June 1, 2020 — Eighty-six workers for American Seafoods have tested positive for COVID-19 after an outbreak onboard the company’s American Dynasty trawler.
The company announced over the weekend that one crew member had tested positive for the virus, prompting testing of all 124 employees onboard the vessel. American Seafoods spokesperson Suzanne Lagoni told SeafoodSource that nine tests were still pending as of Monday morning.
May 28, 2020 — The University of Washington’s selection to host a new research consortium is a testament to the school’s well-earned reputation. It will help advance understanding of climate, ocean dynamics and marine ecosystems, building on the school’s track record of excellence in the field.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced last week that the UW will lead a new Cooperative Institute for Climate, Ocean, and Ecosystem Studies, which includes Oregon State University and University of Alaska Fairbanks. The designation comes with up to $300 million in funding for research into areas such as climate and ocean variability, the impacts of climate change on marine ecosystems, aquaculture and polar studies, in conjunction with the NOAA labs.
The selection is a testament to the UW’s research prowess: The commitment is nearly triple the last NOAA Cooperative Institute award to UW and formalizes longstanding collaborations among researchers along the West Coast.
May 22, 2020 — Casual conversation over coffee has turned into fully-funded collaborative sardine research project between the seafood industry and fishery scientists.
Ocean Gold Seafood, based in Westport, Wash., received word this week it received a $295,800 Saltonstall-Kennedy grant on behalf of the West Coast Pelagic Conservation Group. The collaborative study will help inform sardine stock assessments and improve the understanding of other pelagic species such as herring, anchovies and mackerel.
May 22, 2020 — The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has selected the University of Washington to host a Pacific Northwest research institute focusing on climate, ocean and coastal challenges, supported by a five-year award worth up to $300 million.
May 14, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:
For 28 years Riley Starks has fished near Lummi Island, Washington, netting Chinook, coho, sockeye, pink, and chum salmon. He also owns a bed and breakfast on the island that specializes in providing guests with unique skill-building experiences. They can smoke salmon and make jam and ikura, which is seasoned and cured salmon roe. He has observed many of the Puget Sound area’s 17 species of kelp—or brown macroalgae—while tending his nets.
He jumped at the chance to further build his own skills as part of intensive training in seaweed farming sponsored by Washington Sea Grant. In early February, he joined about 30 seaweed enthusiasts, including representatives of four tribes, seven military veterans, several commercial fishermen, and shellfish farmers. They took a three-day deep dive into the seaweed industry.
“The training was comprehensive and excellent,” Starks said. “I particularly appreciated the emphasis on the importance of working with the tribes early in the process—they have unique and important rights that must be respected.”
Seaweed farming has taken off in recent years in Maine and Alaska, which have dozens of farms and more in the works. Despite the increase in domestic production, the United States remains the fifth largest importer of seaweed for human consumption. Seaweed is added to many products, such as salsas, sauces, salads, seasonings, and pastas, used in restaurants and at home. That market demand, plus the health and environmental benefits of seaweed farming, have generated interest in Washington state. Uncertainty exists about the permitting process and access to local processing facilities, given the newness of kelp farming in local waters.
May 13, 2020 — A $50 million support package is in place for Washington’s non-tribal fishing and shellfish industries, members of the state’s congressional delegation announced last week.
“Thousands of fishermen around the Pacific Northwest are feeling the impacts of restaurant, fishing, and tourism season closures due to covid-19 and the loss of seafood sales. Due to the unique nature of fishing businesses, many have been left without federal assistance until now,” U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell said in a press release. “Having $50 million coming to Washington state fishermen in grants and other direct assistance will provide much-needed money to fishing businesses to keep them a part of our maritime economy.”
The funding comes from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act for states, tribes and territories with coastal and marine fishery participants who have been negatively affected by covid.
“The outbreak of covid-19 has put an incredible strain on Southwest Washington businesses, causing severe economic losses for our coastal fishing and shellfish industries,” U.S. Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler said. “I was pleased to help secure this funding for our coastal fishermen and shellfish growers to provide a level of certainty that will help them tread water until their businesses are back up and running.”
