Saving Seafood

Scientists: New lobster fishing technology could save whales

February 20, 2018 — FALMOUTH, Mass. — Scientists at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution are urging New England lobstermen to begin using new technology to help prevent the deaths of rare right whales.

The Boston Globe reports scientists from the institution recently met with fishermen to push for the use of traps that can be brought to the surface using radio signals that can inflate bags or send lines to the surface, rather than relying on ropes connected to buoys.

Scientists say that over the past year, at least 18 right whales have died, many after becoming entangled in the ropes. They say there are just 450 of the whales left in the world and just 100 breeding females.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at WTOP

 

Head of Maine’s largest commercial fishing advocacy group to retire after 27 years

February 20, 2018 — David Cousens, the president of Maine Lobstermen’s Association since 1991, has decided to step down from the advocacy group.

“I’ve been doing it for so long, it’s time for the younger generation to step up,” the South Thomaston lobsterman said Thursday. “I’m retiring from the political [stuff].”

Cousens says he officially will step down at the MLA annual meeting, which will be held Friday, March 2 as part of the annual Maine Fishermen’s Forum in Rockport.

Cousens, 60, said he wants more time to focus on lobster fishing, spare time to spend with his first grandchild who is expected to be born soon, and less time on the road driving to fishery management gatherings throughout the Northeast.

“I burned out I don’t know how many trucks,” said Cousens, adding he drives between 25,000 and 30,000 miles each year just going to meetings.

He also said someone else should take the lead in addressing what has turned into the dominant factor that likely will shape Maine’s $500 million lobster fishery for years to come: whale conservation.

As Maine’s lobster fishery has changed in recent decades, with many fishermen going further offshore and using more durable rope and multi-trap trawls, it also has faced increased scrutiny from regulators and conservationists who say whales are increasingly at risk of entanglements. In 2009 and again in 2014, lobstermen were required to change how they fish in order to reduce the threat of entanglement to whales, which are protected by federal law.

Read the full story at the Bangor Daily News

 

To protect right whales, scientists propose major changes for lobstermen

February 20, 2018 — WOODS HOLE, Mass. — Without prompt action to reduce entanglements in fishing lines, North Atlantic right whales could disappear from the planet over the next two decades, scientists say.

In response, scientists here on Cape Cod are proposing a novel way to save the species — one that many New England lobstermen fear could destroy their livelihoods.

At a recent meeting with a host of skeptical lobstermen, scientists at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution presented the concept of ropeless fishing, a nascent technology that eliminates the need for the long, taut ropes that extend from millions of traps at the bottom of the ocean to their buoys at the surface. These ropes have killed many of the docile mammals.

“I want to see a profitable, sustainable lobster industry that’s not abusive to the animals,” said Michael Moore, director of the Marine Mammal Center at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. “But what’s happening now isn’t working. We’re painfully and inexorably squeezing the life out of these animals.”

Over the past year, at least 18 right whales have died — a grave blow to a species with only about 450 left in the world and just 100 breeding females. Scientists fear they’re not reproducing fast enough and could face extinction as soon as 2040.

The problem, Moore and his colleagues say, is that most fatalities appear to be the result of right whales becoming entangled in fishing lines. In a federal survey of right whale deaths between 2010 and 2014, scientists found that 82 percent died as a result of entanglements. The rest died from ship strikes.

Read the full story at the Boston Globe

 

To get good credit, Alaska’s fishing towns may have to factor in climate change

February 15, 2018 — Late last year one of the world’s largest credit rating agencies announced that climate change would have an economic impact on the U.S.

Moody’s suggested that climate risks could become credit risks for some U.S. states.

Even though Alaska is warming nearly twice as fast as the rest of the U.S., its credit rating doesn’t seem to be in danger. But take a closer look at some of the state’s coastal communities and the story changes, especially when Alaska’s fishing towns consider adding climate risks to their balance sheets.

Frank Kelty is the mayor of the Unalaska, a tiny town is on an island sandwiched between the Bering Sea and the Gulf of Alaska, near some of the richest fishing grounds in the world.

Kelty has been there for 45 years, and lately, he’s seen a lot of changes.

“We’ve had a huge increase in humpback whales coming right into the inner harbor by the road system. Just hundreds of them hanging around,” he said.

People have been pulling off of the road to watch what he calls the “whale show.”

