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Biden Signs Industry-Led American Fisheries Advisory Committee Act

May 16, 2022 — Yesterday morning President Biden signed into law Senate Bill 497 which creates an industry-led advisory committee within the Department of Commerce to assist in the awarding of fisheries research and development grants, including all Saltonstall-Kennedy (S-K) awards, and support the long-term vitality of American-caught seafood.

The law was passed overwhelmingly by both the House and Senate last month.

The S-K Act of 1954 established a program to provide funding for fisheries marketing, research, and development. The program is funded by a permanent appropriation of 30% of the previous calendar year’s customs receipts from imports of fish products. These funds have grown steadily from $26.7 million in 1980 to $182.8 million in 2020.

Read the full story at Seafood News

Informational S-K Grant Program Webinar on July 14 at 4 pm

July 6, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Please join NOAA Fisheries on Wednesday, July 14 from 4-5 pm ET for an informational webinar hosted by the Saltonstall-Kennedy (S-K) Grant Program discussing the FY22 S-K Grant Competition Notice of Funding Opportunity, which published on grants.gov on June 18.

FY22 S-K Webinar Info:

Register: https://noaanmfs-meets.webex.com/noaanmfs-meets/j.php?RGID=r8051d97353275edb994727fac155c572
Time: Wednesday, July 14, 2021 @ 4:00 pm (1 hour duration)
Event number: 199 806 0963
Event password: noaa (6622 from phones)

Read the full release here

FY22 S-K Grant Competition—Notice of Funding Opportunity

June 23, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

The goal of the Saltonstall-Kennedy program is to fund projects that address the needs of fishing communities, optimize economic benefits by building and maintaining sustainable fisheries, and increase other opportunities to keep working waterfronts viable. The FY22 solicitation seeks applications that fall into one of two priorities:

  • Promotion, Development, and Marketing.
  • Science or Technology that Promotes Sustainable U.S. Seafood Production and Harvesting.

This year’s solicitation consists of two separate submission processes. All interested applicants must submit a 2 page pre-proposal through the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) posted at www.Grants.gov. Pre-proposals must be received at Grants.gov, postmarked, or provided to a delivery service by 11:59 pm, Eastern Time, August 16, 2021. Use of Grants.gov is preferred.

It is important to note that under this one NOFO there are two competition links. Please be sure to submit pre-proposals to the “Pre-Proposals FY22 Saltonstall-Kennedy” link within the dates specified in this NOFO. Full proposals will be submitted under the “Full Proposals FY22 Saltonstall-Kennedy” link prior to the closing date of November 29,2021. Be sure to read the NOFO and follow the directions and formatting requirements closely.

Learn more about the Saltonstall-Kennedy Grant Program and how to apply for the FY22 Competition.

Read the full release here

Catalina Offshore Gets Funding to Revive Opah Consumption in California, West Coast

October 26, 2018 — SEAFOOD NEWS — Catalina Offshore Products has been awarded $139,700 for a project to grow demand for opah and other underutilized and undervalued species. The funding is thanks to the 2018 National Marine Fisheries Service Saltonstall-Kennedy Grant Program.

Catalina’s proposal, A Culinary Engineering Approach to Increasing the Value of Local Fisheries: Reducing Fish Discards at Sea and Promoting Full Utilization, was envisioned as scalable to the national level and is based on a year-long project that may help to increase revenue to local fleets and provide consumers with a greater range of locally sourced seafood.

Two objectives underscore the project’s culinary engineering approach. The first and primary objective is to broaden the appeal of opah, such that all edible portions of the fish are utilized. The second is to develop new culinary markets for species being discarded by U.S. Pacific highly migratory species (HMS) fisheries landing their catch in southern California.

Opah (Lampris spp.), or “moonfish,” are a closely related group of six large pelagic fish species found worldwide in temperate and tropical waters, two of which (smalleye Pacific opah, L. incognitus, and bigeye Pacific opah, L. megalopsis) occur seasonally off the coasts of California and Mexico. Historically elusive, Pacific opah are a secondary target in West Coast commercial fisheries and have been showing up more frequently in recent years.

Opah are about the size of a car tire and can weigh up to 200 pounds, yet a considerable portion is typically discarded. This reduces profitability to fishermen and deprives U.S. consumers of additional sources of responsibly harvested domestic seafood.

