Saving Seafood

Scott, Rubio Call for Logistics Improvement at NOAA

December 28, 2023 — Senators Rick Scott (R-FL) and Marco Rubio sent a letter to the Assistant Administrator for Fisheries at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric (NOAA) Janet Coit to call for the application of the Fishery Resource Disasters Improvement Act (FREDI).

According to Sen. Scott’s press release, the bill has the potential to “improve the fishery disaster assistance process at the NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service and restore confidence and faith in the fishery disaster assistance process by increasing transparency and user experience when applying for relief.”

Alongside Sen. Scott, Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), and Roger Wicker (R-MS) wrote that before FREDI was put in place, the logistics of the NOAA online system was subpar.

Read the full article at the Floridian Press

Integrating Ecosystem and Socioeconomic Information into Fisheries Management

December 27, 2023 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA Fisheries is committed to ecosystem-based management as our most powerful tool to maintain productive, resilient fisheries in a changing climate. This approach considers the entire ecosystem, including humans, to balance tradeoffs between ecological, social, and economic needs.

A new tool, the Ecosystem and Socioeconomic Profile (ESP), takes a significant step toward the application of ecosystem-based fisheries management. It facilitates the integration of ecosystem and socioeconomic information into fisheries management decisions. This rapid communication tool distills information from a variety of sources into a succinct, focused report to help resource managers in their decision-making. Developed in Alaska, it is being adapted and adopted across the nation.

“The ESP gives managers a streamlined version of what affects each fish stock. It provides a means to get a broad range of information—from articles, workshops, citizen science, traditional indigenous knowledge—into one place,” said NOAA Fisheries biologist Kalei Shotwell, Alaska Fisheries Science Center, who initiated the development of the ESP. “It moves us toward ecosystem-based fisheries management. That’s the ultimate goal.”

Warming in the Bering Sea Impacts Phytoplankton Bloom Type

December 26, 2023 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries: 

New research suggests that warming of the Bering Sea Shelf affects algae blooms and the food web that relies on it. This is particularly true of the recent unprecedented and widespread warming during 2018–2019. Understanding the impacts of the timing of the bloom and its association with sea ice is essential to predicting ecosystem responses to climate change.

The Bering Sea shelf is a highly productive ecosystem that extends 500 kilometers offshore from the Alaska coast. It typically experiences large phytoplankton blooms in spring. In cold, high-ice years in the southern Bering Sea, and all but the warmest years in the northern Bering Sea, the timing of sea-ice retreat is a major driver of spring bloom formation.

At the start of spring, as light levels increase, ice-algae grows on the underside of the ice. As spring progresses and the ice melts, the surface water gets fresher, which creates stratification in the water. This allows the phytoplankton to remain in the well-lit surface layer to grow.

These ice-associated phytoplankton blooms feed zooplankton (e.g. copepods, krill) and other tiny creatures that are important fat-rich foods for young fish, birds and marine mammals. The phytoplankton that do not get eaten fall to the seafloor to support a diverse community of bottom-dwelling invertebrate species, like crab and clams. These species, in turn, are food for walruses and some whales.

Study Proposes New Explanation for California Anchovy Booms and Busts

December 21, 2023 — New research from Scripps and NOAA scientists has discovered ecological correlations that could help explain the booms and busts of California’s anchovy population. If the correlations hold up to further research, they could one day help inform management of California’s anchovy fishery and improve conservation.

The Northern Anchovy (Engraulis mordax) is a crucial food source for much of California’s most conspicuous marine life—including droves of sea lions, pods of dolphins, lucrative tuna fisheries, and throngs of whales. But one of the hallmarks of the anchovy population off California is the cycle of booms and busts that can last for more than a decade. These ups and downs reverberate through the entire marine ecosystem, with busts at times contributing to starving sea lion pups or leading brown pelicans to abandon their chicks.

Exactly what drives these booms and busts has remained elusive despite decades of scientific study, notably by the CalCOFI research program which is cooperatively run by UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. The program surveys marine ecosystems up and down the California coast and is one of the largest and longest ocean monitoring programs in the world.

The study, published in Nature Communications and funded by NOAA and the National Science Foundation, points to the marine ecosystem surrounding newly hatched anchovies known as larvae. The researchers analyzed 45 years-worth of anchovy larvae collected during CalCOFI surveys and found that the length of the food chain supporting the larvae strongly correlates with anchovy population booms and busts. Specifically, shorter food chains preceded booms and longer ones preceded busts. Shorter larval food chains have fewer steps of one animal eating another between the photosynthetic phytoplankton harvesting the sun’s energy at the base of the food chain and the larvae, which eat mostly zooplankton.

