Saving Seafood

NEW YORK: Peconic Bay Scallop Die-Off On Long Island Leads To Federal Disaster Declaration

July 13, 2021 — Federal regulators have declared a fishery disaster following a massive scallop die-off over the last two years in eastern Long Island.

Nearly 90% of Peconic Bay scallops died off because of parasitic disease, an invasive predator and warming waters due to climate change.

Barley Dunne, who runs the shellfish hatchery in East Hampton, said he hopes sets of scallops can make a comeback.

“Last year, there was a huge set from Flanders in Riverhead all the way out to Montuak. And right now there are tons of beautiful 1-year-old bay scallops at the bottom. So, the big question is whether they are going to make it through the summer. Because that’s when the die-off is occurring,” Dunne said.

Read the full story at WSHU

NEW YORK: Peconic Bay declared a fishery disaster following scallop die-off in recent years

July 12, 2021 — Peconic Bay was one of four fisheries to be declared a fishery disaster following the “near-unprecedented” Peconic Bay scallop die-off of 2019 and subsequent problems in 2020, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced on June 29.

The determination makes the fisheries eligible for disaster assistance from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. They may also qualify for disaster assistance from the Small Business Administration, according to the Department of Commerce. The department has balances remaining from previously appropriated fishery disaster assistance and will determine the appropriate allocation for Peconic Bay as well as the other locations in Washington and Alaska, a press release noted.

“Fisheries are essential to our communities and economy and we want to ensure America is in a position to remain competitive on the global stage,” U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo said in a statement. “These determinations allow us to lend a helping hand to the fishing families and communities that have experienced very real and difficult setbacks in the last few years.”

Gov. Andrew Cuomo sent a letter to former Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross in December 2019 calling for federal action to help New York’s scallop fishery following the Peconic Bay die-off.

Read the full story at the Riverhead News-Review

FWC reminds boaters to recognize divers-down devices, flags amid scallop season

July 12, 2021 — Scallop season in Citrus County runs through Sept. 24 and is a draw for tourists and locals alike.

Because this activity is so popular, boats in local rivers and scallop harvest grounds can number in the thousands during weekends.

“Public safety remains paramount during these times and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) officers take on this responsibility as well responding to other situations in the area,” FWC area supervisor Capt. Rama Shuster said.

To assist during this busy time, additional FWC officers from outside the local area will be added to patrols. The Citrus County Sheriff’s Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and U.S. Coast Guard will also provide support.

Read the full story at the Citrus County Chronicle

NEFMC Receives Updates on Offshore Wind, Atlantic Herring, EBFM; Approves 2021-2025 Research Priorities

July 9, 2021 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council met June 22-24, 2021 by webinar. In addition to the actions the Council took on scallops, groundfish, and skates, here are other important highlights.

Habitat/Offshore Wind – The Council received offshore wind presentations from three different agencies.

  • The Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office (GARFO) covered how NOAA Fisheries cooperates and coordinates with other agencies on wind issues, develops checklists to help guide analyses of socio-economic impacts on fishing communities, as well as Endangered Species Act biological assessments and other analyses, conducts essential fish habitat (EFH) consultations and EFH mapping, and more;
  • The Northeast Fisheries Science Center focused on offshore wind impacts on federal scientific surveys and the associated implications; and
  • The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) provided a broad overview of offshore wind energy projects throughout the Atlantic region.

Read the full release here

US Atlantic scallop prices high as rotational closures reduce supply, boost production costs

June 24, 2021 — The Atlantic sea scallop fishery – predominantly centered around ports in New Bedford, Massachusetts; Point Judith, Rhode Island; Cape May, New Jersey; and Norfolk, Virginia – is the largest and most valuable wild scallop fishery in the world. Projected landings in the federal fishery are expected to be around 40 million pounds in 2021.

“The allocation was developed using survey data from 2020, and then projecting growth, harvest, natural mortality and recruitment,” Jonathon Peros, fishery analyst and scallop lead at New England Fishery Management Council, said.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

NEFMC Approves 2022-2023 Scallop RSA Priorities; Initiates Framework 34; Responds to Letter on Leasing Petition

June 24, 2021 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

During its June 2021 webinar meeting, the New England Fishery Management Council adopted 2022-2023 research priorities to help steer the development of the next round of projects to be funded through the Atlantic Sea Scallop Research Set-Aside (RSA) Program. Resource surveys were identified by the Council as the highest priority, as has been the case for several years running.

This year, the Council expanded the range of potential projects under its high priority category by:

  • Broadening the scope of research that can be proposed under the scallop biology priority; and
  • Expanding the turtle priority to cover gear research and ecological studies, which were identified as Reasonable and Prudent Measures in the new Biological Opinion for the scallop fishery

The Council also identified three categories of important general research projects, which are noted in the table below. The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS/NOAA Fisheries) is expected to publish the Notice of Funding Opportunity for 2022-2023 awards this summer. NOAA Fisheries administers the RSA award competition and oversees selected projects, as well as set-aside harvest activities. The awards are based on the Council’s identified RSA priorities.

Read the full release here

Impact of Offshore Wind on Commercial Fishing Industry Discussed

June 24, 2021 — Four-decade scallop fisherman and Viking Village fleet owner Jim Gutowski laid out the scope in size of one offshore wind farm turbine as a backdrop to his talk on “The Impact of Offshore Wind Farms on Our Commercial Fishing Industry” at the June 19 meeting of the Barnegat Light Taxpayer’s Association.

“They’re going to be a little over five times the height of the (Barnegat) lighthouse. The tripod that that’s going to sit upon is about a block (in size). So, we’re talking about massive structures. The span of those blades on those turbines, they’re going to be about two football fields from tip to tip.”

