The Marine Fish Conservation Network announces a search for its next Executive Director. For a description of the position and how to apply (by February 15), please click here. The Marine Fish Conservation Network is seeking to hire its next Executive Director, working out of its Washington, DC office. MFCN is a national coalition of almost 200 national, regional and local environmental organizations, recreational and commercial fishing groups, aquariums, and marine science groups dedicated to marine fish conservation and to sustainable fish populations, ecosystems, and fishing communities. To learn more about the Network, please visit our website: www.conservefish.org.
EDITORIAL: Wind farm plan cannot come at expense of fishery
An expansion of wind energy is well worth pursuing off the coast of Massachusetts.
But that expansion should not come at the expense of the fishing industry, and it appears that the latest wind energy initiative by the Obama administration once again puts commercial fishing — along with the jobs it creates and preserves and the food it provides for this region and beyond — at the bottom of its priority totem poll.
Those in the industry and their representatives at the Statehouse and in Congress who profess to be advocates for fishermen should intervene now to make sure an already endangered industry does not remain at the bottom of that priority list.
For this initiative comes in the form of the U.S. Department of Interior's Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement already asking wind energy companies to notify it of any interest they have in leasing portions of a massive, 2,200-nautical-square-mile sector of the ocean, south of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket.
That area contains some of the richest fishing grounds off the coast of Massachusetts.
According to David Goethel, a commercial fisherman and member of the New England Fishery Management Council's Habitat Committee, "a half billion dollars worth of seafood comes out of this area."
Read the complete editorial from The Gloucester Times.
Tuna Fight Muddies Waters Over Damage From BP Spill
The bluefin tuna is one of the most majestic and prized creatures in the sea. Last week, one caught off Japan sold in Tokyo for $396,000, to be used as sushi.
Now the fish is the subject of a scientific fight that shows how hard it will be to gauge the environmental fallout of the biggest offshore oil spill in U.S. history.
The U.S. government will wrap up public meetings next week on whether to recommend declaring the Atlantic bluefin an endangered species. If the government declared the fish endangered, it would bar fishermen from targeting the fish in U.S. waters. An environmental group filed the request last year, claiming in part that the western-Atlantic stock of the fish, long believed to spawn only in the Gulf of Mexico, would "be devastated" by last year's spill from a blown-out BP PLC well.
But scientists disagree about what portion of last spring's crop of young tuna, or larvae, were hit by oil. They disagree about whether the Gulf is the only place where the western-Atlantic bluefin spawns. In short, they disagree about virtually every aspect of the spill's effect on the fish.
Read the complete story from The Wall Street Journal.
Feds court wind companies’ ‘interest’ in fishing grounds
The Obama administration has asked wind energy companies for notices of interest in leasing blocks in a 2,200-nautical-square-mile sector of rich fishing waters south of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, a move that further threatens New England's fishing fleet.
The area of interest was determined in consultation with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, according to the U.S. Department of Interior's Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement.
The bureau is the successor to the Mineral Management Service that drew extensive fire for lax regulation of oil and gas exploration in the Gulf of Mexico after BP's Deepwater Horizon well imploded last April.
The Habitat Committee of the New England Fishery Management Council was briefed on the project for the first time last Thursday by Chris Boelke, a habitat resources specialist assigned to the Gloucester regional office of the National Marine Fisheries Service.
Read the complete story from The Gloucester Times.
Boycotting bluefin isn’t enough — time to turn on the siren
Critics of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas often say that the acronym ICCAT might better stand for the “International Conspiracy to Catch All Tuna.” At its most recent meeting, ICCAT lived up to that derisive nickname by setting 2011 catch levels for Atlantic bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) at basically the same levels as 2010 — 12,900 tons, down from 13,500 – despite the pleas of conservation scientists and the bluefin's place on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's "Red List" of endangered or critically endangered species (Western stock and Eastern stock).
Soon after the ICCAT decision – or “death sentence”, as a post at Change.org put it – the Center for Biological Diversity announced a "bluefin boycott."