Read the full story at KTOO

 

Local group seeks lawsuit to aid right whales

February 9, 2018 — After a year of major losses for North Atlantic right whales, a local environmental advocacy group filed a federal lawsuit against the National Marine Fisheries Service Thursday, arguing that the agency should do more to protect the critically endangered mammals.

Over the past year, 18 right whales have died — a grave blow to a species with only about 450 left in the world. Scientists fear they’re not reproducing fast enough and could face extinction as soon as 2040.

In response, federal regulators declared an “unusual mortality event,” triggering an investigation into the deaths and bringing more resources to protect the whales.

But lawyers at the Conservation Law Foundation in Boston, which filed the suit, argued that the agency should be doing more.

“Regulators are not just morally mandated to act . . . they are also legally required to ensure fishing efforts do not cause harm to these animals,” said Emily Green, an attorney at the foundation.

Green noted that the vast majority of right whale deaths have been attributed to entanglements in fishing gear, especially the lines that connect surface buoys to lobster traps.

“Tragically, chronic entanglement is a source of extreme stress, pain, and suffering for right whales, and can interfere with eating, moving, and reproducing,” Green said. “And we know that entanglement can cause long-term adverse health impacts, even for whales that manage to escape the ropes.”

Officials at the National Marine Fisheries Service declined to comment.

Read the full story at the Boston Globe

 

NOAA Announces New Marine Mammal Stranding Response Organization in Nantucket

February 9, 2018 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:   

Today, NOAA Fisheries announces that Marine Mammal Rescue Nantucket is now an authorized marine mammal stranding response organization for Nantucket, Tuckernuck, and Muskeget Islands.

After four years of no stranding coverage on Nantucket and the outer islands, Marine Mammal Rescue Nantucket (known as MMRACK, after ACK – the call letters for Nantucket Airport) fills an important gap in the GARFO network. Led by Marine Mammal Alliance Nantucket CEO Scott Leonard, who spent more than a decade working as a stranding volunteer with New England Aquarium, MMRACK will respond to both live and dead whales, dolphins, and seals. In addition to assessing and providing transportation for animals in need of treatment, Leonard’s team, which consists of seasoned volunteers who have worked or trained with the New England Aquarium, will also perform necropsies (animal autopsies) on dead animals.

“Nantucket is a unique place with a rich marine mammal history,” says Leonard. “MMRACK’s mission is to provide public education and outreach with the focus on raising awareness of human and marine mammal interaction, while providing humane care to our marine species. We are looking forward to being part of the network, and plan on working closely with International Fund for Animal Welfare, Marine Mammals of Maine, U.S. Coast Guard, Massachusetts Environmental Police, and other regional partner organizations.”

NOAA Fisheries looks forward to working with MMRACK to increase stranding response capabilities on Nantucket, and to help with monitoring marine mammal populations and health.

“Nantucket is an important area for marine mammal populations, particularly gray seals that breed and pup there,” says Mendy Garron, NOAA Fisheries Greater Atlantic Region Marine Mammal Stranding Response Coordinator. “Having a stranding response organization on the island will help us track the health and welfare of these populations and help reduce conflicts through education and outreach.”

Please report stranded marine mammals on Nantucket, Tuckernuck, and Muskeget to the Marine Mammal Rescue Nantucket Hotline: 833-667-6626.

Learn more about about NOAA Fisheries Greater Atlantic Region by visiting their site here.

 

Attorneys general urge offshore drilling plan’s cancellation

February 2, 2018 — The top lawyers for a dozen coastal states want the U.S. Interior Department to cancel the Trump administration’s plan to expand offshore drilling, warning it threatens their maritime economies and natural resources.

Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey and her fellow attorneys general, all Democrats, wrote Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke on Thursday about his agency’s proposed five-year oil and gas leasing plan that opens new ocean waters.

“Not only does this irresponsible and careless plan put our state’s jobs and environment at risk, but it shows utter disregard for the will and voices of thousands of local businesses and fishing families,” said Healey in a prepared statement. “My colleagues and I will continue to fight this plan.”

Healey first announced her opposition to the plan in an August 2017 letter to Department’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. The Northeast Seafood Coalition and the Massachusetts Lobstermen’s Association agreed with her that the Interior Department’s plan to expand offshore drilling threatens Massachusetts’ $7.3 billion commercial fishing industry — the third largest in the country — and more than 240,000 jobs in the state.

