacts of climate change on fisheries, it’s crucial to have a comprehensive understanding of shifts in commercial, recreational and subsistence fishing, as well as their associated communities,” said Janet Coit, assistant administrator for NOAA Fisheries. “Observations from people living in affected communities, what we call citizen science, has the potential to give us a better understanding of climate impacts and help us navigate those challenges.”

These funds are expected to support three to eight different projects at approximately $75,000 to $200,000 per project during fiscal years 2025-2026. This research will help increase the number and types of observations NOAA can make, accelerating the collection and delivery of data, and contributing to timely and accurate management decisions for vulnerable species and sustainable fisheries.

How to apply for funding

Applications can be submitted through the Grants.gov website by 11/4/2024. Projects should be designed with scientific quality and data credibility as core considerations and are available to applicants including individuals, academic institutions, for-profit and nonprofit organizations, state governments and tribal and local organizations. Additional information for applicants is available on the NOAA Fisheries website.  

This funding opportunity follows NOAA Fisheries’ June 2023 announcement highlighting the agency’s intentions for $145 million of Inflation Reduction Act funds focused on transforming our data enterprise.

More: Visit NOAA’s NOAA’s Inflation Reduction Act web portal to learn about current and future funding opportunities. 

NOAA Fisheries grappling with fisheries management in the face of climate change

August 3, 2024 — The impacts of climate change are already being felt in fishing communities across the U.S. – to sometimes devastating results.

In January 2024, two massive storms in the northeastern U.S. region of New England sunk vessels, damaged docks, and flooded coastal communities. Janet Mills, the governor of the U.S. state of Maine, claimed in a request for federal aid in the wake of the storms that the weather caused USD 70.3 million (EUR 64.3 million) in public infrastructure damage in the state of Maine alone.

Read the full story at SeafoodSource

 

Biden-Harris Administration announces more than $105 million for West Coast and Alaska salmon

August 2, 2024 — The following was released by NOAA:

Today, the Department of Commerce and NOAA announced more than $105 million in recommended funding for 14 new and continuing salmon recovery projects and programs. Located along the West Coast and in Alaska, these state and tribal efforts will be funded through the Pacific Coastal Salmon Recovery Fund (PCSRF). The funds include Fiscal Year 2024 annual appropriations as well as $34.4 million under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and $7.5 million under the Inflation Reduction Act, and will aid programs and projects in Alaska, California, Idaho, Oregon and Washington that include habitat restoration, stock enhancement, sustainable fisheries and research and monitoring.

“This $105 million investment, made possible thanks to the Biden-Harris Administration’s Investing in America agenda, will build on decades of salmon recovery work, while helping Pacific coast Tribes and Alaska Natives sustain their communities and cultural traditions in the face of climate change,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. “This is a result of the most ambitious climate agenda in history, and I am proud that nearly half of all funds in this announcement are being awarded to Tribal applicants.”

These investments will supplement state and tribal programs that provide demonstrable and measurable benefits to Pacific salmon and their habitat. They will aid in the recovery of 28 Endangered Species Act (ESA)-listed salmon and steelhead species, as well as non-listed ESA salmon and steelhead that are necessary for native subsistence or tribal treaty fishing rights, and for those in the Columbia River Basin, these efforts will help meet the President’s goal of restoring healthy and abundant salmon, steelhead and other native fish in the Basin.

“The PCSRF program has benefited fish populations and their habitats in so many ways,” said Janet Coit, assistant administrator for NOAA Fisheries. “The value of these investments goes far beyond recovering Pacific salmon and steelhead and their habitats, to also provide community and economic benefits, such as jobs and climate resilience.”

Read the full release at NOAA

New Jersey-sized “dead zone” that can kill fish and marine life emerges in Gulf of Mexico

August 2, 2024 — More than 4 million acres of marine life habitat have become a “dead zone” in the Gulf of Mexico, threatening the lives of fish and other marine animals, NOAA said on Thursday. Although this is an annual issue in the Gulf, this year’s is far larger than anticipated, with an area roughly the size of New Jersey.

The dead zone is an area where there is very little to no oxygen, a situation known as hypoxia, that NOAA says can kill fish and marine life. In June, NOAA predicted an area of 5,827 square miles, roughly the size of Connecticut. But on Thursday, the agency said it has grown to roughly 6,705 square miles, equating to more than 4 million acres of habitat and more than 1,000 square miles larger than anticipated.

