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An Oregon-based environmental group with ties to fisheries issued a report March 15 with 16 recommendations to strengthen the resilience and prosperity of fishing communities under a new national catch share policy.Ecotrust, with offices in Newport, Oregon, is urging the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to further define and develop guidelines for implementation of community provisions within the Magnuson Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act to be applied by all fishery management councils.Ecotrust issued its own report, which it said was written by a national bi-partisan panel of experts, with 16 recommendations that Ecotrust said would strengthen the resilience and prosperity of fishing communities under a new catch share plan.America’s fishing communities gener...

The Canadian Government has awarded a $24,000 grant to the commercial fishing group, the Canadian Highly Migratory Species Foundation, (CHMSF) to develop overseas markets for its sustainably caught albacore tuna, says a recent press release from trade group Wild Pacific Albacore. South of the border, US albacore trollers struggle against a rising tide of regulations and restrictions that threaten to wipe out the century-old fishery.“It is encouraging to see the Canadian government supporting groups who fish in a responsible, sustainable way,” says Wayne Heikkila, Executive Director of the Western Fishboat Owners Association (WFOA), which represents about 300 West coast albacore fishermen. The press release notes the non-profit has been denied similar government funding to effectively marke...

At a hearing last week in front of the Senate Commerce Committee on the Magnuson-Stevens Act, Assistant NOAA Administrator for Fisheries Eric Schwaab said that the U.S. is making good progress toward meeting the mandate to end domestic overfishing. “We know that nearly $31 billion in sales and as many as 500,000 jobs are lost because our fisheries are not performing as well as they would if all stocks were rebuilt,” Schwaab said. “While we are turning a corner toward a brighter future for fishermen and fishing communities, many fishermen are struggling in part as a result of years of decline in fishing opportunity.”Schwaab said that NOAA is committed to working with fishermen and communities during this period of transition. Our nation’s fisheries have been vital to the economics and ident...

The classic definition of insanity is doing the same thing again and expecting different results. Take the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife for example:A 2009 report on spending by “fishers, hunters and wildlife watchers” from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) found that commercial fisheries generate $3.8 billion a year in economic activity for the State of Washington. The report was based on Fisheries Economics of the U.S., 2006, published by the NOAA office of Science and Technology.The 2010 WDFW report for the State of Washington, based on the same 2006 NOAA study, found the impact of commercial fishing to be $1.6 billion. Same report, same data, different results. Crazy? Perhaps. The 2009 WDFW report has now been relegated to the state archives, and brande...

In 1911, Pancho Villa led rebel forces during the Mexican Revolution. North of the border, John Browning introduced the Colt 45. 1911 saw the first use of aircraft as offensive weapons during the Turkish-Italian war, and the United States Navy ordered it's first airplane, the Curtiss A-1.In 1911, Roald Amundsen became the first man to reach the South Pole, the US Supreme Court dissolved Standard Oil and a first class stamp cost $.02.In Seattle, the fishing vessel Tordenskjold slid down the ways at a little shipyard in the Scandinavian community of Ballard. Of all the events that transpired 100 years ago, the Tordenskjold is one that endures.Remarkably, as she celebrates her centennial, she is neither relic nor museum piece. The Tordenskjold leads a small fleet of hard working commercial fi...

American Pride Seafoods is proud to once again be recognized as a top quality supplier of Alaskan Seafood at the 2011 Symphony of Seafood. The company’s Potato Crusted Cod received the Silver medal in the foodservice category – moist and flaky white cod with real potato in a crunchy crust. New Blackened Seafood by American Pride Seafoods also took the Bronze medal in the foodservice category with its premium white fish and authentic blend of spices delivering a traditional eating experience that American Pride says is easy to prepare.These products join the ranks of past American Pride Seafoods winners including last year’s Silver and Bronze award winners in Foodservice – Zesty Lemon Flounder and Kickin’ Buffalo Panko Sliders.

US Senators Olympia J. Snowe (R-Maine), Ranking Member of the Senate subcommittee on Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries, and Coast Guard, this week cosponsored legislation with Senator Scott Brown (R-Mass.), to ensure that fisherman and fishing communities are not subjected to unnecessary and over-broad regulations imposed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).Under National Standard 8 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fisheries Conservation and Management Act, NOAA is currently required to release a fishing impact statement prior to the ratification of any new fisheries management plan or amendment to the existing plan. The bill Senator Snowe is supporting today, the Fishing Impact Statement Honesty (FISH) Act of 2011, S. 238, expands on that requirement by calling for those impa...

The classic definition of insanity is doing the same thing again and expecting different results. Take the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife for example:A 2009 report on spending by “fishers, hunters and wildlife watchers” from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) found that commercial fisheries generate $3.8 billion a year in economic activity for the State of Washington. The report was based on Fisheries Economics of the U.S., 2006, published by the NOAA office of Science and Technology.The 2010 WDFW report for the State of Washington, based on the same 2006 NOAA study, found the impact of commercial fishing to be $1.6 billion. Same report, same data, different results. Crazy? Perhaps. The 2009 WDFW report has now been relegated to the state archives, and brande...

A new study shows that Alaska’s seafood industry continues to be a national and global leader in the development of sustainable commercial fisheries. The most significant findings for Alaska state policy makers however, may be the industry’s impact on local communities and the state economy.Funded by the Marine Conservation Alliance (“MCA”) and conducted by Alaska-based Northern Economics, the “Seafood Industry in Alaska’s Economy” is an update of the 2009 report by the same name. The study is now available at www.marineconservationalliance.org.The seafood industry - including fisheries in state waters as well as federal waters fisheries that take place off the coast of Alaska - now employ more than 70,000 people; and generate more than $3.3 billion in annual wholesale value. “The seafood ...

AKCRRAB biologists are developing methods to identify hatchery-raised king crab using physical tags. Their experiments test crab survival and retention of tags after molting for a range of juvenile crab sizes. The methods are modeled after similar efforts in Chesapeake blue crab.From October 2010 to February 2011, Alaska Sea Grant research biologist Jim Swingle conducted a tagging study using coded wire tags, visible implant elastomers, and dactyl clipping on juvenile red king crab. Each method was tested on three different size classes of juveniles (5, 10, and 15 mm carapace width) to determine the minimum size juveniles could be effectively tagged. The experiment was run until all tagged juveniles molted at least once, so that tag retention could be measured post-molt. The findings sugge...