Saving Seafood

New Online Course for Spotting and Reporting Entangled Whales in Alaska Waters

October 3, 2019 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

The foundation of responding to entangled whales is the on-water community. NOAA’s Alaska Marine Mammal Stranding Network depends on recreational and commercial boaters and other ocean users for spotting and reporting entangled whales off Alaska’s coast. That’s one reason NOAA Fisheries has teamed up with The Nature Conservancy (TNC) to develop a new online training course to help them report entanglements.

Most often, fishermen, tour boat operators, and whale researchers are the ones to first report entanglements. The course will prepare them, and others, to report entanglements in Alaska.

Responding to whale entanglements can be dangerous. Only highly trained and experienced teams with the proper equipment should attempt to disentangle whales.

Boaters who come across entangled whales can still help in the response without getting too close. They can collect information and monitor the whale until trained teams arrive. By knowing what information to collect, and taking and sharing photos with the disentanglement team, boaters can help marine mammal responders. These teams have advanced training to understand the extent of the entanglement before mounting a response. This enables them to respond with the right gear.

“Fishermen and other boaters are our eyes on the water,” said Jon Kurland, head of the NOAA Fisheries Alaska Region Protected Resources Division. “Countless times the information they have provided about a whale entanglement has been the key factor in our response network’s ability to locate the animal, assess its condition, and attempt to disentangle it if the conditions are right.”

Read the full release here

Webinar Recording Now Available: Estimating Fish and Invertebrate Production Associated with Key Coastal Habitats

August 20, 2019 — The following was released by Lenfest Ocean Program:

Many thanks to those who were able to join the August 6 webinar introducing a new study to quantify fish and invertebrate production associated with coastal habitats!

A recording of the one-hour webinar is now available online and can be accessed here. If you would like include the recording in your agency’s/organization’s monthly newsletter or similar outlet, suggested language is included below:

Webinar Highlights Research to Quantify Fish Production from Coastal Habitats

Just how important are oyster reefs, seagrass beds, and salt marshes for producing economically and ecologically important fish and invertebrate species along the U.S. Atlantic and Gulf Coasts? Watch this webinar to learn about an exciting new project led by Bryan DeAngelis of The Nature Conservancy that seeks to quantify such production and identify certain characteristics that make these habitats especially valuable. This research is being funded by the Lenfest Ocean Program.

Blue Planet: The Nature Conservancy unveils $1.6 billion bid to save the oceans

April 17, 2019 — Global non-profit The Nature Conservancy has announced a $1.6 billion plan to help save and restore the world’s oceans by selling “blue bonds” to coastal and island countries.

The Blue Bonds for Conservation initiative will refinance and restructure debt for coastal and island countries, so long as those nations committed to protecting at least 30 percent of their near-shore ocean areas, including coral reefs, mangroves, and other important ocean habitats.

In exchange for enhanced ocean protections, TNC says the Blue Bond will give nations better terms for debt repayment and support with ongoing conservation work.

Read the full story at GreenBiz

MSC grows its multi-stakeholder board with five new members

April 2, 2019 — Five new members have been appointed to the Marine Stewardship Council’s (MSC) Board of Trustees, the certification organization announced on 2 April.

The new board members hail from the retail, fishing, and conservation sectors, and include: David Lock, the chairman of Western Australian fishing company Mareterram Ltd.; Giles Bolton, the responsible sourcing director for Tesco plc; Maria Damanaki, the global managing director for oceans from The Nature Conservancy and the former European Union Commissioner for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries; Stefanie Moreland, the vice president of government relations, seafood sustainability, and corporate social sustainability from Trident Seafoods Corporation; and Amanda Nickson, the international fisheries director for The Pew Charitable Trusts.

Lock joined the MSC Board of Trustees back in November 2018, while Bolton and Moreland entered the fold in January 2019. Both Damanaki and Nickson are expected to take their seats in July.

The MSC’s Board consists of 15 members spanning industry, academia, conservation, retail, and other fields “carefully selected to ensure decision-making remains balanced and reflects different sectors and interests,” said the MSC.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Gulf of Mexico Oysters are in Trouble, but There’s Hope and a Plan

November 28, 2018 — Oysters in the Gulf of Mexico have seen better days.

Aside from the Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill in 2010 — which killed between 4 and 8.3 billion adult oysters, according to NOAA — changes in freshwater flow along the Gulf and sedimentation caused by more frequent storms have taken their toll on the Gulf’s oyster population.

But all hope is not lost. In fact, there’s even a plan, according to a report by environmental organization The Nature Conservancy (TNC).

Compared to historic levels, an estimated 85 percent of the Gulf’s oyster population has been lost, and the impact ranges further than the $100-million-per-year market they provide.

Oyster beds in the Gulf are vital in improving water quality, providing protection from shoreline erosion and serving as a habitat for fish and wildlife.

The impact of waves, boat wakes and storm surge on the Gulf’s shoreline is reduced by oyster reefs. Reefs are also unique in that they can continue to grow to keep up with or even outpace sea level rise, according to an entry in the journal Nature, something hard sea walls can’t do.

Additionally, a single oyster can filter 50 gallons of water in one day. In places like Galveston Bay, a 130-acre reef containing 10 oysters per square meter would be capable of filtering about 260 million gallons of water each day. In comparison, Houston’s 39 wastewater treatment plants combined to filter 252 million gallons per day in 2009, according to Texas Parks and Wildlife.

Read the full story at The Weather Channel

Gulf Coast Looks to Maintain, Restore Oysters

November 26, 2018 — The oyster dressing is safe this year.

