From the Editor – Fishermens News

From the Editor: Alaska Seafood Snapshot

Just before this issue went to print, NOAA Fisheries announced the release of a new report that paints a gloomy portrait of the state of Alaska’s seafood industry. It’s something that commercial fishermen in the region will want to read. In the report, economists estimate that Alaska’s seafood industry suffered a $1.8 billion loss in 2022-2023, and that the industry saw a 50% decline in profitability between 2021 and 2023. This, according to the data, has resulted in more than 38,000 job losses nationwide and a $4.3 billion loss in total U.S. output, which is the total dollar value of all goods and services produced. The most affected states—including Alaska, Washington, Oregon and California—saw a combined loss of $191 million in state and local tax revenues, the report says. Economis...

From the Editor: Golden Anniversary

The year 1974 was a significant year in America. Actually, every year in the U.S. is significant in multiple ways, but 1974 was especially significant. Among the things that occurred in 1974 was that Richard Nixon resigned the presidency and was succeeded by Gerald Ford. It was also the year a U.S. District Court judge ruled that Native American tribes in Washington state were entitled to half the legal salmon and steelhead fish catches in state waters, based on treaties signed by the tribes and the federal government. But there’s another event that took place in 1974 that’s of special importance to the commercial fishing industry in the Pacific Northwest: this is the year that Fred Wahl Marine Construction first opened its doors. And as the Reedsport, Oregon-based business celebrates...

A Deeper Dive Into Annual Oregon Landings

On page 19 of this issue, you’ll find an article about the number of annual landings by Oregon’s commercial fishing industry in 2023. I won’t go into too much detail about the story here, but data show that landings in the state increased from 2022, but below the average landings and revenue of the previous five years (2018-2022). The reason why I mention the article here is that there’s more information about the impact of the annual landings that we couldn’t include on page 19 due to space limitations. But we have space here, so I’m happy to share the information with you. Regarding the landings’ effect on employment in the state, Oregon Employment Department (OED) data show that an estimated 1,212 commercial fishers—not including tribal fishermen—worked in Oregon on an annual average ...

Bottom Trawling Legislation

A recently proposed piece of legislation that would block off large sections of the ocean from trawling gear is being met with opposition from more than 50 seafood organizations across the U.S. House Resolution 8507, commonly known as the Bottom Trawl Clarity Act, which was introduced in May by U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola (D-Alaska) would mandate that each of the eight Fisheries Management Councils in the U.S. that permit the use bottom trawl gear to define the terms “substantial” versus “limited” bottom contact. But more importantly, it would also require the designation of Bottom Trawl Zones, limiting the areas where gear that scrapes the seafloor is allowed. Once the zones are established, bottom trawling would only be permitted within them, potentially mitigating the environmental impac...

From the Editor: Seafood Industry’s Struggles

There are multiple factors that have contributed to Alaska fisheries’ current downturn and the seafood industry’s recent economic slump, among them environmental regulations and habitat loss. But according to numerous policymakers, the majority of the blame can be laid not on U.S. policies, but on one of America’s biggest geopolitical adversaries: Russia. At a news conference in late May, U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) commented that Russia has flooded seafood markets with inexpensive product, leading to prices falling significantly and hurting U.S. processing companies and fishermen. “Russians have essentially admitted they’re not just at war in Ukraine, they’re at war with the American fishing industry,” he said. About a month prior to Sullivan’s remarks, Alaska’s sole U.S. House ...

From the Editor: ‘Destructive’ Fishing

The term ‘destructive fishing’ seems plenty self-explanatory—any fishing that’s destructive to either a fish species or the environment in which they live. But the term has been used inconsistently and no globally agreed definition exists. But recently and for the first time ever, a group of researchers has put together a framework of what constitutes destructive fishing globally. The stated goal is to provide a greater understanding of destructive fishing, monitor it and outline evidence to determine if it is taking place. More than 80 people from 36 countries—including from non-governmental organizations, academia, government fisheries management and the fishing industry—have identified areas of consensus regarding what destructive fishing is and is not, and suggested ways to monitor ...

California’s Salmon Struggles

California isn’t within the commercial fishing industry’s epicenter, but it is a notable component of the industry as a whole. And currently the state, particularly the northern half, is experiencing a challenge that is literally an existential threat: struggling salmon populations. Salmon once thrived in the rivers that run throughout the state, but due to the construction of dams, they’ve been blocked from reaching many of the cold mountain streams where they once spawned. Additionally, multiple droughts in the state over the years and climate change effects have not helped. In fact, during some periods of the state’s massive drought from 2020-22, the water flowing from dams became so warm that it was lethal for salmon eggs, thereby further diminishing the potential supply of adult fis...

From the Editor: Fishing Restrictions Bill

The future of commercial gillnet fishing and the catching of giant sea bass in California are now in doubt, following legislation proposed by a state Assembly member in February that would restrict certain types of fishing in state waters. Assembly Bill 2220 would do three things: completely ban commercial fishing for sea bass, eliminating current exceptions; ban the use of gill nets, also eliminating current exceptions, and mandate that commercial fishing vessels operating with a state permit carry an independent third-party observer onboard while operating within state fisheries. If passed and signed into law, the proposed legislation, which was drafted by Assemblyman Steve Bennett (D-Ventura), could have a sizable impact—financially and in other ways—on the state’s commercial fishing ...

Fishing and Climate Change

If ocean temperatures keep steadily rising as they have been for some time due to climate change, then the U.S. fishing industry will have a big problem on its hands. This is according to experts who recently testified before a U.S. Senate committee on the issue of how climate change affects businesses that depend on the ocean and the creatures in it to sustain their livelihoods. During a 90-minute session titled “Warming Seas, Cooling Economy: How the Climate Crisis Threatens Ocean Industries” held Jan. 24 by the Senate Budget Committee, five people—a fishing guide, an economist, and three professors —testified on the effects that climate change have and could have. “The risks of a changing climate are, by far, the most limiting factor of my potential growth and success as an entrepren...

From the Editor: ‘Ocean Justice’

As 2023 was coming to a close, the Biden administration announced an initiative that could over time, impact commercial fishing areas along the West Coast, Bering Sea and Pacific Islands, especially those that have been, or could be, regarded as overfished. The administration’s first of its kind “U.S. Ocean Justice Strategy” which is meant to “advance environmental justice for communities that rely on the ocean for economic, cultural, spiritual, recreational and food security purposes,” was officially unveiled during the United Nations’ annual Conference of Parties (COP28) in December. The strategy, according to the Biden administration, is motivated by the recognition that many communities—including those who live near the ocean, that depend on marine resources, or that are part of th...