Saving Seafood

Management & Regulation

NOAA announces $2M investment to protect Gulf of Mexico’s red snapper

October 17, 2024 — NOAA said Wednesday $2 million provided by the Inflation Reduction Act is being awarded to fisheries partnerships for data collection and modeling to help understand and mitigate climate change impacts.

NOAA is partnering with the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission and the Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies at the University of Miami.

The money will be used to improve scientific data and management decisions regarding the red snapper in the Gulf of Mexico.

“This $2 million investment, made possible thanks to President Biden’s historic Inflation Reduction Act, will boost NOAA’s ability to support red snapper populations by expanding scientific partnerships that improve data collection and help us understand and mitigate the impacts of climate change on fisheries in coastal regions nationwide,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo in a statement.

Read the full article at UPI

 

Environmental group seeks limits on Alaska trawling

October 15, 2024 — The international advocacy organization Oceana is pushing for the North Pacific Fishery Management Council to take action on trawling. The nonprofit released a statement Oct. 7 calling on the council to limit trawling in the Bering Sea and Alaska fisheries, saying it is a threat to sensitive seafloor habitats.

Trawling involves dragging a large fishing net behind a boat to collect fish. It’s big business: the trawl fishery targeting Alaska pollock in the Bering Sea is the largest fishery in the nation. Critics say trawl gear used in the Gulf of Alaska and Bering Sea makes contact with the seafloor, damaging marine ecosystems.

Ben Enticknap, a scientist and campaign director for Oceana, expressed concerns about the practice, saying trawling “risks damaging sensitive habitats.” He called on the council to impose measures to ensure the gear stays off the bottom.

Read the full article at Alaska Public Media

Pacific bluefin tuna quotas soar by 80 percent in 2025

October 11, 2024 — According to NOAA Fisheries, commercial Pacific bluefin tuna fishermen in the United States will be able to harvest nearly 80 percent more tuna in 2025-2026, thanks to new catch limits set by the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission. The decision, made in September, follows an encouraging stock assessment by the International Scientific Committee for Tuna and Tuna-Like Species, which found the Pacific bluefin population rebuilt a decade ahead of schedule. This increase offers a major boost for U.S. commercial and recreational fisheries, particularly in Southern California, after years of strict conservation efforts.

The Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission increased catch limits during a meeting in Panama in early September.

U.S. fishermen harvest Pacific bluefin tuna using hook-and-line, purse seine, and drift gillnet gear and land their catch mainly in Southern California ports. Additionally, increases in commercial catch limits will benefit recreational anglers who also catch Pacific bluefin off Southern California. The Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission resolution that increased commercial catches also called for consistent management of sport fishing.

In 2022, U.S. commercial fishers harvested 368 metric tons, or more than 800,000 pounds, of Pacific bluefin tuna. They earned more than $2.2 million for the catch. The 2-year catch limit for 2025–26 is increasing almost 80 percent, to 1,822 metric tons from 1,017 in 2023–24. That means the U.S. fleet can bring more Pacific bluefin tuna to the docks and seafood markets. This would be a welcome change for captains, crew, and seafood distributors after more than a decade of belt-tightening in the fishery.

Read the full article at NOAA Fisheries

NEFMC Prepares for 2025 Scallop Framework Amidst Declining Biomass

The New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC) announced that it received updates on Framework Adjustment 39 to the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery Management Plan, which will set the specs for the 2025 scallop fishing season.

At its September meeting in Gloucester, Massachusetts, the council received an overview of the 2024 Atlantic sea scallop survey in addition to the Framework 39 updates.

Results from the 2024 scallop survey indicated that the species’ overall biomass remained low compared to its peak of 2016-2019. The population of harvestable scallops in 2025 is expected to remain low as well, which could lead to reduced allocations to the fishery.

The NEFMC said that recruitment showed positive signs, such as additional signs of seed and juvenile scallops, which could lead to better days for the fishery in the coming years.

Read the full article at Seafoodnews.com

Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind Clears Final Federal Hurdle

October 10, 2024 — While a local grassroots organization expressed disappointment over the federal government’s approval of the construction and operations plan for two wind farm projects planned off Long Beach Island, the developers and their supporters are elated at reaching the milestone.

