Saving Seafood

NEFMC Elects Eric Reid as Chair, Rick Bellavance as Vice Chair; Welcomes Four New Members to the Table

September 28, 2021 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council held its annual election of officers at the start of its September 28-30, 2021 webinar meeting. It voted in Eric Reid as chairman and Rick Bellavance as vice chairman to lead the Council in the year ahead. Both are from Rhode Island.

Eric was the Council’s vice chair for the past two years and then became acting chairman in mid-August when Dr. John Quinn, who chaired the Council for the past five years, became ineligible for reappointment after serving three consecutive three-year terms on the Council.

Chairman Reid is a fisheries consultant based in North Kingstown, RI. Over his 47-year career in commercial and recreational fisheries, he has been actively engaged in all facets of the industry both at sea and shoreside. He previously owned and operated his own business, Deep Sea Fish of Rhode Island, for 11 years and worked for numerous other companies, including Seafreeze Shoreside Inc., Seafresh USA, and The Town Dock. He was the past president of the Rhode Island Seafood Council and the American Seafood Institute, and he was a founding member of both the East Coast Fisheries Association and the New England Seafood Producers Association. He served as the New England Council’s liaison to the MidAtlantic Council and has represented the New England Council on several MidAtlantic Council committees.

Chairman Reid also is on the board of directors of RODA, the Responsible Offshore Development Alliance, and serves as the alliance’s treasurer. He is a U.S. Commissioner to the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO) and serves as Rhode Island State Senator Susan Sosnowski’s proxy on the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC).

After being elected unopposed and by acclamation, Chairman Reid said of his new position, “I appreciate everyone’s support. It’s certainly an honor and a very humbling experience.”

Rick Bellavance is the owner/operator of Priority Charters, LLC, a charter fishing business located in Point Judith. A lifelong Rhode Island resident, he has engaged in a variety of recreational and commercial fishing industries for over 30 years. Rick currently serves as the president of the Rhode Island Party and Charter Boat Association. For more than a decade, he has represented the recreational for-hire fishing industry on state, regional, and federal panels, committees, and commissions. He has worked steadily to help develop electronic reporting tools that can improve recreational catch estimates, and he strongly supports improvements to the Marine Recreational Information Program (MRIP). Rick represents the Council on the NOAA Fisheries Highly Migratory Species Advisory Panel and the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) Advisory Committee to the U.S. Section of ICCAT. He has represented the New England Council on several Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic Council committees.

Read the full release here

 

NEFMC September 28-30, 2021 Webinar Meeting – Listen Live, View Documents

September 21, 2021 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council will hold a three-day meeting from Tuesday, September 28 through Thursday, September 30, 2021.  The public is invited to listen live and provide input during designated opportunities for public comment.  Due to ongoing public safety considerations related to COVID-19, this meeting will be conducted entirely by webinar.

START TIME:  9:00 a.m. daily.  The webinar will end shortly after the Council adjourns each day.

PUBLIC COMMENT OPPORTUNITIES:  The Council wants to hear from you.  Here’s how you can let the Council know what you think.

  • TALK TO THE COUNCIL:  You’ll be able to address the Council directly through two different avenues:
  1. By commenting on motions at the discretion of the Council chair (raise your hand on the webinar and unmute yourself when called upon); and
  1. By speaking during the open period for public comment.  Here are the Guidelines for Providing Public Comment.
  • OPEN PERIOD FOR PUBLIC COMMENT:  On Thursday, September 30, 2021 at 1:30 p.m., the Council will offer the public an opportunity to provide comments on issues relevant to Council business but not listed on this agenda.  Given the Council’s busy meeting schedule, we ask that you limit remarks to 3-5 minutes.
    • SIGN UP NOW:  Interested in speaking?  Email Janice Plante at jplante@nefmc.org to get on the list. 

WEBINAR REGISTRATION:  Online access to the meeting is available at Listen Live.  There is no charge to access the meeting through this webinar.

