From the Editor

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 a...

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 ...

Supporters of the commercial fishing industry received some good news in late 2023 when the federal legislation known as H.R. 4618 –commonly called the Supporting Commercial Fishing in Port Infrastructure Projects Act – passed both the House and Senate as part of the Maritime Administration Reauthorization Act. The legislation, introduced in mid-July and sponsored by Rep. Val Hoyle, D-Ore., was approved in mid-December and is expected to be signed into law by President Biden in the coming days. It explicitly allows ports to apply for infrastructure grants to support commercial fishing, and in turn boost coastal communities’ jobs and economies. Hoyle has said she introduced the Act because current law didn’t make it explicitly clear whether ports can apply for Port Infrastructure D...

In the October issue of the print version of Fishermen’s News, you’ll find a news brief about NOAA’s 2023 Report to Congress on Improving International Fisheries Management, which identifies seven nations and entities, including Mexico, that are engaged in illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing. One of the more important parts of the document states that the Mexican government has not done enough to stop illegal fishing vessels in its territorial waters, despite the U.S. bringing the problem to Mexico’s attention numerous times since 2015. The fishing vessels in question, known as lanchas, are catching finfish stocks that are regulated by the United States, including red snapper. Because of this, the U.S. government has decided to keep in place sanctions that have been in ...

Bad news for crab fishermen in Oregon was delivered on Aug. 4. On that date, the state’s Fish and Wildlife Commission voted to extend, with no sunset date, restrictive crabbing measures that were originally supposed to expire after the current season. The rules restrict the number of crab traps in the water and how deep the traps can drop in the late-season months when humpback whales are more likely to swim there. The restrictions were first put into place due to the fact that humpbacks migrate off Oregon’s coast and they, along with other types of whales, can get caught in the vertical ropes connected to the heavy traps and drag them around for an extended period of time, in the process becoming injured, starved and exhausted, leaving them susceptible to drowning. The ODFW i...

The Maritime Publishing family of periodicals has gotten bigger. On June 12, the company announced the acquisition of The Log newspaper from Newport Beach-based Duncan McIntosh Co. Inc. For those who aren’t familiar, The Log is a biweekly publication based in Orange County, Calif. It been a boating and fishing essential for recreational anglers throughout Southern California since 1971. “The Log is an iconic publication,” Maritime Publishing owner Dave Abrams said in a statement announcing the acquisition. “I’ve been reading almost every issue since 1990, and I look forward to (acquiring) it. As a boater, it keeps me apprised of everything going on in the SoCal maritime community and provides a great resource for finding service providers, slips, equipment, etc. I’m really proud ...

For some time, the conventional wisdom has been that designating certain waters as Marine Protected Areas – where commercial fishing is off limits – hurts the fishing industry due to a corresponding reduction in catch, and that the reduction, in turn drives seafood prices higher globally. But is this really accurate? A new study published in the scientific journal Science Advances, says it is not. According to the study, which was published in the magazine’s June 2023 issue, the largest Marine Protected Area (MPA) in North America, located in the Mexican Pacific, does not harm industrial fishing. In fact, the information uncovered by four researchers concludes that the protected area has actually helped commercial fishing in the long run. The researchers, including a marine ecologist ...