NOAA Announces Another Buyout for Southeast Alaska Purse Seiners to Remove an Additional 36 Licenses
December 5, 2018 — SEAFOOD NEWS — NOAA announced that a second buyout would take place in the Southeast Alaska salmon purse seine fishery.
In 2011, Congress approved loans of up to $23.5 million for a buyout program, and existing permit holders voted to support a loan of $13.1 million to buyback 64 licenses.
In 2018, the Southeast Revitalization Association submitted a request to NOAA to use the remainder of the funds, $10.4 million, to fund another buyout round.
NOAA will hold a referendum among the 315 existing permit holders, who will have to gain majority approval to take on the additional loan. If the plan is approved, NOAA would retire an additional 36 licenses.
Those remaining in the fishery agree to repay the loan through a landings tax, administered by NOAA.
The voting period is scheduled to begin January 15, 2019, and end 30 days later on February 14th.
The Southeast Alaska purse seine fishery harvests primarily pink salmon and some chum salmon.
This story was originally published on SeafoodNews.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.
ABTA: ICCAT Meeting Ends After ‘Spectacular Failure’ to Protect Bigeye Tuna
November 27, 2018 — NORWELL, Mass. — The following was released by the American Bluefin Tuna Association:
The International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) concluded its annual plenary meeting on November 19 after a spectacular failure to arrive to a comprehensive agreement on badly needed management measures to address the present poor state of Atlantic bigeye tuna stock. Bigeye tuna is highly coveted by sashimi markets worldwide, similar to bluefin tuna.
ICCAT’s eight-day meeting, held this year in Dubrovnik, Croatia, was attended by over 700 people representing 52 countries.
In October, the Standing Committee for Research and Statistics (SCRS), the scientific arm of ICCAT, issued a new stock assessment on Atlantic bigeye tuna which stated that the stock is significantly overfished, with overfishing taking place. An approximate 40% cut in overall Atlantic-wide allowed catch would be required to end overfishing. Discussion and “heated” negotiations regarding new management measures aimed at addressing the dire status of this important fish stock dominated the 8-day meeting. However, when the meeting drew to a close, the Commission had failed to agree upon any measures to address the numerous problems in the Atlantic bigeye tuna fishery.
The U.S., Canada, South Africa and a handful of other nations strongly advocated for the adoption of measures that would end overfishing immediately and rebuild the stock within 10 years. However, a strategy aimed directly at achieving quantifiable reductions of catch of juvenile bigeye and yellowfin tuna in the West Africa purse seine skipjack fishery, although strongly urged by ICCAT scientists and considered key to the recovery of Atlantic bigeye stock, was notably absent from the various conservation measures proposed.
Thus, the failure by ICCAT to come to an agreement on a conservation and management plan for Atlantic bigeye will result in the further erosion of the stock’s status until ICCAT succeeds in taking decisive action on this critical issue. This will undoubtedly have a negative effect on the U.S. East Coast commercial handgear, pelagic longline and recreational fishermen that catch bigeye tuna. The next opportunity to achieve these goals will be at the annual ICCAT meeting in 2019.
Numerous issues unrelated to bigeye tuna were taken up during this meeting with mixed results. A 47-page recommendation drafted by the European Union establishing a multi-annual management plan for East Atlantic-Mediterranean bluefin tuna, first tendered at the plenary meeting in 2017, was finally concluded at the current meeting.
The U.S. succeeded in obtaining consensus on its proposal to address ICCAT’s Vessel Monitoring System (VMS) protocols that will result in a badly-needed increase in VMS polling time for purse seine from four to a one-hour intervals. Also, under the same proposal, longline vessels are now required to transmit VMS data at two-hour intervals. The U.S., the EU, Norway and Senegal proposed new port state measures to prevent, deter and eliminate illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing and this succeeded in obtaining support from the Commission.
The U.S. attempted to establish conservation measures for overfished blue and white marlin stocks but failed to obtain the needed support from ICCAT countries. Similarly, the U.S., Panama, Cape Verde, Nicaragua and Guatemala proposed measures to reduce bycatch of sea turtles in longline fisheries, but this too did not obtain a consensus.
Massachusetts: Budget funds GMGI project
August 1, 2018 — The new state budget Gov. Charlie Baker signed last week includes $150,000 for a new marine program to be run by the Gloucester Marine Genomics Institute in coordination with the University of Massachusetts and the Massachusetts Department of Marine Fisheries.
