Saving Seafood

New England fishermen fear looming costs for at-sea monitors

October 21, 2015 — PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — New England fishermen, running out of time before the federal government hands them the cost of monitoring the industry at sea, say emergency intervention is needed or many of them will be out of business.

The monitors are trained workers who collect data on commercial fishing trips that help fishery managers with things like setting quotas on catches in future years. Officials with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said the money it had been using to pay for monitors who work in New England fisheries such as cod, pollock and haddock is going to run out around Dec. 1.

Fishermen will have to pay for the monitors, which can cost more than $700 per trip. The new cost is almost certain to put people out of work in a struggling fishery that is already challenged by declining fish stocks and tough quotas, said Ben Martens, executive director of the Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association.

“It’s really scary. At the same time, we have problems with our resources right now,” Martens said. “We need to make sure we have better and stronger business not just next year, but three and five years down the line.”

Read the full story from the Associated Press at the San Francisco Chronicle

 

Saltonstall-Kennedy Grant Program Telephone Town Hall Oct 22

October 20, 2015 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Saltonstall-Kennedy Grant Program Telephone Town Hall Meeting on October 22

Interested in applying for a Saltonstall-Kennedy Grant? 

To find out how, follow the directions below to join us this Thursday, October 22, at 4 pm (Eastern Standard Time). We are hosting this Webinar/Telephone Town Hall to provide an overview of the application process and to answer questions from anyone interested in applying for funding through this grant opportunity.The solicitation for this grant opportunity is open until November 2.  

To join this online meeting, you will need a computer and a phone. Follow these instructions:

1. Go to Webinar page

2. If requested, enter your name and email address 

3. Provide the event password: Meeting123 

4. Click “Join”

5. Follow the instructions that appear on your screen  

Note:  This webinar does not have audio so you will need to call in with the info below

Dial In: 866-647-1746

Participant Code: 6042534

Background:

On September 4, NOAA Fisheries announced approximately $10 million available to support fisheries projects through the competition. 

The goal of the Saltonstall-Kennedy grant program is to fund projects that address the needs of fishing communities, optimize economic benefits by building and maintaining sustainable fisheries, and increase other opportunities to keep working waterfronts viable. The 2016 solicitation seeks applications that fall into seven priority areas:

  • Aquaculture
  • Fishery data collection
  • Techniques for reducing bycatch and other adverse impacts
  • Adapting to climate change and other long term ecosystem change
  • Promotion, development, and marketing
  • Socio-economic research
  • Science coming from within the U.S. territories

If you have a project in mind, join us on Thursday so we can help you navigate the application process.

Credit: NOAA

NOAA: FishWatch Goes Mobile!

October 20, 2015 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

As part of National Seafood Month, we are excited to announce that our new FishWatch website is now live! Our new mobile-friendly website will enable you to access the Nation’s database on sustainable seafood anywhere, anytime, on any device. It still features the same great information, but it’s now easier to use on the go from your phone or tablet. The new FishWatch site will continue to help you:

  • Make smart seafood choices by arming you with the facts about what makes U.S. seafood sustainable-from the ocean or farm to your plate.
  • Get up-to-date information on the status of some of the nation’s most valuable marine fish harvested in U.S. federal waters as well as U.S. farmed fish that help meet our country’s growing seafood demand.
  • Understand how U.S. seafood is responsibly harvested and grown under a strong monitoring, management, and enforcement regime that works to keep the marine environment healthy, fish populations thriving, and our seafood industry on the job.

Be sure to check out the new FishWatch site anywhere, anytime! 

Reminder: SAFMC Scientific and Statistical Committee Meeting

Reminder: Scientific and Statistical Committee Meeting Scheduled October 20-22, 2015  

Meeting available via webinar, briefing book materials available

The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council will hold a meeting of its Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) on October 20-22, 2015 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, 4831 Tanger Outlet Boulevard, North Charleston, SC.   

The SSC will review projections and provide guidance on rebuilding strategies for the Florida Keys/East Florida hogfish stock, review measures for establishing Spawning Special Management Zones for snapper grouper species, the draft System Management Plan for Deepwater Marine Protected Areas, and proposed changes to the commercial black sea bass pot fishery.  The SSC will receive reports on recreational catch estimation for rarely encountered/intercepted species, landings of Council managed stocks, the NOAA Fisheries stock assessment prioritization approach, and address other issues.   

The SSC assists the Council in the development, collection, evaluation, and peer review of information relevant to fishery management plans and amendments. Additional information about the SSC is available from the Scientific and Statistical Committee page of the Council’s website.  

