Alerts

NEFMC Chairman John Pappalardo has announced that "a review and possible reconsideration of the Framework 21 decision will be held on Wednesday, January 27 at 8:30 a.m."

Lois J Schiffer, who served as Assistant Attorney General of the Environment and Natural Resources Division in the Clinton Administration, has been named to the post of chief counsel for NOAA. According to her DoJ biography, "her goals as AAG included better developing the Division's environmental crimes program and improving relationships with U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the states.  A review and restructuring of the Department's environmental crimes program occupied much of Schiffer's first years as AAG."

In the private sector, she has worked for the Audubon Society, as a partner at Baach Robinson & Lewis, and as general counsel for the National Capital Planning Commission.  She is an adjunct professor of environmental law at the Georgetown University Law Center.

Schiffer, born on February 22, 1945,  graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School in the District of Columbia, and graduated from Radcliffe College in 1966 and Harvard Law School in 1969.

Her complete bio and career summary is available on the Department of Justice website.

Gov. Patrick joined by Lt. Gov. Murray and Secy. Bowles met with fishing industry leaders in a meeting organized by Mayor Scott Lang During a visit to New Bedford on Friday, Jan 8, 2010, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick spoke with fishing industry representatives in a meeting organized by New Bedford Mayor Scott Lang's Oceans and Fisheries Council.  Mayor Lang termed the discussion "very productive" and noted that also participating were Lieutenant Governor Timothy Murray and Massachusetts Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs Ian Bowles.

“Governor Patrick and Lieutenant Governor Murray had a very positive meeting with fishermen in New Bedford today about the ongoing crisis facing the industry,” said Secretary Bowles. “Working together over the past three years, we have obtained unprecedented financial relief for the groundfishing fleet and shell fishermen impacted by red tide. Today, we all agreed to keep working together to fight for the fishing industry in Massachusetts as well as protect the natural resource the industry and our fishing communities depend on, based on sound science and fairer federal regulation.”

"The Governor was clear that he wanted an open channel of communication between himself and the citizens of the Commonwealth who are concerned about fisheries," said Bob Vanasse, executive director of the Project to Save Seafood and Ocean Resources. "Secretary Bowles made suggestions as to how we could make that happen, and we have already begun to act on them."

Richie Canastra, of the Whaling City Seafood Display Auction, said "the industry needs to do its part to bring issues to the table and keep the Governor informed.  The Governor told us that if we do our job, he will do his."  Canastra continued "Our draggers are about to move to sector management with all of its uncertainty.  They have made sacrifices over the last 15 years, with the promise that when the stocks return, they will profit.  When they see their brother fishermen in scallops — a species that has recovered and has excellent biomass — still being cut back, they are understandably discouraged, and wonder if the promises made by federal regulators are true."

"We appreciate the support that the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is providing to the industry at this time of difficulty," said Drew Minkiewicz, of the Fisheries Survival Fund  "and we remain hopeful that reconsideration of the scallop limits will be added to the agenda of the upcoming Council meeting."

"The Governor's participation and engagement is important to keep the pressure on federal regulators to ensure that our fishing families are represented and their economic concerns are weighed appropriately," said Kristen Decas, Executive Director of the New Bedford Harbor Development Commission.  "The governor is stepping up to the plate at a most critical time."

Rodney Avila, a member of the New England Fisheries Management Council, said it was "a very constructive discussion."

Recent reports in the press prompted a statement from the New England Fishery Management Council about its recent activities concerning sea scallops. The Council‘s rationale behind the vote is provided in the statement.

"In short, the fishing activities of the fleet exceeded the expected landings set forth in the Scallop Plan for 2008 and 2009, a circumstance that led to increased harvests that were at or above the scallop overfishing level. Landings in 2009 are calculated to increase over 20 percent above levels projected, and revenues for the fleet will increase by around $65 million beyond what was originally estimated. The 2010 catch will be reduced in the framework, but the action is expected to result in 5 million additional pounds of scallops over several years and should increase annual fishery revenues by about $10 million from 2011-2016."

Read the response, deliberations and rationale from the New England Fisheries Management Council.

After a day of conflicting reports, a reconsideration of the Scallop catch limits DOES NOT appear to planned for the agenda of the next NEFMC meeting. After a day of conflicting reports from New England to Capitol Hill, the most recent information suggest that a reconsideration of the Scallop catch limits is NOT planned for the agenda of the next NEFMC meeting.

The following is a timeline of events related to the question of whether or not the scallop catch limits passed in November by the New England Fishery Management Council would be placed on the agenda of the next Council meeting for reconsideration. The decision lies with the Council's Executive Committee.

The agenda is set 21 days in advance of each Council meeting. The next meeting starts on Tuesday, January 26, making the 21st day before the meeting January 5th.

In late December, the Council chair polled members of the executive committee to determine whether there was any objection to putting a reconsideration of the Scallop recommendation on the agenda for the January meeting in Portsmouth.

