Saving Seafood

Habitat Designation Key to Right Whale Recovery

February 2,2016— There is reason to be optimistic that the recent move by the federal government to expand the protected habitat of the North Atlantic right whale will protect the endangered species without harming its equally at-risk ocean neighbor, the commercial fishing industry.

The mammals and fishermen have historically been at cross purposes. The whales were given their name because they were the “right” whale to kill, thanks to their proximity to shore and the fact that they floated when dead, allowing them to be easily towed behind a whaler. The modern fishing industry no longer targets the whales, of course, but the mammals can get tangled in lost or discarded fishing line and gear, which often leads to their death.

 Commercial whaling decimated the once-thriving right whale species in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Just a few decades ago, only 300 or so remained. Over the last three decades, however, conservation efforts have brought the number to around 500.

“We have made progress,” David Gouveia, the marine mammal and sea turtle conservation coordinator for the Greater Atlantic Region of the National Marine Fisheries Service, told the Associated Press. “We are on a positive trajectory but there is still plenty of work to be done.”

Last month, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced it was expanding its list of right whale habitat, adding calving grounds off the coast of the Carolinas and feeding grounds off New England. The move designates more than 30,000 square nautical miles as critical.

The designation, set to go into effect at the end of the month, means projects that require federal permits — such as dredging or building oil rigs or wind farms — will now be measured at least in part on how they affect the whales’ habitat.

“It’s a very important move,” Charles “Stormy” Mayo, director of right whale habitat studies at the Center for Coastal Studies in Provincetown, told the Boston Globe. “It’s pretty tough to put a small box around a wild animal, especially a whale that travels many thousands of miles each year of its life. … What we have here is an adjustment that recognizes the wide use of the environment that supports these whales.”

The measure is not expected to affect fishing or lobstering operations. Both industries have scrapped with the federal government in the past over how best to help the whales rebound while keeping hundreds of small businesses afloat. Those negotiations have often been complicated by lawsuits from environmental groups looking to force a solution, generally at the expense of fishermen.

“It’s a very real fear among the fishing industry,” Patrice McCarron of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association told the Bangor Daily News. “The right whale issue has been a very litigious issue — period.”

Read the full editorial at Gloucester Daily Times

 

Fishing industry fighting cost of at-sea monitors

NEW BEDFORD, Mass. — January 28, 2016 — Fishermen are opposing new catch-monitoring costs that could take effect March 1, as a judge’s ruling this week gave the industry a setback in efforts to block the transition from government funding.

John Haran of Dartmouth, manager of a local fishery sector, said in December that transferring the regulatory costs to the fishing industry could put more than 40 local groundfishing boats out of business. Local fishing industry tycoon Carlos Rafael said the costs — potentially about $700 per monitored trip — could mean repeated expenses of $14,000 across 20 groundfishing boats in his fleet.

“If they force that down our throats, the party is over,” Rafael said Thursday, before citing a vintage song. “Good night, Irene – it’s over for everybody.”

Regulators say the per-trip costs for monitoring – when private service providers put people on commercial fishing boats to count catches of cod, haddock, and some flounder, to track quotas – could be less than $700, given industry negotiations with private contractors.

Teri Frady, spokesman at the Northeast Fisheries Science Center in Woods Hole, said Thursday that March 1 was the latest estimate for when fishermen, not the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), would begin paying the cost of at-sea monitoring.

“What we paid, as the government, the total package for a sea day was around $700 — but we don’t know what that figure is going to be when the sectors do their own contracting,” Frady said. “Recognizing the economic issues in the industry, the agency has picked up the (at-sea) cost, but now we don’t have allocation to do that.”
A group representing East Coast fishermen sued the federal government in December, in U.S. District Court in Concord, N.H., seeking to block the  transfer of payments.

Read the full story from the New Bedford Standard-Times

U.S. Fisheries Management Clears High Bar for Sustainability Based on New Assessment

January 28, 2016 — Today, NOAA Fisheries announced the publication of a peer-reviewed self-assessment that shows the standards of the United States fishery management system under the Magnuson-Stevens Act more than meet the criteria of the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization’s ecolabelling guidelines. These same guidelines serve as a basis for many consumer seafood certification and ranking schemes. The assessment demonstrates that the U.S. fisheries management system is particularly strong when considering responsiveness and science-based criteria. Beyond the biological and ecosystem criteria, the assessment also pointed out that the U.S. system incorporates the social and economic components of fisheries essential for effective long-term stewardship.

This assessment was authored by Dr. Michelle Walsh, a former NOAA Fisheries Knauss Fellow and current member of the Marine Science Faculty at Florida Keys Community College. Walsh evaluated the sustainability of how U.S. federal fisheries are managed using the FAO’s Guidelines for the Ecolabelling of Fish and Fishery Products from Marine Capture Fisheries. These guidelines are a set of internationally recognized criteria used to evaluate the sustainability of fisheries around the world.

“While the performance of U.S. fisheries clearly illustrates that the U.S. management system is effective, my colleagues and I wanted to evaluate the U.S. approach to fisheries management as a whole against these international guidelines for ecolabelling seafood,” said Walsh.