May 12, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:
Consider this Northwest twist on a familiar saying: “Give a killer whale a salmon, and it will eat for a day. Restore the habitat the salmon and whales depend on, and they will live for generations to come.” At NOAA Fisheries we are determined to get more Chinook salmon to the endangered Southern Resident killer whales, and that begins with more and better habitat.
It is up to everyone to maintain room for these magnificent creatures as our own footprint on the Puget Sound region grows ever bigger.Focusing on salmon habitat is essential.
Improving Salmon Habitat
Washington Governor Jay Inslee’s Orca Task Force emphasized habitat. It highlighted actions such as removing culverts that block salmon migration, protecting shoreline habitat, and building on other efforts throughout the region. We must work together to restore the streams where salmon spawn and grow, and protect the dwindling nearshore habitat that shelters and nourishes juveniles.
Improving fish passage through dams must continue. It is important to get salmon into their prime habitat.
Through partnerships, we’ve made progress in recent years on these goals. Restored habitat in the Skagit River estuary, funded in part by the Pacific Coastal Salmon Recovery Fund, now supports hundreds of thousands more Chinook salmon smolts. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is constructing fish passage at Mud Mountain Dam, renewing access to miles of habitat in the White River. The Nisqually Tribe led one of Puget Sound’s most ambitious tidal marsh restoration efforts in the Nisqually River Delta—just to name a few.
May 8, 2020 — Washington state will receive about $50 million in federal-relief dollars to assist both the commercial-seafood and sport-fishing-charter industries stung by the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a statement released Thursday by the federal Commerce Department.
The money is carved out of the massive economic stimulus package known as the CARES ACT that was passed by Congress in March and is intended to assist in both direct and indirect fishery-related losses. Those eligible to apply for the funds include fishermen, tribes, processors and aquaculture companies.
Washington state’s seafood industry has many ties to Alaska, which also received $50 million of the $300 million that will be awarded nationally to assist the seafood and charter boat industries, according to the statement.
May 8, 2020 — On Thursday, 7 May, the Trump administration finally rolled out its plan for allocating the USD 300 million (EUR 276.6 million) in fishery relief aid earmarked in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act). Reaction on Capitol Hill was nearly unanimous – more money will be needed, according to lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.
The U.S. Commerce Department awarded a third of the funding to two states, Alaska and Washington. Both states received USD 50 million (EUR 46.1 million) in aid. While Alaska is by far the leading seafood-producing state, producing 5.4 billion pounds of seafood worth USD 1.8 billion (EUR 1.66 billion) in 2019, some questioned the method by which the allocation was determined.
May 8, 2020 — The following was released by Glenn Cooke, CEO of Cooke Seafood:
Glenn Cooke, CEO of the Cooke family of companies, provided the following statement after President Donald Trump signed the first ever Executive Order that includes provisions to improve U.S. aquaculture competitiveness and economic growth on Thursday.
“I am very pleased President Trump has recognized that domestic farmed production of aquaculture seafood is vital to help correct the severe trade imbalance and strengthen local food security. This should be viewed as a call to State and local governments that the country is in dire need of domestically produced seafood protein and that they should find ways to support, promote, and expand this essential food sector as other countries have.
As a family company, with marine fish farming operations in Maine and Washington and shellfish farming in North Carolina, and wild fisheries in other states including Virginia, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alaska, we are extremely proud of the hard work and dedication that our people put in every day to produce healthy seafood meals for families across the USA. Cooke Aquaculture USA in Maine was very proud to have been chosen as the supplier of sustainably farmed Atlantic salmon for the President’s 2017 inauguration. Our strong operations have shown that aquaculture presents a tremendous opportunity to create thousands of jobs and build vibrant working waterfronts co-existing with traditional fisheries in rural coastal communities.
President Trump and his Executive Agencies are to be commended for their leadership to address the regulatory challenges with establishing seafood farms by revising the National Aquaculture Development Plan and implementing a Nationwide Permit authorizing finfish, seaweed or multi-trophic culture in federal marine waters.”
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