Since the Deepwater Horizon spill in 2010, 4 billion to 8.3 billion subtidal oysters were estimated to be lost across the Gulf coast. Many states are struggling.

Louisiana is the only state producing at a level at or higher than before the spill, according to Seth Blitch, The Nature Conservancy’s Director of Coastal and Marine Conservation in Louisiana.

“Oysters Gulfwide are kind of in a bad spot, but Louisiana is actually sort of the bright spot in terms of commercial production of oysters. Louisiana produces more oysters than any other state in the country, which is good,” Blitch said.

TNC recently released a report on oyster restoration in the Gulf.

According to the report, there’s been about a 50 percent to 85 percent oyster loss throughout the Gulf when compared to historic levels.

The oyster industry pulls about $220 million to Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida. The decrease could affect not only oyster harvesters but restaurants and industries that use the shell, such as using it to supplement chicken feed.

Read the full story from The News-Star of Monroe at U.S. News and World Report

Restoration projects seek to fight “tragic” decline in Gulf of Mexico oyster population

November 19, 2018 — Last week, the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources officially moved to cancel the state’s wild oyster season, which would have run from November through April.

Exploratory dives at oyster harvesting grounds had revealed a continued steep decline in the number of oysters in the state’s waters. Last year’s season was curtailed after fishermen harvested just 136 110-pound sacks of oysters, down from 7,000 sacks in 2013, according to the Associated Press.

Scott Bannon, director of the Marine Resources Division of the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, said the findings revealed the apparent collapse of the region’s oyster ecology.

“It’s tragic, to be honest,” Bannon told AL.com.

Numerous factors have dealt blows not just to Alabama’s oyster grounds, but those of the entire Gulf of Mexico. The Deepwater Horizon oil spill, hurricanes, disease, and changes in freshwater flows to Gulf rivers and streams have collectively damaged the fishery to the point where up to 85 percent of the gulf’s original oyster reefs no longer remain intact.

According to a new report by The Nature Conservancy, “Oyster Restoration in the Gulf of Mexico,” this dramatic decline has damaged the stability and productivity of the Gulf’s estuaries and harmed coastal economies.

Seth Blitch, the director of coastal and marine conservation in Louisiana for The Nature Conservancy, told SeafoodSource the oyster habitat and the oyster fishery “is not in a particularly good place right now,” which could spell bigger problems for the region.

“Oysters, to me, are a great proxy to a lot of things,” he said. “If oysters are doing well, that’s a good indication of good water quality and of the health entire near-shore estuarine system. When oysters start to fail, that’s good indication there are larger issues at play.”

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Reef restoration projects aim to bolster Texas’ record-low oyster population

November 16, 2018 — With oyster populations in Texas at historic lows, The Nature Conservancy is launching two new reef restoration projects that look to appease commercial fishermen and environmentalists alike.

Using funds from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill settlement, the group plans to develop 110 acres of reef in Galveston Bay and Copano Bay, near Rockport. Half of each reef will be designated as a marine sanctuary where the molluscs — which have significant economic and environmental benefits — may grow. The other half will be open for commercial fishing.

Construction of the new reefs is expected to begin this winter, with harvestable portions ready as soon as 2021.

Laura Huffman, regional director of The Nature Conservancy in Texas, said these projects show a new approach to oyster reef restoration, with the compatibility of building harvestable reefs at the same time as growing a healthy habitat.

Read the full story at KPRC 2 Houston

Report highlights how tuna fisheries can reduce bycatch

April 4, 2018 — Four environmental organizations have joined forces in an effort to reduce the amount of bycatch produced by longline tuna fishing operations.

In working with Greenpeace, Birdlife International, and The Nature Conservancy, Sustainable Fisheries Partnership released in late March detailing the impact longline practices have on other species. They hope to influence processors and retailers who wish to market sustainable tuna and want to improve the environmental performance of the fisheries who supply them.

In some cases, the species most impacted by longline tuna operations are endangered or vulnerable, such as sharks and sea turtles. Other species that can find themselves entangled in the lines include baleen whales and seals.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

 

Maine’s river herring making dramatic comeback, a godsend for the food chain

July 17, 2017 — Motorists crossing the bridge over the Kennebec this spring and early summer were afforded dramatic views of one of Maine’s mightiest rivers, a chain of islands and warships under construction at Bath Iron Works.

But one of the most awesome sights was hidden from view: millions of fish swimming under the bridge in a pilgrimage from the Atlantic Ocean to their spawning grounds in lakes, rivers and ponds scattered over hundreds of square miles of southern, central and western Maine.

River herring – in the midst of a dramatic comeback in Maine’s rivers with the recent removal of dams that blocked their spawning runs for decades – had a banner spring run this year, with millions of fish traveling up the Kennebec and Penobscot and the best run in decades recorded on the St. Croix. This was despite heavy rains this spring that created extra challenges for the fish.

The recovery of the small schooling fish is having dramatic secondary effects, as they represent a perfect food source for everything from bald eagles to Atlantic cod, and researchers anticipate future benefits as the herring’s numbers grow in the coming decade.

“You just don’t expect ecosystems to bounce back so quickly,” says Joshua Royte, a conservation scientist at The Nature Conservancy in Maine, which played a key role in a collaborative project to remove the Penobscot dams. “These rivers are coming back gangbusters and there will be children growing up now who will never know there was a time when you couldn’t run out to see fish running in these rivers.”

Read the full story at the Portland Press Herald