Today, Monday, January 4th at approximately 2pm, industry leaders received information from Council sources leading them to believe that the item would be placed on the agenda.

Approximately one hour later at 3pm, Congressional staff members also had information from Council sources making them feel with certainty that the item would be placed on the agenda.

At approximately 6 p.m. a Council member advised an industry representative that the item would not be on the agenda due to objections raised by Council staff.

Also in the early evening, an executive committee member was contacted by the council chair, and was told the item would not be on the agenda.  The reason cited was objections by groundfish Council staff who felt that a change in the recommendation might endanger Framework 44.

An executive committee member, speaking confidentially, said that the executive committee was never given the opportunity to formally discuss and vote on the issue.  Due to the holidays and related vacations, there has not been a meeting of the executive committee.

NOAA has published the Amendment 16 proposed rule. The comment period ends January 20, 2010. The proposed rule includes an unexpected new provision allowing that "A state- operated permit bank sponsored by NOAA shall be considered a Sector for the exclusive purpose of transferring ACE to qualifying Sectors."

According to the New England Fisheries Management Council, this issue was not addressed in Amendment 16, a fact that was noted during review of the draft regulations when NEFMC was asked to "deem" them consistent with the amendment, and the changes were added by NMFS.

According to the proposed rule "NMFS is currently working with the Maine Department of Marine Resources on a Memorandum of Agreement that would establish a permit bank operated by the State of Maine and sponsored by NMFS. Allowing a permit bank to lease ACE to Sectors would facilitate the ability of the permit bank to minimize any adverse socio-economic impacts to fishing communities associated with catch- share programs."

Industry groups are currently examining the potential ramifications of this unexpected addition.

Read the complete proposed rule from the Federal Register.

Dale Jones, NOAA Fisheries Director of Enforcement, in a December 17 memo, described a trip to the Northeast Regional NMFS office in Gloucester with NOAA's Mary Glackin, Andrew Winer and Mary Beth Ward.

Dale Jones, NOAA Fisheries Director of Enforcement, in a December 17, 2009 memo obtained by Saving Seafood, described a trip to the Northeast Regional NMFS office in Gloucester with NOAA Deputy Under Secretary Mary Glackin, NOAA Director of External Affairs, Andrew Winer and Assistant General Counsel Mary Beth Ward.  The primary purpose of the visit was to conduct “listening sessions” with the personnel of the NOAA Office of Law Enforcement and NOAA Office of General Counsel for Enforcement and Litigation. 

Director Jones noted that since that the Office of Inspector General was asked by Dr. Lubchenco to conduct a nation wide review of NOAA Enforcement and GCEL operations the review itself and media attention have created a "somewhat uncomfortable environment" for NOAA enforcement employees in Gloucester.

He noted that with regard to the review he does not yet have "any specific decisions or dispositions to report."

He said that he has "great confidence" in the work done by his staff, noting "it is that work and the level of high quality work and integrity that has made [the] agency what it is.  Decision by decision, action by action, over many years, [their] work has proven to be based upon a very sound, reasonable, and reliable foundation."

Director Jones noted that "the NOAA Office of Law Enforcement and [their personnel] have great respect for the men and women of the fishing industry," and that "for the most part, those who are responsible for the more egregious violations are those who are simply looking out for themselves."  He said he raises these points "to acknowledge the fact that there are those who would seek to impede our efforts to stop illegal practices simply because it precludes or minimizes their opportunity to maximize profit at the expense of others and at risk to the fisheries."

He said that "when one examines the individual actions taken by this agency on a case by case basis, there is very clear and compelling evidence to reflect that such actions have been generated by and are supported by factual evidence of violations by the persons investigated and ultimately prosecuted".

He stated that his staff have carried out their duties "within very clearly proscribed parameters in a professional and commendable manner."

Read the complete memo from Director Dale Jones.

Signers request immediate action to restore six million pounds in total catch for 2010. Over one thousand Atlantic sea scallop fishermen, retail and wholesale seafood dealers, other scallop-dependent businesses, and their employees wrote to Dr. Jane Lubchenco, NOAA Administrator, on Friday to express their "extreme dismay with the New England Fishery Management Council’s recent decision" in favor of increased restrictions on the scallop fishery.

The signers, who hail from states up and down the east coast form Maine to Florida, and as far west as Ohio, accuse the New England Fishery Management Council of failing "to balance the conservation of scallop stocks with the economic and social health of the industry."  The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act requires that "conservation and management measures…take into account the importance of fishery resources to fishing communities in order to (A) provide for the sustained participation of such communities, and (B) to the extent practicable, minimize adverse economic impacts on such communities."

The thousand-plus signers say the actions "will cause unnecessary damage to fishing communities from Maine to North Carolina, as well as local, regional and national economies, more generally, at precisely the wrong time."

