June 19, 2014 — The following was released by NOAA:
NOAA Fisheries has approved the 2014 final specifications for the Atlantic bluefish fishery.
June 19, 2014 — The following was released by NOAA:
NOAA Fisheries has approved the 2014 final specifications for the Atlantic bluefish fishery.
June 17, 2014 — The Senate accepted House changes Tuesday to a bill that requires the administration to report to Congress on the harmful effects too much algae are having on fish.
Through a unanimous consent agreement, the Senate accepted a House amended S. 1254. The House acted on the legislation last week, while the Senate originally passed it in February.
S. 1254, the Harmful Algal Bloom and Hypoxia Research and Control Amendments Act, would require the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere to establish a national harmful algal bloom and hypoxia program and report a plan for Congress to address the issue.
Read the full story from The Hill
June 19, 2014 — The New England Fishery Management Council is asking the federal government to consider allowing fishermen to catch more haddock in the Gulf of Maine this year.
The council voted Wednesday to ask the National Marine Fisheries Service to raise the haddock catch limit for the 2014 fishing year. The fishing year began May 1 and ends April 30, 2015.
The catch limit is currently close to 700,000 pounds.
Read the full story from the Associated Press at the Portland Press Herald
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) — June 18, 2014 — Environmentalists in Illinois expected a battle royal over their call for a statewide ban on "microbeads" — tiny bits of plastic used in personal care products such as facial scrubs and toothpaste that are flowing by the billions into the Great Lakes and other waterways.
Discovered only recently, they're showing up inside fish that are caught for human consumption, scientists say.
But instead of resisting, leading companies quickly collaborated on a ban that was enacted by the state legislature this spring. And with similar measures now pending in at least three other large states and in Congress, the extinction of microbeads is taking shape as one of the unlikeliest events in the politics of nature: a low-stress compromise by interest groups that are often at each other's throats.
"To have that happen in one year is rare," said Jen Walling of the Illinois Environmental Council, recalling the pessimistic response when she initially sought legislative sponsors. "I was not predicting we'd get it done at all."
Don't get used to it, said Mark Biel of the Chemical Industry Council of Illinois, which represented the product manufacturers during three months of negotiations. The quick deal resulted from unique circumstances, he said, including the availability of substitute ingredients.
Read the full story from the Associated Press at The Huffington Post
June 19, 2014 — Thai frozen food companies insist they follow international standards against human trafficking and denied accusations about the use of slave labour in the country's fishing industry.
Panisuan Jamnarnwej, president of the Thai Frozen Foods Association (TFFA), said associations in Thailand's fishing industry do not condone the use of slave labour in their industries.
"Business partners and key stakeholders in our business have worked our best against human rights violations. This is not just only for our benefit but also to improve the image of the country," he said.
Read the full story at the Bangkok Post
June 19, 2014 — As a prelude to the city’s annual St. Peter’s Fiesta paying homage to the patron saint of fishermen, Local Colors Artists’ Cooperative hosts a show each year to celebrate both the fishing community and beauty of Cape Ann.
Now in its 25th year, the art gallery is once again hosting this special exhibit, titled “Fish Tales,” as its annual tribute by the artists, with a free public reception at Local Colors in Gloucester on Saturday, June 21, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. with refreshments.
Each of the 18 artists is called upon to interpret the theme according to their artistic calling. For special events like this, the artists are encouraged to create works outside their usual media to allow for growth and expansion of their creative talents.
“This event is so meaningful to me on many levels” said Kathy Bucholska, a mixed media artist and jewelry designer at Local Colors. “Not only is it a celebration of the fishing industry and way of life, but the fish symbol brings special meaning to me. In my work, I use the fish to represent abundance and spiritual nourishment.”
Read the full story from The Gloucester Daily Times
SEAFOODNEWS.COM [SCOM] — June 19, 2014 — The Sustainable Fisheries Partnership's annual overview of the sustainability of US pelagic fishing found mostly positive results though it did reveal work left to be done.
The overview, Small Pelagics: SFP Fisheries Sustainability Overview 2014, covers 28 fisheries around the Atlantic Ocean and South America rated according to the sustainability assessment presented on www.fishsource.com. The ratings are based on data publicly available in April 2014.
The report shows that about two thirds of fish from the Atlantic and South American stocks of small pelagic species come from relatively well managed fisheries. A slightly smaller proportion – 55% – would meet the current feed requirements of the leading aquaculture certifications. The other 33% of fish originate from stocks that are not well managed, although only 17.8% of fish come from fisheries that are actually depleted.
The main conclusions of the report were a mixed bag.
The SFP found 8% of the total catch comes from stocks in very good condition. This corresponds to two herring stocks and one blue whiting stock from the Northeast Atlantic.
Cumulatively, 66.5% of the catch supply comes from stocks that are reasonably well managed or better.
More than half of the catch comes from stocks that are in line with the current Aquaculture Stewardship Council requirements for fisheries providing fishmeal and fish oil for feed to certified farms.
Meanwhile, 33.5% of the catch comes from stocks that are not effectively managed. These stocks have not been effectively managed or are currently in poor condition and significant improvements are required.
In terms of MSC certification, four of the stocks contain fisheries that are certified according to the Marine Stewardship Council or in full assessment. Twelve of the stocks are used as sources of fishmeal that are certified for use under the International Fishmeal and Fish Oil Organisation Responsible Supply (IFFO RS) program. Only 3% of the total volume of fish from the 28 stocks is MSC certified.
