Saving Seafood

US lawmakers reintroduce SEAfood Act to spur offshore aquaculture

October 17, 2023 — U.S. lawmakers last week reintroduced the Science-based Equitable Aquaculture Food (SEAfood) Act, legislation designed to foster and encourage more offshore aquaculture development.

If passed, the legislation would authorize NOAA to establish an offshore aquaculture assessment program and a grant program that would help minority-serving educational institutions create aquaculture centers of excellence. The law would also require the Government Accountability Office, a congressional watchdog organization, to put together a report detailing regulatory requirements for offshore aquaculture, and the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to conduct a study on the science behind offshore aquaculture regulations.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

HPU ANNOUNCES PRELIMINARY RESULTS OF BOUNTY PROJECT

October 17, 2023 — In January 2023, HPU Center for Marine Debris Research (CMDR) announced an ambitious bounty project partially supported by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Marine Debris Program to remove tons of derelict fishing gear from the ocean.

In partnership with the Hawaiʻi Longline Association (HLA) and the Department of Land and Natural Resources’ Division of Aquatic Resources, HPU’s preliminary results from the project saw 12,189 pounds (6.09 tons) of debris, from 41 fishing nets, removed from the ocean in less than one year.

“Removing 100 tons of derelict fishing gear from our oceans in just two years is an inspiring goal, and we’ve made great progress so far,” said Research Manager of HPU’s Center for Marine Debris Research Raquel Corniuk. “Our program rewards dedicated commercial fishers for their essential role in protecting Hawai’i’s coral reefs, offering them $1 to $3 per dry pound for retrieving derelict gear at sea. I believe this initiative is a win-win for both our fishermen and the preservation of our stunning ocean environments.”

Read the full article at Hawaii Pacific University

Federal management trap cap for lobster fishery areas

October 17, 2023 — On September 29, NOAA Fisheries approved federal management measures for the lobster fishery that complement the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Interstate Fishery Management Plan for American lobster. These measures include:

  • In Area 2, ownership caps would restrict most entities to 800 traps, effective May 1, 2025. An entity with an allocation that exceeded this limit as of May 1, 2022, would be capped at their 2022 trap allocation and may not purchase additional traps.
  • In Area 3, a maximum trap cap reduction and a new aggregate ownership cap with proportionate reductions would allow entities to own five times the number of the maximum trap cap. An entity with an allocation that exceeded this limit as of May 1, 2022, would be capped at their 2022 trap allocation and may not purchase additional traps. NOAA is implementing these measures with a one-year delay.
  • Beginning April 1, 2024, mandatory electronic harvester reporting using the federal electronic vessel trip report (eVTR) for all federal lobster permit holders begins April 1, 2024. This reporting requirement will include five additional lobster-specific data elements.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

NOAA has imposed USD 1.1 million in fines over right whale speed limits since 2021

October 16, 2023 — NOAA is stepping up enforcement of vessel speed limits when endangered North Atlantic right whales are on the move, using satellite technology and even highway patrol-style speed radar to nab violators.

In the period between 2021 and 2022, NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement (OLE) brought 19 complaints against vessel operators for exceeding a 10-knot speed limit that the agency declares in “seasonal management areas” from November to July as the right whales move off the U.S. East Coast. The agency levied USD 218,500 (EUR 207,000) in penalties on those operators.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

NOAA announces funding for algal bloom research

October 15, 2023 — NOAA has announced USD 20 million (EUR 19 million) in awards for research on dangerous algal blooms and hypoxia.

“Harmful algal blooms and hypoxia affect coastal and inland waters and can be devastating to communities and businesses,” Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS) Office Director Carl Gouldman said. “These awards are part of NOAA’s ongoing commitment to advance our abilities to forecast, manage, and mitigate the effects of these events nationwide.”

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Working Towards Zero-Waste Seafood

October 12, 2023 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Seafood Month is a time to celebrate sustainable seafood for both wild-caught and farmed species. The United States is a global leader in sustainable seafood, underscoring NOAA Fisheries’ strong commitment to building a resilient seafood sector. This would not be possible without our many partners throughout the country and the world.

