Other News

"Catch shares" likely will grow as a primary management tool for commercial fisheries — but the concept may not prove workable for the recreational sector, federal fishery managers say.

Catch shares now used in 13 U.S. fisheries affect only commercial harvesters, Jane Lubchenco, administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, said in a Dec. 10 briefing.

"Most catch-share programs are focused on the commercial sector," Lubchenco said in the conference-call session. "We don’t have any recreational fisheries using this type of management."

Typically, a commercial fishery closes completely when the season ends or when the annual quota of fish is taken.

Read the complete story at Keys Net.

The date of a national demonstration by fishing interests in Washington, D.C., has been set for Wednesday, Feb. 24.

Originally scheduled for Feb. 17, the announcement ofthe changed date was made Monday by the Conservation Cooperative ofGulf Fishermen, one of the organizers of the event.

CCGF spokesman Capt. Bob Zales said the change was made because Feb. 17 was discovered to fall during a congressional recess.

The protest has drawn national interest. Along withZales' organization, the Recreational Fishing Alliance, an umbrellagroup representing states' recreational fishing organizations, UnitedBoatsmen of New York and New Jersey as well as the organizers of thecommercial fishermen's protest held in Gloucester in October at theregional offices of the National Marine Fisheries Service are expectedto attend.

Read the complete story at The Gloucester Daily Times.

The Marine Conservation Alliance (MCA), a coalition of harvesters, processors and communities involved in the Alaska groundfish and crab fisheries, renewed its support today for scientifically set catch limits, even though it means a reduction in the Bering Sea pollock catch limit for the upcoming year.

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council (NPFMC) is set to adopt Acceptable Biological Catch (ABC) and Total Allowable Catch (TAC) levels for 2010 for Bering Sea pollock slightly below levels set for 2009. The Council action continues the NPFMC’s long tradition of following the advice of its science advisors.

On Monday, the Council’s Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) recommended an ABC of 813,000 metric tons, down from 815,000 in 2009.

“This was not unexpected. The responsible course of action is to follow our scientists’ recommendation to reduce harvests in accordance with the model and    the precautionary factors built into the model,” said MCA executive director David Benton. “This has been the way we’ve done business in Alaska for over 30 years with the result that there are no overfished stocks.”

In November, the Council’s Bering Sea Aleutian Islands Plan Team scientists reviewed the status of Bering Sea pollock. They recommended an Acceptable    Biological Catch of 813,000 metric tons of pollock in 2010, slightly down from 2009’s levels.

After reviewing the data, the SSC unanimously supported the recommendation of 813,000 mt for 2010.

“We’ve known this downturn was coming because a large age class of fish that dominated the population was getting older.” Benton said. “It’s a bit of a disappointment, because last year the scientists were projecting that pollock might increase in 2010. We just have to stay the course, stick to the science, and ensure long term conservation of the stock.”

Bering Sea pollock is one of the world’s largest fisheries and accounts for a third of all fish harvested in the U.S.  Such fluctuations in the catch are not unusual.  Pollock catch limits were held below 1 million tons from 1977 to 1983.  More recently, the catch limit dropped to 980,000 tons in 1999 after which the stocks rebounded and produced record catches of almost 1.5 million tons from 2002 to 2006.

Based in Juneau, the Marine Conservation Alliance is a coalition of seafood processors, fishermen, coastal communities and support industries involved in the Bering Sea and Gulf of Alaska groundfish and crab fisheries.  The MCA promotes science-based conservation measures to ensure sustainable fisheries in Alaska.  For more information, visit www.marineconservationalliance.org.

The late U.S. Sen. Edward M. "Ted" Kennedy now has a permanent place of remembrance at the Gloucester Fishermen's Wives Memorial.

Although he was neither from Gloucester nor lost at sea, "the lion of the Senate," who was felled by cancer last summer, was honored for his unstinting support for the fishing industry and the soft spot in his heart for Gloucester.  The ceremony featured Kennedy's grand nephew, Joseph P. Kennedy III. Members of the late senator's Washington staff also flew in for the dedication of a wide granite paving stone at the east entrance to the Fishermen's Wives memorial park on Stacy Boulevard. The engraving says: "Senator Edward M. Kennedy — his love of the sea was reflected in his commitment to the commercial fishing industry of Massachusetts and the nation."