The meeting is open to the public and public comment will be accepted. The meeting is also accessible via webinar as it occurs. Registration for the webinar is required. Information on how to register for the webinar, along with the meeting agenda, overview, and briefing book materials is now available from the Council’s website.  For additional information contact John Carmichael, Science and Statistics Program Manager at john.carmichael@safmc.net.  

A message From Eileen Sobeck On At-Sea Monitors

October 14, 2015 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

I frequently share my admiration for the many talented and passionate people who make up the NOAA Fisheries workforce. I want to take this opportunity to recognize a cadre of highly trained, dedicated individuals who are part of the NOAA team and play a critical role in supporting our fisheries science and management.

At-sea fisheries monitors and observers are our eyes and ears on the water. They may spend days or weeks aboard commercial fishing vessels gathering first-hand information on what’s caught and thrown back.

The work is intense. Observers undergo a rigorous training program to be able to identify and take samples of the myriad ocean life that might come aboard. Getting it right is important because the stakes are high. The high-quality data they collect are used to monitor fisheries, assess fish populations, and inform management.

The working conditions are tough. Observers work alongside fishermen in stressful, strenuous and at times hazardous conditions. Fishing is one of the most dangerous professions in the world. NOAA’s observers and monitors are right there with those doing the dangerous work. This was tragically underscored recently when a member of our observer community, Keith Davis, went missing while at sea on a foreign vessel. There is an ongoing investigation into his disappearance led by the Government of Panama that is supported by the U.S. Embassy in Panama, the US Coast Guard investigative unit and the FBI.

Cooperation is critical. Deploying observers safely and collecting data at sea requires an active partnership between NOAA Fisheries, observers, observer providers, and the fishing industry.

We understand that at times, there can be tension among these parties. Observer safety is of utmost importance for me and NOAA as a whole. I understand tensions have been on the rise recently, but we must maintain respectful relationships. I have asked our law enforcement officers to remain vigilant and ensure the safety of our at-sea monitors and observers. Threats to these individuals will not be tolerated.

At-sea observers and monitors are dedicated professional scientists. They make a valuable contribution to our knowledge of fisheries and deserve our respect.

 

Trip Limit Decreased to 500 Pounds per Trip for Commercial Harvest of Gag in the South Atlantic

October 13, 2015 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Trip Limit Decreased to 500 Pounds per Trip for Commercial Harvest of Gag in the South Atlantic

The daily trip limit for the commercial harvest of gag in the South Atlantic is reduced from 1,000 pounds gutted weight to 500 pounds gutted weight, effective 12:01 a.m. (local time) October 18, 2015. NOAA Fisheries has determined 75 percent of the quota of 295,459 pounds gutted weight has been landed.

Reduction of the commercial gag trip limit in the South Atlantic complies with regulations implemented under the Fishery Management Plan for the Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic Region. The 500-pound gutted weight trip limit applies to vessels with a South Atlantic Unlimited Snapper-Grouper Permit fishing for gag in or from the federal waters in the South Atlantic region. The 500-pound gutted weight trip limit will remain in effect until the quota is reached and gag closes or until the end of the current 2015 fishing season, whichever occurs first.

NOAA Fisheries Alaska Regional Office: Strategic Plan 2016-2020

October 13, 2015 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries Alaska Regional Office:

The National Marine Fisheries Service’s (NOAA Fisheries) mission is the science-based stewardship of the nation’s living marine resources and their habitat. The Alaska Region is one of five regional offices that together support marine resource management in all Federal waters of the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone (US EEZ: 3-200 miles offshore). The Alaska Region is a bureau of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which is housed in the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC). The stepped strategic approach (figure 1) of DOC, NOAA, and NMFS informs and reinforces the Region’s science based stewardship mission.

NOAA Fisheries relies on a number of statutory authorities to define its mandate and authorize the execution of its mission. The principal statutes are the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act), the Endangered Species Act (ESA), and the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA).

A study in 2000 reported that NOAA Fisheries is the fourth largest promulgator of regulations in the Federal Government. A proportionally significant amount of this regulatory workload originates from the North Pacific, the overwhelming majority of which are developed under a uniquely participatory management system involving representatives from affected states and stakeholders, including the commercial and recreational fishing sectors. In the case of Alaska, the Region relies on the work of the North Pacific Fishery Management Council to ensure sustainable fishery harvest levels, establish conservation measures, and allocate resources among often competing user groups. Fishery management, along with the conservation of marine mammals and habitat, is supported by a robust scientific enterprise led by the NOAA Fisheries Alaska Fisheries Science Center. It is within this governance and scientific framework that the Region executes its stewardship mission.

