Tag Archives: National Marine Fisheries Service
Letter: Lingering questions over NOAA’s perpetrators – Marty Stillufsen , Point Pleasant Beach, N.J.
I was on a first name basis with the late Times staff writer Richard Gaines, and I am writing to see if there are any answers to lingering questions surrounding issues he had covered within the fishing industry. Have Chuck Juliand (Northeast region attorney) and Dale Jones (head of NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement) been promoted, given any new raises, reassigned — or fired? Furthermore, was special investigative master Judge Swartwood paid with Asset Forfeiture Funds or the operating budget of the National Marine Fisheries Service? more@GDT 04:08
Center for Biological Diversity criticize Coral protection plan delay – deal with it!
The National Marine Fisheries Service announced Friday a final decision on whether to protect 66 corals as endangered species would be delayed until June 7. That will allow scientists to consider a substantial amount of new information that arrived in response to the original proposal. Miyoko Sakashita, oceans director at the Center for Biological Diversity. “These corals desperately need the safety net that only the Endangered Species Act can provide.” Prove it! more@sunsentinal 20:13
Gaming of observer program before NPFM in October
The National Marine Fisheries Service issued a draft report on its revamped fisheries observer program after nearly a full year of implementation, and few changes are planned for 2014 although issues surrounding tendering continue. The new annual deployment plan, or ADP, does not have any major changes. In addition to predicted “gaming” where vessels in the trip-selection pool can continuously deliver to tenders without having to register for a new trip that may result in an observer on board, less information is available about salmon and halibut bycatch in deliveries to tender vessels compared to vessel deliveries to shore-side processors. more@alaskajournal 10:34
From the Deckboss: A human, or a camera?
The National Marine Fisheries Service is offering vessel owners a chance to avoid having to carry a fishery observer in 2014. The agency plans to exempt up to 14 boats that agree to take part in a pilot project to test electronic monitoring systems. Links @deckboss 10:09
Rule prohibits gill nets within 100 yards of N.C. beaches – takes effect Sunday
A new rule — which governs the use of gill nets and takes effect Sunday — is designed to protect 
The rule prohibits small mesh gill nets within 100 yards of most North Carolina beaches. Two areas are exempt from the setback, however. The exceptions are between Cape Lookout and Bogue Inlet, and between Carolina Beach Inlet and the South Carolina line. more@jdnews 12:01
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Bipartisan Members of Congress file solution to Gulf red snapper mess
Federal management of red snapper has been broken for years, and reached rock bottom in 2013 when frustration over status quo management compelled several Gulf states to seek greater control of the fishery in their own waters. In retaliation, the National Marine Fisheries Service used an emergency rule process to reduce the recreational season to nine days off Louisiana and 12 days off Texas. Both states sued and a federal court overturned the action. more@boatingindustry 23:29
Gang Green expects the NMFS to fix Global Warming to save the coral, and they agree to it!!
