Saving Seafood

Coastal Pelagic Species Subcommittee of the SSC to hold online meeting March 2, 2022

January 20, 2022 —  The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council’s (Pacific Council) Coastal Pelagic Species (CPS) Subcommittee of the Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) will hold an online meeting. This meeting is open to the public. The online meeting will be held Wednesday, March 2, 2022, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Pacific Standard Time (PST) or until business for the day has been completed.

For further information:

•See the March  2, 2022 CPS Subcommittee of the SSC meeting notice on the Council’s website

•Contact Pacific Fishery Management Council staff officer Kerry Griffin at 503-820-2409; toll-free 1-866-806-7204.

March 2022 Pacific Fishery Management Council Meeting Update

January 18, 2022 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

This letter is an update regarding our plans for the March 2022 Council meeting. As the March Council meeting date approaches, we are continuing to monitor the COVID pandemic while making plans for a partial in-person setting. These plans were outlined in an earlier letter from Chairman, Gorelnik, and entail an in-person meeting of the Council, the Salmon Technical Team, the Salmon Advisory Subpanel, and in-person accommodations to facilitate Tribal advisors as requested. Appropriate precautions will be in place, such as testing and masking. We plan to have all other Management Teams, Advisory Subpanels, the Scientific and Statistical Committee, and the public participate in the meeting remotely.

It is important to note that these plans are contingent on the status of the COVID pandemic. We are monitoring the status of the pandemic on a daily basis and are hopeful that the latest wave will soon peak and that case counts will decline rapidly from there. To facilitate adequate time for planning, we anticipate making a final decision regarding March Council meeting plans before or on February 4th. At that time, we will decide whether to continue with current plans for a partial in-person meeting, or to revert to a fully remote model like we have been doing through the course of the COVID pandemic.

We appreciate your flexibility and understanding as we navigate this difficult time.

A PDF version of this announcement is available on the Council’s website.

 

CPSMT to hold online meetings February 2 and February 8, 2022

January 13, 2022 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council’s (Pacific Council) Coastal Pelagic Species Management Team will hold two online meetings  The meetings will be held Wednesday, February 2, 2022, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Pacific Standard Time or until business for the day has been completed, and Tuesday, February 8, 2022, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Pacific Standard Time or until business for the day has been completed.

For further information:

•See the February 2, 2022 CPSMT meeting notice on the Council’s website
•See the February 8, 2022 CPSMT meeting notice on the Council’s website
•Contact Pacific Fishery Management Council staff officer Kerry Griffin at 503-820-2409; toll-free 1-866-806-7204.

 

PFMC: Ad Hoc Marine Planning Committee to hold work session Tuesday, February 1, 2022

January 10, 2022 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council’s (Pacific Council) Ad Hoc Marine Planning Committee (MPC) will hold a work session that is open to the public. The online meeting will be held Tuesday, February 1, 2022 starting at 10 a.m. Pacific Standard Time and ending at 4 p.m. or when business has been completed.

Please see the MPC February 1, 2022 meeting notice on the Council’s website for full details, including online participation instructions.

For further information:

•Please contact Pacific Fishery Management Council staff officer Kerry Griffin at 503-820-2409; toll-free 1-866-806-7204.

 

Pacific Fishery Management Council to hold online emergency webinar only meeting January 21, 2022

January 10, 2022 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC or Council) will meet January 21, 2022 by webinar only, regarding the Southern Oregon/ Northern California Coast Coho Harvest Control Rule.  The Council’s Salmon Advisory Subpanel will meet by webinar on January 20, 2021.

Please see the January 2022 Council meeting webpage for further updates and details regarding the agenda, webinar participation, the Salmon Advisory Subpanel meeting, our E-Portal for submitting public comments, and the public comment deadline.  This meeting of the Council will be streamed live on the internet. The broadcast will begin at 8 a.m. Pacific Time, Friday, January 21, 2022.   The broadcast will conclude when business for the day is complete.

Instructions for how to connect to the online meeting will be posted on the Council’s January 2022 meeting webpage prior to the first day of the meeting.

For further information:

•Please contact Pacific Fishery Management Council staff at 503-820-2280; toll-free 1-866-806-7204.

 

Pacific Fishery Management Council Mourns the Passing of Former Chairman, Donald Hansen

January 10, 2021 — The following was released by The Pacific Fishery Management Council:

This week we mourn the passing of our friend, colleague, and former Chairman, Donald Hansen.

Don was a towering figure in the world of U.S. West Coast fisheries, playing an immense role in the work of the Pacific Fishery Management Council (Pacific Council or Council) and in the development of several fisheries off the West Coast. His impact and influence stretched well beyond the West Coast and helped shape fisheries policy across the U.S. and beyond.

He was a strong proponent of the regional fisheries management council process. He was an especially strong proponent of local stakeholders and the idea that local people and local context should shape fishery policy decisions.

Don touched the professional and personal lives of thousands of people engaged in West Coast fisheries, and was sought after as a source of vision, leadership, institutional knowledge, as a trusted advisor, and a friend. Don never lost sight of the fact that fisheries policy decisions affect people, while at the same time advocating for the wise use and conservation of West Coast marine resources.

“Our coastal communities have benefited greatly from Don Hansen’s decades of passion for West Coast fisheries,” said Marc Gorelnik, Chairman of the Pacific Council. “His knowledge, his friendship and humor, his dedication to the Council process, and his steady hand will be sorely missed.”