Read the full release from NOAA Fisheries Alaska Regional Office

American Eel Population Remains Stable, Does not Need ESA Protection: Conservation efforts should continue for long-term species health

October 7, 2015 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

“The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission is encouraged by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s decision to not list American eel under the Endangered Species Act,” states Commission Chair Dr. Louis B. Daniel, III.  “The Commission, its member states, and federal partners have invested significant resources over the past several years to conduct the first coastwide benchmark stock assessment for American eel. The assessment findings, which were fully endorsed by an independent panel of fisheries scientists, have formed the basis of our current management for American eel. This management program seeks to reduce mortality and increase conservation of American eel stocks across all life stages.  However, given the current depleted status of the resource, there is still considerable work to be done to rebuild American eel. The Commission will continue to closely monitor American eel fisheries and the status of the resource, and make adjustments to the management program as necessary, to ensure stock rebuilding.”

See below for more information on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife’s finding.  

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced today that the American eel is stable and does not need protection under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Nonetheless, for the species’ long-term stability, the agency recommends continuing efforts to maintain healthy habitats, monitor harvest levels, and improve river passage for migrating eels.

The life of the American eel begins and ends in the Sargasso Sea in the North Atlantic Ocean. Millions of adult American eels leave waters from as far north as Greenland and south to Venezuela to reproduce in the Sargasso Sea. Hundreds of millions of American eel larvae return from the sea to freshwater, estuarine and marine waters. Their random mating behavior makes eels panmictic, meaning the species is composed of one population worldwide. They are a culturally and biologically important part of the aquatic ecosystems in the Western Hemisphere. American eels have been harvested for thousands of years by Native American cultures, and were an important part of the diet of early colonial settlers.

Today’s decision, also known as a 12-month finding, follows an in-depth status review on a 2010 petition to list the eel as threatened under the ESA. The review was largely based on a biological species report peer-reviewed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration-Fisheries, U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Forest Service, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Eel Technical Committee and academia. After examining the best scientific and commercial information available regarding past, present and future stressors facing the species, the Service determined the eel’s single population is overall stable and not in danger of extinction (endangered) or likely to become endangered within the foreseeable future (threatened).

While American eels still face local mortality from harvest and hydroelectric facilities, this is not threatening the overall species. Harvest quotas and mechanisms restoring eel passage around dams and other obstructions have also reduced these effects. Dam removals, culvert replacements, night-time hydroelectric facility shutdowns, and updated passage structures have restored habitat access in many areas. The Service is working with partners across the range on conservation efforts to ensure long-term stability for the American eel and other migratory fish species. The agency’s Northeast fisheries program alone has removed or improved more than 200 barriers to fish passage since 2009, opening more than 1,200 miles and 12,000 acres of rivers for aquatic wildlife including the American eel. The Service has also secured $10.4 million in Hurricane Sandy resilience funding to restore fish passage through removal of 13 dams in Connecticut, Maryland, New Jersey and Rhode Island.

American eels remain widely distributed throughout much of their historical range, despite habitat loss and reduced numbers over the past century. New information reiterates their flexibility and adaptability by indicating that some eels complete their life cycle in estuarine and marine waters, contrary to former research that suggested eels required freshwater for growing to adulthood.

This is the second time the Service has evaluated the American eel for listing under the ESA and found listing not warranted. The first decision came in 2007 after an extensive status review. This 12-month finding will be published in the Federal Register on October 8, 2015. The finding and supporting documents can be found at http://www.fws.gov/northeast/americaneel/.

More information is available on the American eel website.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Rejects Push to List American Eel Under Endangered Species Act

WASHINGTON (Saving Seafood) — October 7, 2015 — The following was released by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service:

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced today that the American eel is stable and does not need protection under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Nonetheless, for the species’ long-term stability, the agency recommends continuing efforts to maintain healthy habitats, monitor harvest levels, and improve river passage for migrating eels.

The life of the American eel begins and ends in the Sargasso Sea in the North Atlantic Ocean. Millions of adult American eels leave waters from as far north as Greenland and south to Venezuela to reproduce in the Sargasso Sea. Hundreds of millions of American eel larvae return from the sea to freshwater, estuarine and marine waters. Their random mating behavior makes eels panmictic, meaning the species is composed of one population worldwide. They are a culturally and biologically important part of the aquatic ecosystems in the Western Hemisphere. American eels have been harvested for thousands of years by Native American cultures, and were an important part of the diet of early colonial settlers.

Today’s decision, also known as a 12-month finding, follows an in-depth status review on a 2010 petition to list the eel as threatened under the ESA. The review was largely based on a biological species report peer-reviewed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration-Fisheries, U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Forest Service, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Eel Technical Committee and academia. After examining the best scientific and commercial information available regarding past, present and future stressors facing the species, the Service determined the eel’s single population is overall stable and not in danger of extinction (endangered) or likely to become endangered within the foreseeable future (threatened).

