Saving Seafood

California Commercial Salmon Season to be Reduced — Maybe by Half

March 16, 2021 — The California commercial salmon season, due to start May 1, will be only about half as long as last year’s season, after the Pacific Fisheries Management Council settled on three proposals for the dates and months fishing can take place this season.

“Time on the water is cut this year in an effort to have more salmon return to the rivers to spawn to meet our management objectives,” Kandice Morgenstern, environmental scientist at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, said after the council’s decision Thursday.

Read the full story at Seafood News

April 6-9, and 12-15, 2021 PFMC (online) meeting notice and agenda now available

March 16, 2021 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC or Council) and its advisory bodies will meet April 6-9, and 12-15, 2021 by webinar only, to address issues related to groundfish, Pacific halibut, salmon, highly migratory species, ecosystem, and administrative matters.

Please see the April 6-9, and 12-15, 2021 Council meeting notice on the Council’s April 2021 meeting webpage for further updates and details regarding webinar participation; schedule of advisory body meetings, our E-Portal for submitting public comments, and public comment deadlines. There will be no meetings scheduled during the weekend of April 10-11, however, the meeting will continue daily on Monday, April 12 at 8 a.m. through Thursday, April 15, 2021. Meetings of advisory bodies will also be conducted by online meetings based on the schedules in the agenda.

Instructions for how to connect to the online meetings will be posted on the Council’s April 2021 meeting webpage prior to the first day of the meeting.

For further information:

PFMC: March 2021 Council Decision Summary Document Online

March 16, 2021 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council met March 4-5 and 8-11, 2021 via RingCentral webinar. The March 2021 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.

Pacific Fishery Management Council releases alternatives for 2021 West Coast ocean salmon fisheries

March 11, 2021 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council has adopted three alternatives for 2021 ocean salmon fisheries off Washington, Oregon, and California for public review. The Council will make a final decision on salmon seasons at its meeting on April 6-9 and 12-15. Detailed information about season starting dates, areas open, and catch limits for the three alternatives are available on the Council’s website at www.pcouncil.org.

Forecasts for many Chinook and coho stocks have improved over last year; however, the Council is constrained by requirements to conserve Fraser River (Canada) Washington coastal and Puget Sound natural coho runs, lower Columbia River natural tule[1] fall Chinook, and Klamath River fall Chinook.

“Meeting our conservation and management objectives continues to be the highest priority for the Council,” said Council Executive Director Chuck Tracy. “Balancing those objectives while providing meaningful commercial and recreational seasons remains a challenge in 2021.”

Council Chair Marc Gorelnik said, “the Council is considering the needs of Southern Resident killer whales as part of its deliberations. We are also considering the need to rebuild some Chinook and coho stocks that have been designated as overfished.”

Read the full release here

PFMC: 2021 Public hearings on salmon management (via webinar only)

March 11, 2021 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

Public hearings to review the Council’s proposed ocean salmon fishery management alternatives will be conducted via webinar only. The links below will take you to the specific hearing information:

For further information on the salmon hearings, please contact Robin Ehlke at 503-820-2410; toll-free 1-866-806-7204, extension 410.

PFMC: Notice of availability: Salmon Preseason Report I

March 1, 2021 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

This is the second report in an annual series of four reports prepared by the Salmon Technical Team of the Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) to document and help guide ocean fishery salmon management off the coasts of Washington, Oregon, and California. The report focuses on Chinook, coho, and pink salmon stocks that have been important in determining Council fisheries in recent years, and on stocks listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) with established National Marine Fisheries Service ESA consultation standards. This report will be formally reviewed at the Council’s March 2021 meeting.

Please visit the Council’s website to download Preseason Report I:  Stock Abundance Analysis and Environmental Assessment Part 1 for 2021 Ocean Salmon Fishery Regulations (Published March 2021).

For further information:

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

PFMC: Groundfish Endangered Species Workgroup to hold online meeting April 26-28, 2021

February 24, 2021 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council’s (Pacific Council) Groundfish Endangered Species Workgroup will hold a three-day meeting, which is open to the public. The online meeting will be held Monday, April 26, 2021 through Wednesday, April 28, 2021 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. each day, Pacific Daylight Time, or until business for the day has been completed.

Please see the meeting notice on the Council’s website for 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: Notice of availability: Review of 2020 Ocean Salmon Fisheries

February 17, 2021 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Salmon Technical Team and staff of the Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) have prepared this stock assessment and fishery evaluation document as a postseason review of the 2020 ocean salmon fisheries off the coasts of Washington, Oregon, and California to help assess Council salmon fishery management performance, the status of Council area salmon stocks, and the socioeconomic impacts of salmon fisheries. The Council will formally review this report at its March 2021 meeting prior to the development of management alternatives for the approaching fishing season.

Please visit the Council’s website to get the Review of 2020 Ocean Salmon Fisheries (Published February 2021).

For further information:

PFMC Website down due to power outage

February 16, 2021 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

Due to the recent snow and ice storms that have passed through the Portland area, power outages have affected much of the metro area including where the servers that host our website are located.

We are aware of the site being down but at this point are waiting for PGE to restore service. We apologize for any inconvenience this has caused, and remind everyone that our Briefing book materials can also be accessed via our Dropbox subscription.

If you haven’t already signed up to our Dropbox subscription, please email either Kris Kleinschmidt (kris.kleinschmidt@noaa.gov) or Sandra Krause (sandra.krause@noaa.gov) with the email address you have associated with your Dropbox account and we will add you to the list. If you do not already have a Dropbox account, you can sign up for a free account here.

Thank you, and we hope to have everything restored as soon as possible.