Catalina Offshore has pioneered a full utilization approach to opah by identifying seven distinct types of meat. These portions of the opah, each with a unique color, flavor and texture profile, allow for a wider range of culinary applications. This differs from most other species in which flavor, texture and color tend to be the same throughout the fish.

“People tend to eat what they’re familiar with,” notes the company’s fishmonger, Tommy Gomes in a press release. “We’re trying to get them to look beyond the standard fillet. You wouldn’t harvest a pig just to make bacon. Fish should be approached the same way.”

Catalina also produced a short video showing the different cuts of meat available from an opah.

Several partners join Catalina Offshore on this project, including celebrated local chefs, fishermen dedicated to sustainable fishing practices, a retired NOAA Fisheries administrator turned sustainable seafood consultant, scientists from NOAA Fisheries’ Southwest Fisheries Science Center (SWFSC) and Wildlife Computers.

Hoping to gain a better understanding of the opah’s basic biology and ecology, SWFSC researchers began collecting samples from opah in 2009 and initiated an electronic tagging program in 2011. Culinary aspects will draw from the imaginations of chefs Rob Ruiz, Davin Waite and Jason McLeod, known for their innovation, zero waste practices and commitment to using responsibly sourced seafood.

Work will consist of data collection, roundtables with fishermen and consumers, kitchen workshops, recipe development, culinary demonstrations, and an “Ocean to Table” finale event. During this public showcase, project outcomes will be presented along with a suite of dishes highlighting different culinary applications for opah, as well as other HMS species currently being discarded but identified through research as having market potential.

“We’re fortunate to have such passionate and esteemed individuals lending their expertise to our culinary engineering project,” Catalina Offshore owner Dave Rudie said in the statement. “This collaboration will allow us to build on our experience working with opah, and further develop market demand for undervalued and underutilized species. We hope our efforts will benefit our local fisheries, increase the viability of our working waterfronts, and illustrate the value of not only fishing sustainably, but eating sustainably.”

This story originally appeared on Seafood News, it is republished here with permission.

Maine nonprofit awarded NOAA grant to develop green crab market

September 19, 2018 — The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Saltonstall-Kennedy Grant Program has given a grant of USD 267,440 (EUR 229,165) to a Maine, U.S.A.-based nonprofit Manomet in order to work on creating a fishery for invasive European green crabs.

The grant will allow Manomet to expand its project on creating a new economic opportunity out of soft-shell green crabs in New England. The green crab, a species that is invasive to New England, has been present for more than a hundred years and has recently expanded in numbers to the point it is putting pressure on local species.

That pressure has contributed to record low landings of caught and farmed mussels, and also threatens Maine’s softshell clam industry.

Manomet has already launched efforts to galvanize efforts on commercializing green crabs. On 6 and 7 June, the organization hosted a “Green Crab Working Summit” in Portland, Maine, to bring together various experts to discuss commercialization of the species.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

 

Non-Profit Gets Award to Investigate a Commercial Green Crab industry in New England

September 17, 2018 — SEAFOOD NEWS — Manomet, a non-profit organization headquartered in Plymouth, Massachusetts, has been awarded $267,440 by the NOAA Saltonstall-Kennedy Grant Program to “expand work to develop a lucrative green crab fishery in New England.”

“Utilizing an invasive species to diversify fisheries resources may ultimately enhance the future resiliency of New England’s coastal communities, and could serve as a unique example of how to mitigate and adapt to the ecological and socioeconomic impacts of climate-drive change,” Manomet Senior Fisheries Scientist Marissa McMahon said in a statement. “We are honored to have been chosen by the Saltonstall-Kennedy program.”

European green crabs were introduced to the U.S. in the early 1800s. The invasive species has been thriving with the warming of the water in the Gulf of Mexico. McMahon is hopeful that Manomet will be able to replicate Italy’s lucrative soft-shell green crab fishery with the funding from NOAA.

This story originally appeared on Seafood News, it is republished here with permission.

