Saving Seafood

Senator Cantwell Pushes for Changes to Fisheries Disaster Process, Highlights Failures to Support Southwest Washington Fishermen

September 25, 2019 — The following was released by The Office of Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA):

At a Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation hearing today on fisheries disasters, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), the Ranking Member of the committee, highlighted the importance of responding to fisheries disasters and pushed for reforms to the process.

“In Washington, fisheries are a cornerstone of our maritime economy. Its related businesses and seafood processors, ship builders, gear manufacturers, support 60% of our maritime economy, which is about 146,000 jobs and $30 billion in economic activity,” Cantwell said. “Washington has experienced 17 fishery disasters since 1992, including crab, groundfish, and salmon. Unfortunately, the fisheries disaster process has become more burdensome, and has resulted in less funding and lengthy delays, putting an unnecessary burden on fishermen and fishing communities.”

In particular, Cantwell discussed the 2016 Coho salmon fishery disaster, which impacted fisheries across the state.

“The Coho disaster impacted Tribes, commercial fisherman, charter and recreational fisherman… but not all groups received adequate funding from NOAA,” Cantwell said. “In a shift from previous policy, the administration determined that the charter fishermen should not be included in the economic determination. Thus, I believe Washington did not receive adequate funding for this disaster.”

Ron Warren, the Director of Fish Policy at the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, testified at the hearing about the impact of that inadequate funding for Washington state’s economy.

“If you add the charters from the coast and charters from Puget Sound, as well as the troll fishery and other fisheries that had been included, you’d be looking at about $100 million to the state of Washington,” Warren said.

The decision to exclude charter fishermen from disaster funding has impacted communities throughout the state, but it has been particularly devastating in fishing-dependent communities in Southwest Washington, like Westport and Ilwaco.

Butch Smith, President of the Ilwaco Charter Association, said: “The charter fishing industry brings in millions of dollars for Washington’s coastal economy. Nobody knows why charter fishing income was dropped from the 2016 disaster declaration, but in Westport, WA, alone, five charter boats have already left Westport and the Washington coast. People have lost houses and businesses as a result of the disaster. I’m glad Senator Cantwell is working on this issue, and I will work with her to make sure our charter fishermen get the support they need when disasters are declared.”

“I am concerned that the charter fisherman have not been treated fairly, and that’s why I plan to work with you, Mr. Chairman, on bipartisan measures that help ensure that small business charter fishermen are mandated into the Disaster Relief Recovery Act so they do receive adequate funding,” Cantwell said to Commerce Committee Chairman Roger Wicker (R-MS) at the hearing.

Throughout her time in the Senate, Cantwell has prioritized working on issues that impact the fishing industry. In 2015, she introduced bipartisan legislation to create a national ocean acidification monitoring strategy to prioritize investments in ocean acidification sensors to areas that need it most. In 2018, she worked with colleagues in the House and Senate to secure $200 million in federal funding to help communities with declared fisheries disasters. She has also fought to protect Alaska’s Bristol Bay watershed from harmful mining and opposed drilling off the coasts of Washington and Oregon.

Video of Senator Cantwell’s opening statement at the hearing is available HERE, audio is HERE, and a transcript is HERE.

Video of Senator Cantwell’s Q&A with witnesses is available HERE, audio is HERE, and a transcript is HERE.

Maine Aquaculture Association’s Sebastian Belle forecasts bright future for industry in state

September 20, 2019 — In 2017, the governor of Washington State ordered all agencies to ban salmon farming in state waters after a net-pen failure at a Cooke Aquaculture-owned Atlantic salmon farm caused a fish escape into the surrounding Pacific.

That event in the Northwest became an obvious opportunity for the Northeastern U.S. state of Maine, which was once home to an Atlantic salmon fishery. While the wild fishery has been nonexistent for years due to wild populations of Atlantic salmon being deemed endangered in the state, aquaculture operations continue to see results.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Pacific Bluefin Tuna: Catch Could Increase in 2020

September 9, 2019 — The Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) Northern Committee met in Portland, Oregon, last week to discuss two proposals to increase catch limits on Pacific bluefin. Despite continued overfishing of the depleted species, the Committee recommended changes to the Pacific bluefin management measure that will lead to an increase in catch for 2020. However, The Northern Committee will need to reconvene at the WCPFC annual meeting in December to officially adopt the outcomes of this meeting, as the meeting failed to reach the required quorum due to the absence of four members.

The Northern Committee recommended that next year, Chinese Taipei be allowed to transfer 300mt of their adult catch limit to Japan. All countries will also be able to roll over up to 17 percent of their 2019 quota to be used to increase their catch of both adult and juvenile fish in 2020. This means that Japan will be able to catch hundreds of tons of additional fish in 2020 from a stock that is at just 3.3 percent of its unfished size and is just two years into a 17-year rebuilding plan.

Read the full story at The Maritime Executive

New plan targets salmon-eating sea lions in Columbia River

September 3, 2019 — More than 1,100 sea lions could be killed annually along a stretch of the Columbia River on the Oregon-Washington border to boost faltering populations of salmon and steelhead, federal officials said Friday.