Read the complete story at The Gloucester Daily Times.

The federal government said it will loosen regulations on Hawaii-based longline swordfish fishermen that are designed to protect sea turtles.

The revisions, announced Thursday and due to take effect next month, allow longline fishing boats to deploy more gear to fish for swordfish. They also allow the fishery to accidentally hook or entangle more than 46 loggerhead sea turtles — a threatened species — each year, up from 17 currently.

The annual allowed bycatch for leatherback sea turtles — an endangered species — will remain unchanged at 16. Longline boats must stop fishing for swordfish when these annual limits are reached.

The National Marine Fisheries Service said the new regulations will allow fishermen to catch more even as they protect sea turtles and other species.

Read the complete story at The Boston Globe.

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council has set the 2010 catch limit for Alaska pollock at 813,000 metric tons – the lowest amount in 32 years, according to one conservation group.

The decision Saturday was an acknowledgement that stocks of Bering Sea pollock in the nation’s largest commercial fishery are in rough shape. The 813,000-ton limit was recommended by fisheries scientists. It was down slightly from last year’s limit.

Dave Benton, executive director of the Marine Conservation Alliance, a coalition that includes fishermen and processors, said the industry supports the limit because it’s what scientists believe is necessary to improve the fishery.

Read the complete story at KTUU 2.

Long time press reporter and former commercial fisherman Rich Degener from The Press of Atlantic City has written a week-long series on commercial fishing in New Jersey.

The series is available locally in the print edition of the paper this week. and will be made available online for a national audience next week.

From Rich Degener's series: "New Jersey $1 billion-per-year commercial fishing industry, is changing. Second- and third-generation fishermen now work alongside newly arrived immigrants. Meanwhile, growing government regulations have forced the fishermen to constantly adapt to what seafood they go after and when. The federal government projects increasing regulations will lead to fishing job losses. Also, growing foreign competition and changing ocean conditions are driving some species away from New Jersey's coastline, making the tough job of fishing even tougher today."

Watch a video with Rich Degener, and read an excerpt from the first installment.

A feared year-end tuna shortage in Hawaii likely will be averted, meaning residents can eat their good-luck tuna at New Year’s as usual.

Officials earlier estimated the Hawaii-based longline fishing fleet would hit its annual bigeye catch limit for waters west of the islands around the end of November. That threatened to deprive the Hawaii market of its favorite fresh- caught tuna just as demand peaks for the holiday.

But the National Marine Fisheries Service now believes the boats will reach their limit sometime after Dec. 20, allowing the fleet to deliver bigeye through year’s end.

"For all intents and purposes, the market will still be receiving bigeye tuna through the end of the year," said Michael Tosatto, deputy regional administrator for the fisheries service in Honolulu.

Read the complete story at The Boston Globe.

Bill Lee, who built his own boat and, in 37 years of fishing, became the unofficial ombudsman for the Gloucester fleet, has sold his permit to settle a $19,800 claim for illegal landings and is exiting the industry — with bitterness toward federal fishery law enforcers and the regulatory system.

"I was kind of forced out," Lee said. "I have been more vocal and out front. I've never allowed myself to be intimidated by law enforcement."

Lee also said his plight was not unique.

"Every port is losing a fisherman every week," he said. "This is not a Gloucester story, this is an Atlantic seaboard party."

Law enforcement fines are taking their toll along with conservative catch allocations.

Read the complete story at The Gloucester Daily Times.

Federal fisheries scientists have recommended a slightly lower allowable harvest in 2010 for Bering Sea pollock, a major groundfish fishery worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

Scientists recommended a maximum catch limit of 813,000 metric tons of Pollock in 2010, down from 815,000 metric tons in 2009.

The recommendation came during a meeting of the North Pacific Fishery Management Council’s groundfish plan team Nov. 17 in Seattle. The full council will set the 2010 total allowable catch for the pollock fishery during its December meeting in Anchorage.

The council’s advisory panel and scientific and statistical committee, who make their own recommendations to the full council, generally accept the recommendations of the groundfish plan team, said Mark Fina, the council’s senior economist.

Alaskan pollock is commonly used in imitation crab meat, fish sticks and fillet of fish sandwiches.

Read the complete story at The Alaska Journal of Commerce.