While American eels still face local mortality from harvest and hydroelectric facilities, this is not threatening the overall species. Harvest quotas and mechanisms restoring eel passage around dams and other obstructions have also reduced these effects. Dam removals, culvert replacements, night-time hydroelectric facility shutdowns, and updated passage structures have restored habitat access in many areas. The Service is working with partners across the range on conservation efforts to ensure long-term stability for the American eel and other migratory fish species. The agency’s Northeast fisheries program alone has removed or improved more than 200 barriers to fish passage since 2009, opening more than 1,200 miles and 12,000 acres of rivers for aquatic wildlife including the American eel. The Service has also secured $10.4 million in Hurricane Sandy resilience funding to restore fish passage through removal of 13 dams in Connecticut, Maryland, New Jersey and Rhode Island.

American eels remain widely distributed throughout much of their historical range, despite habitat loss and reduced numbers over the past century. New information reiterates their flexibility and adaptability by indicating that some eels complete their life cycle in estuarine and marine waters, contrary to former research that suggested eels required freshwater for growing to adulthood.

This is the second time the Service has evaluated the American eel for listing under the ESA and found listing not warranted. The first decision came in 2007 after an extensive status review. This 12-month finding will be published in the Federal Register on October 8, 2015. The finding and supporting documents can be found at http://www.fws.gov/northeast/americaneel/.

Read the release from the Fish and Wildlife Service here

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission released the following statement on the decision by the Fish and Wildlife Service:

“The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission is encouraged by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s decision to not list American eel under the Endangered Species Act,” states Commission Chair Dr. Louis B. Daniel, III. “The Commission, its member states, and federal partners have invested significant resources over the past several years to conduct the first coastwide benchmark stock assessment for American eel. The assessment findings, which were fully endorsed by an independent panel of fisheries scientists, have formed the basis of our current management for American eel. This management program seeks to reduce mortality and increase conservation of American eel stocks across all life stages.  However, given the current depleted status of the resource, there is still considerable work to be done to rebuild American eel. The Commission will continue to closely monitor American eel fisheries and the status of the resource, and make adjustments to the management program as necessary, to ensure stock rebuilding.”

PORTSMOUTH HERALD: NOAA monitoring fee will kill local fishing industry

WASHINGTON (Saving Seafood) — October 6, 2015 — The following editorial appeared yesterday in the Portsmouth Herald in Portsmouth, New Hampshire:

Local fishermen say the looming cost of paying $700 per day, for at-sea monitors, could put them out of business by the end of the year.

It’s a threat that everyone should take seriously.

“The day I really have to pay for this is the day I stop going fishing,” says David Goethel, a commercial fisherman from Hampton.

Stringent federal catch limits have already crippled the 400-year-old fishing industry in New Hampshire to the point where there are now only nine active groundfishing boat operators.

This additional expense, to make sure fishermen are following regulations put forward by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), could be the final nail in the coffin.

That’s why we were pleased that last week NOAA delayed the downshifting of the costs to fishermen until Dec. 1. We urge NOAA and our congressional leaders to do what they can to ensure that the delay is permanent because it’s the right thing to do.

NOAA has been footing the bill for the at-sea monitoring program for several years, and rightly so as it’s the federal agency’s responsibility to ensure that annual catch limits are not exceeded.

At-sea monitors keep track of how vessels are meeting their groundfishing allocations set by NOAA to keep groundfish stocks like cod, haddock and flounder from being destroyed.

NOAA’s current rules state that at-sea monitoring costs were to be instituted in 2012. However, they have delayed implementation because of the “continuing economic problems” in the industry, according to Teri Frady, spokesperson for NOAA’s Northeast Fisheries Science Center.

While the fishing industry is still in crisis, NOAA is now claiming it can’t afford to foot the bill for the monitors.

We find it hard, however, to believe that an agency with a billion dollar budget can’t afford it.

The real people who can’t afford it are the fishermen, who are already struggling to stay afloat due to the heavy regulations.

The cost for at-sea monitors will likely be near $700 per day for each vessel, a figure based on what NOAA paid in fiscal year 2015.

In an email to congressional staff, NOAA regulators admit the change would be “economically challenging” for many.

Studies by NOAA show that as many as 60 percent of affected boats could be pushed out of profitability if they have to pay those fees.

Sen. Kelly Ayotte was right to question whether this decision to downshift costs violates the law.

By law, according to the National Standards of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, NOAA is directed to sustain both fish stocks and fishing communities.

Forcing fishermen to pay for at-sea monitors may support sustainable fisheries but it will kill the local groundfishing industry.

Read the full editorial from the Portsmouth Herald