  • THIS IS KEY!  If you want to speak during opportunities for public comment, you need to: (1) register for the webinar; and (2) actually “join” the webinar.  People who call in by telephone without joining the webinar will be in listen-only mode.  Those who take both steps – register and then join the webinar – will see the meeting screen and be able to click on a “raise hand” button, which will let the meeting organizer know you want to be unmuted to speak.
  • We have a Help Desk in case you get stuck joining the webinar or have trouble along the way.  Phone numbers are listed on the Help Desk Poster, or just email helpdesk@nefmc.org and we’ll get right back to you.

WEBINAR CALL-IN OPTION:  To listen by telephone, dial +1 (914) 614-3221.  The access code is 906-934-652.  Please be aware that if you dial in, your regular phone charges will apply.

AGENDA:  All meeting materials and the agenda are available on the Council’s website at NEFMC September 28-30, 2021 meeting.  Additional documents will be posted as they become available.

THREE MEETING OUTLOOK:  A copy of the New England Council’s Three Meeting Outlook is available HERE.

COUNCIL MEETING QUESTIONS:  Anyone with questions prior to or during the Council meeting should contact Janice Plante at (607) 592-4817, jplante@nefmc.org.

 

Fishery regulators ponder how climate change will affect ocean management 

September 7, 2021 — Fishery regulators up and down the east coast met in a series of remote meetings last week to help them address how fishery management needs to evolve to handle an era of climate change in the coming decades.  

“We’re likely going to have to approach things differently in order to cope with these new and very uncertain conditions ahead,” said Deirdre  Boelke, a fishery analyst with the New England Marine Fisheries Council, at the first meeting, which included participants from several organizations and other members of the fisheries community.  

The “East Coast Climate Change Scenario Planning” series was done to rethink how the fisheries are governed, the different structures of management and how the different regulating bodies on the Atlantic coast would collaborate going forward at a time where species may be moving outside of their traditional range.   

Read the full story at the Mount Desert Islander

 

Sea Scallop Research Program Seeks Proposals

August 20, 2021 — NOAA Fisheries is soliciting proposals for the 2022-2023 Sea Scallop Research Set-Aside Program, in coordination with the New England Fishery Management Council.

Approved applications are awarded pounds of scallops that have been set aside to pay for research experiments.

No federal funds are provided for research.

The New England Fishery Management Council sets the priorities for the research, and NOAA Fisheries administers the competition, oversees awarded projects and set-aside harvest activities.

Read the full story at CapeCod.com

Sea Scallop Research Program Seeks Proposals

August 19, 2021 — NOAA Fisheries is soliciting proposals for the 2022-2023 Sea Scallop Research Set-Aside Program, in coordination with the New England Fishery Management Council.

Approved applications are awarded pounds of scallops that have been set aside to pay for research experiments.

No federal funds are provided for research.

The New England Fishery Management Council sets the priorities for the research, and NOAA Fisheries administers the competition, oversees awarded projects and set-aside harvest activities.

Read the full story at CapeCod.com

NOAA Fisheries Announces Gulf of Maine Cod and Haddock Recreational Regulations for 2021

August 18, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA Fisheries is announcing that current Gulf of Maine (GOM) cod and haddock recreational measures will remain in place for the remainder of fishing year 2021, which ends April 30. 2022.

The recreational fishery for GOM cod and haddock is managed under the Northeast Multispecies Fishery Management Plan (Plan). The Plan includes a proactive recreational accountability measure, which allows the Regional Administrator, in consultation with the New England Fishery Management Council, to develop recreational management measures for the fishing year to ensure that the recreational quotas are achieved, but not exceeded. We project that current measures for GOM cod and haddock should prevent the recreational fishery’s quotas from being exceeded.

Read the full release here

Scallop RSA Program: Time to Submit Applications for 2022-2023 Awards Based on Council Research Priorities

August 18, 2021 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

NOAA Fisheries has begun soliciting proposals for research projects to be carried out under the 2022-2023 Atlantic Sea Scallop Research Set-Aside (RSA) Program. The submission deadline is October 22, 2021.