It also carries $125,000 in matching grant money for Gloucester’s approaching 400th anniversary celebration, and money for service programs such as The Open Door, Wellspring House and The Grace Center.
But while a $2 million package to boost the Fishing Partnership — which provides health care coverage, safety training, and legal and financial services to fishermen and their families — and $1.3 million for new infrastructure and technology for the GMGI project are included in a House economic bill, those dollars are not in the Senate version and must be hashed out in conference committee, Andrew Tarr, chief aide to state Rep. Ann-Margaret Ferrante, confirmed Monday.
The funding for the GMGI/stateprogram and the money to help with the planning for Gloucester’s 400th anniversary celebration in 2023 were both part of the $41.9 billion fiscal 2019 budget signed by the governor last Thursday.
The budget also included $75,000 to improve Gloucester’s public safety communications systems, but that money was vetoed by the governor. The House overrode the veto, Tarr said, but the state Senate had not yet taken up its override veto of that money as of Monday morning, he said.
Read the full story at the Gloucester Times
NOAA: New Voluntary Slow Speed Zone to Protect Right Whales
April 19, 2018 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:
NOAA Fisheries announces that a voluntary vessel speed restriction zone (Dynamic Management Area or DMA) has been established to protect a group of five right whales sighted 12 nautical miles east of Boston on April 18.
Mariners are requested to route around this area or transit through it at 10 knots or less.
VOLUNTARY DYNAMIC MANAGEMENT AREAS (DMAs)
Mariners are requested to avoid or transit at 10 knots or less inside the following areas where a group of right whales has been sighted. Find out more about ship strike reduction efforts.
East of Boston – In effect through May 3.
42 43 N
42 00 N
071 17 W
070 20 W
ACTIVE SEASONAL MANAGEMENT AREAS (SMAs)
Mandatory speed restrictions of 10 knots or less (50 CFR 224.105) are in effect in the following areas:
- Cape Cod Bay SMA in effect through May 15, 2018
- Block Island SMA in effect through April 30, 2018
- New York, Philadelphia and Norfolk SMA in effect through April 30, 2018
Right Whales in Crisis
The year 2017 was devastating for North Atlantic right whales, which suffered a loss of 17 whales, plus an additional mortality in January 2018–about 4 percent of their population–an alarming number for such a critically endangered species with a population currently estimated at about 450 animals.
In August 2017, NOAA Fisheries declared the increase in right whale mortalities an “Unusual Mortality Event,” which helps the agency direct additional scientific and financial resources to investigating, understanding, and reducing the mortalities in partnership with the Marine Mammal Stranding Network, Canada’s Department of Fisheries and Oceans, and outside experts from the scientific research community.
More Info
Download the Whale Alert app for iPad and iPhone
Acoustic detections in Cape Cod Bay and the Boston TSS
Send a blank message to receive a return email listing all current U.S. DMAs and SMAs.
Details and graphics of all ship strike management zones currently in effect.
Reminder: Approaching a right whale closer than 500 yards is a violation of federal and state law.
SAFMC Meeting – March 5-9, 2018 in Jekyll Island, GA
February 20, 2018 — The following was released by the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council:
Agenda Highlights
- Mackerel Cobia Committee
The committee will review public hearing comments and provide recommendations for any management jurisdictional changes for Atlantic cobia (GA to NY). The committee will also discuss possible changes to commercial trip limits for king mackerel. The Council will take public scoping comments during the meeting on options for changes to king mackerel trip limits.
- Citizen Science Committee
Development of the Council’s Citizen Science Program continues as the committee receives recommendations from the 5 Action Teams: Communication/Outreach/Education; Finance & Infrastructure; Data Management; Projects/Topics Management; and Volunteers.
- Snapper Grouper Committee
The committee will continue to discuss the Visioning Amendments (both recreational and commercial) and the Council could potentially approve them for public hearings. The committee will also continue work on Amendment 46 addressing recreational reporting and permitting. Options for a For-Hire Permit Moratorium will also be discussed. Dr. Kari MacLauchlin will give a presentation on the Socio-Economic profile of the South Atlantic snapper grouper commercial fishery.
- Exempted Fishing Permit
The Council will review a request for an Exempted Fishing Permit to conduct research and evaluate pelagic longline catch rates in a portion of the East Florida Coast pelagic longline closed area and provide recommendations. Learn more
Additional Meeting Information
Can’t attend? Watch the meeting live via webinar at it occurs! Webinar registration is required for each day of the meeting. Registration information – along with meeting materials including committee agendas, overviews, presentations, and documents – is available from the March 2018 Council Meeting page.