The letter, which was organized by the Fisheries Survival Fund, of Fairhaven, Massachusetts, cites Federal scientists who have "stated that there are over 300 million pounds of harvestable-sized U.S. Atlantic scallops and that 65 million pounds could be caught sustainably" and asks "why the Council voted to allow only 41 million pounds of scallop catch next year, rather than the risk averse 47 million pounds the industry had sought for 2010." They asked for immediate action to restore the six million pounds in total catch for 2010.

According to the letter, "the 6 million pounds of scallops the Council narrowly voted to leave unharvested represent a loss of well over $40 million to scallopers—and hundreds of millions of dollars more to those of us who support this important industry. "

Under the proposed rules, according to the Fisheries Survival Fund letter, scallop vessels will be tied to the dock for over 300 days next year.

The letter was hand delivered to Dr. Lubchenco's Washington Office, and also delivered to Members of Congress, NOAA Fisheries Regional Administrator Patricia Kurkul, and the New England Fisheries Management Council.

The complete letter and list of signers may be downloaded from the Saving Seafood website via this link.

18 members of Congress wrote to Commerce Secretary Gary Locke today expressing their "extreme disappointment with the New England Fishery Management Council’s decision to reduce fishing days atsea for the scallop fishery.

The lawmakers asked the Commerce Secretary to take immediate actioninstructing the New England Fishery Management Council to revisit the original proposals in January.  They cited a letter from the director of the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries to the NationalMarine Fisheries Service, in which Director Paul Diodati noted  thatscience and planning committees’ information regarding probability ofoverfishing was never brought by the Scallop Committee to the Council. "In fact," Director Diodati wrote "the Committee had nothing to offeron this critical issue. I believe this omission played a key role inthe Council adopting an F of ).20 with all its attendant consequences."

The eighteen signers wrote "The absence of any presentation to the fullCouncil by the Scallop Committee of the scientific recommendations ofthe SSC and PDT is a significant omission and warrants seriousreview…given the expectant economic losses that would result fromsuch an unnecessarily conservative proposal."  They noted that "fisherymanagers are supposed to take into account the scientificrecommendations…"

The letter was signed by:

Senator John Kerry
Senator Charles Schumer
Senator Paul Kirk
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand
Senator Jeanne Shaheen
Congressman Barney Frank
Congressman Walter Jones
Congressman John Tierney
Congressman John Adler
Congressman Timothy Bishop
Congressman Michael Capuano
Congressman Joe Courtney
Congressman James McGovern
Congressman Frank LoBiondo
Congressman Anthony Weiner
Congressman Robert Wittman

Read the complete letter on Saving Seafood; including the letter from Director Diodati referenced by the lawmakers.

Today, the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation held an Executive Session and favorably reported out S.2856, the International Fisheries Agreement Clarification Act.

The bill was introduced by Senator Olympia Snowe (R-ME), is and supported by Senators John Kerry (D-MA) and Paul Kirk (D-MA).

The bill’s language is strongly supported by the fishing industry, and was approved by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which has jurisdiction over fisheries.

Also today, Congressman Barney Frank (D-MA), Congressman John Tierney, Congressman Walter Jones (R-NC), and Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-ME)  announced that they have introduced the House companion to the Snowe bill, H.R.4369, the International Fisheries Agreement Clarification Act.

In a press release, Congressman Frank’s office describes the legislation as a bipartisan bill that would give the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) greater flexibility for the management of cod, haddock and flounder on Georges Bank.

The bill addresses a disparity between U.S. and Canadian law that is estimated to cost the regional economy over $150 million.  The Magnuson-Stevens Act, the U.S. law governing fishing stocks, provides additional rebuilding flexibility to NFMS for fish stocks subject to international agreements.  Currently, the U.S. State Department regards the George Bank Fishing accord between the U.S. and Canada as only an “understanding,” which does not trigger any flexibility under the Magnuson-Stevens Act.  The new bill would specifically define the Georges Bank accord as an “agreement,” providing NFMS with greater flexibility to manage those stocks.  This is necessary because the Magnuson-Stevens Act requires that fish stocks be completely rebuilt by 2014; Canadian law does not have a fixed timeline, which allows Canadian fish catch limits to exceed that of their American counterparts.

“American and Canadian fisherman should be on a level playing field,” said Frank (D-MA).  “This bill will end the economic discrepancy that currently exists, and I will work with my colleagues to pass this legislation as soon as possible.”

“For too long the current system has been breeding inequities amongst our respective fishing communities,” said Congressman John F. Tierney (D-MA). “This legislation would standardize the framework for our local fishing industry and codify the agreement between our nations.”

“Reasonable, common sense fisheries policies that support both sustainable fishing communities and sustainable fisheries are critical to the long-term economic health of coastal states like Maine,” said Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-ME).  "New England fishermen are struggling hard to rebuild depleted fish stocks.  With fish that ignore international boundaries, it only makes to sense to work with our neighbors to the North to jointly manage these stocks and make sure that all fishermen, both US and Canadian, take responsibility for rebuilding depleted fish stocks.”