Tag Archives: National Marine Fisheries Service
New Jersey Seismic-testing debate continues amid NOAA/NMFS approvals
A research project green-lighted to begin off the New Jersey coast this summer is the source of concern for legislators and environmentalists who see the project’s use of seismic testing as a potential threat to marine life and the commercial fishing industry. “It was a bad idea for the NOAA [National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration] to allow for seismic testing off the Jersey Shore last year, and it’s a bad idea this year,” Read the rest here 07:31
Seismic testing off NJ coast close to start despite opposition
A Rutgers University professor is going full speed ahead with a seismic study of the ocean floor, despite flags raised by oppositional legislatures, a state agency and environmentalists. Legislatures went above him Friday and appealed to Rutgers University President Robert Barch urging him to stop the study that could begin in June. “I don’t understand the rancor that has developed. I’m doing basic research of sea level history. We’re trying to preserve our coastline by understanding how it behaves during sea level rise,” Mountain said. Read the rest here 09:27
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, NOAA Propose Actions to Build on Successes of Endangered Species Act
Building on the success of the Obama Administration in implementing the Endangered Species Act (ESA) in new and innovative ways, today the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service (the Services) announced an additional suite of actions the Administration will take to improve the effectiveness of the Act and demonstrate its flexibility. The actions will engage the states, promote the use of the best available science and transparency in the scientific process,,, Theres plenty more NOAA Rah Rah to read here 14:39
Mayday Mayday: Democratic Control Over Our Fish is Going Down
Fishermen and the public came to the Council meeting to provide input on the fleet diversity amendment to the New England groundfish Catch Share policy only to be shut down by the Chair of the Council. When I asked the Council Chairman Terry Stockwell if he could allow time for the group of fishermen, students, and hospital representatives to testify he said “no”. Not only did he insist “no” in response to my plea that he consider how far folks had traveled – in some cases 4 to 5 hours – instead of listening and being a public servant, he called me an “asshole” publicly. Read the rest here 12:50
Fate of the blueline tilefishery is now in the hands of the National Marine Fisheries Service
The species grabbed anglers’ attention in February when the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council requested that NMFS take emergency action on bluelines when it learned commercial fishing boats out of North Carolina planned on landing tilefish in New Jersey to take advantage of a no-limit loophole. A week after the Mid-Atlantic made its request, The SAFMC directed its Science and Statistical Committee (SSC) to determine if its earlier assessment, SEDAR 32, was applicable to the entire Atlantic Coast. Read the rest here 13:11
Securing the supply of sea scallops for today and tomorrow
Good management has brought the $559 million United States sea scallop fishery back from the brink of collapse over the past 20 years. However, its current fishery management plan does not account for longer-term environmental change like ocean warming and acidification that may affect the fishery in the future. A group of researchers from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), National Marine Fisheries Service, and Ocean Conservancy? hope to change that. Read the rest here 17:18
NMFS seeks nominations for U.S. seats on the International Pacific Halibut Commission
National Marine Fisheries Service is seeking nominations to fill two non-NOAA commissioner seats on the International Pacific Halibut Commission. Terms for the current commissioners—who are eligible for reappointment—expire on December 31, 2015. One must be a resident of Alaska—currently held by Donald Lane from Homer, Alaska One must be a non-resident of Alaska—currently held by Robert Alverson of Washington State. Read the rest here 12:09
Looming cost of at-sea monitors could put N.E. fishermen out of business
Officials with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service said the money it had been using to pay for the monitors — trained workers who collect data on fishing trips — will be needed for other obligations. That means groundfishermen who catch fish like cod, haddock and pollock in New England waters will likely have to start paying the cost around August. The new expense is coming at a time when it could cripple the fishery, fishermen said. Read the rest here 13:08
Plunging sardine numbers and a Pew Study spark quick management response?