Public Q& A and Comment Sessions
Tuesday, March 6 – 4:30 PM
Informal Question & Answer Session
Join NOAA Fisheries Regional Administrator Dr. Roy Crabtree, Council Chair Charlie Phillips and others for an informal Q&A session to discuss topics relative to the meeting agenda.
Wednesday, March 7 – 4:30 PM
Formal public comment
The Council will accept comments on meeting agenda items. The Council Chair, based on the number of individuals wishing to comment, will determine the amount of time provided to each commenter.
Learn more about the SAFMC by visiting their site here.
Will scallops become extinct?
October 13th, 2016 — Nantucket resident and documentarian John Stanton examines the declining sea scallop harvest threatening Nantucket’s bay scallop fishery. Environmental factors have spread this problem throughout the East Coast and, even in decline, Nantucket remains the last commercially viable scallop fishery. Beyond the industry that is at stake, Stanton profiles the vital communities of fishermen who are being impacted. Stanton will lead a post film discussion.
The film will be shown at 7 p.m., Oct. 21, at the New Bedford Fishing Heritage Center, 33 William St.
Dock-U-Mentaries is a co-production of New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park, the New Bedford Fishing Heritage Center. Films about the working waterfront are screened on the third Friday of each month. All programs are open to the public and presented free of charge. This monthly program is co-sponsored by Buzzards Bay Coalition.
Read the full story and watch the video at The New Bedford Standard-Times
FLORIDA: Red Snapper Season Reopens In September
August 31, 2016 — The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is opening up weekends in September and October for recreational red snapper fishing in the Gulf of Mexico. Residents will be able to fish Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays starting Sept. 2 and on Labor Day.
The daily bag limit is two fish per person with a fish minimum size limit of 16 inches.
In May, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration kept commercial and recreational red snapper fishing in South Atlantic federal waters closed. This was due to exceeding the allowable catch limit in the 2015 season.
Nutrition: Fall in fish catch threatens human health
June 16, 2016 — How will the 10 billion people expected to be living on Earth by 2050 obtain sufficient and nutritious food? This is one of the greatest challenges humanity faces. Global food systems must supply enough calories and protein for a growing human population and provide important micronutrients such as iron, zinc, omega-3 fatty acids and vitamins.
Deficiencies of micronutrients — so called because the body needs them only in tiny amounts — can increase the risks of perinatal and maternal mortality, growth retardation, child mortality, cognitive deficits and reduced immune function1. The associated burdens of disease are large. Forty-five per cent of mortality in children under five is attributable to undernutrition; nutritional deficiencies are responsible for 50% of years lived with disability in children aged four and under1.
Fish are crucial sources of micronutrients, often in highly bioavailable forms. And fish populations are declining. Most previous analyses have considered only how people will be affected by the loss of protein derived from fish. We calculate that this is the tip of the iceberg. Combining data on dietary nutrition, and fish catch, we predict that more than 10% of the global population could face micronutrient and fatty-acid deficiencies driven by fish declines over the coming decades, especially in the developing nations at the Equator (see ‘Troubled Waters’). This new view underlines the need for nutrition-sensitive fisheries policies.
Dr. William Karp: NOAA choices on scallop studies relies on science
April 14, 2016 — I am writing regarding your recent editorial and news coverage of the Atlantic Sea Scallop Research Set-Aside Program and the projects that have been selected for 2016-17. The Scallop RSA Program is one of the best examples of cooperative fisheries research with industry in the nation, serving an important role in supporting the management of this fishery, which is such a part of New Bedford’s economy. Your readers should know that the program is very competitive, that all proposals are evaluated using independent reviews, and that although all have worthy points, not all can be funded.
As director of NOAA’s Northeast Fisheries Science Center, it is my goal to build stronger strategic partnerships with regional research partners, including UMass Dartmouth’s School for Marine Science and Technology, an institution with a strong record in educating students and in carrying out research that is directly relevant to managing living marine resources. NOAA funds a faculty member at SMAST and there are many examples of productive collaborations involving SMAST students and faculty, and NEFSC researchers. A number of these activities include Dr. Kevin Stokesbury, a member of the SMAST faculty who is recognized for his work on survey methodology and scallop assessment, and for his effective collaboration with industry.
When Dr. Stokesbury’s RSA proposals for further sea scallop surveys were not selected for funding in 2016, I was greatly concerned about how this would be received. I appreciate his concern over the result, well publicized in your paper, but I believe his criticism of the grants process is unfounded.