Read the full article at ECO Magazine

Recovering Threatened and Endangered Species Report to Congress 2021–2022

December 21, 2023 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA Fisheries has released the Recovering Threatened and Endangered Species Report to Congress. It summarizes our’ efforts to recover all transnational and domestic species under our jurisdiction from October 1, 2020 through September 30, 2022. This report summarizes the status of each species that has or will have a recovery plan, the status of the recovery plan, and the completion date for the last 5-year review.

We are adding the endangered Rice’s whale to the Species in the Spotlight initiative. We listed the Rice’s whale, previously known as the Gulf of Mexico Bryde’s whale, as an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act in 2019. This will bring greater attention to the species and marshal resources to save this highly at risk species.

Species in the Spotlight Conservation Efforts

The report also highlights recovery progress for species identified in the Species in the Spotlight initiative, a strategic approach to endangered species conservation. It focuses agency resources on species for which immediate, targeted efforts can be taken to stabilize their populations and prevent extinction.

Our 2023 Partners in the Spotlight have made a profound difference for the Species in the Spotlight and deserve special recognition for their exceptional conservation efforts.

Status of Recovery Plans

During the 2 years covered in this report, we managed 99 domestic (including some transnational) and 66 foreign species, including:

  • Salmon
  • Sturgeon
  • Sawfish
  • Sharks
  • Rays
  • Mollusks
  • Sea turtles
  • Corals
  • Marine mammals

In this report, we address 99 transnational and domestic species for which a recovery plan has or will be developed. Of these species, 58 had final recovery plans and 35 had plans in development. We have not started recovery plans for six species.

The status of these 99 species was:

  • 23 were stabilized or increasing
  • 13 were declining
  • 22 were mixed, with their status varying by population location.
  • 41 were unknown, because we lacked sufficient trend data to make a determination

We delisted two species based on new information indicating they do not meet the definition of a species under the Act and do not qualify for listing:

Read the biennial report (PDF, 78 pages)

Recovery of Species

Recovery is the process of restoring species listed under the Endangered Species Act to the point that they no longer require ESA protections. A recovery plan serves as a road map for species recovery—it lays out where to go and how to get there. Without a plan to organize, coordinate, and prioritize recovery actions, these efforts may be inefficient, ineffective, or misdirected. Recovery plans are guidance documents—they are not regulatory. The Act clearly envisions them as the central organizing tool guiding each species’ progress toward recovery.

Learn more about the recovery of species under the ESA

Find recovery plans

Partnerships for Recovery

Recovering threatened and endangered species is a complex and challenging process, but one that offers long-term benefits to the health of our environment and communities.

Recovery actions may require one or more of the following:

  • Restoring or preserving habitat
  • Minimizing or offsetting the effects of actions that harm species
  • Enhancing population numbers

They also provide communities with healthier ecosystems, cleaner water, and greater opportunities for recreation.

Many partners fund and implement the recovery actions discussed in this report. Partnerships with a variety of stakeholders are critical to achieving species recovery goals. Our partners in these efforts include:

  • Private citizens
  • Federal, state, and local agencies and tribes
  • Interested organizations

NOAA Programs Funding Recovery Actions

Projects funded through these programs often address priority actions identified in recovery plans. They make important contributions to the recovery of listed species.

Species Recovery Grants to States Program

This program provides grant funding to partnering state agencies to support management, outreach, research, and monitoring projects that have direct conservation benefits for listed species.

Species Recovery Grants to Tribes Program

This program supports tribally-led recovery efforts that directly benefit listed species.

Pacific Coastal Salmon Recovery Fund

The fund recovers, restores, and conserves Pacific salmon and steelhead populations and their habitats.

Previous Reports to Congress

Managing and Conserving the World’s Largest Tuna Fisheries

December 20, 2023 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA Fisheries and partners convened December 4–8, 2023, for the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission annual meeting in the Cook Islands. The aim was to strengthen the conservation and management of international fisheries in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean. Following this gathering, they returned home with new management measures that establish international rules for Pacific bigeye, skipjack, and yellowfin tuna fishing. The agenda topics encompassed discussions on tuna stock status and harvest strategies, as well as the incorporation of climate change considerations into fisheries management.

