Saving Seafood

PFMC: Area 2A Pacific Halibut Managers online meeting will be held January 4, 2021

December 4, 2020 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council will host an online meeting of the Area 2A Pacific halibut governmental management entities that is open to the public.  The meeting will be held Monday, January 4, 2021 from 10:30 a.m., Pacific Standard Time, until 2 p.m., or until business for the day has been completed.

Please see the Area 2A Pacific Halibut Manager’s online meeting notice on the Council’s website for participation details.

For further information:

  • Please contact Pacific Fishery Management Council staff officer Ms. Robin Ehlke  at 503-820-2410; toll-free 1-866-806-7204.

PFMC: Ad Hoc Ecosystem Workgroup to hold online meeting January 5, 2021

December 4, 2020 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council’s (Pacific Council) Ad Hoc Ecosystem Workgroup (EWG) will hold an online meeting, which is open to the public.  The meeting will be held Tuesday, January 5, 2021, starting at 10 a.m. (Pacific Standard Time) and ending at 12 p.m., or until business for the day is complete.

Please see the EWG meeting notice on the Council’s website for additional details.

For further information:

  • Please contact Pacific Fishery Management Council staff officer Dr. Kit Dahl at 503-820-2422; toll-free 1-866-806-7204.

PFMC: Groundfish Management Team to hold online work session January 11-15, 2021

December 3, 2020 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council’s Groundfish Management Team (GMT) will hold a week-long work session that is open to the public.  The GMT meeting will be held Monday, January 11 through Friday, January 15, 2021 from 9 a.m., Pacific Standard Time, until business for each day has been completed

Please see the meeting notice on the Council’s website for participation details.

For further information:

  • Please contact Pacific Fishery Management Council staff officer Todd Phillips at 503-820-2426; toll-free 1-866-806-7204.

PFMC Adopts Salmon Measures to Help Southern Resident Killer Whales

November 25, 2020 — The Pacific Fishery Management Council unanimously adopted new ocean salmon fishing regulations last week to help save critically endangered Southern Resident killer whales from extinction. While the birth of two calves this year was welcome news, Southern Residents face an uncertain future with only 74 individuals left and a diet almost entirely comprised of declining salmon populations, especially Chinook salmon, Oceana said in a press release.

Pacific salmon, primarily Chinook salmon, are 99 percent of the diet of Southern Resident killer whales. A single adult Southern Resident typically needs to eat 12 to 20 Chinook salmon every day, and as many as 30 depending on the size and nutrition levels of the fish. Wild salmon populations have been in decline due to a combination of issues, including dams, habitat loss and fishing pressure, Oceana said.

Read the full story at Seafood News

November 2020 PFMC Decision Summary document online

November 25, 2020 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council met November 13 and November 16-20, 2020 via RingCentral webinar. The November 2020 Council Meeting Decision Summary Document contains the highlights of significant decisions made during that meeting. Results of agenda items that do not reach a level of highlight significance are typically not described in the Decision Summary Document.

PFMC: Climate Change Scenario Planning series of online workshops; various dates December 2020 through February 2021

November 9, 2020 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) is conducting four online workshops as part of its Fishery Ecosystem Plan Climate and Communities Initiative. Each workshop will have a regional focus. The online workshops will begin at 9:00 a.m. Pacific Standard Time and continue each day until the conclusion of business for the day.

The online workshops are open to the public and will occur on the following days:

  • Southern California region: Wednesday-Thursday, December 16-17, 2020
  • Northern California region: Wednesday-Thursday, January 13-14, 2021
  • Washington region: Wednesday-Thursday, January 20-21, 2021
  • Oregon region: Tuesday-Wednesday, February 2-3, 2021

Please see the Climate Change Scenario Planning online workshop series notice on the Council’s website for the purpose of the workshops and details.

For further information:

  • Please contact Pacific Fishery Management Council staff officer Dr. Kit Dahl at 503-820-2422; toll-free 1-866-806-7204.

Launching new oral testimony sign up via E-Portal

November 5, 2020 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

We are excited to announce the next evolution of the E-Portal for public comment. The Pacific Council launched the E-Portal to allow users to submit their public comments electronically. Then once at the Council meeting, participants would fill out a yellow card to sign up for public testimony on an Agenda Item.  Now that we’ve moved our meetings virtually, we have digitized the yellow sign up card and tied it into our already familiar E-Portal.

Check out the video below to see how you can sign up for public testimony via the E-Portal starting with our November 2020 Council meeting.

Oral testimony sign ups will go live at 8am on 11/13/2020 via the E-Portal. See our November Council Meeting page for additional information.

Read the full release here

CALIFORNIA: The Pacific sardine war hits a lull, but the tides are rising

November 4, 2020 — With catch limit regulations staying at the status quo, the commercial fishing industry has apparently landed a victory in the fight over Pacific sardine management.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council, which oversees fishing of Pacific sardines, voted unanimously in September to maintain the current sardine fishery management process that calls for reassessments after each year’s stock assessments.

At the moment, the direct commercial sardine fishery is closed. Sardines may only be harvested in the live bait fishery, small-scale fisheries (or operations), as incidental catch, and with exempted permits approved by the National Marine Fisheries Service. These open sardine fisheries are subject to an annual catch limit of about 16% of the sardine population measured in 2019, or 4,514 metric tons.

Conservationists had hoped the council would tighten catch limits for fear of the sardine population collapsing further.

Read the full story at The Mercury News

PFMC: ATTENTION: Phishing camping via text using Marc Gorelnik’s name

November 4, 2020 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

Please be aware that this morning we have identified a phishing campaign using Marc Gorelnik’s name. It appears someone is attempting to request your assistance to send money via Cash app (or other electronic payment method) on behalf of Marc Gorelnik.

At this time, all interactions have come via text message from an unknown number. There is no evidence of any accounts being hacked or masked.

As many phishing campaigns go, it is most likely an individual/group utilizing the publicly facing phone numbers on websites/Rosters and the fact that in this case Marc’s name is next to the role “Chairman” of the Council.

Please disregard these messages, and stay vigilant to any communications asking for you to send money electronically.  We have reached out to Marc to notify him of this event, and will continue to monitor things moving forward.

Read the full release here

PFMC: Call for data and information – Essential Fish Habitat Review for Coastal Pelagic Species

October 30, 2020 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council, National Marine Fisheries Service, and the NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center have initiated a review of essential fish habitat provisions in the Coastal Pelagic Species Fishery Management Plan.  This call for data and information is intended to support the review.  Information and data sources can include published scientific literature, unpublished scientific reports, information from interested parties, and previously unavailable or inaccessible data.  Information relevant to the CPS EFH review should be submitted no later than Monday November 30th, 2020.

Please see the “Call for data and information” announcement on the Council’s website for further details..