Tag Archives: Department of Interior
House Republicans rebuff move by Golden to block offshore wind in Gulf of Maine lobster area
Majority Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives rejected an attempt by Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine, to use federal spending to block offshore wind development in a lobster fishing area of the Gulf of Maine. Golden, who tried to amend 2024 appropriations legislation for the Department of Interior, said he will try again to bar offshore wind development in what’s known as Lobster Management Area 1. His measure sought to prevent funding to lease, license, permit or provide any authorization to develop offshore wind energy that could jeopardize lobster fishing. “Offshore wind development in the Gulf’s most productive fishing grounds is a threat to Maine fishermen’s way of life,”>>click to read<< 07:28
Community meeting sees scathing opposition to offshore wind farm in Coos Bay and Brookings
Between one to two hundred concerned residents and stakeholders packed the Salmon Conference room of the Mill Casino last night in the small coastal town of North Bend expressing opposition to over one million acres of wind farms slated for the offshore areas of Coos Bay and Brookings. Concerns raised came mainly from commercial fishers that live and/or fish in the area and worry about impacts to the industry. Several residents that are not involved in the industry also expressed concerns about impacts to the environment and wildlife. Last week the agency announced the Brookings and Coos Bay call areas where it plans to open leases for 1,158,400 acres of wind turbines that would be put in at least 12 nautical miles offshore. >click to read< 17:12
Banning fishing in ‘monument’ a grave mistake
I was a founding partner of Boston Sword & Tuna, which today employs over 180 Massachusetts residents with good wages and benefits. The company processes and distributes swordfish and tuna harvested by American vessels in the waters off New England and the mid-Atlantic. After selling my ownership in the company several years ago, I decided to return to my origins as an owner-operator of commercial fishing vessels. But that future is at risk from a proposal in Washington. Last month, the Washington Post (I’m sure WaPo wants the re-closure!) reported on a confidential memo sent by Interior Secretary Deb Haaland to the White House, urging President Biden to enact a full ban on sustainable American fishing in the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument. By Tim Malley >click to read< 18:48
What About the Fish?!! Trump signs memo to send more water to San Joaquin Valley agribusiness
“Western water mismanagement has been horrendous for commercial, recreational, and guide fisheries in California,” said Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations (PCFFA) executive director Noah Oppenheim in a statement. “Water users have sucked our rivers dry for far too long, and the fish have been paying the price.”,,, “Just last month the Secretary of Commerce declared our 2016 and 2017 fishing seasons to be official federal fishery disasters. >click to read<09:00
U.S. States Slow Trump’s Offshore Drilling Expansion Plan
The Trump administration’s plan to broadly expand drilling in U.S. offshore waters is moving slowly due to opposition from coastal states and indifference from oil companies that have turned their focus to other opportunities. The administration hopes encouraging U.S. energy development outside of shale oilfields will further its goal of “energy dominance.” But existing Obama administration lease rules remain in place through 2022 unless the new rules gain approval. The Department of the Interior this year proposed opening vast new acreage in the U.S. outer continental shelf to drilling. >click to read< 08:56
Department of Interior’s final plan abandons oil drilling off Atlantic Coast
“I am pleased and relieved that the Department of Interior’s final plan abandons its earlier proposal to allow drilling in the Atlantic from Georgia to Virginia,” said Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. (D-6th Dist.), the top Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee. “That proposal was incredibly shortsighted, and would have threatened the ecology and economy, and public health all along the Atlantic coast, including our New Jersey coastline. New Jersey lawmakers of both parties mobilized to fight the original proposal, citing the threat to tourism industry that generates $43 billion annually and supports 500,000 jobs, and a fishing industry that adds $7.9 billion a year to the state’s economy, responsible for more than 50,000 jobs. U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) urged President Barack Obama in a Senate floor speech Thursday to permanently put the Atlantic Ocean off limits to oil drilling, which he can do under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act. Read the rest here 08:42
Opinion: Stop the Obama administration from destroying our coastal economy
The Obama Administration is very close to unleashing an underwater sonic boom attack off our Atlantic Coast, including South Carolina’s. You probably have two immediate questions. What am I talking about? And why should you care? First, a sonic boom is how Richard Viso, a professor in the Coastal Environment School at Coastal Carolina University, describes seismic testing. Seismic testing is a highly dangerous process that uses intense airgun blasting to send extremely loud sound waves miles below the seafloor in a hunt for oil deposits. One seismic testing vessel can tow up to 96 airguns, which can cover an area 21 times larger than the National Mall in Washington. These sonic booms, which can be heard for thousands of miles underwater, are repeated every 10 to 12 seconds, creating one of the loudest noises in the oceans. Seismic testing under just one lease can go on for up to an entire year. The Obama Administration’s Department of Interior is set to issue up to 9 seismic testing permits because oil companies don’t share information. Read the story here 11:37
Feds halt South Atlantic offshore drilling leases , but not seismic testing
There were public expressions of surprise, relief and victory from environmental groups and local officials after the U.S. Department of Interior’s March 15 announcement that there would be no offshore drilling leases in the Atlantic Ocean for the 2017-2022 period. But for drilling opponents and environmental advocates, that celebration has been tempered somewhat by news that, even without drilling, the process of awarding permits for seismic testing in the Atlantic will go ahead — and could lead to such testing later this year. Read the rest here 13:07
University of Southern Mississippi asks Professor / Chairman Vernon Asper to step down from Commission on Marine Resources
Chairman Vernon Asper has resigned from the Mississippi Commission on Marine Resources, following a recommendation from his employer — the University of Southern Mississippi, where he has been a Professor of Marine Sciences for the past 27 years. “The university administration had become concerned that my continued service on the commission was becoming a liability to the university,” Asper said Wednesday morning. “They want to keep the university separate from this kind of controversy.” (Controversy? Like the IG’s final audit report on DMR?) The report also mentions conflicts of interest between Walker and his wife Sharon, who has been employed by two major subgrantees — the University of Southern Mississippi and the Institute for Marine Mammal Studies. Walker’s son, Scott, served on the board of trustees of the Nature Conservancy, which was the recipient of grants, another conflict of interest. DMR also used CIAP funds to purchase property owned by Scott Walker. This could get interesting! Chairman Vernon Asper steps down from Commission on Marine Resources (updated)
Inspector General’s final audit report on DMR cites numerous mismanagement issues (updated)
Op-Ed: How You Can Prevent 130,000 Marine Mammals From Going Deaf
In the coming months, the Obama Administration will make a decision that will profoundly impact the health of the Atlantic Ocean. It will decide whether to proceed with seismic survey off the Eastern coastline to map oil and gas resources. continued
Seven US fisheries scientists have raised a formal complaint of political interference over salmon studies – complaint of scientific misconduct
The letter alleges that Klamath Basin area office manager Jason Phillips violated the agency’s scientific-integrity policy, adopted in 2011 as part of US President Barack Obama’s nationwide initiative to protect science from political interference. According to the letter, the scientists believe Phillips intended to shut down the research group — known as the Fisheries Resources Branch — believing that the team’s work on salmon and other fish contradicted the plans and findings of the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Read more Read the original complaint
