Tag Archives: ESA

Fall of the kings

The Seattle-area-based Wild Fish Conservancy has dropped a bomb on the Alaska commercial fishing industry with a petition to the federal government demanding it list the state’s Chinook salmon as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Such a listing would almost certainly to lead to yet more restrictions on Chinook-directed fisheries, such as the troll fishery in Southeast Alaska and the drift gillnet fishery off the mouth of the Copper River, which has been found to intercept some Chinook bound for rivers in Southeast, British Columbia and the Lower 48. The number of those fish now caught in the Copper’s Chinook fishery is not large but appears to increase in years when ocean waters are warm which could present issues going forward. more, >>click to read<< 17:17

Lawsuit filed to Protect Pacific Humpback from fishing gear, Can lawsuits save North Atlantic Right Whale?

The Center for Biological Diversity sued the National Marine Fisheries Service today for failing to protect endangered Pacific humpback whales from deadly entanglements in sablefish pot gear off the coasts of California, Oregon and Washington. According to Fisheries Service estimates, the sablefish fishery on average kills or seriously injures about two humpback whales every year. The fishery uses 2-mile-long strings of 30 to 50 pots. >click to read< Can Litigation Help Save the North Atlantic Right Whale From Extinction? – As conservation organizations and governments around the globe grapple with the devastating effects of climate change and overexploitation, the legal battle fought over the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale, one of the world’s most endangered large whale species, may provide insights into how litigation can help, or hinder, efforts to save species from extinction. >click to read< 13:41

NOAA Fisheries Releases Final “Batched” Biological Opinion & North Atlantic Right Whale Conservation Framework

NOAA Fisheries released its Endangered Species Act (ESA) section 7 Biological Opinion on the authorization of eight federal fisheries management plans under the MSA two interstate fishery management plans under the Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Cooperative Management Act, and the implementation of the New England Fishery Management Council’s Omnibus Essential Fish Habitat Amendment 2. We also released the North Atlantic Right Whale Conservation Framework for Federal Fisheries in the Greater Atlantic Region (Conservation Framework). NOAA Fisheries has evaluated the effects of the authorization of the fisheries, as modified by the Conservation Framework, on endangered and threatened species. The 10 fisheries included in the Opinion are:  >click to read< 12:22

Max Strahan driven by “duty” to have stricter measures adopted

To many federal and state fisheries managers, and to most people in the lobster industry, the name Max Strahan conjures images of a fanatic determined to put an end to lobster fishing in the name of saving endangered right whales from extinction. (he is), “I’m a scientist and a very ethical and moral person,” (he’s not) Strahan said, claiming that, of 330 million U.S. citizens, he was the only one to file individual suits under the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA).,, Strahan said he grew up on a farm “somewhere around the area” of New Hampshire and, as a young man, was interested in outdoor activities such as hiking and rock climbing. That led to his interest in wildlife preservation and eventually his efforts to save the endangered spotted owl in the forests of California and Oregon. Strahan filed a petition with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to list the birds under the ESA and ultimately the petition was accepted, the owls listed and much of the Pacific timber industry put out of business. >click to read< 09:39

Crab industry, Oregon continue plans to avoid whale entanglement

New regulations for commercial Dungeness crab fishermen in Oregon aim to get boats on the water earlier in the season and reduce the amount of gear to avoid tangling with endangered whales. “Our fleet is made up of 400 individual businesspeople who each bring a different perspective to the issue,” said Hugh Link, the executive director of the Oregon Dungeness Crab Commission. “For over three years, they have been given the opportunity to weigh in on how best to mitigate the whale entanglement risk,” he continued. “But it is an ongoing process. These upcoming meetings are the next important step and we hope they take the opportunity to have their voices heard.”

Congress must choose threatened salmon over sea lions

State, federal and local governments have spent too much time and money restoring fish runs in the Columbia River Basin to let those efforts go to waste. The U.S. House recognized this reality last month by passing legislation to make it easier to kill sea lions that feast on threatened salmon and steelhead in the Columbia River and its tributaries. Now, the Senate must step up and push the bill through to the finish line. Northwest senators must be unified in their support for this common-sense measure, which aims to safeguard the billions of dollars invested in preserving fish that are listed under the Endangered Species Act.>click to read<

Hoopa Valley Tribe Plans Federal Lawsuit to ‘Protect Salmon on the Brink of Extinction’

The Hoopa Valley Tribe (Tribe) today announced that it will file a lawsuit within 60 days unless federal agencies reduce the numbers of Endangered Species Act (ESA) listed Klamath-Trinity origin Coho salmon being killed in the Pacific Ocean. Klamath River origin Coho salmon have been listed as a ‘threatened species’ under the ESA since 1997. Without analysis or formal ESA re-consultation, regulations of the Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC) were changed this year to allow more Coho salmon to be injured or killed, although they are protected by the ESA. “We will not stand by while the federal agencies kill our salmon,” said Hoopa Tribal Chairman Ryan Jackson. >click to read<13:30

Listing the Bearded Seal as Threatened: A Disturbing Victory for Untestable Hypotheses and Flawed Models.

