Alaska/Pacific Coast
As the Bering Sea warms, this skipper is chasing pollock to new places Alaska Public Media by Wesley Early - February 6, 2019 The pollock fishing in the Bering Sea was “about as good as it gets,” skipper Dan Martin said as he steered his 133-foot trawler, the Commodore, over a dense school of the fish last month. https://www.alaskapublic.org/2019/02/06/as-the-bering-sea-warms-this-skipper-is-chasing-pollock-to-new-places/ Wind Change Pulls Curtain Back On A Future Bering Sea KYUK by Johanna Eurich - February 7, 2019 For those who wonder what the Bering Sea will be like decades from now, last year was a glimpse of the future. It brought something many did not expect: the disappearance of the undersea “cold pool,” which is the nursery for Alaska’s pollock fishery. KYUK’s Johanna Eurich looks at how it happened. http://www.kyuk.org/post/wind-change-pulls-curtain-back-future-bering-sea ADF&G updates information on Tanner crab fishery Cordova Times - February 7, 2019 State fisheries officials have slated the Commissioner’s Permit tanner crab fishery in the Western and Eastern Districts of Prince William Sound to run from March 1 to March 31, unless closed earlier by emergency order. https://thecordovatimes.com/2019/02/07/adfg-updates-information-on-tanner-crab-fishery/ State waters Pacific cod season opens to longline gear Cordova Times - February 7, 2019 Harvesting of Pacific cod in the Prince William Sound area parallel fishery closed at noon Feb. 7, coinciding with the National Marine Fisheries Service closure of Pacific cod less than 50 foot in length hook and line gear sector in the federal Central Gulf of Alaska area. https://thecordovatimes.com/2019/02/07/state-waters-pacific-cod-season-opens-to-longline-gear/ Politics House Panel Reviews Economic Impact of Shutdown on Businesses, Including Fisheries Saving Seafood - February 7, 2019 Yesterday, the House Committee on Small Business held a hearing examining the economic impact of the recent government shutdown. The seafood industry was among the most affected; recent testimony from fishermen highlighted how the closures of NOAA offices have prevented many of them from fishing for the duration of the 35-day shutdown. https://www.savingseafood.org/news/washington/house-panel-reviews-economic-impact-of-shutdown-on-businesses-including-fisheries/ International How Trump's trade war kept Russian fish sticks in US school lunchrooms CNN by Michael Warren - February 7, 2019 Washington (CNN)A trade decision by the Trump administration has inadvertently protected a price advantage enjoyed by Russian-caught fish sold in the US, much of which ends up in fish sticks served to American school children. https://www.cnn.com/2019/02/07/politics/russian-fish-sticks/index.html GSSI expands into China, South America through new partnerships Seafood Source by Madelyn Kearns - February 5, 2019 The Global Sustainable Seafood Initiative (GSSI) has expanded into China through a new affiliated partnership with China Aquatic Products Processing and Marketing Alliance (CAPPMA), GSSI announced on 4 February. https://www.seafoodsource.com/news/environment-sustainability/gssi-expands-into-china-south-america-through-new-partnerships Environment/Science Study Finds Climate Changes Ocean Color Fisherman's News - February 6, 2019 Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology say climate change is causing significant alterations to phytoplankton that will affect the ocean’s color, intensifying its blue and its green regions. http://fnonlinenews.blogspot.com/2019/02/study-finds-climate-changes-ocean-color.html Federal Register Pacific Fishery Management Council; Public Meeting A Notice by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on 02/08/2019 The Pacific Fishery Management Council (Pacific Council) will convene a webinar meeting of its Habitat Committee (HC) to discuss items on the Pacific Council's March 2019 meeting agenda. The meeting is open to the public. https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2019/02/08/2019-01607/pacific-fishery-management-council-public-meeting Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Reallocation of Pollock in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands A Rule by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on 02/08/2019 NMFS is reallocating the projected unused amounts of the Community Development Quota (CDQ) pollock directed fishing allowances (DFA) from the Aleutian Islands subarea to the Bering Sea subarea directed fishery. This action is necessary to provide opportunity for harvest of the 2019 total allowable catch of pollock, consistent with the goals and objectives of the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area (BSAI). https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2019/02/08/2019-01218/fisheries-of-the-exclusive-economic-zone-off-alaska-reallocation-of-pollock-in-the-bering-sea-and Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Prohibit Directed Fishing for American Fisheries Act Program and Crab Rationalization Program Groundfish Sideboard Limits in the BSAI and GOA A Rule by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on 02/08/2019 NMFS issues regulations to modify management of the American Fisheries Act (AFA) Program and Crab Rationalization (CR) Program. This final rule has two actions. The first action modifies regulations for AFA Program and CR Program vessels subject to limits on the catch of specific species (sideboard limits) in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands (BSAI) Management Area and Gulf of Alaska (GOA) Management Area. https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2019/02/08/2019-01665/fisheries-of-the-exclusive-economic-zone-off-alaska-prohibit-directed-fishing-for-american-fisheries
Ann Owens Pacific Seafood Processors Association Office Manager 1900 W Emerson Place Suite 205, Seattle, WA 98119 Phone: 206.281.1667 E-mail: pspafish@gmail.com; Website: www.pspafish.net Our office days/hours are Monday-Friday 8:00 A.M. - 5:00 P.M. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, any copyrighted work in this message is distributed under fair use without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving this information for non-profit research and educational purposes only. *Inclusion of a news article, report, or other document in this email does not imply PSPA support or endorsement of the information or opinion expressed in the document.