The report also highlights an emerging scientific consensus that certain small pelagic stocks can be considered “key” to ecosystems because of their role in energy flows from primary producers to higher trophic levels. Stocks that are identified as key in the future will need to be managed with greater precaution than under current regimes in order to ensure responsible stewardship of this resource.
“This report brings both good news for the fishmeal and oil industry and a strong note of caution about the future. Many of these fisheries are well managed and it’s a credit to the industry that more than half the fish can meet the current feed requirements of the Aquaculture Stewardship Council," said Commenting on the results, Jim Cannon, CEO of Sustainable Fisheries Partnership. "However, there is an increasing body of scientific knowledge that suggests we need to adopt a more precautionary approach when managing some stocks of small pelagic fish and this may well have implications for the fishmeal and oil industry in the future.”
This story originally appeared on Seafood.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.
June 19, 2014 — Some areas that have long been closed to fishing could be reopened, while other fishing grounds could be closed. In some places, specific fishing gear, such as trawl nets that are dragged on the ocean floor, would be banned.
Fishery regulators are remapping the federal waters off New England’s coast to protect sensitive habitat.
Some areas that have long been closed to fishing could be reopened, while other fishing grounds could be closed. In some places, specific fishing gear, such as trawl nets that are dragged on the ocean floor, would be banned.
Federal law requires the designation of protected habitat, and those areas must be updated to reflect the most current research, said Michelle Bachman, an analyst with the New England Fishery Management Council.
That panel will have to weigh the interests of competing groups and values, she said.
Not only do conservationists and fishermen disagree, Bachman said, but some groups of fishermen stand to benefit while other groups could suffer, depending on the gear they use and the fish they catch.
“It’s a matter of perspective on where you are coming from,” she said. “It’s going to be a matter of finding out who the winners and losers should be.”
Researchers have been working on the controversial project for a decade, and a draft proposal is expected to be published in September. After a public comment period, the New England Fishery Management Council will make a recommendation to the National Marine Fisheries Service.
Read the full story from the Portland Press Herald
SEAFOODNEWS.COM [SCOM] — June 19, 2014 — After a short delay the Alabama shrimp commercial season commenced yesterday at 6 am after officials determined the stocks had grown to harvestable sizes.
Officials from the Alabama Marine Resources Division said commercial shrimping could now take place in waters not permantely closed. The areas open for fishing include: All waters in the Mississippi Sound; all waters in Mobile Bay and Bon Secour Bay south of N30 28.000’ latitude; all waters east of the charted position of GIWW Marker #103, including all waters of Wolf Bay, Perdido Bay, Arnica Bay, Bay La Launch, and Bayou St. John; and all waters in Little Lagoon.
“The opening of shrimp season is always a joyous time in Coastal Alabama,” said Chris Blankenship, director of Alabama Marine Resources and program administrator for the Alabama Seafood Marketing Commission. “The opening of shrimp season is about a week or two later than usual due the cold winter and spring rains. The abundances we saw during our sampling look good, so it should be a nice opening. I am looking forward to getting some fresh shrimp this weekend.”
Shrimp are the most abundant type of seafood landed in Alabama and along the Gulf Coast. In fact, over 25
million pounds of Gulf shrimp are landed in Alabama every year.
There are a few different types of shrimp caught here along Alabama’s Gulf Coast. Brown shrimp makes up the vast majority of Alabama shrimp available during the late spring and summer months, while white shrimp serves as the more abundant species in late summer and fall. Pink shrimp and royal red shrimp can also be caught in Alabama’s coastal waterways.
The opening of the 2014 shrimp season is in response to routine shrimp sampling that indicated the average size were larger than 68 head-on shrimp per pound within designated waters.
However, fisherman should be aware that state biologists will continue to sample in the open areas. Should sampling indicate a change in the average size of 68 head-on shrimp per pound, additional announcements will be made to complement the original opening.
All commercial fishermen are also reminded to provide boat registration (or documentation papers), boat owner’s driver’s license, and social security number or tax identification number when purchasing a commercial shrimping license.
This story originally appeared on Seafood.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.
June 19, 2014 — According to the Virginia Marine Resources Commission's late April Blue Crab Winter Dredge survey — an ecological census of the bay's crustacean wildlife — the number of female blue crabs has reached a 12-year low.
Female crabs are needed to repopulate and replenish the pot of the Chesapeake Bay's overall blue crab population, forcing officials to propose additional restrictions on the amount of female blue crabs that can be harvested along the commonwealth's waterways.
The proposal, however, is not being well received by some area crabbers, many of whom call the proposed measures unnecessary and potentially damaging to the future of the state's blue crab industry.
Blue crab industry leaders also are concerned about what the additional regulations could mean for the cost of blue crab to consumers, especially if the baywide delicacy rebounds next spring.
"We've had regulations put on us for nearly 24 years, and hasn't done a thing," Diggs said. "The reason why I get up set with the VMRC is because Mother Nature is in control of this. They can slap on all the regulations they want, but it's up to her to decide when and where the blue crab will come back."
Proposed regs
In May, staff members of the Virginia Marine Resources Commission recommended commissioners move forward with a possible 10 percent reduction in female Chesapeake Bay blue crab harvests throughout the state.
The proposal comes despite a recent report stating that the female population decline was because of a bitterly cold winter that significantly impacted the crustacean's breeding season not the result of over harvesting, according to minutes recorded during the VMRC's Blue Crab Management Advisory Committee's May 27 meeting.
Read the full story at the Newport News Daily Press