Proposals should respond to the research priorities established by the New England Fishery Management Council. During its June 2021 webinar meeting, the Council determined that resource surveys should be the highest priority for the next round of RSA awards. The Council also identified two “high priority” and three “general research” categories, which are summarized in the table below and described in more detail in this letter to the Northeast Fisheries Science Center.

The Scallop RSA Program is a joint effort between the Council, which manages the scallop fishery and sets research priorities, and NOAA Fisheries, which administers the competition, oversees awarded projects, and monitors set-aside harvest activities.

Read the full release here

Scallop Research Set-Aside Proposals Sought

August 18, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA Fisheries, in coordination with the New England Fishery Management Council, is soliciting proposals for the 2022-2023 Sea Scallop Research Set-Aside Program.

Successful applicants are awarded pounds of scallops that have been “set aside” to pay for research expenses; no federal funds are provided. Researchers and fishermen partner to harvest awarded scallops, and the proceeds are used to fund the research and compensate fishing industry partners.

The New England Fishery Management Council sets the research priorities, and NOAA Fisheries administers the competition, oversees awarded projects, and oversees set-aside harvest activities.

The research set-aside programs are designed to inform resource management decisions and improve stock assessments. Proposals are evaluated for scientific merit and for relevance to scallop fishery management.

For more information on the program and how to apply, please visit our funding opportunity announcement.

Questions?

Jonathon Peros, New England Fishery Management Council

Ryan Silva, NOAA Fisheries Greater Atlantic Regional Office

NEFMC SSC – Listen Live – Tuesday, August 24, 2021 – Groundfish Issues

August 17, 2021 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council’s Scientific and Statistical Committee will meet by webinar to discuss issues related to groundfish.  The public is invited to listen live.  Here are the details.

WHEN:  Tuesday, August 24, 2021

START TIME:  9:00 a.m.

WEBINAR REGISTRATION:  Online access to the meeting is available at Listen Live.  There is no charge to access the meeting through this webinar.

CALL-IN OPTION:  To listen by telephone, dial +1 (415) 655-0052.  The access code is 131-042-664.  Please be aware that if you dial in, your regular phone charges will apply.

AGENDA:  The SSC will meet to:

  • Review recent stock assessment information from the U.S/Canada Transboundary Resources Assessment Committee and information provided by the Council’s Groundfish Plan Development Team (PDT);
  • Recommend the overfishing limit (OFL) and acceptable biological catch (ABC) for Georges Bank yellowtail flounder for the 2022 and 2023 fishing years; and
  • Consider other business as necessary.

COMMENTS:  The deadline for submitting written comments for consideration at this meeting is 8:00 a.m. on Friday, August 20, 2021.  Address comments to Council Acting Chairman Eric Reid or Executive Director Tom Nies and email them to comments@nefmc.org.  Additional information is available in the meeting notice.

MATERIALS:  All documents for this meeting will be posted on the SSC August 24, 2021 meeting webpage.

QUESTIONS:  Contact Joan O’Leary at (978) 465-0492, ext. 101, joleary@nefmc.org or Janice Plante at (607) 592-4817, jplante@nefmc.org.

Fish councils prepare for climate change

August 16, 2021 — The New England Fishery Management Council is joining other East Coast marine management councils to plan for a future marked by the continuing detrimental impacts of climate change.

The project, called East Coast Climate Change Scenario Planning, is a response to the accelerating and debilitating impacts on fish stocks and marine habitats caused by the effects of climate change.

“No one knows for sure what the future holds, but a continuation or acceleration of climate change has the potential to strain our existing fishery management system and alter the way fishermen, scientists, and the public interact with the marine environment,” the NFMC stated. “Scenario planning is a way of exploring how fishery management may need to evolve over the next few decades as climate change becomes a bigger issue.”

The other organizations participating in the initiative are the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, NOAA Fisheries’ Gloucester-based Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office, the Northeast Fisheries Science Center and the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council.

The Northeast Regional Coordinating Council, which consists of leadership from the MAFMC, NEFMC, ASMFC, GARFO, and NEFSC, will be the primary decision-making body for the initiative, with the addition of South Atlantic representatives.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times