Saving Seafood

Scallop leasing on the table? New England council starts scoping meetings

April 21, 2022 — The possibility of allowing leasing in the Atlantic scallop fishery will be explored by the New England Fishery Management Council in the coming weeks.

A preceding publicity campaign aims to get everyone in the industry out to comment in public meetings. It’s a first step for the council to investigate whether a days-at-sea and access area leasing program is needed in the limited access component of the scallop fishery.

Depending on what they learn, council members could vote to initiate a leasing amendment to the scallop management plan when they meet Sept. 27-29 in Gloucester, Mass.

Leasing has been suggested by some scallop operators, and the council approved a scoping plan at its April 12-14 meeting in Mystic, Conn. It calls for public meetings from Gloucester to New Bern, N.C., starting April 27, plus two online webinars in June, to gauge opinions.

The proposal could have broad effects, so the council is looking to go in depth.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

NEFMC Approves Scallop Leasing Scoping Document; Readies for Seven In-Person Meetings and Two Webinars

April 19, 2022 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council: 

The New England Fishery Management Council will hold seven in-person scoping meetings and two webinars over the next two months to solicit public input on whether a leasing program is needed in the limited access component of the Atlantic sea scallop fishery.

The Council approved the scoping document during its April 12-14, 2022 hybrid meeting, which was held in Mystic, CT. In addition, the Council received short updates on:

Scoping Meetings Kick Off April 27th in Gloucester

The first scoping meeting for limited access leasing will be held on Wednesday, April 27, 2022 in Gloucester, Massachusetts at the Cruiseport beginning at 5:00 p.m.

Other in-person meeting locations run from New Bedford down to New Bern, North Carolina. The in-person meetings will not have a remote participation option, but two separate webinar scoping meetings are scheduled for June 17 and June 24, 2022.

Read the full release from the NEFMC

UNC Researchers: Climate change causing fish migration

March 30, 2022 — The University of North Carolina Institute of Marine Sciences says climate change is threatening the fishing industry, which contributes close to $300 million to the economy in North Carolina.

Marine researchers say climate change is continuing to impact the environment along the coast and is now impacting the amount of fish in the water here in the east.

University of North Carolina’s Marine Sciences college in Morehead City has conducted research into the decrease in the number of fish.

Dr. Janet Nye, Associate Professor at the Institute of Marine Sciences, has been studying water temperatures and how it impacts fish along North Carolina’s Coast.

Nye says the increase in temperatures has caused flounder and grouper numbers to decrease.

Read the full story at WITN

Recruitment Announcement: Citizen Science Project Coordinator

March 28, 2022 — The following was released by The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) is seeking a Citizen Science Project Coordinator that will support the Council’s Citizen Science Program and help coordinate individual citizen science projects. The Council, headquartered in North Charleston, SC, is responsible for the conservation and management of fish stocks within the federal 200-mile limit of the Atlantic off the coasts of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and east Florida to Key West. The Council’s Citizen Science Program aims to work with fishermen and scientists to facilitate and support the development of projects to address Council-specific research needs.

The Citizen Science Project Coordinator is a full-time, time-limited contract position that will work closely with the Citizen Science Program Manager. The position will primarily focus on coordinating the SAFMC Release project and the continued development of the SciFish customizable citizen science mobile application. The SAFMC Release project works with commercial, recreational, and for-hire fishermen to collect information on released fish via a mobile app. SciFish is being developed to serve as an umbrella mobile application that would support data collection for different fishery-related citizen science projects developed by partners along the Atlantic coast.

See the complete recruitment announcement available from the Council’s website for additional information and application instructions. Applications must be received by April 20, 2022.

NORTH CAROLINA: NCDMF Distributes $4.3M in CARES Funds to Commercial Fishing and Seafood Industry Participants

March 4, 2022 — Commercial fishermen and seafood dealers in Carteret County and elsewhere in North Carolina are getting $4.3 million in federal assistance for income losses due to COVID-19.

The N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries announced Feb. 17 more than $4.3 million in financial relief is on its way to eligible members of the fishing industries who sustained income losses from March to December of 2020, during the ongoing pandemic.

During the week of Feb. 14-18, the division issued funds to 265 commercial fishermen and marine aquaculture operations, for-hire fishing operations, seafood dealers and processors deemed eligible for relief from the federal North Carolina Consolidated Appropriations Act Fisheries Relief Program, or CARES Act II.