The National Marine Fisheries Service said it’s taking public comments through Oct. 29 on the plan requested by Idaho, Oregon, Washington, and Native American tribes.

The agency says billions of dollars on habitat restoration, fish passage at dams and other efforts have been spent in the three states in the last several decades to save 13 species of Columbia Basin salmon and steelhead protected under the Endangered Species Act.

Read the full story at The Seattle Times

NOAA Report: Approximately 85% Of West Coast Estuary Habitat Lost

August 19, 2019 — SEAFOOD NEWS — A report published in PLOS ONE reveals that “more than a century of development” has erased approximately 85% of historical tidal wetlands in California, Oregon and Washington. However, there is good news. Scientists with NOAA Fisheries’ Northwest Fisheries Science Center have found potential restoration opportunities.

Estuaries are important as they serve as “critical nurseries” for juvenile salmon and steelhead while they transition from freshwater to the ocean.

“Given how valuable estuaries are to so many different species, it’s important to understand how much they have changed and what that means for fish and wildlife that depend on them,” explained Correigh Greene, a research biologist at the Northwest Fisheries Science Center, and co-author of the new study.

According to the researchers, estuaries were lost over the years because they were diked and drained for agriculture. Forested wetlands were also not widely recognized as estuary acreage. But there is a chance to restore these estuary habitats.

“By folding in these areas that may not have been recognized as part of estuaries, we have a better idea of just how important and extensive these estuaries were,” added lead author Laura Brophy, who also serves as director of the Estuary Technical Group at the Institute for Applied Ecology. “Now we can see new restoration opportunities that people didn’t realize existed.”

More restoration can come from low-elevation areas that are at great risk of flooding due to rising sea levels and climate change. NOAA researchers say that tidal restoration in these areas can “re-establish natural processes like sediment delivery.”

Find the full story on estuary habitat loss on the west coast here.

This story was originally published on SeafoodNews.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.

With 14.4 Million lbs. Caught, Halibut Fleet Reaches Half-Way Mark on Landings, Season

August 5, 2019 — SEAFOOD NEWS — The International Pacific Halibut Commission (IPHC) announced catches of 14.4 million pounds as of August 1, out of a total quota of 29.43 mlbs. That catch limit is distributed across the North American west coast from California to the Bering Sea.

In three areas — IPHC Regulatory Area 2A, 2B, and 2C, the annual limit is subject to various catch sharing plans between commercial, tribal, and sports sectors.

Area 2A’s commercial catch reached 494,583 lbs on July 1 and, with an allowable limit of 497,000 lbs., was closed for the rest of 2019. Fishermen in Washington, Oregon and California caught more than its overall quota during three 10-hour openers, one each on June 26, July 10 and July 24.

The 2A allocation for the commercial fishery south of Pt. Chehalis was 115.41 tons, or 254,426 pounds; fishermen caught 119.75 tons, or 264,000 pounds of halibut. Preliminary reports show the average ex-vessel price to Oregon fishermen this year was $4.57 a pound. The average ex-vessel price in July last year across all three states was $5.10 per pound, but that figure may include halibut caught in other fisheries as well.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council and IPHC are in the process of transferring management responsibility from IPHC to U.S. management – Council, NMFS and the states. Initial discussions about 2020 halibut management will be discussed at the September and November Council meetings in Boise, Idaho, and Costa Mesa, Calif., respectively.

While commercial fishing in Area 2A is closed, recreational fishing in all three states is still open. IPHC reported no landings for the sports sector in Area 2A  (WA, OR, CA) as of August 1, 2019.

Area 4CDE has no catch sharing plan, but they are directly impacted by the incidental catch of halibut caught in bottom trawls that target flatfish. That catch, which has decreased over the years due to declining populations and efforts by the flatfish fleet to avoid halibut, is taken off the top in quota calculations at the beginning of the year.

Bycatch is included in the “total removals” metric, which is used for historical comparisons and includes subsistence, recreational, and research takes as well as bycatch.

In a recent broadcast, Laine Welch of Fish Radio reported that halibut fisherman turned broadcaster Jeff Lockwood is now tracking bycatch numbers into weekly reports on KBBI in Homer, the nation’s top halibut port.

“I thought this is kind of interesting. After years of being a halibut fisherman, everybody talks about and knows about halibut bycatch but none of us really knew what was going on,” Lockwood told Fish Radio.

The NOAA spreadsheets through July 13 noted that total halibut bycatch in other Alaska fisheries this year was about 4.8 million pounds of which 92 percent came from Bering Sea bottom trawlers.

So far the bycatch pace is ahead of last year. According to the weekly landings report for flatfish trawlers, 2019 trawl halibut mortality is 1,608 mt  or 3.54 mlbs. compared to 1,385 mt or 3.05 mlbs for the same time period in 2018. In 2019, the catcher-processors account for 1,089 mt or 2.4 mlbs and catcher vessels for 519 mt or 1.14 mlbs, about the same ratio as 2018.

Overall, commercial fisheries took 61 percent of the halibut catch in 2018, recreational users took 19 percent, subsistence users took three percent, and bycatch by fisheries targeting other species accounted for 16 percent of the total catch limit.