While that sounds (and is) good, the Center’s campaign is about far more than simply giving up buying and eating bluefin tuna. After all, Japan consumes about 80% of the world's bluefin catch, so the impact of a U.S. boycott will be limited. That's one reason the Center's "boycott" also calls for action by governments and international organizations. (Read more about the limits of consumer-based campaigns in my earlier Ethicurean piece.)
Read the complete story from The Ethicurean.
Chesapeake Bay Foundation Publishes Vague and Misleading Claims on Atlantic Menhaden
Every year, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) publishes an annual State of the Bay report, which grades the health of the bay on a variety of ecological factors while raising awareness of its most pressing issues. The recently released 2010 report, however, features a short section on Atlantic menhaden that includes vague and misleading language, which many scientists feel necessitates clarification. Menhaden management is the subject of this week’s (Jan 11-13,2011) meeting of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s (ASMFC) Atlantic menhaden technical committee.
WASHINGTON (Saving Seafood) — Jan. 10, 2011 — The larger a population, the better chance it stands to produce future generations, according to conventional wisdom. But that wisdom is inapplicable when it comes to the anomaly that is Atlantic menhaden, a small, oily fish more likely to be found in a medicine cabinet than on a menu.
Used to make fish oil and fishmeal, menhaden boast the evolutionary edge that enables females to produce enormous numbers of eggs. The success of those eggs, scientists say, is far more dependent on environmental conditions — weather, water quality and atmospheric pressure – than on anything else, including restrictions on commercial fishing
“Intuitively, it makes sense that less fishing means more menhaden,” says National Marine Fisheries Services biologist Joseph Smith. “But it doesn’t work that way. Based on years of data, there doesn’t seem to be a very good relationship between the number of spawners and the number of juveniles.”
Nonetheless, the CBF’s 2010 State of the Bay Report offers the conclusive and unsubstantiated claim that “the fishery must be managed conservatively so that large numbers are left in the water to benefit both the Bay and mankind.”
At issue here is how the ASMFC will conduct its stock assessment and determine appropriate approaches to manage the fishery. The CBF would like to see more conservative management, and, for the last several years, has been pushing the ASMFC to adopt a broader ecosystem approach.
Presenting a case for more conservative management, the CBF’s report states:
For many years, fisheries scientists, including those at CBF, increasingly have been concerned about declining numbers of menhaden and the impact the commercial fishery has on the menhaden population. Consequently, the [ASMFC] capped the Bay’s menhaden harvest at 109,020 tons in 2006 and extended the cap again in 2009, pending further study. A 2010 ASMFC analysis concluded that the population of Atlantic menhaden has fallen to historically low levels, having been overfished routinely for decades.
In fact, the 2010 assessment uses data only through 2008, with data from this last year showing that fishing mortality level barely above the overfishing limit. For menhaden, assessments consider two major factors: fishing mortality, which is the ratio of fish harvested to the total estimated population size; and biomass, which, in this case, is expressed as the number of mature eggs produced by the population. As reference points, fisheries assessments use targets (to represent the ideal level) and limits (to represent levels not to exceed). Scientist found the fishing mortality estimate for 2008 was barely over the limit (by 0.4 %), meaning that slight overfishing occurred in 2008. On the other hand, the biomass/egg reference point was right on target, suggesting that plenty of eggs were produced. Also, in the nine years prior (1999 – 2007), scientists concluded that overfishing did not occur at all. The CBF’s claim that menhaden have been “overfished routinely for decades” is a gross misstatement.
If there is justification to readdress management approaches to the fishery, it will not be based on the legitimacy of CBF claims. Its 2010 State of the Bay report includes other statements on menhaden that, although quoted in at least one news source, several fisheries experts repudiate on grounds that they are misleading or are simply too vague.
For instance, the report says that “Atlantic menhaden are among the most important creatures in the Chesapeake Bay,” and are “prodigious ‘filter feeders,’ swimming in large schools with mouths agape to consume plankton … thereby helping to maintain a balance of microscopic life in Bay waters.”