Throughout the course of his tenure with the Pacific Council, Don engaged in fishery management decision-making that began with the Council’s second-ever meeting in the 1970s, included membership of the Groundfish Advisory Panel (1981-2000), as a member of the Pacific Council (2000 – 2009), as Chairman of the Council (2003 – 2009), and as Special Assistant to the Pacific Council’s Executive Director (2009 – 2018). After his official tenure with the Council ended, he continued to be a trusted friend, ally, and advisor to subsequent Council Chairs and Executive Directors until his passing.

“Don’s passion for the Council was enduring,” said Merrick Burden, Executive Director of the Council. “Many of us benefited from his friendship, leadership and mentorship during our career.”

In addition to being an astute leader and visionary, Don was perhaps best known for his collegiality, desire to help, and his good humor. Don was known as someone that always appreciated a good joke, as a man that could always find a silver lining, and as someone who could always find time to pay attention to the needs of other people and their well-being.

His extraordinary impact on the people, wildlife, and process of the Pacific Council will remain for many years.

We will miss him dearly.

 

PFMC Groundfish Management Team to hold work session January 18-21, 2022

January 4, 2021 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council’s (Pacific Council) Groundfish Management Team (GMT) will hold a work session that is open to the public. The online meeting will be held Tuesday, January 18, 2022, through Friday, January 21, 2022, starting at 8 a.m. Pacific Standard Time and ending when business has been completed for each day. 

Please see the GMT 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.

 

Groundfish Subcommittee of the SSC to hold online meeting January 25, 2022

December 30, 2021 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council’s (Pacific Council)  Groundfish Subcommittee of the Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) will hold an online meeting to review the 2021 groundfish stock assessment process and discuss process improvements for the next stock assessment cycle. The online meeting will be held Tuesday, January 25, 2022, from 12:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m., Pacific Standard Time or until business for the day is completed.

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

For further information:

•Please contact Pacific Fishery Management Council staff officer John DeVore at 503-820-2413; toll-free 1-866-806-7204.

 

PFMC seeks temporary Administrative Specialist

December 23, 2021 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council is seeking a Temporary Part-Time Administrative Specialist to assist with document production and Council meeting support.  This position is of temporary duration (January 18 through April 22) and is approximately 24 hours per week.  Primary responsibilities include answering phones, processing incoming and outgoing mail, and assisting in the proofing and editing of Council documents. 

The Council is one of eight regional Councils established by the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976. The Council has authority over the management of ocean fisheries in the Exclusive Economic Zone off Washington, Oregon, and California.  The Council office is in Portland, Oregon near the Portland International Airport.

Please see the detailed Temporary Part-Time Administrative Specialist job description on the Council’s website for further details.

Applications or inquiries should be emailed to patricia.crouse@noaa.gov with the subject line “Administrative-Specialist-Temp”. Applications are due by 5 pm Pacific time, Friday, January 7, 2022.

Pacific Council requests nominations for remaining advisory body vacancies for the 2022-2024 Term

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

The Council is requesting nominations for remaining vacancies for the 2022-2024 Advisory Body term. To ensure consideration, nominations should be received via the Council’s online Advisory Body Nomination Form. no later than 5 p.m. Friday, February 4, 2022.

List of vacancies

•Groundfish Advisory Subpanel – Sport Fisheries At-Large – 1 Position (WA, OR, or CA) preferably, but not exclusively, requesting nominees with knowledge of WA sport groundfish fisheries

•Groundfish Advisory Subpanel – At-Large Processor – 1 Position

•Habitat Committee – Northwest or Columbia River Tribal Representative– 1 Position

•Highly Migratory Species Advisory Subpanel – Processor North of Cape Mendocino– 1 Position

•Salmon Advisory Subpanel – Idaho Sport Fisheries– 1 Position

•Scientific and Statistical Committee – At-Large– 2 Positions, preferably, but not exclusively, requesting nominees with expertise in oceanography and/or social sciences. Nominations to the Scientific and Statistical Committee must include a curriculum vitae (CV) and a Statement of Financial Interests to be considered for appointment. Please download and complete NOAA Form 88-195 and submit it along with a CV via the online Advisory Body Nomination Form.

To submit a nomination and supporting documents, please fill out the Council’s online Advisory Body Nomination Form.

Individuals may nominate themselves or be nominated by other individuals or organizations. Individuals may apply for more than one advisory body seat, but please use a separate form for each nomination. Nomination materials submitted for the November 2021 Council meeting will not be considered. If you have been nominated in the past and wish to be considered in March 2022, please complete a new form.

The Council is scheduled to review the nominations and fill positions during the March 2022 Council meeting.  Appointments will be effective through December 31, 2024.

A summary list of nominations will be included in the public briefing materials for the March 2022 Council meeting, but Nomination Forms, Statements of Financial Interest, or other submitted nomination materials will only be distributed to participants of the closed sessions of the SSC or the Council. Letters of support for nominees may be submitted with the nomination form or may also be submitted for the March 2022 Council Meeting via the Council’s Public Comment E-Portal which will open no later than early-February.

The Council is committed to the principle of diversity and is interested in receiving nominations from a broad spectrum of people.  Eligibility or selection for these positions will not be based on race, color, national origin, handicap, age, religion, or sexual orientation. For further information on the advisory bodies or the nomination process, please contact Mike Burner, Deputy Director (503-820-2414 or toll free 866-806-7204).