September 13 – In a settlement filed in federal court today, the National Marine Fisheries Service committed to developing a recovery plan for elkhorn and staghorn corals that live in Florida and throughout the Caribbean. The agreement between the Center for Biological Diversity and the federal agency ensures that the Fisheries Service will publish a draft plan by 2014 and promptly finalize it in the following months. These corals were protected under the Endangered Species Act in 2006 because of threats from global warming and ocean acidification but, before today’s settlement agreement, had still not received the legally required recovery plan needed to save them from extinction. more@ganggreen 17:40
N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries finalizes permit for minimal turtle by-catch
The N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries signed an agreement Wednesday with the National Marine Fisheries Service that implements a statewide incidental take permit for sea turtles in the estuarine large and small-mesh gill net fisheries. The permit authorizes the limited take of sea turtles in the gill net fisheries as part of an otherwise lawful activity. [email protected] 13:30
North Pacific Fishery Management Council staff defend catch sharing plan
FAIRBANKS — A proposed plan to allocate halibut catch shares between charter and commercial boats will not necessarily lead to a one-fish per day limit for charter boat customers in waters off Southcentral Alaska, according to a summary released by North Pacific Fishery Management Council staff. more@newsminer 11:08
Webinar: The Gulf of Mexico “Dead Zone”: Linking hypoxia to fish and fisheries 10:30 – 11:30 am EDT on Wednesday 25-September 2013
INFO: Dr. Kevin Craig is a Research Fishery Biologist at the NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service in Beaufort NC. He studies how natural and anthropogenic processes influence the population and community dynamics of harvested species in coastal ecosystems. He is currently investigating linkages between coastal watersheds and habitat quality of estuarine and nearshore shelf ecosystems, in particular the effects of nutrient enrichment and hypoxia on juvenile fishes and invertebrates. Info @ public notices
National Marine Fisheries Service proposal targets near-shore habitats
The proposal notes certain possible threats to the sea turtles — including offshore structures, lights on land and water, oil spills and response, alternative offshore energy development, fishing gear, and dredging — that could require “special management consideration.” The NMFS proposal follows the companion U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service plans tomore@ designate critical habitat along 740 miles of shoreline from North Carolina to Mississippi. more@jdnnews 07:28
Army Corps of Engineers shrinks review for Columbia River coal project, will limit its assessment to less than one mile around the project’s proposed dock
Coal export opponents say the limited review overlooks many of the impacts the project could have on fish, and they’re worried that the Corps will also choose to ignore the project’s broader environmental impacts. more@thecolumbian 17:27
Feds add tough rules for West Coast swordfish boats
Federal regulators are enforcing tough new rules to protect sperm whales, saying the West Coast swordfish fishery will be shut down if even one more of the endangered species is caught. The emergency National Marine Fisheries Service rules will be in place through January 2014. The swordfish fishery has been underway since Aug. 15, though it is unclear if boats have been allowed to operate prior to the rule change. more@sanjosemercurynews 11:42
F/V Mary K and F/V Yankee Pride Complete Anticipated NMFS Flatfish Pilot Survey
Fisheries Survival Fund takes aim at yellowtail flounder stock assessments that are “deeply flawed” and unsuitable for use as a regulatory tool.
The Fisheries Survival Fund wrote to NOAA Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC) Director Dr. Bill Karp. It said the uncertainty factor in the assessments is so great that they are effectively useless. more@southcoasttoday 20:27
NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service seeks comments on Atlantic bluefin tuna management proposals
NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service is seeking public comment on a proposed rule and its associated draft environmental impact statement, which aims to reduce discards of Atlantic bluefin tuna, and outlines measures to help ensure compliance with international quotas. Link Absolutely everything is here at this link, Atlantic Highly Migratory Species: 2006 Consolidated Atlantic Highly Migratory Species Fishery Management Plan; Amendment 7 and I defy anyone to find NOAA Fisheries anywhere on this pages! 13:55
Port Everglades expansion plans are environmentally damaging, says National Marine Fisheries Service
The $313 million project with the Army Corps of Engineers calls for blasting and dredging through limestone and coral to deepen the port’s entrance channel from 42 feet to 48 feet. But the National Marine Fisheries Service says a draft environmental impact statement prepared by the Corps “significantly understates the project’s impacts to seagrass, coral reef and mangrove habitat” and underestimates the amount of work that would be needed to mitigate the damage. more@orlandosentinal 13:23
Gang Green get’s $3.7M in NOAA fish habitat grants for WA, OR, AK
The largest grant, $1.4 million, goes for three projects with The Nature Conservancy to restore nearly 500 acres of flood plain habitat on Puget Sound. Another $1 million with Snohomish County will help restore nearly 330 acres of wetland in the Snohomish River estuary. In Oregon, National Marine Fisheries Service grants include $392,000 with Ecotrust to return 200 acres of farmland to the Siuslaw River estuary, and $242,000 in Tillamook County to plan restoration of 400 acres of wetlands for Tillamook Bay. more@adn 15:52
Deadly Sea Lion Mystery Draws Biologists to Remote San Miguel Island, Calif in Search of Clues
It’s late June, and San Miguel Island’s white sand beaches are filled with barking sea lions. More than 100,000 of them. The marine mammals have come to this windy, remote island to breed and give birth – a rowdy, stinky summer extravaganza that last year, enigmatically, ended in disaster. Sardine and anchovy, which normally cycle in abundance, are both low now, a combination that strains the food resources available to predators like sea lions. Though the cause of the decline is still unknown, it doesn’t seem to be the result of overfishing. [email protected]
Talks will lead to wild steelhead gene bank
The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife has formed a 20-member steelhead management work group to develop regional plans for steelhead in the North Fork Lewis, East Fork Lewis and Washougal rivers plus Salmon Creek. Federal fishery officials, along with Washington’s 2008 Statewide Steelhead Management Plan, are calling for designation of a network of watersheds where wild steelhead populations are “largely protected from the effects of hatchery programs.’’ more@thecolumbian
Massachusetts Lobstermen oppose gear changes – “Fishermen are willing to help,” “We have helped. But does it ever end?
