Saving Seafood

Opinion: Congress should continue investing in salmon recovery fund

May 17, 2019 — Sportfishing is a tie that binds. It can bridge the urban-rural divide, business and conservation interests, Republicans and Democrats. People everywhere love to fish.

But fishing is only possible when there are abundant fish in our rivers. That’s why we need Oregon’s members of Congress to make sure there is funding next year for the Pacific Coast Salmon Recovery Fund.

Congress established this recovery fund in 2000 to help support restoration of the streams, creeks, rivers, and wetlands that salmon and steelhead need to thrive. Salmon recovery is important to Oregon. More than half a million people fish in Oregon each year, spending $1.4 billion per year and sustaining nearly 13,000 jobs, according to the Northwest Sportfishing Industry Association.

Read the full story at The Oregonian

Hearing held on Oregon crab boat sinking that killed 3

May 14, 2019 — The captain of a crabbing vessel that sank in high waves, killing him and two other fishermen, had methamphetamine and alcohol in his system, according to testimony Monday at the opening of a five-day U.S. Coast Guard hearing.

Stephen Biernacki, 50, and crew members James Lacey, 48, of South Toms River, New Jersey, and Joshua Porter, 50, of Toledo, Oregon, all died Jan. 8 after their 42-foot crabbing boat was battered by waves up to 20 feet (6 meters) tall as it crossed the Yaquina Bar near Newport, Oregon, during the lucrative but fickle Dungeness crab season.

Toxicology tests found cannabis in Lacey’s system; Porter had no drugs or alcohol in his body when he died, according to results shared at the hearing, which was streamed live from Newport, Oregon.

The bar — where the Yaquina River meets the ocean current — can be so treacherous that the dangers of crossing it with a fully loaded crab boat were the premise of a spin-off of the “The Deadliest Catch,” a reality TV show about commercial fishermen that aired on the Discovery channel.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at The Washington Post

Oregon backs down on terms of proposed processing pollution permit

May 10, 2019 — The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality has backed down on the terms of a proposed pollution permit for seafood processors in the state, after the last iteration of the permit expired eight years ago, according to the Statesman Journal.

Since the permit expired, more than a dozen Oregon seafood processors have been operating under an administrative extension as negotiations have taken place.

The Department of Environmental Quality began regulating the discharges of seafood producers in 1982, in an attempt to crack down on the shells, bones, blood and fish waste as well as chemical byproducts that were being dumped into bodies of water by companies.

When the department put out the initial version of a proposed permit in spring of last year, politicians representing fishing communities on Oregon’s coast had called the regulations “extreme.”

“In Oregon, seafood processing is a key component of coastal economies and we ask that the state revisit the revision process for the [permit] in a way that supports the success of this critical industry,” state legislators wrote in a letter to the DEQ.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Salmon-eating sea lions targeted at Columbia River dam

May 6, 2019 — More California sea lions preying on imperiled salmon in the Columbia River below a hydroelectric project on the Oregon-Washington border are being killed under a revised policy, federal authorities said Friday.

The National Marine Fisheries Service made public reduced criteria for removing sea lions at Bonneville Dam about 145 miles (235 kilometers) from the Pacific Ocean.

The new guidelines that went into effect April 17 permit any California sea lion seen in the area on five occasions or seen eating a fish to be put on a list for lethal removal.

The former criteria required both those marks to be met. Officials say 10 sea lions have been killed so far this year, most as a result of the policy change.

Robert Anderson, the agency’s marine mammal program manager, said the Pinniped-Fishery Interaction Task Force decided to make the change after dissatisfaction with current efforts. A study found the change could increase the number of sea lions killed by 66 percent.

Officials are authorized to remove 92 California sea lions annually from the area, but have never come close to that number. Meanwhile, billions of dollars have been spent in Idaho, Oregon and Washington to save 13 species of Columbia Basin salmon and steelhead protected under the Endangered Species Act.

Read the full story at the Associated Press

They smell, bark and snatch pet dogs. Sea lions cause trouble at Northwest ports

May 3, 2019 — A big rebound in the sea lion population along the West Coast in recent years has created a constant battle to wrangle the protected animals. They’re smart and fun to watch from a safe distance, but also noisy, smelly and proving to be a headache for some coastal marinas.

“It’s a free zoo kind of, just don’t pet ’em!” observed Dennis Craig of Olympia while he watched a pier at Washington’s Westport marina nearly sink under the weight of dozens of burly bulls jostling and snoozing in the sun.

“You notice when the charters come in, they’ll swing wide just so people can get a closer look because, like I say, it’s entertaining,” Craig said.

The flip side of these flippered fish fiends can be seen in the mounting bill to the marina, including the cost of busted docks, broken electric stanchions and lost business.

