nmfs – Fishermens News

15Mar

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2023 Commercial Ocean Troll Salmon Fishery Cancelled

Commercial ocean troll salmon fishery seasons that were scheduled to open between March 15 and May 15 in all areas from Cape Falcon to the Oregon-California border have been cancelled for 2023, officials with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) announced March 9. They said the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), in consultation with the Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC) and the states of Oregon and California, met to take the action on scheduled commercial troll Chinook salmon openings off Oregon. It was noted that multiple stocks of California Chinook salmon are at extremely low abundance and are projected to potentially fall below target spawning escapements. Officials with the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) said that for ocean salmon seasons f...

NMFS Opens Comment on Proposed BSAI Groundfish Management Plan Amendment

15Feb

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NMFS Opens Comment on Proposed BSAI Groundfish Management Plan Amendment

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA Fisheries) is seeking comment through March 13 on a proposed rule that would establish a program allocating Pacific cod harvest quota to a limited access group of harvesters and processors in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands (BSAI). The proposed rule would implement Amendment 122 to the fishery management plan for groundfish of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area. It would establish the Pacific Cod Trawl Cooperative Program (PCTC) to allocate Pacific cod harvest quota to qualifying groundfish License Limitation Program (LLP) license holders and qualifying processors. The program would be a limited access privilege program for the harvest of Pacific cod in the BSAI trawl catcher vessel sector. According to NMFS, the propos...

Financial Support for Trollers Pours in from Southeast Alaska

8Feb

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Financial Support for Trollers Pours in from Southeast Alaska

Financial support from local governments, nonprofits and the seafood industry is pouring in to help Southeast Alaska salmon trollers, a small boat hook and line fishery, battle litigation that would bring their summer and winter commercial troll fisheries to a halt. The fishery, which provides a substantial number of harvesting and processing jobs, contributes significantly to the economy of Southeast Alaska. The litigation was brought by the Wild Fish Conservancy (WFC) in Seattle, which contends that an end to the trollers summer and winter fisheries would benefit Chinook salmon and Southern Resident killer whales, for whom these salmon are a diet staple. According to the WFC, the government has failed to address the impact of Alaska’s Chinook harvests on these killer whales. The WFC...

NOAA Fisheries Reinstates Consultations on Groundfish Management Plans

30Nov

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NOAA Fisheries Reinstates Consultations on Groundfish Management Plans

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA Fisheries) has reinstated steps in the Endangered Species Act (ESA) to evaluate effects of fisheries managed under the Bering Sea/Aleutian Islands and Gulf of Alaska, on ESA-listed species and designated critical habitats. State of Alaska parallel groundfish fisheries are also subject to evaluation. North Pacific Fishery Management Council Chairman Simon Kinneen was notified of the change in late November by NOAA Regional Administrator for Alaska Jonathan Kurland. Kurland said that NMFS determined that allowing groundfish fisheries to continue to operate during this reinitiation period would not violate ESA sections 7(a) (2) or 7(d). He advised that the consultations would be a significant undertaking and require considerable NMFS staff ti...

Report Recommends That Fisheries Service Share Climate Resilience Information

24Aug

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Report Recommends That Fisheries Service Share Climate Resilience Information

A report prepared for Congress by the federal Government Accountability Office (GAO) recommends that National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) work with regional fishery management councils to identify and prioritize opportunities to enhance climate resilience of federal fisheries. The report to congressional committees, released Aug. 18, found that many fisheries managers are leading initiatives that could advance the use of climate information in operations, such as addressing distributional shifts in species. Initiatives include the creation of a special task force to identify actions and tools to better incorporate climate information in fisheries management. Several fisheries managers from the eight regional councils told GAO that they were not aware of climate-related fisher...

New Halibut Catch Sharing Plan Proposed for IPHC Area 2A

27Jul

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New Halibut Catch Sharing Plan Proposed for IPHC Area 2A

NOAA Fisheries has published a proposed rule in the Federal Register to create a permitting system for the Pacific halibut commercial and recreational charter halibut fisheries in International Pacific Halibut Commission Regulatory Area 2A offshore of Washington Oregon and California. The action would also establish a regulatory framework for the Area 2A Pacific halibut directed commercial fishery that allows the National Marine Fisheries Service to determine each year dates and times the fishery is open and set harvest limits for those periods of time. The IPHC currently handles permitting and management activities for area 2A. Under the proposed action, NMFS would assume responsibility for issuing vessels permits to fish for Pacific halibut in commercial and recreational charte...

6Jul

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NMFS Extends Pacific Halibut Bycatch Retention in Oregon, Washington, California

The National Marine Fisheries Service, aka NOAA Fisheries, has agreed in consultation with the states of Oregon, Washington and California has agreed to new rules for retention of Pacific halibut incidental harvests in the commercial troll salmon season in those states. Under current regulations, retention of Pacific halibut bycatch continues past June 30. However all participants retaining those halibut must have applied for and received an incidental troll salmon halibut permit from the International Pacific Halibut Commission. Currently vessels are limited to one Pacific halibut for every two Chinook salmon, plus one Pacific halibut in possession, up to a maximum of 35 Pacific halibut per trip. All Chinook salmon must be landed with the Pacific halibut. Oregon Department of...

1Jun

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NMFS Modifies Cape Falcon Area Commercial Troll Salmon Limits

The National Marine Fisheries Service has modified the Chinook salmon landing and possession limit for the commercial salmon troll fishery for the entire area north of the Cape Falcon area to 40 Chinook per vessel per week through June 8. Officials with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife said the rationale behind the decision is that total Chinook landings in the area from the U.S.-Canada border to Cape Falcon, Oregon are estimated at 13,500 out of the spring quota of 18,000 fish, leaving a remainder of just 4,500 Chinooks on the quota. Landings last week were estimated at 5,250 Chinooks. Eric Schindler of ODFW’s marine resources management section noted that the majority of salmon moving north have not been doing well in recent years, but whether this is due to predation...

NMFS Issues Final Rule on Washington, Oregon, California Ocean Fisheries

18May

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NMFS Issues Final Rule on Washington, Oregon, California Ocean Fisheries

The National Marine Fisheries Service has issued a final rule establishing fishery management measures for the 2022 ocean salmon fisheries off Washington, Oregon and California and the 2023 salmon seasons opening earlier than May 16, 2023. Measures in the final rule vary by fishery and by area and establish fishing areas, seasons, quotas, legal gear, recreational fishing days and catch limits, possession and landing restrictions, and minimum lengths for salmon taken in the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone off Washington, Oregon and California. The management measures are intended to prevent overfishing and to apportion the ocean harvest equitably among treaty Indians, non-Indian commercial, and recreational fisheries. They’re also intended to allow a portion of salmon runs to escape ...

NMFS Aims to Rebuild Pacific Sardine Stocks

11May

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NMFS Aims to Rebuild Pacific Sardine Stocks

The National Marine Fisheries Service is seeking comments by May 24 on a proposal to implement annual harvest specifications and management measures for the northern subpopulation of Pacific sardine for the fishing year from July 1, 2022 through June 30, 2023. This proposed rule is intended to conserve, manage and rebuild the Pacific sardine stock off the U.S. West Coast. Pacific sardine harvest would be allowed only for use as live bait, in minor directed fisheries, as incidental catch in other fisheries, or as authorized under exempted fishing permits. The proposed action would prohibit most directed commercial fishing for Pacific sardine off the coasts of Washington, Oregon, and California. The incidental harvest of Pacific sardine would be limited to 20% by weight of all f...