 

NOAA Announces 2018 Saltonstall-Kennedy Grant Recommendations

June 28, 2018 — The following was released by NOAA:

Today, NOAA Fisheries announced recommendations to fund 38 projects for almost $9 million under the 2018 Saltonstall-Kennedy Competitive Grants Program. The list of projects fall into four categories:  Marine Aquaculture; Adapting to Environmental Changes and Other Long Term Impacts in Marine Ecosystems; Promotion, Development and Marketing; and Territorial Science.

For more than 40 years, NOAA has awarded grant funding for projects under the Saltonstall-Kennedy program to individuals, institutions, organizations, and businesses across the country. S-K funds help address the needs of fishing communities, support economic opportunities, and build and maintain resilient and sustainable fisheries.

Demand for funding through S-K was high again this year. Initially, NOAA received 517 pre-proposals. Out of that number, 155 full proposals requesting nearly $40 million were reviewed by at least three subject matter experts during the Technical Merit Review phase. The top 87 scoring proposals advanced to the Constituent Panel Reviews where each proposal was then reviewed and scored by 15 subject matter experts from the fishing industry and community. Based on that, the top 38 proposals have been recommended for 2018 funding.

At this point in the selection process, the application approval and recommended funding is not final. Divisions of NOAA and the Department of Commerce, NOAA’s parent agency, must still give final approval before successful applicants receive funding by October 2018.

  • View the list of proposals recommended for funding.
  • View S-K program background information.
  • Apply for FY2019 S-K Grants – OPEN NOW!

 

Letter: Fishermen need a fish bill

December 26, 2017 — My name is Sam Parisi from Gloucester, Massachusetts. I am retired and want to devote my time to help our fishing industry at no charge to anyone.

We have many problems, thanks in part to NOAA ‘s restrictions. We have tried to turn the tide. NOAA has grown so big, so rather than fight it, let us together find a solution that would be welcome to all.

I believe the solution is federal legislation. Farmers have a farm bill; fishermen need a fish bill. The drastic cuts in quota that our fishermen have incurred over the last two years are driving even the hardest fishermen out of business. Without fish, fishermen and fish houses cannot survive. We all know Economics 101 and the domino effect of lost revenue. Waterfront properties will become liabilities instead of assets and our tax base will evaporate.

Are we going to sit back and watch what we know will happen and then react? The crystal ball is right in front of us. NOAA has shown us our future. NO FISH MEANS NO MONEY. So what are we going to do about it? Are we going to be proactive and do something before the bleeding starts?

Read the full letter at the Gloucester Times

 

Rep Young’s Magnuson Bill to Move Ahead with Input from Calif. Rep Huffman; Aim is No Poison Pills

September 28, 2017 — SEAFOOD NEWS — Alaska’s Representative Don Young closed Tuesday’s hearing on four fisheries bills, by remarking to the panel, “We are going to use the vehicle of [HR] 200. I’m going to work with Mr. Huffman and see if we can’t come to some conclusion.

“The basic skeleton of the Magnuson Act … we’re going to keep the skeleton whole. Get those comments and suggestions to us, because we’re going to try to get something moving by October or November this year,” Young said.

Rep. Jared Huffman (D-CA) introduced a discussion draft called “Strengthening Fishing Communities through Improving Science, Increasing Flexibility, and Modernizing Fisheries Management Act.” The discussion paper includes sections on Council transparency, flexibility in rebuilding fish stocks, Saltonstall-Kennedy Act reform, red snapper cooperative research and others.

Rep. Jared Huffman said after the hearing Tuesday that Democrats and Republicans have many agreements when it comes to fishery regulations and management.

However, he said previous attempts in recent years to amend and reauthorize the law have stalled because of “poison pill” riders that would exempt fisheries from conservation policies such as the Endangered Species Act and National Environmental Protection Act.

“Instead of making meaningful improvements to our most important fisheries statute, this process has focused on weakening fundamental environmental protections in place of making meaningful improvements to our important fisheries management framework,” Huffman (D-San Rafael) said in his opening statement at the committee hearing. “This partisan process does a disservice to hardworking fishermen across the country including those in my district.”

Members from both sides of the aisle were in agreement that the law — known as the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976 — has worked to prevent overfishing and replenish overfished stocks as was intended upon its passage.

Two other bills were discussed and commented on at the hearing by invited witnesses. HR 3588  and HR 2023 are focused on modernizing recreational fisheries and managing red snapper in regional ways, respectively.