According to DMF, in Carteret County, $612,763.33 in CARES funding was sent to 67 recipients. Of these recipients, 53 were commercial fishermen or aquaculture operations, three were for-hire fishermen and 11 were seafood dealers or processors.

Read the full story at Seafood News

Access to red snapper in South Carolina waters could improve with new legislation

February 23, 2022 — Nearly 13 years ago, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) determined the South Atlantic red snapper stock was overfished and undergoing overfishing. The fishery was closed in 2010 with a 35-year rebuilding plan put in place.

Ever since, red snapper have been virtually inaccessible for recreational anglers in South Atlantic waters which stretch from North Carolina southward through the east coast of Florida.

Save for occasional mini-seasons ranging from three to nine days in some, but not all, of those years, anglers have been forced to release red snapper.

As the numbers and size of red snapper have increased over the past dozen years, so has frustration among recreational anglers not only in South Carolina but throughout the South Atlantic Region.

Red snapper are almost exclusively caught in federal waters (3-200 miles offshore), typically in depths of about 60-120 feet off South Carolina. The reef species is very susceptible to barotrauma, which occurs when the rapid change in pressure as fish are reeled in causes the gases in the fish’s body to expand.

Read the full story at The State

Oyster awareness: Shellfish benefit environment, economy

January 10, 2022 — It may sound too good to be true that one, palm-sized organism could filter water, provide habitat, secure the coastline, and be a delicious, nutritious powerhouse on the plate. But it’s not a gimmick — the oyster does it all.

In North Carolina, a consortium of government, university, business and nonprofit stakeholders are working to restore historically depleted oyster populations in tandem with designing resilient wetlands, building a thriving industry, and preserving an icon of coastal heritage. North Carolina leads the way nationally in its collaborative, multifaceted approach to protecting, restoring, harvesting, and educating people about oysters.

In support of this superhero species, North Carolina Forever is working to spark awareness about oysters and the people behind the nimble and broad effort to bolster them as a catalyst for a resilient future, where people and ecosystems thrive. North Carolina Forever is a bipartisan coalition of North Carolinians — from businesses, agricultural, conservation and environmental organizations — aiming to influence legislation and secure the funding necessary to keep a promise held by the state constitution: “to conserve and protect its lands and waters for the benefit of all its citizenry.”

Read the full story at CoastalReview.org

North Carolina: SAVE THE DATE/EVTR Questions Workshop/Legislative Update

November 5, 2021 — The following was released by the North Carolina Fisheries Association:

SAVE THE DATE

NCDMF MARINE FISHERIES COMMISSION WILL MEET NOV. 17-19, 2021

IT IS VERY IMPORTANT FOR YOU TO GIVE PUBLIC COMMENT ON NOVEMBER 17 ATTEND IN PERSON FOR PUBLIC COMMENT ON NOVEMBER 18, 2021 IF YOU CARE ABOUT NC SHRIMP AND SHRIMPING IN NC.

WE HAVE ATTACHED BELOW THE SHRIMP FISHERY MANAGEMENT PLAN AMENDMENT 2 DECISION DOCUMENT WHICH CONTAINS NCDMF RECOMMENDED MANAGEMENT MEASURES FOR YOUR REVIEW

STAY TUNED FOR IMPORTANT UPDATES ON THIS ISSUE.

MEDIA ADVISORY: Marine Fisheries Commission to meet Nov. 17-19 in Emerald Isle

MOREHEAD CITY – The N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission will meet in-person Nov. 17-19 at the Islander Hotel & Resort, 102 Islander Dr, Emerald Isle. The commission office will also livestream the meeting online.

The meeting will begin at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 17; at 9 a.m. on Thursday, Nov. 18; and at 9 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 19. In accordance with current guidance to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, the chairman asks that everyone attending the meeting wear a mask at all times, except when giving public comment to the commission.

The commission will hold a public comment session at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 17. The commission will also hold a 30-minute public comment period near the beginning of the meeting on Thursday, Nov. 18.

The following information pertains to in-person public comment:

· To accommodate as many speakers as possible, the chairman will limit each speaker to 3 minutes.

· Those making comments will be asked to speak only once, either Wednesday night or Thursday morning, but not during both public comment periods.

· Members of the public are encouraged to speak at the Wednesday night session, because the Thursday morning session is limited to 30 minutes (10 people).

