Saving Seafood

Senators Collins, King Join Bipartisan Call to Ensure NOAA Fisheries Surveys Proceed in 2021

October 9, 2020 — The following was released by the The Office of Senator Angus King (I-ME):

In May 2020, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries started canceling research surveys to protect the health of its crews and personnel at sea on account of the COVID-19 pandemic.  In support of coastal communities across the country who rely on these surveys as a basis for their livelihoods, U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Angus King (I-ME) joined their colleagues in calling on NOAA to identify and resolve any challenges created by COVID-19 that prevented surveys from occurring in 2020 in order to ensure surveys can be safely conducted in 2021.

“Fishery and ecosystem research surveys are essential to support the U.S. blue economy and provide valuable fishery-independent data needed to carry out provisions of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA).  Data collected from NOAA’s research surveys are used to manage commercial and recreational fisheries that contributed 1.74 million jobs, over $240 billion in sales, and $111 billion in gross domestic product to the U.S. economy in 2017,” the Senators wrote.  “The economic output of U.S. fisheries is maximized by setting accurate quotas and catch limits, which depend on the long-term, fishery-independent datasets collected by NOAA’s research surveys.”

The Senators acknowledged NOAA’s initial response and actions to compensate for lost survey data; however, they reiterated that the methods used are not sufficient replacements for the typical large-scale, long-term research surveys required to sustainably manage fisheries under the MSA.  In closing, the Senators requested a clear, written plan for FY2021 surveys before December 15, 2020.

Read the full release here

Lobster Industry: Challenges Facing Maine’s Iconic Fishery & How They Might be Overcome

August 19, 2020 — Last year, Maine’s lobster fishery brought in almost $500 million to the state, and even more when you count the economic benefits to dealers, processors and restaurants. Now, with the pandemic hindering the market for lobsters locally and around the world, this signature industry has been impacted severely. We will talk about how the industry is facing challenges, and what efforts are underway to find new ways to market lobsters and connect with consumers.

Read the full story at Maine Public

Trump directs aid to Maine lobster industry crushed by tariffs

June 26, 2020 — President Trump ordered the Department of Agriculture to offer a lifeline to the struggling Maine lobster industry that has been hit hard by his trade policies with China.

Trump’s trade war with China devastated farmers in the Midwest, but it also evaporated Maine’s chief export market as escalating tariffs led China to place a 35 percent markup on lobster.

The late Wednesday order from Trump all but directs the Agriculture Department to extend a $30 billion farm bailout program to Maine’s commercial fishers. The program previously sent cash to corn, soybean, pig and other farmers, primarily in the Midwest, who Trump has courted in his reelection effort.

The move follows years of lobbying by Maine’s congressional delegation, which cited “severe financial difficulties due to unfair retaliatory tariffs” in a joint statement expressing support for the government aid.

“Better late than never,” Sen. Angus King (I-Maine) tweeted.

“We made it clear last year in a letter comparing our lobster industry to the farmers in the Midwest seeing relief in this tariff fallout. The first line was ‘Why not lobsters?’” King added in a statement to The Hill, noting that lobsters were one of the first items hit with Chinese tariffs.

Read the full story at The Hill

Maine fishermen among small business owners hoping for new paycheck protection funds

April 20, 2020 — When the $350 billion in funding for the Paycheck Protection Program ran out, many Maine fishermen were among those waiting in line. Congressional leaders are working on an agreement to be voted on this week that would reload those funds.

“I’m crossing my fingers that that will occur,” Senator Susan Collins told News 8 Sunday, after a conference call with lead negotiator on the talks, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin.

Sen. Collins said negotiations on roughly $350 billion in additional funding for the program she co-authored would continue Sunday night, ahead of votes in the Senate on Monday and the House on Tuesday.

“I strongly support adding more funding to the PPP and will keep pushing to make sure the process is fair, clear, and efficient,” Sen. Angus King said in a statement Sunday.

Sen. Collins says she hopes to extend application deadlines in the new agreement beyond the current date of June 30th, because some who were self-employed had to wait.

“The Small Business Administration, which is not used to dealing with people who are self-employed, had them wait an extra week,” Sen. Collins said. “And thus, by the time many of the fishermen or carpenters or plumbers or hair stylists in our state applied, the money was out.”

Read the full story at WMTW

MAINE: On Lobster Day, celebrating our industry and addressing the threats

September 24, 2019 — This week, we celebrate one of Maine’s most famous residents — and no, I’m not talking about Stephen King or the couple who say “buttery flaky crust” in the Dysart’s commercial. Actually, this week marks National Lobster Day, when we celebrate not only our favorite crustacean, but all the men and women who help this industry and our state thrive.

Folks from away might not understand why we are celebrating the lobster, but Maine people know that this shellfish isn’t just a delicious meal — it’s a vital part of our state’s economy, supporting communities up and down our coast. Maine people also know that even as we celebrate lobsters, this industry is facing serious challenges — from well-intentioned but harmful potential regulations, to poorly designed foreign policy emanating from Washington, to the looming threat of warming waters due to climate change. So today, more than any other time in the past, it’s important to emphasize the value of this economic driver, and push back on the threats it faces.

One of the most pressing concerns facing our lobster industry is the danger of potentially misguided federal regulations to protect right whales. Now, let’s be clear: everyone, including lobstermen, wants to protect this endangered species. We just want to make sure we’re making changes based on sound data; and at this point, it is not clear that Maine’s lobster fishery is a significant contributor to right whale deaths. The possible changes threaten livelihoods and lives by calling for expensive and dangerous new equipment configurations. Even worse, these changes would disproportionately affect Maine lobstermen while not holding Canadian fisheries to the same standards.