The plan also could devastate the state’s robust recreation and tourism industries, according to Healey, as well harm the state’s coastal environment and protected endangered species, including the Northern Right Whale, which feeds in the waters off of Cape Cod and Nantucket, according to the comment letter. There are only about 460 critically endangered Northern Right Whales remaining worldwide.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Times

 

NOAA Fisheries opens investigation into minke whale deaths

February 1, 2018 — NOAA Fisheries has opened an investigation into the recent deaths of minke whales along the U.S. East Coast, the agency announced on Wednesday, 31 January.

Since January 2017, when a dead minke whale was found near New York’s LaGuardia Airport, the agency has documented a total of 29 stranded minke whales from the coasts of Maine to the Carolinas. Of those 29, 19 were dead. That has prompted NOAA Fisheries to initiate a so-called “Unusual Mortality Event” investigation into the strandings.

Opening a UME investigation will enable NOAA officials to allocate additional resources and respond more quickly to any new strandings that take place. Officials will create a team of scientists to develop a plan of action and collect data from documented and future strandings.

While the whales have only been found between Maine and South Carolina, officials are extending the investigation area to include as far south as Florida to take into consideration the whale’s migration patterns.

While not all the investigations into the deaths have been concluded, officials said preliminary information shows 11 of the dead whales had confirmed or suspected human or fishery interaction, such as blunt force trauma or a net entanglement. Investigators also believe eight of the whales carried an infectious disease.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

 

NOAA: New Voluntary Right Whale Speed Restriction Zone

January 31, 2018 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA Fisheries announces that a voluntary vessel speed restriction zone (Dynamic Management Area – DMA) has been established 54 nautical miles east-southeast of Virginia beach, Virginia (see map below) to protect an aggregation of 3 right whales sighted in this area on January 26, 2018.

Mariners: Please route around this area or transit through it at 10 knots or less.

East-Southeast of Virginia Beach, Virginia DMA through February 10, 2018
36 53 N
36 14 N
075 18W
074 29 W

This DMA in addition to the previously annouced DMAs announced on January 25 off Virginia and January 23 south of Nantucket.

Please report all right whale sightings to 866-755-NOAA (6622).

Right Whales in Crisis

The year 2017 was devastating for North Atlantic right whales, which suffered a loss of 17 whales–about 4 percent of their population–an alarming number for such a critically endangered species with a population currently estimated at about 450 animals.

In August 2017, NOAA Fisheries declared the increase in right whale mortalities an “Unusual Mortality Event,” which helps the agency direct additional scientific and financial resources to investigating, understanding, and reducing the mortalities in partnership with the Marine Mammal Stranding Network, Canada’s Department of Fisheries and Oceans, and outside experts from the scientific research community.

On January 22, the first right whale mortality of 2018 was spotted off the Virginia coast.

More Info

Recent right whale sightings

Download the Whale Alert app for iPad and iPhone

Acoustic detections in Cape Cod Bay and the Boston TSS

Send a blank message to receive a return email listing all current U.S. DMAs and SMAs.

Details and graphics of all ship strike management zones currently in effect.

Reminder: Approaching a right whale closer than 500 yards in a violation of federal and state law.

Learn more about NOAA Fisheries Greater Atlantic Region by visiting their site here.

 

Right whale death off Virginia coast adds to concern about species’ demise

January 30, 2018 — The death of a right whale, spotted floating off the Virginia Beach coast last week, has drawn wide attention to a species considered one of the most imperiled of marine mammals.

The 10-year-old juvenile female is believed to have become entangled in fishing gear, and its death was the first of 2018 among North Atlantic right whales. The 39-foot whale was buried at Sandbridge’s Little Island Park beach after a necropsy Sunday involving experts from six institutions from Massachusetts to Florida.

Only about 450 of the whales are believed to exist after at least 17 deaths last year, and so far this winter no newborns have been spotted in the calving grounds off Florida and Georgia.

That has added to concern that the species’ demise might be accelerating. Some scientists have predicted that North Atlantic right whales could become extinct this century.

Earlier this month, the Center for Biological Diversity and two animal welfare groups sued the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and its parent agency, claiming that they’re not enforcing laws and regulations meant to protect the whales from entanglement in lines for lobster traps and other fishing gear.

Jennifer Goebel, a spokeswoman for NOAA Fisheries, said the whale found dead near the North Carolina border was wrapped in line in a way that suggested it had been alive when it encountered the gear. She said officials will try to identify the line and who had deployed it.

Read the full story at the Virginian-Pilot