Saving Seafood

Pink salmon could prosper in warmer Arctic rivers and streams, study says

September 9, 2020 — A new study has found that global warming could produce higher numbers of pink salmon in the Arctic by making rivers and streams more hospitable for spawning.

The analysis was published by U.S. and Canadian scientists in the journal Deep Sea Research Part II, Alaska’s Energy Desk reported Monday.

The findings bolster reports by Alaska subsistence fishermen that pink salmon numbers have increased as the Arctic warms at more than double the rate of the rest of the globe.

“Maybe in the past, they’d see a few adult pink salmon here and there every few years. Now they’re seeing them every year,” said Ed Farley, a federal fisheries scientist at the Auke Bay Laboratories in Juneau.

Read the full story at the Anchorage Daily News

OREGON: Federal plan for Columbia River system dams sees opposition

September 3, 2020 — A final plan impacting the Columbia River system released earlier this month has some anglers and conservationists still looking for more answers.

The Preferred Alternative in the Columbia River System Operational Final Environmental Impact Statement includes structural modifications to some of the dams to benefit passage of adult salmon, steelhead and Pacific lamprey.

Greg Haller, of Pacific Rivers, said the plan does not represent a major system overall and he is not convinced the spill option benefits juvenile fish.

“Going with a flexible spill agreement as a long-term solution is a bad choice,” he said. “Breaching the dams has been identified as the best thing for fish. I think they gave that analysis short shrift.”

Additionally, proposed operational changes in the upper basin would avoid adverse effects to resident fish, including federally protected bull trout and Kootenai River white sturgeon.

Read the full story at The East Oregonian

MARYLAND: Land-based salmon farm proposed for Chesapeake’s Eastern Shore

September 3, 2020 — The Chesapeake Bay is known to many for the seafood it produces: blue crabs, oysters and striped bass.

In a few years, though, the Bay region could become a major producer of an even more popular seafood that doesn’t come from the Chesapeake. A Norwegian company, AquaCon, has unveiled plans to raise salmon on Maryland’s Eastern Shore.

AquaCon executives intend to build a $300 million indoor salmon farm on the outskirts of Federalsburg in Caroline County. By 2024, they aim to harvest 3 million fish a year weighing 14,000 metric tons — an amount on par with Maryland’s annual commercial crab catch.

If that goes as planned, the company expects to build two more land-based salmon farms on the Shore over the next six or seven years, bringing production up to 42,000 tons annually. That’s more than the Baywide landings of any fish or shellfish, except for menhaden, and more valuable commercially.

AquaCon’s announcement comes amid a rush by mostly European aquaculture companies to supply Americans with farmed salmon. Another Norwegian company is preparing for its first full harvest later this year from a facility south of Miami, and plans have been announced to build big indoor salmon farms in Maine and on the West Coast. Two small U.S.-based salmon operations in the Midwest also are moving to expand production.

Read the full story at the Bay Journal

Southern Oregon/Northern California Coast Coho Technical Workgroup online meeting October 6-7, 2020

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

The online meeting will be held Tuesday, October 6 through Wednesday, October 7, 2020; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Pacific Daylight Time each day.  The meeting times are an estimate; the meeting will adjourn when business for the day is complete.

Please see the SONCC Workgroup online meeting notice on the Council’s website for purpose and participation details.

For further information:

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

More MSC Certified Supplements Hitting Shelves, Steward Supplements Launches 100% MSC Certified Product Line

September 2, 2020 — The following was released by the Marine Stewardship Council:

Cod liver oil and salmon oil in new Steward Supplements products are now 100% MSC certified sustainable, joining more than 170 other fish oil products in the US market that carry the MSC blue fish logo. Steward Supplements launched the new product line today with fish oils sourced from certified US fisheries, with all products manufactured in Dutch Harbor, Alaska.

The MSC is recognized as the world’s leading certification program for sustainable, wild-caught seafood. For products to be sold as MSC certified, seafood from MSC certified fisheries can only be handled, processed and packaged by organizations with a valid Chain of Custody certificate. These companies are audited regularly by independent certification bodies to ensure that they comply with the MSC Chain of Custody Standard. This requires that MSC certified seafood is only purchased from certified suppliers and is always identifiable, segregated from non-certified seafood and sold with the correct paperwork identifying it as certified. Steward Supplements is a MSC certified Chain of Custody holder.

“More than ever, consumers want to support companies that are socially and environmentally responsible, and by providing MSC certified products, Steward Supplements is achieving that desire”, said Brian Perkins, regional director for the Americas at the MSC. “Products that carry the MSC blue fish label are traceable to a sustainable source so shoppers can trust that it is good for them and good for the ocean.”

Stewards marine superfoods are comprised of an array of pro-resolving mediators, natural high levels of Vitamin A & D as well as a portfolio of omega-3 fatty acids. All the products contain no synthetic additives, with only non-GMO ingredients, and with each purchase, 1% of the proceeds go to protecting our oceans.

“Steward Supplements believes in sustainability, transparency, & quality. It is our responsibility to meet the MSC’s global standards for sustainable harvesting of marine ingredients in creating our health products. We are proud to have the MSC eco-label on all of our products,” said Tommy Little, Steward Supplements Co-Founder.