“Nearly all of our net revenue was used to repair damage caused by sea lions this year, taking those funds away from infrastructure improvements and replacements that are critical to the marina facility and our users,” said Westport Marina business manager Molly Bold in an email.

Sea lions have blocked people from mooring their boats. In other cases, commercial fishermen have had to run through a sea lion gauntlet just to get onto their vessels. The sea lions even snatched a few pet dogs right off the piers, said Westport Aquarium co-owner Marc Myrsell, who volunteers to monitor the marine mammals.

Read the full story at KPBX

Should seals and sea lions be killed to help save the orcas?

April 26, 2019 — Seals and sea lions are competing with the Southern Resident killer whales for limited Chinook salmon stock. That has some people calling for a cull where the government would organize the hunting and killing of a certain percentage of sea lions and seals.

Sea lions and seals are often seen as adversaries of fishermen. Last year, more than a dozen sea lions were shot, many in the head, and washed up around Puget Sound; mostly in West Seattle.

A recent paper published by federal scientists shows pinnipeds eat twice as much salmon as Southern Resident killer whales in Puget Sound, and six times more salmon than recreational and commercial fishermen combined.

It’s created quite the debate over the recovery of Southern Resident killer whales who depend on salmon as their main food source.

Should seals and sea lions be killed to save orcas? The question is complex and scientists don’t all agree. Most aren’t sure if it would work. They’re also turning their attention to what they believe is the preferred prey of pinnipeds: forage fish.

At National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Manchester lab, scientists are studying steelhead migration through Puget Sound.

Read the full story at K5 News

Seafood subscription box sets up shop on the Oregon Coast

April 22, 2019 — The subscription box business model is on the rise, even on the South Coast, with Port Orford Sustainable Seafood, a sea-to-online store business.

Jayme Halasz and her family are getting hooked on their subscription.

“I love the idea of having super fresh seafood and i love the idea of it coming straight from the boat itself,” said Halasz

This is her first month after seeing it on Facebook, and she says she’ll order more.

This is the company’s first Coos Bay pick up location at Coos Head Food co-op.

Michael Baran and fellow program manager, Kean Fleming, say it’s a community supported fishery model, in business for 10 years and operating on a subscription basis for six years.

“You’re supporting a fishing heritage that’s existed for a long time and you’re directly supporting commercial fisherman,” said Baran.

Each pack even shows the angler and their vessel.

Customers can create an online account, log into the online store, select their fish and pick it up at a designated location near them.

The minimum buy-in is $100 that can be used on items like Rockfish to Pacific Halibut, ranging from $12-$30 per pound depending on fishing efforts.

Read the full story at KATU

Pacific Council Finalizes Generally Improved Salmon Seasons for 2019

April 17, 2019 — Most salmon trollers can expect better ocean salmon seasons this year — while also meeting conservation goals, fishery managers said Monday.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council finalized its recommendations for 2019 salmon seasons at its meeting in Rohnert Park, Calif., for seasons beginning in May.

The seasons must still be approved by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce, but managers said that is expected.

The adopted regulations for Chinook salmon reflect the improved status of Sacramento River fall Chinook, Oregon managers said in a notice to industry. Rogue River fall Chinook and Klamath River fall Chinook populations both are in good and fair condition, respectively, they added.

Also, most of the north migrating stocks of Chinook (Oregon Coastal Chinook stocks from the Nehalem River south to the Elk River as well as a number of Columbia River Chinook stocks) are in moderate to poor condition. These north migrating stocks of Chinook contribute very little to Oregon’s ocean seasons but are very important to Oregon’s inside estuary and river recreational seasons.

The commercial ocean troll salmon seasons north of Cape Falcon will have very limited Chinook salmon quotas again this year. The ocean fishery will be managed by quotas, season length, and vessel landing week (Thursday-Wednesday) limits. The early Chinook salmon-only season will start on May 6. The season will continue until the overall quota of 13,200 Chinook or the Leadbetter Pt., Washington, to Cape Falcon (in northern Oregon) subarea cap of 1,800 Chinook is taken, or June 28, whichever comes first. Fishermen will be limited to 100 Chinook per vessel for the period of May 6-15 and then shift to a 50 Chinook per vessel per landing week (Thursday-Wednesday), beginning May 16.

The summer all-salmon fishery north of Cape Falcon will open on July 1 and continue through the earlier of the overall Chinook quota of 13,050 Chinook or 30,400 fin clipped coho, managers said in the notice to fishermen. Trollers will also be limited to 150 adipose fin-clipped coho during the landing week (Thurs-Wed) per vessel.

This year’s fisheries were designed to take advantage of a higher number of coho salmon forecast to return to Washington’s waters as compared to recent years, Kyle Adicks, salmon policy lead for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, said in a press release. However, projected low returns of key Chinook stocks in Puget Sound prompted fishery managers to restrict fisheries there.

