Article Category: News

A new study on the gigantic garbage patch floating in the North Pacific Ocean points to a major source of that trash: the fishing industry.   To date, the trash pile, also known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, has accumulated some 80,000 tons of plastic waste and that estimate continues to climb, according to an article in Popular Science, which sites the study by six researchers from the Netherlands. Most of that litter in the ocean is delivered by way of rivers that carry waste and human pollution from land to sea, but the origin of floating debris in offshore areas is not fully understood. An analysis of the garbage by the nonprofit project Ocean Cleanup found that 75-86% of the floating plastics come from offshore fishing and aquaculture activities, with the U.S., Japan, China...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has extended its consideration period for proposed restrictions on mining at the proposed Pebble mine site in Southwest Alaska, this time until Dec. 2. The comment period was originally set to end in July, then continued to early September. While the comment period is now closed, the EPA is giving itself additional time to render a decision. The crux of the issue is the potential adverse impact of the mine on the Bristol Bay watershed, home of the world’s largest run of sockeye salmon. The 2022 season was a record breaker for the millions of salmon caught in Bristol Bay, providing thousands of jobs to workers and millions of dollars to the industry and economy of Alaska. The EPA is currently faced with whether to withdraw proposed restrictions ...

A new analysis from the San Antonio, Texas research firm Frost & Sullivan says innovation in aquaculture technologies and smart farming methodologies are revolutionizing the sector and generating billions of dollars in revenue streams. The company predicts that the market will garner $415.82 billion in revenue by 2030, up from $284.63 billion in 2021, an uptick at a compound annual growth rate of 4.3%. According to Frost and Sullivan research analyst Akheela Dhiman, the aquaculture industry has fully recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic, after facing the most intense impact in the first half of 2020. Dhiman said that with reopening of hotels, restaurants and cafes since and recovery in global household demand have revived the aquaculture industry. To take advantage of the expandi...

The Hawaii Longline Association’s (HLA) swordfish, bigeye and yellowfin tuna fishery has achieved certification for sustainable fishing practices, the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) announced in mid-September. The certification follows a rigorous 16-month review carried out by third-party assessment group Control Union UK Limited. The fishery is the first from Hawaii to enter the MSC program. The MSC Fisheries Standard is a globally recognized standard used to assess if a fishery is well-managed, and reflects the most up-to-date understanding of internationally accepted fisheries science and management. The Fisheries Standard has three core principles that every certified fishery must meet including: 1) sustainable fish stocks, 2) minimizing environmental impact, and 3) effective fish...

Researchers participating in the International Year of the Salmon (IYS) are preparing to bring a team to Vancouver, British Columbia in October for a preliminary review of expedition findings on what happens to salmon in the North Pacific Ocean, including the Gulf of Alaska. Organizers of the IYS Synthesis Symposium, slated for Oct. 4-6 in Vancouver, identified as the ultimate goal developing a roadmap for the resilience of salmon and people through 2030. Synthesis papers and presentations given during the symposium are to be used to identify critical knowledge or method gaps and potential solutions to inform that roadmap, they said. Lab work is ongoing as scientists from the five international research vessels that participated in the IYS Pan-Pacific Winter High Seas Expedition— from ...

The 2022 inshore Bristol Bay sockeye salmon run of 79 million fish proved the largest inshore run on record, with harvesters delivering 60.1 million reds to processors, the largest harvest on record, with the preliminary exvessel value estimated at $351.7 million, data show. According to Alaska Department of Fish and Game biologists, the ex-vessel value —the price paid to harvesters—is based on major buyers’ base price and do not include future price adjustments for icing, bleeding, floating or production bonuses. The run itself was 81% above the 43.6 million average run for the latest 20-year period (2002-2021), and was just the fourth time on record that the Bristol Bay inshore sockeye salmon run has exceeded 60 million fish, data show. State fisheries biologists said all sockeye sa...