The record low point on total removals was in 1977 with 34 mlbs. This year total removals are 38.61 mlbs, slightly lower than last year’s 38.78 mlbs and significantly lower than 2017’s 42.58 mlbs.   The 100-year average for this fishery is 63 mlbs.

While all areas are around the halfway mark in catches of annual allocation, two fleets — those fishing off the coast of British Columbia and those fishing the Western Aleutians, are outpacing other areas by a slight margin. Each of those areas have landed 55% of their 2019 quota.

The season is two weeks past the half way mark. Halibut and sablefish season opened in most areas March 15 and will close in all areas, if not closed earlier, on November 14, 2019.

Individual areas, their quotas and actual catches are below.

Area 2A: landings to date .75 mlbs out of 1.5 mlbs 2019 quota

Area 2B: landings to date 3.27 mlbs out of 5.95 mlbs quota

Area 2C: landings to date 2.38 mlbs out of 4.49 mlbs quota

Area 3A: landings to date 5.03 mlbs out of 10.26 mlbs quota

Area 3B: landings to date 1.14 mlbs out of 2.33 mlbs quota

Area 4A: landings to date .5 mlbs out of 1.65 mlbs quota

Area 4B: landings to date .66 mlbs out 1.21 mlbs quota

Area 4CDE: landings to date .62 out of 2.04 mbls quota

This story was originally published on SeafoodNews.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.

PFMC: Scientific and Statistical Committee Groundfish Subcommittee to Meet in Seattle, WA August 20-21, 2019

July 25, 2019 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Groundfish Subcommittee of the Pacific Fishery Management Council’s (Pacific Council’s) Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) will hold a public meeting to review new benchmark and update assessments and catch-only update assessment projections to inform new 2021 and 2022 groundfish harvest specifications.  This meeting will be held August 20-21, 2019 in Seattle, Washington.  This meeting will also occur via webinar.

Please see the SSC’s Groundfish Subcommittee August 20-21, 2019 meeting notice with webinar option on the Pacific Council’s website for participation details.

For further information:

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

Oregon wants to untangle whales from crab fishery

July 23, 2019 — Oregon fishery managers are changing how the state’s lucrative Dungeness crab fishery will be managed to avoid tangling whales in commercial fishing gear.

Though the changes happening this season are relatively minor for commercial fishermen, difficult discussions are on the horizon.

The number of whales entangled so far this year off Oregon, Washington state and California appears to be down compared to prior years, according to preliminary reports. But Oregon wants to avoid a lawsuit like the one brought against California by the Center for Biological Diversity. That lawsuit, over impacts to whales from commercial fishing activities, settled in March.

For now, fishery managers will eliminate a two-week postseason cleanup period in the commercial Dungeness fishery — a grace period for fishermen to clear gear out of the water. Instead, all commercial gear must be out of the water by the last day of the season on Aug. 14.

The measure, along with others, including the introduction of new buoy tags to help better identify gear, were among a list of recommendations proposed by the Oregon Whale Entanglement Working Group. The stakeholder group, which includes fishermen and industry representatives as well as researchers and fishery managers, began meeting in 2017 following several years of record-high incidents of whale entanglement.

Read the full story at The Astorian

New Area 2A Halibut Season-Setting Process Begins in September

July 19, 2019 — SEAFOOD NEWS — The Pacific Fishery Management Council, in an effort to reach out to non-Indian commercial fishermen, is requesting public comment on structuring the Area 2A (West Coast) commercial halibut fishery for the upcoming year at the September and November Council meetings.

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife also plans to hold public meetings to discuss the issue.

The process is part of the transition from International Pacific Halibut Commission management to the Council.

In June, the Council committed to working closely with the IPHC and stakeholders on the transition, according to a Council press release. The Council will focus on a smooth transfer of management authority for the commercial directed fishery, and will rely on the IPHC to continue to issue licenses for this fishery in the near-term. The Council intends to maintain the current management structure, but may consider changes to vessel poundage limits and open periods.

At its September and November 2019 meetings, when the Council typically considers changes to its halibut Catch Sharing Plan, it will also make management recommendations for the 2020 directed commercial halibut fishery trip limits and fishing periods. These meetings will provide an opportunity for public, agency, and advisory body comment. The Groundfish Advisory Subpanel meetings held in conjunction with the September and November Council meetings will also provide an opportunity for public comment on this issue. As always, public comment will be accepted through the Council’s e-portal (pfmc.pcouncil.org) before the meetings, the statement said.

The September meeting will be held September 11-18 at the Riverside Hotel in Boise, Idaho. The November meeting will be held November 13-20 at the Hilton Orange County/Costa Mesa in Costa Mesa, California.

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife will hold public meetings August 5-8 to discuss fishing periods and trip limits for the 2020 directed commercial halibut fishery. Meeting dates and locations will be posted online at http://tinyurl.com/y58ccqn3; information is also available at (541) 867-4741.

Currently, the Departments of Fish and Wildlife for Washington and California do not have public meetings scheduled to discuss the non-Indian commercial directed halibut fishery season structure for 2020.

This story was originally published on SeafoodNews.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.