The Center for Biological Diversity also petitioned to list thriving populations of Bearded Seals as threatened or endangered by melting sea ice. In response to their petition, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) assembled a Bearded Seal Biological Review Team (BRT). The BRT’s report can be read here. Oddly, despite promoting a threatened designation, the BRT reports Bearded Seals have existed for over 1-2 million years, surviving far greater bouts of climate change as the earth bounced between several ice ages and warmer interglacials. An interesting (click here) read by Jim Steele 18:25:37

Recovery of Marine Mammal predators causes unexpected conservation challenges

In the paper, published in the journal Conservation Letters, scientists explored the effects of these recovering predator populations on their home ecosystems, outlining three major unintended conflicts that have resulted. In the Pacific Northwest the comeback of California sea lions and killer whales, as well as Pacific harbor seals (Phoca vitulina), all protected under the MMPA, has increased the animals’ competition with humans for fish. Furthermore, all three predators feed on the ESA-protected Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha), whose populations are declining. And competition for fish among the predators could adversely affect them all. Read the rest here 10:40

Center for Biological Diversity offended by F&WS – NMFS ESA Proposal

The two federal agencies tasked with listing endangered species jointly proposed to revise the Endangered Species Act’s petition process, but conservationists are not happy. The proposal published Thursday by the Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service would make the best use of available resources, increase “stakeholder engagement” and improve transparency, according to the agencies’ announcement. Calling the move “boneheaded,” the (CBD), a frequent petitioner and litigant,,, Read the rest here 19:40

NOAA proposes new status for humpback whales – Change would remove majority from endangered species list

If the proposal is approved, 10 of 14 populations worldwide would be delisted, including the West Indies population, which swims through Cape waters. The West Indies population has grown to about 12,000, according to NOAA officials. Peter Mason, a commercial lobsterman, was one of about 20 people who listened to the presentation. He supported the proposal. “Now they’ve come back, they should be taken off,” he said. Read the rest here 09:56

Lawsuit Filed to Save Four Southeast Fish From Extinction

Center for Biological Diversity filed a lawsui against the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. “Human wellbeing is directly tied to the health of our waterways, so it’s scary”,,,  The candy darter, ashy darter, longhead darter and frecklebelly madtom are at high risk of extinction due primarily to water pollution and dams. The four fish are found in Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia. Read the rest here 18:29

Etched in Stone – Oceana and Greenpeace think Best Available Science circa 1990 shouldn’t change! Stellar Sea Lion

Hundreds of endangered Steller sea lions may die from loss of prey and habitat if the federal government allows more industrial fishing in the Aleutian Islands, environmentalists claim in court. Moreover, the groups say, the biological opinion issued by the National Marine Fisheries Service in April 2014 was condemned by many of its own scientists as “fundamentally flawed” because it relied on incomplete and inadequate Steller sea lion telemetry and sighting data. Read the rest here 10:13

New England Set Gear Fishermen – Final Rule – Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Plan. Are you Affected?

Whale management areasNMFS issues this final rule to amend the regulations implementing the Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction. This rule revises the management measures for reducing the incidental mortality and serious injury to the North Atlantic right whale, humpback whale, and fin whale in commercial trap/pot and gillnet fisheries to further the goals of the MMPA, and the ESA. . Read final rule in the Federal Register 18:49

Fairness and equality

How many threatened loggerhead, green and marine sea turtles and the endangered Kemps Ridley turtle are off the coast of the United States? How many are off the North Carolina coast? These questions need answers. Because for years and years only commercial fishermen — those who provide restaurants and markets with seafood — have been required to report any interaction they have with sea turtles. Read more here  17:48

Oversight Hearing on: •”ESA Decisions by Closed-Door Settlement: Short-Changing Science, Transparency, Private Property, and State & Local Economies”

Watch the archived video webcast – “Undoubtedly, some believe cramming hundreds of obscure species onto the ESA list under deadlines and blocking off huge swaths of land because of the settlements are ‘successes,’ but many areas of the country tell a different account of how these policies are impacting their communities, their economies, and ultimately, the species,” Doc Hastings [email protected]  09:08