Washington

Nine regional planning bodies would coordinate America's oceans under a task force recommendation recently released by the Obama administration.

The proposal mimics an ongoing state effort to zone Rhode Island's coastal waters and is praised by environmentalists.

"Solid," says John Torgan, Narragansett bay keeper for Save The Bay, describing the Ocean Policy Task Force report. "We need to do a better job effectively zoning coastal waters," he added.

A spokesperson for the Rhode Island Marine Trades Association, however, worries the process will lead to excessive regulation of marine business. Although he has not read the report, Michael Keyworth, the group's leg- islative chairperson and general manager of Brewer Cove Haven Marina in Barrington, Rhode Island, comments, "We're mired in enough regulation as it is."

Read the complete story at The Westerly Sun.

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 Adminstrator, on Friday, December 18, 2009 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 have 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 Administratior Patricia Kurkul, and the New England Fisheries Managment Council.

Read the complete letter and list of signers.

Christopher Mann, senior officer at the Pew Environment Group, issued the following statement in response to legislation introduced late last night by Rep. Lois Capps (D-CA), H.R. 4363, establishing a regulatory framework for offshore aquaculture.

“The Pew Environment Group applauds Representative Capps for introducing legislation that would establish strong national standards for offshore fish farms. We have seen worldwide that poorly managed marine aquaculture causes substantial harm to fish, wildlife and their habitat. 

“There is not an overarching policy governing aquaculture development in federal marine waters. If the industry wants to expand into waters three to 200 miles offshore, we need a regulatory system specifically designed to address the environmental risks of fish farming and protect the health of marine ecosystems. This bill is an important first step in creating the necessary framework.”

See this press release at Pew Charitable Trusts.

The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee yesterday gave a green light to a bill to allow flexibility in rebuilding deadlines for high-value fish stocks jointly managed by the United States and Canada.

A similar House bill was introduced by Massachusetts Democrats Congressmen Barney Frank and John Tierney, who were joined by colleagues from Massachusetts, Maine and North Carolina.

The related actions — aimed at increasing American boats’ catch volumes of prized Georges Bank cod, haddock, yellowtail and scallops worth an estimated $150 million a year — occurred on the original date for a coastal caucus that Frank had organized to consider ways to instill wider flexibility to the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the primary legislation that governs America’s fisheries.

Read the complete story at The Gloucester Daily Times.

Massachusetts elected officials have written the country’s commerce chief to complain about scallop fishing regulations passed by the New England Fishery Management Council in November.

The rules, which await approval by federal fisheries regulators, would maintain healthy levels of Atlantic sea scallops by eliminating nine fishing days and one trip into a special access area for permit holders who fish during the 2010 fishing season, which begins March 1.

While ocean advocacy groups such as Environmental Defense support the measures, the fishing industry has argued that the cuts would create an unnecessary economic burden, given that scallop stocks are abundant.

In a letter to Commerce Secretary Gary Locke, 18 U.S. congressmen noted their "extreme disappointment" in the council for voting against an industry-supported alternative that had scientific support and would have cost the industry less. The letter was signed by U.S. Sens. John F. Kerry, Paul G. Kirk, Jr. and Rep. Barney Frank, all D-Mass., in addition to others.

Read the complete story at The South Coast Today.

Citing apparent shortcuts in routine procedures, a coalition of 16 members of Congress has urged the Secretary of Commerce to void cutbacks in the harvesting of scallops — the region's No. 1 cash species — announced last month by the New England Fishery Management Council.

The letter to Secretary Gary Locke is the latest expression of mounting frustration with the decisions of the council and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which regulates the fisheries of the nation's 200-mile exclusive economic zone.

NEW BEDFORD, Mass. (December 19, 2009) – Garth Patterson of Congressman Barney Frank's office told a meeting here of Mayor Scott Lang's Ocean and Fisheries Council that the recent ruling cutting days at sea available for scalloping was "the straw that broke the camel's back for Barney."