· Preregistration by an online form is required to speak at the Thursday morning session. Registration will end once 10 people have signed up to speak.

· Preregistration is available, but not required, for the Wednesday night session. The online registration deadline for this session is 10 a.m. Wednesday; however, the public may also register to speak for the Wednesday night session in-person beginning at 4:30 p.m. There is no speaker limit for the Wednesday night session.

· Speaker registration will begin at noon on Nov. 3 and can be accessed through a link on the Marine Fisheries Commission Meeting webpage.

· Those who wish to submit handouts to the commission during a public comment period should bring at least 12 copies to the meeting.

· The commission will only hear from speakers attending the meeting in-person.

The public may also submit written comments:

· Written comments may be submitted through an online form accessible through the Marine Fisheries Commission Meeting webpage.

· Written comments may be mailed to November 2021 Marine Fisheries Commission Meeting Comments, P.O Box 769, Morehead City, N.C. 28557.

· Written comments may be dropped off at the Division of Marine Fisheries’ Morehead City Headquarters Office at 3441 Arendell St., Morehead City.

· Written comments must be posted online or received in the Division of Marine Fisheries Office by 4:30 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 15.

· The Marine Fisheries Commission Office will not accept public comment for this meeting through email.

Due to space constraints, those who do not wish to speak at the meeting are encouraged to watch the meeting online. Links to the livestream will be posted on the Marine Fisheries Commission Meeting webpage. After the meeting, an audio recording will be posted online.

Agenda items include:

· Approving the draft Coastal Habitat Protection Plan 2021 Amendment.

· Selecting preferred management options for the Shrimp Fishery Management Plan Amendment 2 and sending the draft plan for departmental review.

· Reviewing the draft Southern Flounder Fishery Management Plan Amendment 3 and sending it out for public comment and advisory committee review.

· Approving the goals and objectives of the draft N.C Fishery Management Plan for Interjurisdictional Fisheries Amendment 2.

· Final approval of amendments and re-adoption of a slate of rules under a mandatory periodic review schedule (G.S. 150B-21.3A), including rules prohibiting the repacking of foreign crab meat in North Carolina.

· Discussion of additional labeling requirements for repacked foreign crab meat, including selection of preferred management option and approval of associated proposed language for rulemaking.

· Approving a slate of nominees for the North Carolina Obligatory Seat on the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council.

A full meeting agenda and briefing book materials will be posted on the Marine Fisheries Commission Meeting webpage as they become available.

WHO:

N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission

WHAT:

Quarterly Business Meeting

WHEN:

Nov. 17 at 6 p.m.
Nov. 18 at 9 a.m.
Nov. 19 at 9 a.m.

WHERE:

The Islander Hotel & Resort
102 Islander Dr, Emerald Isle

Livestream:
Click here  for links

 

NC fishing industry takes wait-and-see approach on coastal wind projects

October 29, 2021 — There has been a lot of recent discussion on major wind-energy projects along the North Carolina coast, and the state’s fishing industry has been watching closely to see how any announcements may affect their fisheries.

This year has had a lot of big headlines about wind-power on the N.C. coast. On June 9, Gov. Roy Cooper signed an executive order saying that the state would strive for development of 2.8 gigawatts of offshore wind-power generation by 2030, ramping up to 8 GW by 2040.

Then on Oct.13, there were two separate major developments. At the Governor’s Mansion, Cooper signed a compromise clean-energy bill, which will lean heavily on renewable energy, likely including offshore wind projects. That same day, President Joe Biden’s administration announced a major wind-power plan that would span much of the country’s seaboard, with one of the seven proposed sites being off the Wilmington coast. Biden wants to have 30 GW of wind-energy production in place by 2030, in large part using these sites.

Currently, the projects being proposed do not affect areas of the North Carolina coast that fishermen rely on, but representatives of the state’s fishing industry say they are taking a wait-and-see approach to the impact of any future plans.

“The things that are being proposed right now off the coast of North Carolina, those windmills would not be in an area that we actively participate in fishing,” said Jerry Schill, former executive director and current government relations director for the North Carolina Fisheries Association, a trade organization representing the state’s commercial fishermen. “There might be some transit interest, boats going back and forth, but off North Carolina, it would not negatively affect our fisherman in terms of where they fish.”

Read the full story at the North State Journal