It’s the 12th-largest dead zone the agency has recorded in 38 years of measurement — and well above a goal set out by researchers to reduce the area.

According to NOAA, scientists have made it a goal to reduce the average area to fewer than 1,900 square miles by 2035 to help improve the health of the marine ecosystem. As it stands, the five-year average is now nearly 4,300 square miles, more than twice as large as that target.

Read the full story at CBS News

NEW JERSEY: Whales recorded in large numbers off New Jersey coast

July 30, 2024 — Whales are gathering in large numbers off New Jersey in a portion of the Atlantic Ocean called the New York Bight, according to several sources.

Viking Yacht Company of New Gretna, Burlington County, posted to Facebook that a large group of North Atlantic right whales, an endangered species with only about 360 individuals left, was congregating in the New York Bight between the Hudson Canyon off Sandy Hook and Block Canyon off Montauk, New York.

The New York Bight is a triangular area of ocean that stretches between the Jersey Shore and Long Island.

“NOAA (the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) has used planes to identify the whales — present due to large amounts of food,” Viking Yacht staff wrote on Facebook. “We’re advising boaters to be vigilant. If whale(s) are seen, provide a wide berth.”

Read the full article at Asbury Park Press

Conservationists seek permanent marine protection for Cashes Ledge off Cape Ann

July 29, 2024 — A rare underwater mountain range 80 miles off the coast of Cape Ann – home to the region’s largest kelp forest – may become a protected national marine sanctuary, joining just 16 other sanctuaries in the U.S.

The Conservation Law Foundation, based in Boston, submitted a nomination to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) today to designate Cashes Ledge as a sanctuary.

National marine sanctuaries are permanently protectedfrom fishing, shipping and ocean dumping and offer a haven for marine life and an undisturbed ecological site for scientific research.

The nomination triggers a yearslong review process that could lead to the 766-square mile site being formally designated.

“The kelp forest harbors this treasure trove of marine life plants and animals … and a tremendous amount of biodiversity,” CLF’s senior scientist Gareth Lawson said, describing the area to be protected.

Research shows the Gulf of Maine warming faster than 97 percent of the global ocean, and scientists backing the effort to protect the habitat and marine life at Cashes Ledge say the need for conservation here is urgent.

Read the full article at CAI

Northwest tribes’ salmon hatcheries get $240 million federal boost

July 29, 2024 — West Coast tribes are getting nearly $240 million from the federal government to improve their salmon hatcheries.

Twenty-seven tribes, including 21 from Washington state, will get an initial $2 million each to repair and modernize their aging hatcheries, the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) announced Thursday.

The remaining funds will be awarded competitively among the tribes “in the coming months,” federal officials said.

Jennifer Quan, regional administrator of NOAA Fisheries, called it “one of our greatest commitments of support for tribal fisheries since the treaties themselves that first assured the tribes access to the fisheries.”

Read the full article at KUOW

US lawmakers trying to stop NOAA Fisheries’ new vessel speed rules

July 29, 2024 — U.S. lawmakers in Congress are trying to stop NOAA Fisheries’ expanded vessel speed rules from going into effect, with 54 legislators signing a letter asking the federal government to reopen the rule for further input and review.

“We share the objective of preventing vessel strikes and protecting critically endangered marine mammals like the North Atlantic right whale,” the lawmakers wrote in the joint letter. “However, we believe that there are better strategies to accomplish this goal while safeguarding the multiple uses of our ocean resources.”

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Speed limits to protect whales? Not so fast, says Congress

July 29, 2024 — The federal proposal to designate critical habitat for the endangered Rice’s whale is slowing amid opposition from Gulf of Mexico state leaders, who say any potential restrictions to protect the whales could endanger their maritime industries.

With a population estimated at only around 75 animals, the Rice’s whale is at even more peril than the North Atlantic right whale, believed to number around 360 whales ranging along the U.S. Atlantic coast.

Back in October 2023 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration backed off from a rule proposal that called for local 10-knot speed limits when Rice’s whales are seen in Gulf waters. The agency says ship strikes are a major danger for whales just below the sea surface.

That plan drew intense criticism from Gulf shipping and offshore energy industries. The NOAA Fisheries service is continuing to push for some measures to help the Rice’s whale survive, by designating a 28,000-square mile critical habitat along the continental shelf and slope waters within the Gulf of Mexico.

 Read the full article at Workboat