Gutowski voiced concern about impact on commercial seafood catch and other sea life of a proposed 200- to 250-turbine array in an area of the ocean stretching from Barnegat Light to Atlantic City. The project is awaiting final approval.

The Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind lease is located on 183,353 acres in what he noted is a “flourishing fishing ground that you’ve had fishermen for the last 20 years break their backs to sustain.” He was referring to research and alterations that the scallop industry has made to successfully preserve a harvest for future years.

The Joint Council of Taxpayers Associations of Long Beach Island compiled a Frequently Asked Questions summary of the wind farm project 10 miles east of Long Beach Island, which is on the website barnegatlighttaxpayer.org under the subheading “Weather and the Environment.” The BLTA has 573 member households, but the website is accessible to the public.

Read the full story at The Sand Paper

Fisheries Survival Fund: Change Wind Energy Areas to Protect Scallops

June 11, 2021 — The following was released by the Fisheries Survival Fund:

The Fisheries Survival Fund (FSF), representing the vast majority of the limited access Atlantic scallop fishery, is calling for the federal government to change its proposed lease sale boundaries for wind farms off the coast of New York to better protect the region’s fisheries from harmful development. These changes are necessary because the government’s current proposed lease sales, announced today, fail to incorporate any of the recommendations made by FSF or the city of New Bedford, the nation’s most valuable fishing port.

The sea scallop fishery is one of the most valuable in the country: in 2019, commercial landings totaled more than 60.6 million pounds, valued at approximately $570 million. In the New York Call Areas alone, there were $268 million worth of scallops landed over a five year period, from 2012-2016. Atlantic sea scallops are, in fact, the nation’s most valuable federally managed fishery.

FSF is requesting that the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), which is responsible for leasing areas for offshore development, incrementally change its lease plans for the New York Bight. Currently, two BOEM Wind Energy Areas (WEAs), Hudson South and Central Bight, are located in particularly sensitive areas for scallops. In their current form, these areas, including hundreds of thousands of acres of ocean, will have a serious negative impact on the fishery.

BOEM’s proposed eastern-most lease areas in Hudson South are directly adjacent to the Hudson Canyon Scallop Access Area (“Hudson Canyon SAA”). The Hudson Canyon SAA is one of the most important scallop grounds in the Northeast. From 2001-2018, over 60 million pounds of scallops, valued at well over $600 million, were harvested directly from the area. Further, a recently published paper principally authored by the lead federal scallop scientist concluded that successful management of the Hudson Canyon SAA resulted in a sevenfold increase in scallops in the nearby Elephant Trunk Scallop Access Area, and benefited scallops in the Delmarva Scallop Access Area.

Altogether, the Hudson Canyon SAA has been worth well over a billion dollars directly to the scallop fishery in the past two decades, not to mention the multiplied indirect community economic benefits of these fishery landings. The Hudson Canyon SAA’s ecological and economic benefits explain why FSF has requested that BOEM operate under the well-recognized “precautionary principle” to create a buffer between wind farms in the Hudson South and this critical scallop area.

The Central Bight is in the middle of prime, historic scallop habitat, and represents tens of millions of dollars of scallop catches over the past decade. Leasing of the Central Bight should be delayed, just as BOEM delayed, for view-shed reasons, leasing of the two Fairways lease areas in the northern New York Bight.

Read the full release here

Northeast scallops: Prices high as rotational closures reduce supply, boost production costs

June 4, 2021 — The Atlantic sea scallop fishery — predominantly centered around New Bedford, Mass.; Point Judith, R.I.; Cape May, N.J.; and Norfolk, Va., ports — is the largest and most valuable wild scallop fishery in the world. Projected landings in the federal fishery are expected to be around 40 million pounds in 2021.

“The allocation was developed using survey data from 2020, and then projecting growth, harvest, natural mortality and recruitment,” says Jonathon Peros, fishery analyst and scallop lead at New England Fishery Management Council.

In 2019, commercial landings of Atlantic sea scallops totaled more than 60.6 million pounds (shucked meats) valued at around $570 million. Landings have dropped by 10 million pounds per year the last two years.

“This was expected,” adds Peros. “There were two exceptional year classes in 2012 and 2013 that the fishery has been catching. We are in the twilight of those two cohorts.”

Despite expected declines in landings this fishing year, prices in late April were up, particularly for the largest market grades (U10 and U12). Prices on the New Bedford auction surpassed $30 per pound for U10s and U12s. “Prices on all market grades are up from where they were at this time last year,” adds Peros.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

MAINE: Mussel farm sees potential in scallops

June 1, 2021 — In mid-May, Alex de Koning climbed down into the hold of the Stewardship, the former military landing craft that he and his family have used for years to help grow mussels in Frenchman Bay, and sat at what looked like a giant sewing machine.   

He grabbed a pair of scallops that had just been pulled out of the farm’s nets, lined up the small notches near the bivalves’ hinge and stepped on a foot pedal.  

A drill bit dropped down and pierced through both shells. When the bit pulled up, a black pin followed back up through the holes and attached the scallops to a rope. Then a claw pulled the rope a few inches, setting up a spot for another pair of scallops to be attached.   

This small three-act play took only a couple of seconds but could revolutionize the industry in Maine and cement scallops alongside its more famous farmed counterparts in the state.   

What the machine does is quite simple, but it mechanizes what would otherwise be an incredibly labor-intensive process. It also speeds up the farming to a point where it could become more economically viable for sea farmers as well as other members of the working waterfront who might be looking to diversify their work during turbulent times.  

Read the full story at the Mount Desert Islander