Read the full story from NOAA Fisheries

NOAA Fisheries Announces New Regulations for Snapper-Grouper and Golden Crab in the South Atlantic, and Dolphin and Wahoo in the Atlantic Region

January 25, 2016 — The following was released by NOAA:

The final rule for the Generic Accountability Measures and Dolphin Allocation Amendment including: Amendment 34 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Snapper Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic Region, Amendment 9 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Golden Crab of the South Atlantic Region, and Amendment 8 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Dolphin Wahoo Fishery of the Atlantic published in the Federal Registrar on January 22, 2016 (81 FR 3731). Regulations will be effective on February 22, 2016.

The final rule:

Revises commercial and recreational sector allocations, and annual catch limits for dolphin in the South Atlantic. The commercial sector allocation for dolphin will increase from 7.54% to 10%, and the commercial annual catch limit will increase from 1,157,001 to 1,534,485 pounds whole weight. The recreational sector allocation for dolphin will change from 92.46% to 90%, and the annual catch limit will change from 14,187,845 to 13,810,361 pounds whole weight.

Revises the accountability measures for black grouper, mutton snapper, yellowtail snapper, greater amberjack, red porgy, gag, golden tilefish, red grouper, snowy grouper, gray triggerfish, hogfish, scamp, Atlantic spadefish, bar jack, the other snappers complex, the other jacks complex, the other shallow-water grouper complex, the other porgies complex; wreckfish (recreational), and golden crab (commercial).

Accountability measures are ways fishery managers prevent annual catch limits from being exceeded and to correct overages of the catch limits if they do occur. These measures can include in-season closures, and post-season paybacks, such as reducing the length of the next fishing season or reducing the annual catch limit in the next fishing season. See the Frequently Asked Questions for more detailed information on accountability measures for the commercial and recreational sectors.

This bulletin serves as a Small Entity Compliance Guide, complying with section 212 of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996.

For more information on the final rule for the Generic Accountability Measures and Dolphin Allocation Amendment, please follow this link to the Frequently Asked Questions.

NOAA Fisheries Announces Proposed Specifications for 2016-2018 Mackerel, Squid, Butterfish Fisheries

January 22, 2016 — The following was released by NOAA

NOAA Fisheries Announces Proposed Specifications for 2016-2018 Mackerel, Squid, Butterfish Fisheries

NOAA Fisheries is requesting comments on proposed 2016-18 specifications and management measures for the Atlantic mackerel, squid, and butterfish fisheries.

We are proposing to decrease the Atlantic mackerel quota by 56 percent to 9,177 mt because catches have remained low since 2011,and the last stock assessment for mackerel was in 2010. Without a new stock assessment the Council’s Scientific and Statistical Committee decided to base the 2016-2018 Acceptable Biological Catch on 50% of the long-term median catch.

To keep the catch cap on river herring and shad in the mackerel fishery proportional with the quota, we are proposing to reduce it from 89 mt to 82 mt.

This action also proposes to require longfin squid and butterfish moratorium permit holders to use 3-inch mesh when possessing more than 5,000 lbs, up from 2,500 lbs, and to clarify that 5-inch (square or diamond) or greater strengtheners may be used outside the 3-inch mesh to avoid breaking nets during large hauls.

Finally, we propose to suspend the Pre-Trip Notification System (PTNS) requirement for longfin squid and butterfish moratorium permit holders.

To get all the details on these proposed specifications and management measures, read the proposed rule as published in the Federal Register today and the background documents posted on our website.

We are accepting comments through February 22.

Please submit comments either through the online e-rulemaking portal or by mailing your comments to:

John Bullard, Regional Administrator

National Marine Fisheries Service

55 Great Republic Drive

Gloucester, MA, 01950.

Please mark the outside of the envelope, “Comments on the Proposed Rule for MSB Specifications.”

Questions? Contact Jennifer Goebel at 978-281-9175 or jennifer.goebel@noaa.gov.

Read the full release at the NOAA Fisheries website

FISHY BUSINESS: Lack of fairness, parity at play in at-sea monitors

January 11, 2016 — The New England coast has been synonymous with fishing for over 400 years. Throughout those years, fishing as a occupation has been known for its dangers, independence and ingenuity to overcome challenges. These traits remain, especially the danger.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, New England ground fishermen are 37 times more likely to die on the job than a police officer. When compared to the average American worker, the New England ground fisherman is 171 times more likely to be killed on the job.

It is sadly ironic that the U.S. government is likely to put the final nail in the coffin of the industry. As this column outlined in October, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s insistence that ground fishermen fund the at-sea monitoring program is likely to put many of the fishing small businesses out of business. According to NOAA’s own report, the $710 per-day fee that the fishermen would need to fund to pay for the program will make 59 percent of the fishing enterprises unprofitable. So the men and women who literally risk life and limb to bring us fresh, local, sustainable seafood not only have the physical risks associated with their profession, but also the business risk of being driven out of business by NOAA’s unlawful regulation.

