Features – Page 9 – Fishermens News

Gulf of California Fisheries – The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

The Gulf of California, aka the Sea of Cortez, is the body of water below Southern California that separates the Baja California Peninsula from the Mexican mainland. It’s one of the more productive and biodiverse marine ecoregions in the world. But according to various reports, there are multiple issues affecting the region’s commercial fisheries including overfishing, the potential collapse of the tuna fishery and rampant organized crime that has managed to gain control of the entire seafood production chain. The Good As mentioned above, the Sea of Cortez is home to a very rich ecosystem and is considered one of the most diverse seas on Earth, as well an environment filled with natural beauty that has yet to be spoiled by man and industry. The region also has a long history as a com...

Pacific PARS Moves Forward and Takes on New Work

Last July, the U.S. Coast Guard announced the start of a Port Access Route Study (PARS) along the entire U.S. Pacific Coast (PacPARS). This is the first such all-encompassing Pacific Ocean study, although regional PARS were done in the past. There have been two recent important study developments. One, expected and procedural, was the close of the public comment period on Jan. 25. The Coast Guard received comments from 52 individuals and organizations. The comments present the top challenges and concerns, at least on the public side, that the USCG must confront as it starts the next phase of the study. The second development is something of a showstopper. On Feb. 25, the USCG announced a big change within PacPARS: that USCG District 11—which encompasses California, Arizona, Nevada, and U...

Coast Guard Cutter Stratton Returns to Alameda After Completing Operation Blue Pacific Patrol

The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Stratton returned to Alameda, California in March after a 20,348-mile patrol to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing on the high seas and in partner nations’ exclusive economic zones. The Stratton crew worked with Pacific partner nations during its deployment, including Fiji, France, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Australia and the United Kingdom. During the mission, crew from the Stratton boarded 11 vessels and found 21 violations, according the USCG. Commander Steve Adler said that collaboration with partners and utilization of shiprider agreements gave them the ability to accomplish their mission to maintain regional stability and protect the fishing industry. “By bringing aboard shipriders from Fiji, we were able to patrol their exclusive...

Regional Report: Hawaii and California Commercial Fisheries

Recent data shows commercial fisheries in Hawaii and California are healthy, while officials support projects focused on conservation, sustainability and access to more abundant stocks. The Golden and Aloha states, though also facing challenges related to COVID-19, were able to remain stable. NOAA Fisheries did report declines in the U.S. fishing and seafood industry as a result of the pandemic, with a return to normal unlikely to be imminent. HAWAII Economic conditions were challenging as demand dropped during the first year of the pandemic. But it has since rebounded as travel and the broader economy begin to stablilize, said Brett Schumacher of the Sustainable Fisheries Division for NOAA Fisheries’ Pacific Islands Region Office (PIRO) in an email. In Hawaii, COVID-19 presented cha...

State, Federal Researchers Invest in Climate Change Economics

Marine researchers at the federal and state levels are taking a proactive approach to harnessing information to boost reliance and reduce the impact of climate change on the multi-million-dollar fisheries economy in Pacific Coast states. Along with the effects of climate change, they’re also learning more about other cyclical intricacies of life in the oceans. In Oregon, for example, state legislators have made a nearly $1-million investment to address ocean acidification and hypoxia and the risks they pose to the state’s ecosystems and economy. The funds are being distributed to marine researchers through competitive grants. Laura Anderson, chair of the Oregon Ocean Science Trust, which will manage distribution of the grants, expressed gratitude to lawmakers for understanding the va...

Territory Restrictions: Shifts in America the Beautiful

The Biden Administration wants to place limits on 30% of America’s land and sea territory – an area about the size of India. The extent, or degree, of those restrictions is under development now. The goal is to have boundaries in place before 2030 – or 30x30 for short. This effort originates from President Biden’s Executive Order – “Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad” which requires recommendations “to achieve the goal of conserving at least 30% of U.S. lands and waters by 2030.” It has been dubbed “America the Beautiful.” NOAA has a lead role in this project and last October published a request for information (RFI) “seeking public input on how NOAA should, using its existing authorities and associated measures, conserve and restore America’s oceans, coasts and Great Lakes...

Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star at Work in Antarctic Breaking Ice at McMurdo Station

U.S. Coast Guard cutters over the past four months completed two lengthy journeys, one in support of the U.S. Antarctic stations and a second to counter drug operations in the East Pacific Ocean. The first began in November with the departure of the Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star from its homeport in Seattle; the second began in mid-December at Port Angeles, California, concluding in early February. Crew aboard the Polar Star, on its 25th journey to Antarctica in support of Operation Deep Freeze, were to spend January and February breaking ice at McMurdo Station for fuel and supply ships, then return to the U.S. west coast in March. Upon return, the 46-year-old Polar Star, the nation’s solar provider of these crucial icebreaking services, was headed to drydock for maintenance and repai...

Northern Enterprises Boat Yard Undergoes Major Expansion

As a thriving boat repair and maintenance facility with a 40-year history, Homer, Alaska-based Northern Enterprises Boat Yard has periodically undergone expansion and infrastructure improvements. But the 35-acre boatyard, which is located about 220 miles south of the state’s capital and biggest city, Anchorage, has never faced as massive a project as the one completed in the past few months. “We added an extension to our present dock,” explained Ken Moore, who co-owns the facility with his wife, Roseleen “Snooks” Moore. “We extended the (existing) dock 50 feet. Along with that, we added a new dock for a 200-metric-ton (boat hoist) machine —all of our lifts are travel lifts, this will be the fifth lift we’ve bought. And the 200-metric-ton (travel lift) will pick (up) 240,000 pounds. So,...

Regional Update: Pacific Northwest Fisheries

Recent studies by Pacific Northwest fisheries officials note mixed conditions faced by fisheries in Washington state and Oregon, but also report an overall improved and positive outlook. NOAA Fisheries reported declines in the U.S. fishing and seafood industry as a result of COVID-19, and some flexible regulation changes were required in 2021 in an effort to stay nimble in uncertain times. NOAA also reported specific conditions generally associated with higher productivity for certain fisheries, resulting in a number of positive ocean indicators off the Oregon coast. These conditions have led to some favorable 2022 fishery forecasts. BROAD OVERVIEW There is some encouraging recent data, said Michael Milstein, spokesman for the NOAA Fisheries Pacific Northwest Regional Office, in a De...

Becoming Resilient

Gulf of Alaska seafood harvesters have lots of ideas about how to make themselves and their fisheries more resilient as climate continues to change, and NOAA Fisheries research scientist Marysia Szymkowiak is working with them to prioritize and mobilize plans for the rapidly emerging future. Harvesters’ ideas cut across science and communication, fisheries management, national and local policies and broader sociocultural issues, says Szymkowiak, who has spent a decade conducting research on the human dimensions of Alaska fisheries. “The folks I have talked to across the Gulf have put ideas forward like reducing carbon emissions from diesel engines through hybrid models, building networks between scientists and fishermen for exchanging knowledge, expediting policymaking within fisheries...