Read the full story at The Ellsworth American

UMaine Orono receives $1.6M grant for sustainable aquaculture

September 20, 2019 — The University of Maine at Orono received a $1.6 million grant to advance sustainable aquaculture in Maine.

According to a release from the university, Maine Sea Grant researchers at the University of Maine were granted the money from the NOAA National Sea Grant to lead four projects in collaboration with the aquaculture industry, management, and community partners.

“Thousands of Mainers rely on marine industries for their livelihoods, and aquaculture is a promising area for growth,” said U.S. Sens. Susan Collins and Angus King.

According to NOAA fisheries, the United States imports 85% of its seafood, which has resulted in a $14 billion trade deficit- leading to new opportunities in aquaculture to meet demands of seafood consumption.

Read the full story at News Center Maine

Sen. Angus King says the Maine lobster fleet is not a threat to right whales

August 14, 2019 — Federal regulators working to protect right whales need better data or they will hit the wrong target – Maine’s lobster industry, U.S. Sen. Angus King said.

A surprise guest Tuesday night at a meeting at Ellsworth High School, King joined Maine lobstermen in criticizing National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration officials for considering regulation changes that they say could make lobstering much more expensive and unsafe in order to save the endangered whales.

“There’s no question that I, and I suspect all of you, are concerned about the future of the species,” King said. “The question is, how do we save it? And how do you [hit] the right target? My problem is that when most of these rule changes affect the Gulf of Maine, where it doesn’t appear the whales are, it’s like bombing Brazil after Pearl Harbor.”

Read the full story at the Bangor Daily News

Claws out: Rally shows public support for Maine’s lobster industry

July 24, 2019 — Stonington is a tiny hamlet far off the beaten path in Downeast Maine. As the crow flies, it’s about 80 miles from Portland. On the road, it’s double that. Suffice it to say, it’s hard to end up there by accident.

So it was by design that the state’s Gov. Janet Mills, Sen. Susan Collins, and U.S. Reps. Chellie Pingree and Jared Golden were part of a large crowd of elected officials to appear at a rally in the state’s lobster capital over the weekend.

On Sunday, July 21, a local gathering was slated to bring attention to pending federal requirements for the state’s lobster fleet to cut its lines in the water by 50 percent as part of a broad federal proposal to protect endangered right whales. Maine’s fleet has long led the charge to adapt its gear in efforts to reduce interactions with whales. But this proposed rule, industry leaders say, would only harm the fleet without serving to protect the whales.

“NOAA knows that not one right whale has been proven to have been entangled in Maine rope in many years, and the new proposed regulations would only cause extreme danger to our lobstermen,” said lobsterman Julia Eaton, who helped organize the gathering.

On May 28, Sen. Angus King, Collins, Pingree and Golden submitted a letter to acting NOAA Director Neil Jacobs. On July 10, the delegation submitted a similar letter to President Donald Trump, urging him to intervene in the conflict and acknowledge that Maine’s fishing gear does not appear to pose a risk to the whales’ shrinking population.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

Maine delegation asks for help easing tariff impact on lobster industry

July 15, 2019 — Maine’s Congressional delegation is urging the U.S. Department of Agriculture to include funding for Maine’s lobster industry as USDA finalizes its aid package for agricultural producers affected by China’s retaliatory tariffs.

U.S. Sens. Angus King, I-Maine, and Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Reps. Chellie Pingree, D-Maine 1st District, and Jared Golden, D-Maine 2nd District, have signed a letter that reiterates an earlier request of relief for Maine’s lobster industry amid the ongoing trade war with China, according to a news release.

“Retaliatory tariffs have caused a very significant export market for Maine lobster — China — to all but disappear,” the letter says.

The delegation requested “significant” funds for Maine’s lobster industry through USDA’s Agricultural Trade Promotion Program.

“ATP funding will help to develop new export markets for Maine lobster, decreasing the blow of Chinese tariffs on an iconic American industry,” the letter said.

In June, the delegation sent a letter to President Donald Trump urging him to provide financial assistance to lobster businesses hurt by the ongoing trade war with China, similar to the relief being provided to American farmers.

The delegation noted that prior to the Trump administration’s tariffs imposed on a variety of Chinese goods, China had become the second largest importer of Maine lobster.

Read the full story at MaineBiz

‘Why not lobsters?’: Mainers plead with Trump to help an industry suffering from his trade war

June 7, 2019 — The mild-mannered independent senator from Maine, Angus King, got angry as he watched President Trump announce a $16 billion bailout two Thursdays ago to help farmers who are losing money because of the U.S. trade war with China.

A guy from Idaho wearing a “Make Potatoes Great Again” hat stood appreciatively at the president’s side. So did producers of corn, soybeans, wheat and pork. They’re all getting another round of handouts from the Department of Agriculture.

But many of King’s constituents have also been suffering, and they’re getting the shaft from their government. Lobster exports to China, which had been booming for years, have plummeted 84 percent since Beijing imposed retaliatory tariffs last July, according to new data from the Maine International Trade Center. The growing Chinese middle class is eating more lobsters from Canada, which now cost them a quarter to a third less but taste no different.

“We’ve got an industry that’s suffering exactly the same kind of negative effects,” King said in an interview. “Why not lobsters? There’s no logical distinction that I can see. … I’m sure a lot of people in Maine had the same reaction I did watching that press conference: What are we, chopped lobster?”

To be sure, chopped lobster from Maine sounds delicious – especially if it’s thinly coated in mayonnaise and stuffed into a hot dog bun that’s been lightly toasted in butter. But, in all seriousness, King’s frustration underscores the degree to which Trump and his political appointees in Washington have been picking winners and losers. The lobster industry has been one of the losers.

Read the full story at The Washington Post