NOAA – Fishermens News

NMFS Opens Comment on Proposed BSAI Groundfish Management Plan Amendment

15Feb

By Fishermen's NewsNo Comments

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...

15Feb

By Fishermen's NewsNo Comments

Fishermen's News Online, News

Bipartisan Legislation Would Enhance Effectiveness of Marine Debris Program

New legislation amending the 2020 Save Our Seas (SOS) 2.0 Act and the 2006 Marine Debris Act would give NOAA greater flexibility to provide federal resources and enter into cooperative agreements to conduct marine debris prevention and clean-up. The legislation, which passed the Senate by unanimous consent in the previous Congress, also clarifies the function and responsibilities of the congressionally chartered Marine Debris Foundation. Sponsors include Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, D-Ore. and Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska. Bonamici said that marine debris threatens the health of the ocean and that the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act took a big step toward addressing this pollution, but that Congress now has the opportunity to build on that success by making it easier to use resources provided by law. ...

25Jan

By Fishermen's NewsNo Comments

Fishermen's News Online, News

NOAA Fisheries Denies Emergency Action Request For Red King Crab Savings Area

NOAA Fisheries has denied a request to institute emergency action closing the red king crab savings area in Alaska to all fishing gears through June 30, 2023. The decision was made on the grounds that the petition did not meet criteria necessary to determine that an emergency exists. According to the federal agency, the available information does not support a finding that the proposed emergency regulations would address the low abundance and declining trend of mature female Bristol Bay red king crab. The decision was issued in mid-January. In response, Jamie Goen, executive director of Alaska Bering Sea Crabbers (ABSC) said she was dismayed and disappointed. She noted that the need for protection of crab stocks was denied on the same day that NOAA Fisheries opened pollock fisheries w...

NOAA Fisheries Announces Proposed Rule to Expand Seafood Import Monitoring

4Jan

By Fishermen's NewsNo Comments

Fishermen's News Online, News

NOAA Fisheries Announces Proposed Rule to Expand Seafood Import Monitoring

NOAA Fisheries has announced a proposed rule that would expand the Seafood Import Monitoring Program (SIMP), a risk-based program for targeted species of seafood imported into the United States. SIMP currently includes reporting and recordkeeping requirements for nearly half of all seafood imported, in order to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing and misrepresented seafood from entering US commerce. SIMP would provide a screening and deterrent tool for IUU fish and fish products and misrepresented seafood products seeking entry into domestic markets. The rule proposes to expand the species currently subject to SIMP, including red snapper and tuna, to include all species in the snapper family and additional tunas, to minimize the risk of mislabeling and product sub...

NOAA Backs $16M+ in Fish Passage Funds, Including in Alaska, Washington, Oregon

21Dec

By Fishermen's NewsNo Comments

Fishermen's News Online, News

NOAA Backs $16M+ in Fish Passage Funds, Including in Alaska, Washington, Oregon

NOAA Fisheries has recommended spending more than $16 million for 13 tribal priority fish passage projects in seven states, including Alaska, California, Idaho, Oregon and Washington. In Alaska, the allocations include $1,558,006 to the Chickaloon Native Village, $425,920 to Sealaska Corp., and up to $2.9 million to The Eyak Corp. to remove fish passage barriers and for stream-crossing barriers. In California, the Round Valley Indian Tribes are allocated $1.3 million to engage in dam removal at the Potter Valley Project on the Eel River. Idaho’s Shoshone-Bannock Tribes on the Fort Hall Reservation are receiving over $1 million to restore fish passage and habitat connectivity in the Yankee Fork watershed. The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation in Oregon are to recei...

NOAA Examines Poor Chinook, Chum Salmon Runs in Alaska

14Dec

By Fishermen's NewsNo Comments

Fishermen's News Online, News

NOAA Examines Poor Chinook, Chum Salmon Runs in Alaska

An updated research report from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is providing new insight into historically poor chinook and chum salmon runs in Alaska. A report published in early December in SeafoodSource says the latest research from NOAA indicates poor diet, changes in metabolism and increases in parasitic infection are contributing to poor runs of chinook salmon in the Yukon and Kuskokwim rivers. Those factors plus warming water temperatures are proving disastrous to salmon and people dependent on them. Scientists have observed that in warm water conditions fish typically grow faster and need more food to survive the winter. The fish are also maturing at an earlier age, resulting in them producing fewer eggs, according to the report. NOAA has conducted s...

Comment Period on Bering Sea Halibut Management Proposal Opens

14Dec

By Fishermen's NewsNo Comments

Fishermen's News Online, News

Comment Period on Bering Sea Halibut Management Proposal Opens

NOAA Fisheries is seeking comment through Feb. 7 on a plan for abundance-based management of halibut in the Bering Sea. The proposed rule would implement Amendment 123 to the fishery management plan for groundfish within the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area for the Amendment 80 trawl sector prohibited species catch limit for Pacific halibut. NOAA Fisheries said in its request for comment that Amendment 123 balances interests of the two largest halibut user groups in the Bering Sea-Aleutian Islands Fishery Management Area. The Amendment 80 sector is a fleet of nearly 20 trawl catcher-processor boats targeting Pacific cod, Pacific Ocean perch, Atka mackerel and rock, yellowfin and flathead sole in the Bering Sea. The action was initiated at the December 2021 meeting of t...

NOAA, BOEM Develop Joint Strategy for Fisheries Surveys

7Dec

By Fishermen's NewsNo Comments

Fishermen's News Online, News

NOAA, BOEM Develop Joint Strategy for Fisheries Surveys

A Federal Survey Mitigation Strategy developed by NOAA Fisheries and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management is the new vehicle for the two agencies to address potential impacts of offshore wind energy development on NOAA Fisheries’ scientific surveys. An announcement from NOAA on Monday, Dec. 5 stated that the new strategy underscores both agencies’ commitment to the Biden-Harris administration’s clean energy goals of responsibly advancing offshore wind energy production while protecting biodiversity and promoting mutual use of the ocean. NOAA Fisheries scientists have been collecting survey data that forms the basis of science-based management of America’s federal fisheries for 150 years. This new strategy is expected to ensure the quality of NOAA’s fisheries surveys and data are maint...

NOAA Fisheries Reinstates Consultations on Groundfish Management Plans

30Nov

By Fishermen's NewsNo Comments

Fishermen's News Online, News

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...

NOAA Releases Five-Year Strategy for Combating IUU Fishing

26Oct

By Fishermen's NewsNo Comments

Fishermen's News Online, News

NOAA Releases Five-Year Strategy for Combating IUU Fishing

Federal fisheries officials and their partners have released their National Five-Year Strategy for Combating Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing, a global problem impacting ocean ecosystems, the economy and food security. The strategy, announced in mid-October, details U.S. priorities and plans for the next five years to promote maritime security worldwide. The strategy includes a U.S. Interagency Working Group on IUU Fishing, composed of 21 member agencies building an expanding toolbox for partners to combat IUU fishing. Over the next five years, the working group plans to engage with five priority flag states and administrations: Ecuador, Panama, Senegal, Taiwan and Vietnam, focusing on helping them in their ongoing efforts to combat IUU fishing and related threats. ...