Meeting Highlights

The United States led the adoption of a measure to create a climate change work plan addressing impacts on fisheries in the Commission Convention Area. The United States and the Republic of the Marshall Islands will co-lead this work plan, and the Commission’s Secretariat may also assess current management measures to identify any that may be susceptible to climate change impacts. This will help the Commission be prepared to react quickly and comprehensively to climate change impacts.

The United States also supported several major revisions to the Commission management measure governing the harvest of Pacific bigeye, skipjack, and yellowfin tunas.

Key changes include:

  • Support for the Hawaiʻi-based longline fleet by establishing the U.S. bigeye tuna catch limit at 6,554 metric tons—nearly double the historic limit of 3,554 metric tons
  • Support for the U.S. purse seine fleet through reductions in the Fish Aggregating Device closures from 5 months to 2.5 months
  • Adoption of three other management measures, including a new Compliance Monitoring Scheme that will enhance compliance with conservation and management measures, and revisions to the management of Pacific Bluefin Tuna and North Pacific Swordfish

“The new measures are critical to supporting sustainable U.S. fisheries in the Western Pacific,” said Sarah Malloy, Acting Regional Administrator, NOAA Fisheries Pacific Islands Regional Office. “The United States benefits from sustainable management of tuna stocks, which is essential to the success for our longline and purse seine fleets.”

The United States wanted to secure unlimited fishing on the high seas for the U.S. purse seine fleet based in American Samoa. Although it garnered support from numerous members, there wasn’t consensus. NOAA Fisheries and other members of the U.S. delegation intend to use the momentum gained at the meeting to continue advocating for the prioritization of support for American Samoa’s fishery-based economy.

Collaborating on Change

Adopting these changes was made possible due to the hard work of Commission delegates leading up to the annual meeting.

“The U.S. delegation worked tirelessly throughout 2023 to secure the support of other Commission members for U.S. priorities,” said Kelly Kryc, NOAA’s Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Fisheries and the head of the delegation to the Commission. “We held multiple bilateral talks, worked closely with Territories and stakeholders, and prepared a variety of working papers detailing the United States’ commitment to sustainable fishing and to the fishery development aspirations of the U.S. Pacific Territories.”

The U.S. delegation included NOAA, U.S. Pacific Territories, U.S. Coast Guard, State Department, and industry representatives.

NOAA engaged in eight intersessional working groups this year to prepare for the annual meeting. Over the last 2 years, we also provided funding to support three longline fishery management workshops with various Commission members, in an effort to develop a shared vision of the fishery.

With the new measures in hand, NOAA will continue international conservation and management efforts while supporting the economic development aspirations of the U.S. Pacific Territories through:

  • Advocacy for the American Samoa-based U.S. purse seine fleet
  • Establishment of a harvest strategy for South Pacific albacore tuna
  • Development of minimum standards for electronic monitoring
  • Agreement to substantively strengthen oversight of at-sea transshipment
  • Further enhancement of compliance management measures

NOAA’s 2023 Arctic Report Card highlights human-caused warming

December 20, 2023 — NOAA’s 2023 Arctic Report Card includes new information confirming that human-caused warming of the air, ocean and land is having a broad range impact across the Arctic region, which is warming faster than other parts of the world.

The overriding message from the 2023 report is that now is the time for action, said NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad. NOAA and its federal partners have ramped up their collaboration with state, tribal and local communities to help improve climate resilience. At the same time, Spinrad said, the United States and the global community need to dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions driving these changes.

NOAA’s annual Arctic Report Card, now in its 18th year, includes the work of 82 authors from 13 countries.

It includes a section called “Vital Signs” which updates physical and biological changes, chapters on emerging issues, and a special report on the 2023 summer of extreme wildfires.

One new chapter in the report focuses on salmon species that are vital to the heath, cultures and food security of many Indigenous communities as well as to commercial fishing economies. The chapter notes that in 2021 and 2022 sockeye salmon reached record-high abundances in Bristol Bay, while Chinook and chum salmon that are fished along the Yukon and Kuskokwim rivers fell to record-low abundance. Declining fisheries have continued into the current year, resulting in harvest closures.

Read the full article at the Cordova Times

Supporting Endangered Atlantic Sturgeon in the Chesapeake Bay

December 20, 2023 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Sturgeon are incredibly resilient fish. Fossil records of sturgeon date back to the Cretaceous period—more than 260 million years ago. Today, there are 25 different species of sturgeon worldwide. But due to overfishing, water pollution, vessel strikes, and lack of access to habitat they need, many sturgeon species have declined. Nine species of sturgeon are listed as either threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act. They are considered one of the world’s most endangered groups of species.