The MSC standard was established in 1997 and is the only wild caught seafood standard and ecolabeling program to meet United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (UNFAO) guidelines as well as meet Global Sustainable Seafood Initiative (GSSI) benchmarking criteria. The standards used to evaluate fisheries have been developed in deliberation with scientists, industry, and conservation groups, and reflect the most up-to-date fisheries science and management practices.

A Rare Salmon Type Is in the Crosshairs of Alaska’s Proposed Pebble Mine

August 31, 2020 — The sockeye salmon that come from the Koktuli River aren’t like most other fish in Alaska’s Bristol Bay, where a thriving fishery provides nearly half of the world’s wild sockeye. These salmon represent a rare class of sockeye with unique genes and a singular life strategy that sets them apart from the millions of fish that spawn in the rivers and streams that feed into Bristol Bay. Now, Koktuli River sockeye are in the spotlight because the Pebble Mine, a copper and gold mine proposed for southwest Alaska, is slated for the water in which they live.

On Monday, August 24, the latest development arrived in the long and controversial story of the Pebble Mine. The US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), the agency in charge of permitting the mine, posted a letter officially informing the project’s developer, Pebble Limited Partnership (PLP), that the open-pit mine, as proposed, would “cause unavoidable adverse impacts” to the surrounding watershed, resulting in “significant degradation.”

That determination would be a death knell for the project per the Clean Water Act—unless the company takes appropriate steps to mitigate or offset the damage it will cause to more than 1,300 hectares of wetlands and nearly 300 kilometers of streams, most of which lie within the Koktuli River watershed. In recent weeks, prominent Republicans, including President Trump’s oldest son, Donald Trump Jr., and Fox News commentator Tucker Carlson, have voiced opposition to the mine, feeding speculation ahead of Monday’s letter that the administration might block or delay the project.

Read the full story at Hakai Magazine

NMFS authorizes sea lion removals to save Columbia River salmon

August 28, 2020 — Up to 716 sea lions may be removed from a Columbia River management zone over the next five years to reduce the animals’ impact on salmon and steelhead populations, under a new federal authorization granted to states and tribes in the U.S. Northwest.

In 2018, the U.S. Congress amended the Marine Mammal Protection Act to allow removal of sea lions from a stretch of the Columbia River between the I-205 bridge on Portland’s east side and McNary Dam. The change also allowed for removing sea lions from Columbia River tributaries below the McNary Dam that are spawning habitat for threatened or endangered salmon and steelhead runs.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

California startup turns Bristol Bay salmon skins into a fried snack

August 26, 2020 — A flash-fried snack made from Bristol Bay sockeye salmon skins has been spawned by a Los Angeles-based company called Goodfish, which aims to “propel sustainable seafood into our mass-market consumer culture.”

It is the second venture for partners Justin Guilbert and Douglas Riboud, a well-financed duo who are committed to trailblazing brands that have “higher standards of sourcing, manufacturing, and social ethos.”

A decade ago they co-founded Harmless Harvest, the world’s first sustainably harvested, organic coconut water. That product, now found in 70,000 U.S. outlets, helped economize non-timber forest products made from renewable resources.

Read the full story at the Anchorage Daily News

Republican push to block controversial Alaskan gold mine gains the White House’s attention

August 21, 2020 — Federal approval of a controversial gold and copper mine in Alaska that would be the largest in North America may be put on hold after a small group of influential Republicans — including the president’s son, Fox News host Tucker Carlson, a wealthy Trump donor and one of the vice president’s former top aides — launched a full-court press to block the project.

The proposed Pebble Mine was on the verge of winning a key permit from the Trump administration despite concerns from environmentalists that it could significantly damage Alaska’s world-renowned sockeye salmon fishery in nearby Bristol Bay.

That also happens to be a fishing spot of Donald Trump Jr., who made an impassioned case against the mine to his father during an early August fundraiser he hosted at his Bridgehampton, N.Y., home. Andrew Sabin, a Trump donor who was at the seaside gathering, also told the president that the mine was a bad idea. And last week, Carlson argued against the proposed mine on his television show.

Read the full story at The Washington Post

Alaska’s salmon are shrinking, and climate change may be to blame

August 21, 2020 — Alaska’s highly prized salmon – a favorite of seafood lovers the world over – are getting smaller, and climate change is a suspected culprit, a new study reported, documenting a trend that may pose a risk to a valuable fishery, indigenous people and wildlife.

The study, led by University of Alaska at Fairbanks (UAF) scientists, found that four of Alaska’s five wild salmon species have shrunk in average fish size over the past six decades, with stunted growth becoming more pronounced since 2010.

Hardest hit is Alaska’s official state fish, the Chinook salmon, also known as king salmon.

Chinooks on average are 8 percent smaller than they were before 1990, according to the study, published on Wednesday in the journal Nature Communications. Also shrinking are Alaska’s sockeye, coho and chum salmon, the report said. The findings are based on data from 12.5 million samples collected over six decades.

Read the full story at Reuters