“Atlantic Shores is thrilled to receive approval to build our first two projects and deliver sufficient clean power to serve one third of New Jersey households,” said Joris Veldhoven, chief executive officer of Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind. “Securing these critical approvals enables New Jersey’s first offshore wind project to start construction next year and represents meaningful progress in New Jersey achieving 100% clean energy by 2035.”

The company has until roughly the middle of November to pay the first year’s rent of $13,090 for Project 1’s easement and $112,040 for Project 2’s easement. Moving forward, the annual rent for the lease area and the project easement zone will be due on March 1, the lease anniversary, according to BOEM’s letter to company officials.

The leases, unless otherwise renewed, have a 25-year lifespan from the date of the approval of COP, according to the conditions of construction and operations plan approval issued by BOEM. The document also outlines the time frame for notification prior to construction activities on the outer continental shelf, including seabed preparation such as boulder relocation and pre-lay grapnel runs, and export cable installation among other items.

Read the full article at The Sand Paper

Early projections suggest Northeast US may get lower scallop quota in 2025

October 9, 2024 — The latest scientific surveys of scallop fishing areas in the Northeast U.S. show biomass decreased from 2023 to 2024 – which will likely result in a lower total allowable catch in 2025.

The scallop fishery in the Northeast U.S. is one of the most valuable fisheries in the country and has been grappling with lower quotas since a massive 2019 season saw the fishery land over 60 million pounds. That season was largely thanks to a massive recruitment event that occurred in the 2012 to 2013 scallop class, but now, those scallops have either been fished or aged out of the fishery.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Territory not included in NOAA’s “Fisheries of the United States” annual report

October 8, 2024 — The director of the Department of Marine & Wildlife Resources, Taotasi Archie Soliai has written to the Deputy Ass’t Administrator for Regulatory Programs of NOAA, Samuel Rauch III on his concerns about American Samoa not being included in NOAA’s “Fisheries of the United States” Annual Report, pointing to “a longstanding pattern of marginalization for our community.”

DMWR director’s concerns comes on the heels of the 200th Meeting of the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council held in Honolulu, last month, where an Indigenous Committee to provide recommendations to federal authorities on cultural fishing rights and related issues was established.

Read the full article at Samoa News

In surprising move, Bering Sea snow crab fishery to reopen after 2 year closure

October 7, 2024 — The Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced Friday afternoon that Bering Sea fishermen will be allowed to harvest a total of about 4.7 million pounds of opilio, also known as snow crab, for the first time in two years. According to Fish and Game, estimates of total mature male biomass are above the threshold required to open the fishery.

The announcement comes as a surprise to many fishermen, after roughly 10 billion snow crabs disappeared from the Bering Sea over a span of four years, and Fish and Game closed the fishery in 2022. Recently, scientists have learned that the disappearance was likely due to ecological shifts, and there’s been little hope within the industry that stocks would recover anytime soon.

Read the full article at KUCB

NOAA Fisheries releases implementation plan for National Seafood Strategy

October 7, 2024 — NOAA Fisheries has unveiled its plan for implementing the United States’ first National Seafood Strategy, a document the agency released last year to guide the federal government’s efforts to support the domestic seafood sector.

“The Implementation Plan is where the rubber meets the road,” NOAA Fisheries Assistant Administrator Janet Coit said. “It outlines the specific actions to achieve the goals we laid out in the strategy to support our nation’s seafood sector and the benefits it provides.”

Read the full article at National Fisherman

Council forms Indigenous Committee for Pacific Islander fishing rights

October 4, 2024 — After wrapping up their 200th meeting, the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council (WPRFMC) established an Indigenous Committee to recommend to federal authorities on cultural fishing rights and related issues.

WPRFMC represents fisheries in Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the Pacific Remote Islands and has authority over all fisheries in state and territorial waters. Their decisions are based on science and informed decisions by traditional knowledge and practices of the local users for the benefit of the island communities and the nation. WPRFMC was established by Congress in 1976 under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act as one of the eight regional fishery management councils.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman