Category Archives: Western Pacific
US tuna boats could lose licenses on January 1st
The chief executive of the Parties to the Nauru Agreement says the US tuna fleet has till the end of the month to pay up or lose its fishing license. Transform Aqorau says under the vessel day scheme agreement the fleet has to pay US$17 million dollars per quarter for fishing days but it may come up short for its payments for the first quarter of 2016. Mr Aqorau says the shortfall is an internal issue stemming from the Pago Pago based fleet of fishing vessels which have taken on more days than they can afford. Read the article here 18:48
The NOAA Oversight Project – Fisherman’s FOIA’s Squeeze NOAA
From Dutch Harbor to the Old Harbor Float in Petersburg, from Gloucester and all the way round to Corpus Christi, wherever Americans untied their boats to fish in the decades since the Magnuson Act passed, fishermen had to take on science, politics, and NOAA. Some of you spent your shore time up to your knees in fish politics dividing the stock or arguing with managers about areas or days at sea. Because you engaged in politics, new generations of kids setting and hauling gear can still catch fish. Sort of– Sit down, put a mug up, and read this expose. You will be shocked. Read the article here 16:28
Hawaii Longliners get a Christmas Gift, Ahi Ruling Upheld! Enviro’s get coal.
A federal judge has ruled longline fishermen in Hawaii may continue catching more bigeye tuna, or ahi, than the maximum set by international regulators. U.S. District Judge Leslie Kobayashi on Wednesday issued a ruling rejecting environmental groups’ claims that the extra fishing is illegal. The opinion came just in time for the year-end holidays when Hawaii consumers crowd stores to buy ahi sashimi for Christmas and New Year’s celebrations. A ruling adverse to the fishermen had the potential to shut down or curtail the Hawaii fishery for the rest of the calendar year. Read the article here 20:50
American Tuna Boat Association – ‘Difficult year’ for purse seiners
The president of the American Tuna Boat Association is forecasting a difficult year ahead for purse seiners supplying the two canneries in American Samoa. Brian Hallman, who attended last week’s meeting of the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission, says its failure to increase fishing days on the high seas is not a good outcome for the US fleet. He says with no fishing on the high seas or in Pacific Island countries’ waters, vessels will either tie up and not fish or leave the western Pacific area. Read the article here 12:19
Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council’s Pacific Islands Fishery News!
Welcome to the Winter 2016 edition of the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council’s Pacific Islands Fishery News! Click here to download the complete PDF and be sure to allow a few extra seconds for the file to upload. Our last newsletter of 2015 is dedicated to the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council’s activities in Hawai’i, one of our areas of jurisdiction. We hope that the sections on management, research and community projects will offer you a glimpse of the breadth of what we do-from conserving fishery ecosystems to promoting the livelihood of fishermen and a culture of fishing and from serving as the bridge between fishermen and the government to fulfilling our requirements.. Read it here
NOAA Office of Law Enforcement releases its first-ever Annual Report.
From tackling seafood fraud nationally to helping crack down on illegal fishing internationally, we’re here to make sure that those who obey the rules reap the benefits of fair competition and an even playing field in the market. We protect marine resources and their habitat and help safeguard the health of seafood consumers and the livelihoods of coastal communities. OLE releases its first-ever Annual Report. Read the Report here 16:34
Pew lie’s, Pew cry’s – Pacific tuna conservation meeting ends in deadlock
Environ mental groups expressed frustration Wednesday after a key Pacific fishing industry meeting failed to adopt measures to protect vulnerable tuna species from overfishing. The Pew Charitable Trusts said the bluefin and bigeye tuna species could become severely depleted due to inaction by the . Critics said a commission meeting, which wrapped up in the Indonesian island of Bali late Tuesday, also did nothing to prevent shark-finning and illegal fishing. Read the article here 08:18
Vessel Day Scheme – US gives official notice to reduce fishing days
The United States is seeking to renege on an agreement it signed with the 17 member Pacific Island Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA) member states, admitting it cannot afford to pay the full $89.2m deal it signed in Brisbane with Pacific Island nations. The agreement is important for American Samoa as it controls access to neighboring fishing grounds for US purse seiners that deliver to the local canneries. A statement from PNA says the US now says it cannot afford to fish in PNA waters under the Vessel Day Scheme. Read the article here 09:51
Hawaii fishermen paying Guam $200K to fish 2,000 metric tons of Guam’s bigeye tuna quota
Guam is getting a $200,000 financial benefit from Hawaii-based longline fishermen who have exhausted multiple catch limits for tuna, or ahi, this year. By allowing Hawaii longline fishermen to catch ahi in Guam’s name, there will be a record of bigeye catch for Guam. Having that record may help ensure that Guam’s quota won’t be taken away in succeeding years — in the event future generations of Guam fishermen would have the capability to catch bigeye tuna, Duenas said. Read the article here 14:57
Enviros Upset! Hawaii-based longline fishermen allowed to keep catching ahi
Regulators have approved a deal allowing Hawaii fishermen to attribute up to 1,000 metric tons of bigeye tuna catch to Guam, said Mike Tosatto, National Marine Fisheries Service regional administrator for the Pacific Islands. Environmentalists say the arrangement contributes to the overfishing of bigeye tuna in the western and central Pacific. Environmentalists argue this enables fishermen to circumvent international agreements aimed at controlling overfishing of bigeye. yeah yeah. Read the article here 08:45
Governor pleads to Commerce Secretary for help, NMFS maybe leaning towards longliners in LVPA rule
Two posts – “Less time need be spent on researching how dependent we are on tuna and more time must be spent on getting our fleet to high seas waters.“ That’s a statement in a four page letter from Governor Lolo to US Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker expressing his disappointment, Read the post here Meanwhile, The National Marine Fisheries Service says it’s not ready just yet to decide on lifting large fishing vessel restrictions in a 50-mile prohibited area near American Samoa, Read the post here 09:40
“Time is not on our side, so we must act now” – Grassroots petition asks US President to save canneries
A grassroots movement has been formed by local businesswoman Mrs Kathy Pilimai and local businesses and working class people to help save the local tuna industry. This citizens movement has put together a petition and hopes to collect 10,000 signatures for every one living in the territory with a valid ID, calling on President Barack Obama to help save the local canneries. The petition is prompted by a statement by StarKist last week that due to a combination of factors which has driven up their costs and made them less competitive, they are looking at moving,,, Read the rest here 12:40
Tri Marine reports drop in purse seiners calling into port
Tri Marine International says it has seen a dramatic decrease in the number of purse seiners calling into American Samoa since the high seas were closed to US flagged tuna boats in June of this year. Not only does this affect the supply of fish for StarKist Samoa and Samoa Tuna Processors it also means a loss in revenue for the government and many businesses that supply the purse seiners. Heidi Happonen, spokesperson for Tri Marine says a purse seiner typically spends between $300,000 and $400,000 when in port. Read the rest here 12:46
Pago Pago: Local businesses feeling impact of purse seiner loss
Some local businesses are feeling the effects of purse seiners cancelling trips to Pago Pago to off load their catches, as a result of a ban on US tuna boats in nearby fishing grounds. Local stevedore company Blue Angel which has been in business for 57 years reports that they have lost 60% of their income as a result of several purse seiners not calling into Pago Pago. Owner Herman Popeye Thomsen says his workers used to be paid $200 to $300 a week. But with the cancellations of purse seiners that normally off load at the local canneries, they are earning only $80 to $90 for 1-2 days of work. Read the rest here 13:23
Starkist threatens to move ops away from American Samoa due to rising wages, fishing rules
US tuna canner Starkist has imposed a hiring freeze in 
and warned that it is considering shifting some of its production to Ecuador and Senegal,,, In a statement this Monday, the company owned by South Korea’s Dongwon Industries said the recent decision by the US Congress to raise minimum wages in American Samoa has dealt the company a “financial blow” and is the latest challenge to affect its local cannery. “Our cannery has been directly impacted by the closure of access to the high seas and NMFS needs to recognize the unique nature of American Samoa’s small and developing economy,” according to the statement. Read the rest here 16:55
DMWR Director reports on use of Disaster Relief Fund
Director of Marine and Wildlife Resources Dr. Ruth Matagi Tofiga has provided a status report on the use of the $1 million Disaster Relief Fund that the US Congress provided in Fiscal Year 2014 to help revive the bottomfish fishery in American Samoa. The grant was in response to the September 2009 tsunami which destroyed fishing docks and facilities and fishing boats. DMWR conducted a survey of alia boat owners and fishermen and determined the priorities for funding. These were direct compensation for damaged or lost alia vessels,,, Read the rest here 11:13
ENGO’s with big money influence decision making on fisheries
There were repeated statements made at last week’s meeting of the Western Pacific Fishery Management Council that the US Government regulations are hurting the whole fishing industry, from boat owners to fishermen to canneries and the communities they operate in. Hawaii Council member Michael Goto said, “When international regulations cause a fishery to close, I don’t see how we can convince other nations to abide by our standards. Goto told KHJ News that many of the regulations hurting fisheries are the result of lobbying by non government and environmental groups. Audio, Read the rest here 15:25
National Marine Fisheries Service yearbook of fishery statistics for the United States for 2014 is here!
The report provides data on U.S. recreational catch and commercial fisheries landings and value as well as other aspects of U.S. commercial fishing. In addition, data are reported on the U.S. fishery processing industry, imports and exports of fishery-related products, and domestic supply and per capita consumption of fishery products. The NMFS Fisheries Statistics Division in Silver Spring, MD, managed the collection and compilation of recreational statistics, in cooperation with various States and Interstate Fisheries Commissions, and tabulated and prepared all data for publication. Read the report here 13:39
Fishing Company Charged Over $1 Million in Oil Spill Penalties
In its complaint, filed today along with the lodging of a consent decree in the U.S. District Court for the District of Hawaii, the United States alleges that the Tri-Marine companies are liable for the October 2014 oil spill from their 230-foot commercial , into Pago Pago Harbor in American Samoa and related violations of the Coast Guard’s spill prevention regulations. After the Capt. Vincent Gann returned to Pago Pago Harbor from a two-month fishing voyage, it struck two moored fishing vessels while maneuvering in the harbor on Oct. 16, 2014. Read the rest here 10:53
Good Samaritan Vessels Rescue 36 from Burning Fishing Vessel in Remote Pacific
The 36-member crew of a Papua New Guinea-flagged commercial purse seiner are safe following a joint rescue by good samaritan vessels and search and rescue authorities in a remote part of the Pacific Ocean approximately 2,071 miles southwest of Hawaii. Coast Guard Watchstanders in Honolulu received a request Saturday from the Rescue Coordination Center New Zealand to provide resources after the 229-foot purse seiner Glory Pacific No. 8 reportedly caught fire in the Pacific and the full crew abandoned ship into two skiffs and several life rafts. Video, Read the rest here, and here 14:46
American Samoa’s small and developing economy – Closure of fishing grounds helping foreign competitors
Owners of StarKist Samoa, say the National Marine Fisheries Service needs to recognize the unique nature of . They say StarKist Samoa has been directly impacted by the closure of access to the high seas. Michelle Faist spokesperson for StarKist told KHJ News these unnecessary restrictions have driven the purse seine fleet into distant waters where they are now catching fish under a U.S. flag to benefit competitors to American industry. She said as a result, StarKist is forced to buy its fish at a premium with reefer vessels coming in from distant fishing grounds. Read the rest here 12:05
Tri Marine disappointed with NMFS decision – Purse seiners will continue to fish but…
The decision by the National Marine Fisheries Service not to issue an emergency rule to exempt purse seiners that deliver at least half of their catch to the local canneries from the ban on fishing in the high seas, puts fish supply for the canneries in jeopardy. In early statements Tri Marine said that locally based purse seiners would have to fish in waters close to Papua New Guinea and would find it uneconomical to travel all the way to Pago Pago to off load. Read the rest here, Meanwhile, The president of the American Tunaboat Association Brian Hallman says the ban on high seas fishing is very costly to US purse seiners, and while they will continue to fight on, at some point boat owners cannot continue to lose money and stay in business. Read the rest here 17:29
Sunscreen is proven toxic to coral reefs
Lathering up with sunscreen may prevent sunburn and protect against cancer, but it is also killing coral reefs around the world. That’s the conclusion of a team of international scientists, which includes University of Central Florida professor and diving enthusiast John Fauth. The researchers found that oxybenzone, a common UV-filtering compound, is in high concentrations in the waters around the more popular coral reefs in Hawaii, and the Caribbean. The chemical not only kills the coral, it causes DNA damage in adults and deforms the DNA in coral in the larval,,, Read the rest here 19:40
No overfishing of bottomfish in US territories of American Samoa, Guam, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands
The Scientific and Statistical Committee, a group of renowned fishery scientists who advise the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council, concluded its two-day meeting in Honolulu this week by setting the 2016 and 2017 acceptable biological catches (ABCs) for bottomfish in the US territories of American Samoa, Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). The ABCs are the amount of fish that can be harvested annually by the fisheries over time without causing overfishing of the stock. Read the rest here 12:30
Hawaii Tuna Fishery Reopens, But Judge Could Quickly Close It
Despite pending litigation and concerns about disrupting international agreements, the U.S. government has decided Hawaii’s longline fishing fleet can reel in an extra 1,000 tons of bigeye tuna by making payments one of the Pacific island territories. The National Marine Fisheries Service plans to publish a rule Wednesday that sets a 2,000-ton limit on bigeye for the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and allows the territory to allocate up to half of its quota to the U.S. “in exchange for payments to support responsible fisheries development.” Read the rest here 10:58
Hawaii’s $100 Million Fishery Reopens in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean
HONOLULU (13 Oct. 2015) After a closure that lasted more than two months, Hawaii’s longline vessels can fish again for bigeye tuna in the waters surrounding the Hawaiian Islands. Since Aug. 5th, the 145 active vessels in the Hawaii longline fleet have been prohibited from catching bigeye tuna in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (WCPO), i.e., waters east of 150 degrees West longitude. The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) determined that the fleet had reached its 2015 US bigeye tuna limit of 3,502 mt, developed by the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission, to which the United States is a party. Read the rest here 11:35
Mutiny on the Majestic Blue – A captain held captive by his own crew. A boat flying the U.S. flag but violating every American law
Captain wanted. No experience necessary. The ad described a gig as master of a Western Pacific tuna fishing boat, an American ship with a crew of 24 men. The vessel was a purse seiner, a steel-hulled fishing boat that used a gigantic rectangular net that closed like a drawstring purse to catch tuna for StarKist, America’s most popular tuna brand. He sent an email. Less than 15 minutes later he had a response. It didn’t come from the address listed, but from someone at a Korean company called Dongwon. “When can you be here?” the email asked. Read the rest here 16:58
House Committee approves territorial waters protection
A bill that includes an amendment by Congresswoman Aumua Amata for protection of territorial waters from federal regulations has been approved by the House Natural Resources Committee. The congresswoman’s amendment specifically prohibits the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce from restricting fishing access in any state or territorial marine waters, or the Great Lakes, under the jurisdiction of the National Park Service or the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries unless the restrictions have been developed with and approved by the US Fish and Wildlife Agency of the affected state or territory. Read the rest here 13:25
American Samoa: Two alia pass Coast Guard safety inspections
Two alia fishing boats are the first to pass safety inspections by the US Coast Guard and have been issued decals that show their compliance with US Coast Guard rules. The safety decals are good for 5 years. Three alias were inspected but one did not meet the complete list to pass the US Coast Guard’s decal inspection.After October 15, any vessel that travels out three miles must have the safety decal or they will be ordered back to port and not be allowed out until they have passed the Coast Guard inspection. Read the rest here 10:02