We sat down with Jhana Young, sustainable seafood manager at Conservation International Hawaiʻi, one of our important partners. Jhana shares CI Hawaiʻi’s sustainable seafood vision, what Seafood Month means to her, the exciting events CI Hawaiʻi is holding throughout the month, and more.

What kind of work does Conservation International do in Hawaiʻi?

Conservation International’s Hawaiʻi program started in 2011 as our only U.S.-based field program. We are part of a global team that works in more than 30 countries to empower societies to responsibly and sustainably care for nature, our global biodiversity, and for the well-being of humanity. Our focus in Hawaiʻi involves working with a diversity of partners across the state to underscore the importance of food security and to support sustainability in our fisheries and seafood industry.

We have three pillars or areas of work:

  • Helping fishing communities like Miloliʻi in South Kona on marine monitoring practices
  • Working with government partners in ocean policy
  • Collaborating with our seafood industry and culinary community to uplift sustainable seafood practices

With those three pillars as the foundation, our overarching goal is ocean conservation and shifting people’s perspectives towards valuing our important seafood and fishery resources.

Study: Over 70% of marine mammals in American waters are vulnerable to climate change threats

October 10, 2023 — Whales, dolphins and seals living in U.S. waters face major threats from warming ocean temperatures, rising sea levels and decreasing sea ice volumes associated with climate change, according to a first-of-its-kind assessment.

Researchers with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration examined more than 100 stocks of American marine mammal species and found more than 70% of those stocks are vulnerable to threats, such as loss of habitat and food, due to the consequences of warming waters. The impacts also include loss of dissolved oxygen and changes to ocean chemistry.

The scientists found large whales such as humpbacks and North Atlantic right whales were among the most vulnerable to climate change, and that other toothed whales and dolphins were also at high risk.

The study, published late September in the journal PLOS ONE, is evidence that the way the U.S. manages whales and dolphins needs to adapt in the era of climate change, advocates for marine mammals said.

The news is bleak, but the assessment also is the first to look solely at marine mammal stocks managed by the U.S. and the results can help inform federal ocean managers about how to safeguard the vulnerable animals, said Matthew Lettrich, a biologist and lead author of the study.

“As the climate’s changing, we’re seeing some of the effects already, and some of our marine mammal populations are more vulnerable to those changes than others,” Lettrich said. “Based on this study, we see a good proportion are highly and very highly vulnerable.”

Read the full article at wbur

US Help Our Kelp Act aims to support kelp forest recovery efforts

October 10, 2023 — Grown on the Pacific Coast from California to Alaska and on the East Coast in parts of New England, kelp has been harvested on a large scale in the United States since World War I, when the vegetation was used as a source of potash to make gunpowder. During that time, the harvest was unregulated and destructive to the surrounding habitats. Nowadays, the harvest of kelp is more sustainable due to harvesters only removing the upper portion of the canopy of the algae.

Today, the primary resource derived from kelp for human use is algin, a product used as a gelling agent in foods, pharmaceuticals, waterproof and fireproofing fabrics, a component in fertilizers, and an ingredient in food. In addition to this array of uses, kelp has been identified as a potential alternative energy source, according to NOAA Fisheries.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Whales and dolphins in US waters losing food, habitat to climate change, study says

October 10, 2023 — Whales, dolphins and seals living in U.S. waters face major threats from warming ocean temperatures, rising sea levels and decreasing sea ice volumes associated with climate change, according to a first-of-its-kind assessment.

Researchers with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration examined more than 100 stocks of American marine mammal species and found more than 70% of those stocks are vulnerable to threats, such as loss of habitat and food, due to the consequences of warming waters. The impacts also include loss of dissolved oxygen and changes to ocean chemistry.

The scientists found large whales such as humpbacks and North Atlantic right whales were among the most vulnerable to climate change, and that other toothed whales and dolphins were also at high risk.

The study, published last month in the journal PLOS ONE, is evidence that the way the U.S. manages whales and dolphins needs to adapt in the era of climate change, advocates for marine mammals said.

The news is bleak, but the assessment also is the first to look solely at marine mammal stocks managed by the U.S. and the results can help inform federal ocean managers about how to safeguard the vulnerable animals, said Matthew Lettrich, a biologist and lead author of the study.

Read the full article at ABC News