But Robert J. Latour, who head the ASMFC’s menhaden technical committee and conducts research at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science says, “recent scientific evaluations of the ecological role of menhaden have indicated that these fish may not be as important for improving water quality as originally thought, but a thorough assessment of their role has not be conducted and CBF did not comment on the level of importance. The report does state that menhaden help to ‘maintain a balance of microscopic life in Bay waters.’ This statement is not necessarily misleading, but it is somewhat uninformative since it is unclear what is meant by ‘balance’. Plankton communities are continuously in flux throughout Chesapeake Bay, and the mechanisms controlling the composition and abundance within these communities are complex and not well understood.”
The CBF’s report also mentions that “Menhaden are also essential prey for many important Chesapeake Bay species, including striped bass, bluefish, weakfish, ospreys, herons, and marine mammals.”
Indeed, menhaden, like numerous other prey species, are an important part of the food chain, but their presence in the diet of other species like striped bass is not as great as some believe. Conducted by the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, the Chesapeake multi-species monitoring and assessment program found that menhaden represented only about 8 percent of striped bass food in the Chesapeake Bay, with a variety of other species accounting up the balance.
Finally, concluding its rationale on the ecological importance of the fish, the report invokes author H. Bruce Franklin’s claim that menhaden are “the most important fish in the sea” – a curious assertion from an English professor with expertise in science fiction.
This week (Jan 11-13, 2001), the Atlantic menhaden technical committee of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission will meet to examine alternate approaches to setting reference points in preparation for the next fishery assessment, slated to begin in early 2012. Clearly, the CBF is of its own mind already. The section on menhaden in its 2010 State of the Bay report concludes that, “Further action by ASMFC to establish more sustainable harvest limits is expected. Because of menhaden’s critical ecological value up and down the food chain, CBF supports this likely action. The fishery must be managed conservatively so that large numbers are left in the water to benefit both the Bay and mankind.”
While CBF's conclusion sounds like common sense, it is not backed by the work and viewpoints of many leading scientists in the field.
10,000 Menhaden wash up on Folly Beach, South Carolina
FOLLY BEACH, S.C. (WCIV) — Something fishy is happening on Folly Beach. About 10,000 bait fish washed up on shore. Crews hired by the city cleaned them up Friday. The Department of Natural Resources say it was the cold weather that caused the deaths.
Crews with B&C Utility raked up the thousands of dead fish, 6 inch Menhaden that were lining the shore on Folly.
"We've got a whole of work today," said worker Anthony Deas.
The Department of Natural Resources has an explanation. Biologists with the agency say the fish may have gotten stuck behind a sand bar in shallow water where the water was colder. The sea temperature was about 48 degrees.
But with all the dead fish and birds around the world like birds in Texas that dropped from the sky, some people we found on Folly are not convinced by that explanation.
"I don't know if I buy that. I think it's a sign. I think it's a sign. We should always be aware of the signs that are handed to us and this is a big one," Folly Beach resident Andrew Worland said.
Folly Beach's mayor was concerned with the lingering affects of the dead bait like the smell.
"At least it's not hot and humid," Mayor Tim Goodwin said.
It is about a $5-6,000 bill for fish and it will end up at the landfill.
Read the complete story from WCIV-TV News.
Shark Conservation Act Signed into Law to Curb Shark Finning
WASHINGTON — The Humane Society of the United States, Humane Society International and the Humane Society Legislative Fund applaud President Barack Obama for signing an important bipartisan bill that will increase protection for sharks from the cruel and wasteful practice of shark finning – cutting the fins off a shark and tossing the mutilated live animal back into the ocean to die.
The Shark Conservation Act – introduced by Reps. Madeleine Bordallo, D-Guam, Eni Faleomavaega, D-American Samoa, and Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass. – requires that sharks be landed with their fins still naturally attached, the only sure way to enforce a ban on finning. H.R. 81 will strengthen the Shark Finning Prohibition Act of 2000 that has been difficult to enforce, closing a loophole in that law that unintentionally allowed vessels to transport fins obtained illegally as long as the sharks were not finned aboard that vessel. Many fisheries target sharks for their valuable fins, which are sold for shark fin soup.
“Cutting off sharks’ fins and tossing their live bodies back into the sea is terribly cruel. It’s also a major factor in the severe decline of sharks worldwide and the associated devastating impact on other species in the ocean ecosystem,” said Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of The HSUS. “Up to 73 million sharks are killed this way each year, just for shark fin soup. The Shark Conservation Act will make the U.S. ban on shark finning more enforceable and strengthen our hand in international negotiations. We thank President Obama for taking this important step forward in conservation and animal protection.”