Fisheries managers have shut down this summer’s West Coast commercial sardine fishing season that begins in July, and this Tuesday, April 14, were considering an emergency shut down of the current season which doesn’t end until June 30. Then on April 13, the council announced that new information called into question whether the current season should also be shut down immediately. The study, funded by Pew Charitable Trusts,,, Read the rest here 19:23
Battle for red snapper begins in Gulf
“The National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration’s 
has failed to adequately account for the size and well being of the red snapper stock in the Gulf of Mexico,” Byrne says. “They have continued to use outdated and ineffective methods to each sample for red snapper and measure how many fish are getting caught as soon as the season begins, and they have frankly lost all credibility.” Read the rest here 09:50
National Marine Fisheries Service’s Office of Law Enforcement returns to Unalaska/Dutch Harbor
A federal fisheries agency office is reopening in Unalaska/Dutch Harbor, as soon as three enforcement officers are hired and trained, according to Kevin Heck, acting deputy special agent in charge, in Anchorage. In recent years, the National Marine Fisheries Service’s Office of Law Enforcement has been flying in agents from around the state for short tours of temporary duty lasting between a week and a month, Heck said Monday Read the rest here 07:57
Enviros Petition for Immediate and Permanent Rule Making to Prohibit Fishing for Gulf of Maine Cod
Today’s petition, filed under the Administrative Procedure Act, urges the Fisheries Service to follow the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act requirement to rebuild overfished species. The called for the Fisheries Service to prohibit fishing for Gulf of Maine cod, allowing catch only incidental to other targeted fish, and reduce such bycatch to levels that allow the cod population to rebuild. Read the rest here 13:33
Another year of historic landings and improved value for Maine lobster announced
For the third year in a row and only the third time ever, Maine lobster fishermen landed more than 120 million pounds with a record overall value of $456,935,346, according to preliminary landings data reported today, Feb. 26, by the state Department of Marine Resources. At $3.69 per pound, the 123,676,100 pounds landed represented an improvement of 79 cents per pound over 2013, the largest one-year increase in per pound value since DMR and National Marine Fisheries Service began keeping records. Read the rest here 18:51
Public meeting scheduled for input on Magnuson-Stevens fishery guidelines – Make your Public Comment!
Everyone’s got a chance to weigh in on possible revision of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation & Management Act Guidelines. The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) of the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration () has scheduled a public meeting and comment period to hear from the public. NMFS announced in the Federal Register of Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2015 that it will accept comments until June 30 and conduct a meeting on Wednesday, March 25, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Eastern time. Read the rest here 08:21
Gulf of Maine Shrimp counting to help track egg hatch
While data from this limited sampling project won’t help estimate current stock abundance as do the more comprehensive surveys conducted annually by the National Marine Fisheries Service, 
, it will help managers track the timing of egg hatch, size and gender and developmental stage of the shrimp. Four trawlers from Maine and Massachusetts and five Maine-based trappers have been selected to collect samples in four regions in the Gulf of Maine. Read the rest here 17:18:
Coast Guard, National Marine Fisheries Service seize 2,700 pounds of shrimp near Cameron, Louisiana
The Coast Guard along with the National Marine Fisheries Service seized 2,700 pounds of catch, Tuesday evening, after boarding a fishing vessel near the jetties off Cameron, Louisiana. A Station Lake Charles boarding team was on a routine boarding when they discovered the fishing vessel Kathleen Yvonne was not equipped with the . Read the rest here 17:11
Pew Enviro Fueled Legislative Witch Hunt: An end to ‘curtains of death’?
California Assembly and Senate have asked federal fishery managers to end drift gillnets, which some call “curtains of death.” California remains the only state where drift gillnet fishing are legal. The legislature has authority over remaining gillnet permits. Recently lawmakers sent a letter to Pacific Fishery Management Council and National Marine Fisheries Service, demanding a transition to alternative fishing methods. Read the rest here 08:08
Federal regulators consider lessening ban on single lobster pots
New regulations set by the National Marine Fisheries Service ban the use of lobstering equipment from Feb. 1 to April 30 off the Massachusetts coast. The goal is to reduce the chances of whales becoming entangled in the gear.The also ban single pots – or one trap per buoy line – outright starting June 1. Lobstermen would therefore have to tether multiple pots along a single line. But the state Division of Marine Fisheries is challenging the federal rules to allow single pots close to shore in three areas. Read the rest here 11:41
Fish win another water fight round in South San Joaquin Irrigation District
“Today’s federal court of appeals ruling upholds protections for salmon, steelhead trout, killer whales and other wildlife that rely on natural river flows in California’s Central Valley and a functioning delta to survive,” said John McManus, executive director for the fishing industry’s Golden Gate Salmon Association. Federal biologists in 2009 said water withdrawals from the delta were driving endangered killer whales off California closer to extinction by reducing salmon and other fish the killer whales depend on for food. Read the rest here 12:32
NEFMC and MAFMC propose new bycatch reporting system for Northeast fisheries
The Mid-Atlantic and New England fishery management councils jointly proposed the revision. They want the revision to apply to all 13 fishery management plans in the area. The proposal involves not only a standardized reporting and monitoring method, but also new procedures for observers, new set-asides and more. It would change the way NMFS operates framework adjustments. It covers 40 species and 14 types of fishing gear. Read the rest here 22:40
North Carolina Bluefin tuna season off to promising start
With an increase in the U.S. bluefin tuna quota and an early appearance of large tunas off the Carteret County coast, signs are out there this might be a good bluefin tuna season. Traditionally, bluefin tuna start showing up in North Carolina from mid-November through the end of January for the commercial fishery,,, Read the rest here 08:09
“The entire system is broken, the fishing industry is being driven into the ground.”