The hearing was before the Water, Power, and Industry Subcommittee of the larger House Committee on Natural Resources.

Witnesses included Chris Oliver, Director of NOAA Fisheries; Mayor Johnathan Mitchell of New Bedford; Mike Merrifield, Southeastern Fisheries Association; Susan Boggs, co-owner of a charter operation out of Alabama, and others.

Chairman Doug Lamborn opened the hearing saying “Many of you here today probably consider this to be a fishery hearing, but I assure you it is much more than that. …whether we are talking about a commercial, recreational, or charter boat operation, the working waterfront that provides shore side support, a boat manufacturer or your local mom and pop bait and tackle shop, today’s hearing is about supporting American small business. It’s my hope today that we will create a strong, bi-partisan MSA that supports jobs and our fishermen, and that supports the science data and process used in federal fisheries management.”

Jonathan Mitchell, Mayor of New Bedford, pushed back on the concept of “flexibility.”

“The term “flexibility” should not be understood as a euphemism for deregulation,” Mitchell said. “The councils are in the business of finely calibrating decisions in light of relevant environmental and economic data, and their own experience and expertise.

“In the discharge of their duties, they tend not to win friends either in the fishing industry or in the conservation community, and given the goals of Magnuson-Stevens, that’s probably the way it should be,” Mitchell said.

Susan Boggs, co-owner in a charter boating operation in Alabama, supported the current MSA.

“I am here today to tell you that MSA is working. This law was written to bring fisheries back from collapse, to ensure long-term sustainability for future generations, and to provide a conduit for stakeholders to be a part of the management process.

“There are several species of fish that are critical to the charter/for-hire sector in the Gulf of Mexico, but perhaps none more than red snapper. Since 2007, when annual catch limits became a requirement, the recreational sector’s quota for red snapper has tripled. MSA has worked for us.

“A suggestion that I would offer to this committee that would have a meaningful impact on the management of this fishery would be a Federal Red Snapper angler license,” she said.

“No one can tell you how many anglers target Red Snapper in the Gulf of Mexico. This license does not have to be cost prohibitive. Even a $10 fee would provide better data on the number of anglers targeting this species and could generate millions of dollars that could be used for cost recovery, stock assessments and better landings data which should include more real-time reporting using current technology from private anglers.”

Chris Oliver listed challenges to NOAA, nationwide and how MSA can tackle them.  “We face formidable challenges managing recovering stocks to benefit both commercial and recreational user groups with fundamentally different goals and objectives, and who are experiencing increased fish interactions due to the strong management measures that have improved historically overfished populations.

“Together with our partners, it is essential that we continue to explore innovative, science-based management approaches and regional management tools. We must remain dedicated to exploring ways to maximize economic opportunities from wild-caught fisheries for commercial and recreational fishermen, processors, and communities. We are committed to working with Congress on the bills put forth by this subcommittee, to ensure that annual catch limits, accountability measures, stock rebuilding, and other aspects of our management construct are working, while protecting the overall, long-term conservation and sustainability of the nation’s fishery resources.”

This story originally appeared on Seafoodnews.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.

National Saltonstall-Kennedy Webinar & Training Thursday, September 14, 2017

September 11, 2017 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA published the 2018 Saltonstall-Kennedy Competitive Grants Solicitation on August 11, 2017. Pre-proposals are due through Grants.gov by October 10, 2017. Full applications are due by January 8, 2018.

In an effort to assist all potential applicants, NOAA Fisheries will be conducting an informal, national webinar to walk you through the online pre-proposal and full application process on Thursday, September 14, at 2:30pm Eastern.

To listen to the presentation, call 877-918-6629 and enter  participant code 4526000. To see the presentation, join the Webinar.

The presentation will include:

* The objective of the SK Program
* Solicitation timelines
* How to apply
* Priority areas
* Evaluation criteria
* Where to find more information
* Question and answer session

Established in 1954, the Saltonstall-Kennedy grants program is designed to address the needs of fishing communities, improve the economy by building and maintaining sustainable fisheries, and increase other opportunities to keep working waterfronts viable.

Questions? Contact National S-K Manager, Dan Namur at Dan.Namur@noaa.gov.

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