Along with praising President Obama and the legislation’s prime sponsors, the groups extend their thanks to Chairwoman Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., and Ranking Republican Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, whose leadership on the Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries, and Coast Guard Subcommittee of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation were instrumental in guiding the bill to Senate passage. The groups also thank House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Nick Rahall, D-W.Va., Committee Ranking Member Doc Hastings, R-Wash., and Subcommittee Ranking Member Henry Brown, R-S.C., who worked with Subcommittee Chairwoman Bordallo to bring the bill forward in the House, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., who helped ensure timely approval of this legislation before Congress adjourned, and other Senate cosponsors of the bill including Sen. David Vitter, R-La.
Read the complete story from The Humane Society.
Ocean Champions Applauds Commerce Sec’y Locke
Secretary Of Commerce Gary Locke rejected a request for emergency action to increase catch limits in the New England groundfish fishery.
We applaud Secretary Locke’s stand on adhering to the established process and to his commitment to economically and environmentally sustainable fisheries. Our understanding is that the new groundfish “sector” management system implemented by the New England Fisheries Management Council only 7 months ago is working. In fact, according to NOAA data, revenues in the groundfish fishery are up over 17% so far this fishing season, while the sector fleet seems to be staying within their catch limits. This is good news and given the decades of overfishing in New England exactly what Ocean Champions hoped for when we supported the council’s decision to implement a sector program last year. Managing New England fisheries has never been easy and we look forward to supporting Secretary Locke’s efforts to build a sustainable and thriving groundfish fishing industry to the benefit of current and future generations of fishermen.
Read the complete statement from Ocean Champions.
EDITORIAL: Bravo to Legal CEO for taking on bogus seafood ‘eco-labels’
Three cheers for Roger Berkowitz.
The president and CEO of Legal Sea Foods, one of New England's iconic restaurant chains and also a major buyer from the Gloucester Seafood Display Auction, is not about to tell anybody what fish they should or should not eat.
But he doesn't think environmental activists should be dictating seafood choices to Americans either — especially when those recommendations, supposedly based on the health of wild seafood stocks, aren't backed by any current and credible science.
And even moreso when those dictates undermine the fishing economies of cities like Gloucester, New Bedford and other fishing communities around New England and across the country.
So he's putting a meal where his mouth is.
Berkowitz, at the invitation of the Culinary Guild of Massachusetts, will be hosting a one-night event at the Legal Seafoods in Park Square, Boston, on Jan. 24 that will feature seafood that has been "blacklisted" by some environmental groups, with the menu to feature tiger shrimp, cod cheeks and hake.
This takes a measure of courage. It is an in-your-face challenge to the so-called Big Green environmental lobby — which now even has one of its own at the top of the federal fishing regulatory system.
Jane Lubchenco, chosen in 2009 by President Obama to head the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, is a former vice-chairwoman of the board of the Environmental Defense Fund, the folks who have brought us such economic policies as "cap and trade" and now the "catch share" regulatory system designed in large part to drive small, independent fishermen and fishing businesses right out of the industry.
She is also a co-author of a policy paper sponsored by the EDF that declared the New England cod had been "decimated" by human greed, and that the oceans would soon be populated by "massive swarms of jellyfish rather than food fish."
But if anyone can pull off such a challenge, it would likely be Berkowitz. The 31-restaurant chain, which began as a fish market more than a century ago in Cambridge's Inman Square, has built a solid reputation on featuring fresh, local seafood.
And Berkowitz is following the philosophy expressed by several of America's most prominent citizens, including the late Democratic Sen. Patrick Moynihan, who have said, "Each of us is entitled to his own opinion, but not to his own facts."
Berkowitz contends that the so-called "eco-labelers" — like the Monterey Bay Aquarium, which publishes Seafood Watch — are "brainwashing" not only consumers but restaurants as well, which fear the wrath of environmentalists if they serve blacklisted fish."
Read the complete editorial from The Gloucester Times.
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