Along the Massachusetts coast, the idea favored so far by federal regulators would close waters along the Outer Cape and east of Chatham to trap/pot fishing from Jan. 1 through April 30. The favored approach would require more than one trap/pot on a single vertical rope, called a trawl, depending on region and distance to shore, and fishermen would have to put more and bigger identifying tags on both trap/pot and gillnet gear. more@capecodtimes
National Marine Fisheries Service increase yearly yellowtail snapper catch
The National Marine Fisheries Service will increase the allowable catch for yellowtail snapper in the jurisdiction of the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council, which runs from North Carolina to Florida. The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council, which oversees fisheries from Florida to Texas, will increase the annual catch limit for yellowtail in its jurisdiction from 725,000 pounds to 901,125 pounds. . more@keysnet
Will river water save Louisiana’s coast or kill the marsh?
St. Mary Parish, La. — Azure Bevington, a PhD student in coastal wetlands ecology at LSU, stands in the Wax Lake Delta, a spot that did not exist when she was born in 1980. “It’s really amazing to think about, that this is really some of the newest land in the United States, or the world,” Bevington said. more@wvue
National Marine Fisheries Service: New Regulations for Vermilion Snapper and Red Porgy Effective September 5, 2013
Population assessment updates for vermilion snapper and red porgy were recently completed. The vermilion snapper update indicates the population is no longer undergoing overfishing (when fish are taken from the population too quickly) and is not overfished (when there are not enough fish in the population). The stock assessment update for red porgy indicates the species is not undergoing overfishing but is still overfished. Based on the outcome of these population assessment updates, NOAA Fisheries is proposing to modify several management measures for vermilion snapper and red porgy. @noaa.gov
Critical habitat listed for Puget Sound rockfish
The National Marine Fisheries Service proposes to designate almost 1,200 square miles of Puget Sound as critical habitat for three species of endangered rockfish. @the columbian
National Marine Fisheries Service : These Orca’s are Special! tu parli l’inglese?
The National Marine Fisheries Service spent a year reviewing a petition to delist the orcas from the Endangered Species Act. “We have decided these killer whales are a distinct population group,” Gorman said. “They have their own language, own food source. They don’t interbreed with other groups of killer whales. They meet the legal standard for a distinct population group.” continued@katu
(I dunno. They look the same, but I don’t speak the language!)
Herring proposal disapproved by National Marine Fisheries Service – Lots of grumbling from the Cape!
“They basically approved nothing,” said a frustrated and angry John Pappalardo, the CEO of the Cape Cod Commercial Fishermen’s Alliance and a former member and onetime chairman of the New England council. continued@capecodtimes
National Marine Fisheries Service – Californian swordfish drift gillnet permit refused
The US National Marine Fisheries Service has declined to issue a required marine mammal take permit for California’s swordfish drift gillnet fishery,,continued@fishupdate
National Marine Fisheries Service whale protection rules will snare lobstermen
Earlier this month, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) published a Draft Environmental Impact Statement for proposed amendments to the federal Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Plan. The draft runs to substantially more than 500 pages, plus exhibits and appendices. continued@fenceviewer