The meeting — led by Frank's chief fisheries advisor, scientist and academic Brian Rothschild from the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth's School of Marine Science and Technology — drew attendees from as far away as Maine. About 40 people attended the two-hour meeting at the Wamsutta Club.

Patterson said Frank had not received a response to the first letter, but he noted that the problems raised were complex and required research. He said Frank continued to expect a response from Lubchenco, who was Copenhagen for the global conference on climate this past week.

"As you know," Frank and his co-writers told Locke, "fishery managers are supposed to take into account the scientific recommendations of the Science and Statistical Committee in order to make informed decisions on allocation of fishery resources.

"However, in this instance, that clearly was not the case. It is also clear that economic impacts are not seriously considered when more conservative fishing proposals are implemented over less onerous ones despite the fact that they also meet the standards of acceptable fishing by the Science and Statistical Committee," they wrote.

Read the full story in the Gloucester Times

 

 

In a historic show of solidarity, recreational and commercial fishermen will gather together on the steps of the Capitol on February 24, 2010 from noon until 3 p.m. in an organized demonstration against the unintended negative impacts of the Magnuson Stevens Conservation and Management Act (MSA), the federal fisheries law which was revised in January of 2007. Coordinating the march under the flag of United We Fish, rally organizers are hoping to see a large show of force in defense of coastal communities.

This effort is being coordinated by many organizations and individuals including the Recreational Fishing Alliance, Conservation Cooperative of Gulf Fishermen (CCGF) CCGF, United Boatmen of New York, United Boatmen of New Jersey, New York Sportfishing Federation, Maryland Saltwater Sportfishermen's Association and the Fishing Rights Alliance.

Read the Asbury Park Press story in full

 

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.”

 

Eighteen members of Congress and the Senate wrote to Commerce Secretary Gary Locke today expressing their "extreme disappointment with the New England Fishery Management Council's decision to reduce fishing days at sea for the Atlantic sea scallop fishery during the 2010 fishing year.

The lawmakers asked the Commerce Secretary to take immediate action instructing 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 National Marine Fisheries Service, in which Director Paul Diodati noted  that science and planning committees' information regarding probability of overfishing was never brought by the Scallop Committee to the Council.  "In fact," Director Diodati wrote "the Committee had nothing to offer on this critical issue. I believe this omission played a key role in the Council adopting an F of ).20 with all its attendant consequences."

The eighteen signers wrote "The absence of any presentation to the full Council by the Scallop Committee of the scientific recommendations of the SSC and PDT is a significant omission and warrants serious review…given the expectant economic losses that would result from such an unnecessarily conservative proposal."  They noted that "fishery managers are supposed to take into account the scientific recommendations…"

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.

In a historic show of solidarity, recreational and commercial fishermen will gather together on the steps of the Capitol on February 24, 2010 from noon until 3 p.m. in an organized demonstration against the unintended negative impacts of the Magnuson Stevens Conservation and Management Act (MSA), the federal fisheries law which was revised in January of 2007.  Coordinating the march under the flag of United We Fish, rally organizers are hoping to see a large show of force in defense of coastal communities.

"The closures keep coming and it's good to see the collective fishing communities and industries, both recreational and commercial, calling for scientific based Magnuson reform," said Jim Donofrio, Executive Director of the Recreational Fishing Alliance (RFA).  "We are all in this together."  Donofrio cited recent closures of amberjack, black sea bass and red snapper fisheries as examples of what he calls a "broken" federal fisheries law.

The groups organized through United We Fish are hoping to prove to legislators just how many American anglers and business owners are truly being impacted by the overly restrictive management requirements created by MSA based on non scientific arbitrary deadlines.  According to Bob Zales of the Conservation Cooperative of Gulf Fishermen (CCGF), the time-specific deadlines mandated by MSA coupled with flawed data collection methods are forcing anglers off the water.  "We fully support real science based management and the conservation of our marine resources while also being able to sustain recreational and commercial fishing activities, providing locally caught seafood, sustaining small family businesses, and supporting our coastal communities."

Read the complete story at Sport Fishing.