Read the full story from the Scituate Mariner

17 New England Legislators Write to Support Proposed At-Sea Monitoring Reforms

January 8, 2016 — A bipartisan group of New England legislators wrote Dr. Kathryn Sullivan, the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere, in support of the New England Fishery Management Council’s proposed At-Sea Monitoring (ASM) reforms, and to thank NOAA Regional Administrator John Bullard for his support of the Council measure.
 
Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) wrote a separate letter on the same subject to Under Secretary Sullivan.
 
The following is taken from a release by the Office of Congressman Seth Moulton (D-MA).

Today, seventeen members of the U.S. House and Senate representing New England sent a letter to Undersecretary Kathryn Sullivan at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to voice strong support for the New England Fishery Management Council’s (Council) proposed At Sea Monitoring (ASM) reforms. As costs are expected to shift to the fishing industry, regional House and Senate members committed to improving the science that is used to set ASM coverage rates and safeguarding cost efficiencies. The signatories of the letter are:

Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-NH)
Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT)
Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME)
Sen. Angus King (I-ME)
Sen. Christopher Murphy (D-CT)
Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI)
Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH)
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI)

Rep. Michael Capuano (D-MA)
Rep. Joe Courtney (D-CT)
Rep. Frank Guinta (R-NH)
Rep. William Keating (D-MA)
Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-MA)
Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA)
Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-ME)
Rep. Bruce Poliquin (R-ME)

“I want to thank Administrator Bullard and the Council for taking these steps to improve the At Sea Monitoring program,” said Congressman Seth Moulton (D-MA). “At a time when our fishing industry is already facing serious financial hardship, it’s critical that we implement systems that both enhance sustainable management and ensure the long-term economic viability of the fishery.”

The New England fishing community, including members of the Northeast Seafood Coalition, also expressed their support for the Council’s proposed reforms.

“It is time to use the wealth of data generated over these years to design an ASM program that is both effective and cost efficient,” said Jackie Odell, Executive Director of the Northeast Seafood Coalition. “Northeast Seafood Coalition (NSC) continues to fully support Congressional efforts to offset costs of the ASM program to the commercial groundfish fishermen, but evolving the coverage-rate methodology at this juncture is a critical step forward.”

If adopted, the Council’s reforms would be implemented for fishing year 2016.

“NSC truly appreciates the exceptional region-wide support from our Congressional representatives for the policy and analytical improvements to the ASM program recently adopted by the New England Fishery Management Council with the support of GARFO Administrator John Bullard,” said Odell. “We are particularly thankful to Congressman Moulton for his leadership in spearheading this very important letter to NOAA Administrator Sullivan,” she said.

Read the letter here

Read the letter from Sen. Ed Markey here

NOAA may move science center from Woods Hole

January 7, 2016 — GLOUCESTER, Mass.— Gloucester officials, reacting to reports that NOAA Fisheries might relocate its Northeast Science Center out of Woods Hole, want the federal agency to consider America’s oldest seaport as a potential new home for the premier fisheries science facility in the Northeast.

Mayor Sefatia Romeo Theken said Gloucester could provide the perfect setting for the science center, which employs about 240 federal and contract employees at its current 3.4-acre site on Vineyard Sound and in facilities in other parts of Falmouth.

“We’re definitely interested if that’s what NOAA decides to do,” Romeo Theken said. “We think we have everything they need here.”

The Northeast Fisheries Science Center, first built in 1885 and reconstructed in 1961 after sustaining hurricane damage, was the first laboratory of the nation’s federal marine fishery service that was established in 1871 and which evolved into the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Read the full story at Gloucester Daily Times

 

Remains of Lost 1800s Whaling Fleet Found

January 6, 2016 — NOAA archaeologists have discovered the battered hulls of two 1800s whaling ships nearly 144 years after they and 31 others sank off the Arctic coast of Alaska in one of the planet’s most unexplored ocean regions. 

The shipwrecks, and parts of other ships, that were found are most likely the remains of 33 ships trapped by pack ice close to the Alaskan Arctic shore in September 1871. The whaling captains had counted on a wind shift from the east to drive the ice out to sea as it had always done in years past. 

The ships were destroyed in a matter of weeks, leaving more than 1,200 whalers stranded at the top of the world until they could be rescued by seven ships of the fleet standing by about 80 miles to the south in open water off Icy Cape. No one died in the incident but it is cited as one of the major causes of the demise of commercial whaling in the United States. 

Read the full story at the Marine Link

Ohio Gov. John Kasich to meet with N.H. fishermen

January 5, 2016 — SEABROOK, N.H. — Republican presidential candidate John Kasich will meet with New Hampshire fishermen Friday to discuss federal regulations some say will kill the Granite State’s fishing industry.

The Ohio governor will meet privately with commercial and recreational fishermen and industry members from 3 to 4 p.m. at Yankee Fisherman’s Cooperative after he holds a noon town hall event at the Lane Memorial Library in Hampton.

Ellen Goethel, a Hampton marine biologist and wife of Hampton commercial fisherman David Goethel, said in an email that the local fishing industry is not endorsing any particular candidate.

Read the full story at Portsmouth Herald