PCFFA – Page 3 – Fishermens News

The Oft-Forgotten Fishery

The fishery for North Pacific albacore is an important one for West Coast-based commercial harvesters and the communities which depend upon, and/or benefit from, access to the resource. Between 1996 and 2020, the U.S. commercial albacore fleet harvested an average of 11,469 metric tons (roughly 25.3 million pounds). In 2020, the fleet landed about 16 million pounds with ex-vessel revenues totaling $25 million. In 2007, it was the first tuna fishery in the world to achieve certification by the Marine Stewardship Council. The American Albacore Fishing Association and Western Fish Boat Owners Association share the certificate, which was recertified in 2020. The West Coast commercial fishery is primarily prosecuted by vessels utilizing troll or pole and line gear and while there is no set s...

Thinking Clearly About Demolishing Dams

In the midst of the current regional debate over the fate of a number of dams, first off, to see why in many cases dam removal makes good sense, we should consider the current state of the nation’s aging dams. There are, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ National Inventory of Dams, approximately 84,000 dams in the nation providing a range of benefits that were built for a wide variety of purposes. This is a staggering number – almost one dam built in the U.S. for every day since the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776. Yet no dam can exist forever. All have engineered lifespans, after which their reservoirs silt up, their concrete structures crack and deteriorate and they can catastrophically fail—endangering the lives, property and natural resources (including...

“Once we’re gone, we’re not coming back.”

This month’s column is a bit different. While contemplating what to write about for this month’s issue, Mike had a conversation with longtime California commercial fisherman John Koeppen. John has seen the ups and downs of our profession and has been actively involved in fisheries management processes for many years. He told Mike of a topic he had long been considering writing about, and after further discussion, they came up with the following: “Once we’re gone, we’re not coming back.” I read this newspaper column headline recently and thought this article must be about the West Coast’s small-boat commercial fishing fleet. But no, it was about small, family-owned farms. While reading the article, I recognized an uncanny thread of similarities in the demise of the small family-owned far...

Divisiveness Should Not Have a Role in Commercial Fisheries

On January 15th, an underwater volcano erupted near the Tonga islands in the Pacific Ocean. This eruption sent tsunami waves around the world that day, closing beaches, flooding marinas and activating emergency plans in California. A four-foot spike in water levels was observed in Port San Luis, Calif., while Arena Cove, Calif., reported a 3.5-foot jump. Crescent City, Calif., got a 2.7-foot spike, and a tsunami of 2.8 feet was seen in King Cove, Alaska. At the time of this writing, the amount and extent of damage done to Tonga remains unknown. We share our thoughts and prayers to those impacted. All fishermen should take this opportunity to review your emergency plans and consider drafting a tsunami plan. Different West Coast ports are likely to be impacted in different ways. Divis...

Another National Marine Sanctuary Off California?

On Wednesday, Nov. 19, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration published in the Federal Register a Notice of Intent to Conduct Scoping and to Prepare a Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary. The comment period closes Jan. 10, 2022. As of the time of this writing, there are 15 National Marine Sanctuaries (NMS). If designated, the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary (CHNMS) would be the fifth NMS off the California coast and would fill the gap between the Monterey Bay NMS and the Channel Islands NMS. At roughly 7,000 square miles, the CHNMS would be the largest NMS off the California Coast, taking that title away from the Monterey Bay NMS, which covers 4,601 square miles. PCFFA opposed the nomination when it ...

Second Wind Energy Area Designated Off California Coast

On Friday, Nov. 12, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced the designation of the Morro Bay Wind Energy Area (MB WEA) offshore California’s central coast. This WEA, the second WEA designated off the California coast in the past four months, encompasses 376 square miles. On July 29, BOEM expanded the size of the original Morro Bay Call area from 311 square miles to a proposed 399 square miles, adding an east and a west extension. The MB WEA excluded the east extension proposed in July. According to BOEM, the MB WEA is capable of generating 2.924 gigawatts (GW) of wind power. In short, there are now two WEAs off the California coast. The other, located off the city of Eureka (between San Francisco and Portland, Oregon), is called the Humboldt WEA. It appears to be a fore...

Ropeless Gear – Into the Unknown

In 2015 and 2016, unfavorable conditions in the eastern Pacific Ocean off the coasts of Washington, Oregon, and California resulted in a spike in interactions between fishing operations and whales. In a memo released in March of this year, NOAA reported 61 entanglements in 2015 and 70 in 2016. That same memo noted the commercial Dungeness crab accounted for a significant number of entanglements which could be confirmed to a specific trap fishery—73 between 1982 and 2017. Litigation was initiated against the director of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (DFW) alleging “[he] has caused and is causing the illegal ‘take’ of threatened and endangered humpback whales, endangered blue whales, and endangered Pacific leatherback sea turtles” in violation of Section 9 of the Endangered...

Sailing into the Unknown — Rough Seas Aheads

America’s commercial fishing families provide an invaluable service to all Americans. Often putting our lives at risk, we do so without unrealistic expectations. For the most part, we love what we do and prefer the dynamic and ever-changing ocean upon which we ply our trades. We are conservationists; we are aware of changes underway in our environment (often long before scientists and managers notice them) and constantly adapting to them; we are passionate and committed to providing the world’s citizen’s with a highly regulated, sustainable source of protein; we are essential workers; we are community members; we are engaged in the management of our marine resources; we are your next door neighbors; we are story-tellers, mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, sons and daughters. We are you....

Engaging in the Process

As fishermen, we fish. We have devoted our lives, and in some cases given up those lives, to feed our communities, our state, and our nation. Our workspace is limited to the size of the vessel we find ourselves on. Our workplace is the ocean and all the beauty, vastness, and temperaments it brings. Our workday almost certainly ensures that no one day is like any day that preceded it. We may pull pots, troll lines, set nets, or make sets all day; but what we see and what we encounter along the way differs each day. At this time, there are numerous actions both known and unknown; and planned or proposed, which could have profound impacts on each of those, and on our ability to contribute to the nation’s food security. Workspace This advice is neither new, nor should it be controversia...

Why Healthy Fish Habitats Are Crucial to Our Fisheries

Part 2 of 2: This year, due to yet another year of forecasted low ocean salmon abundances, California commercial salmon harvesters have roughly 85 less days on the water (184 vs. 286 days) compared to 2020, and less in 2020 than in most previous years. This steady reduction in opportunity is intended to ensure that escapement goals for Sacramento River Chinook runs are met. The California portion of the Klamath Management Zone (CA/OR border to Fort Bragg) is also closed completely to commercial harvesters for the second year in a row, due to low fall Chinook returns forecasted for the Klamath River. All across the board, fishing opportunities have been steadily declining – but not as a result of fishing pressures or the need to prevent overfishing. Rather, fishery declines – particular...