Ed Barrett, president of the Massachusetts Bay Ground Fishermen’s Association, says the new regulations to restrict cod fishing in the Gulf of Maine for the next six months are a for the fishing community “complete disaster” for the fishing community. Read the rest here 13:03
Conch remains on the menu, no harvesting
National Marine Fisheries Service will not list queen conch on the endangered species list, but harvest of it in United States waters will remain prohibited. In March 2012, the environmental group Wild Earth Guardians requested the federal government list queen conch under the Endangered Species Act. Florida Keys State Rep. Holly Raschein successfully pushed a bill that called on the federal government to maintain the importation of queen conch. Read the rest here 12:52
Lawsuit filed over new rules for hired halibut skippers
The changes to the individual fishing quota, or IFQ, program revolve around the hired master program, and when a quota holder can have someone else catch their fish. Under the planned changes, catcher vessel-derived quota received by transfer after February 2010 cannot be fished by a hired master, with certain exceptions Read the rest here 15:21
Whale Protection Rules: Maine Lobstermen Divided Over Whether to Sue – Wait’ll the Cod Protection Rules Kick In!
Maine lobstermen are considering taking the federal government to court over regulations designed to protect endangered North Atlantic right whales. The Maine Lobstering Union has filed a notice of intent to sue the National Marine Fisheries Service over new and existing rules requiring the modification of lobster gear. Read the rest here 18:58
Members wanted for federal Atlantic highly migratory species advisory panel
Currently, the board includes 12 commercial members 12 members from the field of recreation, four environmentalists, four from academia and the chairperson of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas Advisory Committee. NMFS needs to fill one academic, five commercial, three recreational and two environmental/non-governmental organization positions that expire at the end of the year. Read the rest here 12:10
Around and around we go, Where the Rogue NMFS Asset Forfeiture Fund Money goes, nobody knows! It’ll cost ya to find out!
On, or about, Sept. 15th, 2014 I inquired from the same FOIA office the following information: ‘Please forward information on all monetary disbursements from the (NMFS) …(who were the recipients and what was the dollar amounts and for what purpose) from 2010 to the present (August 31, 2014). Also, what is the current balance in the account. The charge for that request would be $2965.44 …letter attached. Business must be booming! Read the rest here 19:09
Scientist: Cod quotas too high in retrospect
October 14, 2014 Because of a reporting error, a story on the cod crisis on Page A1 of Sunday’s Times misrepresented a statement by National Marine Fisheries Service scientist Michael Palmer. Scientists knew only in retrospect that fishing quotas had been set too high to rebuild Gulf of Maine cod, likely because they had overestimated the current stock size, overestimated how many young fish would be produced, or . Here 07:36
Cod crisis: Iconic species faces an uncertain future
Our cod crisis has become a sad cliche, ironic enough to catch the eye of the national media, and the truth does indeed hurt. Just ask Chatham and Harwich fishermen, who fished in what was once one of the top cod ports in the country but now catch mostly skates and dogfish and very little cod. Read the rest here 08:18
New Fisheries Might Be Headed to Unalaska
Next year will likely bring new fisheries to the western Aleutian Islands, now that the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has issued its final report on the way commercial fishing affects an endangered population of Steller sea lions. Read the rest here 07:08