“We’re able to provide more opportunities to fish for coho in some areas, particularly in the ocean and Columbia River, than we have been able to do for several years,” Adicks said. Coho fisheries generally benefit sport fishermen but can constrain commercial fishermen targeting Chinook if coho is taken incidentally. “But continued poor returns of some Chinook stocks forced us to make difficult decisions for fisheries in Puget Sound this year.”

Again in 2019, fishery managers projected another low return of Stillaguamish, Nooksack and mid-Hood Canal Chinook and took steps to protect those stocks.

WDFW Director Kelly Susewind acknowledged the reductions in Puget Sound salmon fisheries are difficult for both fishermen, primarily sport fishermen, and the local communities that depend on those fisheries.

“Reducing fisheries is not a long-term solution to the declining number of Chinook salmon,” Susewind said. “The department will continue working with the co-managers, our constituents, and others to address habitat loss. Without improved habitat, our chinook populations will likely continue to decline.”

Limiting fisheries to meet conservation objectives for wild salmon indirectly benefits southern resident killer whales. The fishery adjustments will aid in minimizing boat presence and noise, and decrease competition for Chinook and other salmon in these areas critical to the declining whales, WDFW said in a press release.

In the rest of Oregon, from Cape Falcon to Humbug Mountain near Port Orford in southern Oregon, the Chinook salmon season will be open April 20-30, May 6-30, June 1-Aug. 29, and Sept. 1 through Oct. 31. Beginning Sept. 1, a 75 Chinook salmon per vessel weekly limit (Thursday through Wednesday) will be in place.

From Humbug Mt. to the Oregon/California border, the commercial troll fishery will be open April 20-30 and May 6-30. Beginning June 1, landing week (Thurs-Wed) limits of 50 Chinook per vessel will go into effect along with monthly quotas of 3,200 Chinook in June; 2,500 in July; and 1,200 in August (8/1-29).

“I really appreciate everybody’s work this week,” Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife Fish Division Deputy Administrator Chris Kern said on the Council floor. “[It was] a lot of hard work, but I feel pretty good about where we landed.”

Similarly, California trollers should expect more time on the water this year.

Brett Kormos, with the Marine Region of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, noted the two primary rivers, Sacramento and Klamath River, that contribute fall Chinook to ocean salmon fisheries are still in a rebuilding phase or overfished status. Still, “we are also looking at increased harvest opportunities in both commercial and recreational sectors in 2019 compared to 2018,” Kormos said.

Fishery managers modeled the seasons and limits to allow for a Sacramento River fall Chinook spawning escapement of 160,129 hatchery and natural area adults.

This story has been republished here with the permission of SeafoodNews.com. 

Feds Agree to Expand Habitat Protections for Northwest Orcas

April 16, 2019 — The federal government says that by October it will propose expanded habitat protections off Washington, Oregon and California for Pacific Northwest orcas.

The announcement comes in response to a lawsuit filed by the Arizona-based Center for Biological Diversity, which sued in 2018 to make officials move more quickly to protect the endangered orcas.

The whales spend their summers in the waters between Washington state and Canada, but about two-thirds of the year they migrate and forage for salmon off the West Coast. The conservation group said the National Marine Fisheries Service had been dragging its feet in designating “critical habitat” for the whales in those foraging and migration areas.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at U.S. News

Oregon lawmakers propose bill providing millions in funding for climate change research

April 15, 2019 — Oregon state lawmakers are proposing a bill which would provide nearly USD 2 million (EUR 1.7 million) to study and respond to the effects of rising ocean temperatures, low oxygen levels, and ocean acidification, according to a report in the Statesman Journal last week.

Thirty percent of man-made carbon dioxide is absorbed by the ocean, which causes the water to become more acidic, the report said. The change in ocean pH levels has made it difficult for animals like crabs, oysters, and shrimp to make their shells, which could be a blow to the state’s shellfish industry.

Senate Bill 260 would provide USD 1.9 million (EUR 1.68 million) from the state’s general fund to respond to the problems caused by climate change.

If the bill passes, the state’s Department of Fish and Wildlife would receive USD 470,000 (EUR 415,799) to map and assess estuaries – most existing research on acidification and hypoxia (low oxygen levels) has been done offshore.

Oregon State University would receive USD 370,000 (EUR 327,347) to conduct projects concerning shellfish breeding and ocean sampling and monitoring.

The Oregon Ocean Science Trust would receive the lion’s share of the funding, USD 1.06 million (EUR 937,727), which would be used for seven different projects, including modeling of aquatic vegetation, acidification and hypoxia monitoring, and a communications plan.

Read the full story at Seafood Source