There are five distinct population segments of Atlantic sturgeon in the United States. Four of these segments are considered endangered. The other is considered threatened.

One of the distinct population segments of this fish that is endangered is located in the Chesapeake Bay. To help the Chesapeake population rebound, NOAA is working with partners to:

  • Study their abundance, reproduction, and distribution
  • Identify and protect habitat they need during their life cycle
  • Minimize dangers they face, including from ship strikes
  • Introduce students to these fascinating fish

Telemetry Helps Track Fish Numbers, Movement

One way scientists learn more about Atlantic sturgeon is by tracking their movements using acoustic telemetry. Telemetry uses sound to relay information across open space. Scientists surgically insert special sound-emitting tags into fish. Then, receivers stationed in the water detect when those tagged fish swim near the receivers. Understanding sturgeon movement over time and space can help efforts to protect them.

“We tag sturgeon every year, and we’re trying to maintain about 100 active tags,” said Dr. Jason Kahn, NOAA Fisheries’ Office of Protected Resources, of an effort based in Virginia’s York River. “Generally that means tagging about 10 to 15 fish per year.”

The largest telemetry tags have batteries that last for about 10 years, but smaller tags may only last for a few months.

“There are two tags from 2013 that are still working. But we have retagged perhaps 10 or 12 fish when they got toward the end of one tag’s battery life, so that really extends the time we have information on individual fish,” Kahn noted.

Wind farm off New Jersey likely to ‘adversely affect’ but not kill whales, feds say

December 19, 2023 — The lone remaining offshore wind project in New Jersey with preliminary approval is likely to “adversely affect” whales and other marine mammals, but its construction, operation and eventual dismantling will not seriously harm or kill them, a federal scientific agency said.

In a biological opinion issued Monday night, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said the Atlantic Shores project, to be built off the state’s southern coast, is not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of any species of endangered whales, sea turtles, or fish.

Nor is it anticipated to destroy or adversely modify any designated critical habitat, the agency said.

Jennifer Daniels, the company’s development director, called NOAA’s decision “the next step forward” for the project.

It’s “a testament to the five years and 40-plus environmental assessments completed to ensure we are delivering safe, reliable, renewable power in a way that prioritizes responsible ocean development,” Daniels wrote.

Read the full article at the Associated Press

NOAA Fisheries Releases 2023 Ecosystem Status Reports for Alaska

December 18, 2023 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA Fisheries has released the 2023 Ecosystem Status Reports for the eastern Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands, and Gulf of Alaska. These synthesis reports provide current conditions and trends over time for key oceanographic, biological, and ecological indicators in three Alaska marine ecosystems.

These foundational data and information reports support federal commercial fish and crab fisheries management. Each year, scientists and fishery managers at NOAA, other U.S. federal and state agencies, academic institutions, tribes, and nonprofits, contribute to the reports.

For close to three decades, fishery managers have relied on these reports to better understand how commercial fish and crab populations are being affected by changes in the marine environment.

“Warming at rates four times faster than the rest of the ocean, Alaska’s Arctic ecosystems are a bellwether for climate change. Now more than ever having ecosystem and climate-related data and information is essential to support adaptive resource management and resilient commercial, recreational and subsistence fisheries, and rural and coastal communities,” said Robert Foy, director, Alaska Fisheries Science Center.

This year, data from these reports provided broad, contextual ecosystem information for 45 stock assessments and specifically informed 16 stock-level risk assessments.

2023 Highlights Across Alaska

Looking across the three ecosystems this year, there are several notable indicators amidst continued variability in many marine conditions.

  • Ocean temperatures in both the Gulf of Alaska and the Bering Sea have cooled relative to the recent marine heatwave conditions while the Aleutians remained warmer than average
  • Pacific ocean perch continue to be dominant groundfish in the Aleutian Islands, replacing pollock and Atka mackerel in the ecosystem while the Gulf of Alaska ecosystem is now characterized by increased populations of Pacific ocean perch and sablefish and reduced populations of Pacific cod, Pacific halibut, and arrowtooth flounder
  • There were some positive signs for Pacific cod recruitment in the Gulf of Alaska even though adult population abundance remains low
  • Notable indicators of ecosystem health and potential threats to wildlife and human health: Harmful algal blooms are becoming more prevalent in the northern Bering Sea and paralytic shellfish toxins in sampled blue mussels from four Aleutian Islands communities were 47 times above the regulatory limit