Alaska Kodiak Fisheries Workgroup setting priorities and action items to help local fishers after four year hiatus KMXT by Davis Hovey - March 28, 2024 The Kodiak’s Fisheries Workgroup wants to host informational forums to speed along fish-related action items for the City Council and Borough Assembly. That was one decision the joint municipal body agreed on Wednesday, March 27, at its first forum in over four years. The Kodiak Fisheries Workgroup last held a meeting in Dec. of 2019. https://kmxt.org/2024/03/kodiak-fisheries-workgroup-setting-priorities-and-action-items-to-help-local-fishers-after-four-year-hiatus/ MSC Certified Alaska Pollock For The Win Urner Barry by Amanda Buckle - March 29, 2024 Alaska pollock is the true winner in a recent carbon footprint model project sponsored by the Japanese Ministry of the Environment.Last year Maruha Nichiro Corporation was selected to participate in the Japanese Ministry of the Environment’s Model Project for the Carbon Footprint of Products and Service. The project, which has been running for quite a few years now, “seeks to create an advanced model for calculating, displaying and utilizing carbon footprint data to support decarbonization initiatives in Japan.” The project also seeks to share this information with consumers to help them select products and services that “contribute to realizing a decarbonized society.” For this year’s project, the Japanese seafood company created a visualization scheme for the CO2 emissions throughout the complete product life of its main product, a frozen offering called Ocean Blue White Fish & Tartar Sauce.For years Maruha Nichiro has proudly boasted that its products are Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certified. As of April 2023 the company said that they handled 2,010 tons of consumer foods bearing the MSC Marine Eco-Label in FY2022; more than 1,195 tons than FY2021. And now, thanks to the model project on carbon footprints, Maruha Nichiro can proudly say that its Ocean Blue White Fish & Tartar Sauce product’s CO2 emissions were cut by 17% thanks to using MSC certified Alaskan pollock.“Maruha Nichiro has contributed to the project by quantifying and visualizing the CO2 emissions for one of its most popular frozen products, Ocean Blue White Fish & Tartar Sauce, which is made using MSC-certified Alaska pollock,” the company shared. “Our calculations found that the CO2 emissions over the product’s total lifecycle amounted to the equivalent of 0.93 kg of CO2. The use of Alaska pollock as the main ingredient was found to produce roughly 17% less CO2 emissions compared to using standard walleye pollock. This savings in emissions for each product is equivalent to the amount of CO2 one cedar tree absorbs in eight days.”The Association of Genuine Alaska Pollock Producers (GAPP) is pretty vocal about how wild Alaska pollock is the “world’s best fish.” And while it’s easy for each fishery to play favorites, there is no denying that Alaska pollock has a lot going for it besides its delicious taste – it’s a climate friendly protein.A few years ago GAPP partnered with Quantis, an environmental sustainability consultancy, on a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) for the wild Alaska pollock industry. The LCA showed that Alaska pollock has a “lower carbon footprint and delivers more protein per KG of greenhouse gas emissions than many other animal proteins, including beef, chicken, and plant-based options.”
Credit: GAPPThe Alaska pollock fishery is not only MSC certified, but also certified by the Responsible Fisheries Management (RFM) program. Harvested from the Bering Sea and the Gulf of Alaska, Alaska pollock’s primary market, in addition to the U.S., is Japan and Europe.While a Japanese company, Maruha Nichiro has operations in Alaska. In 2022 the company acquired assets for Alaska pollock operations from Icicle Seafoods and their group companies. Maruha Nichiro says that each Ocean Blue Fish Fish product is made using MSC certified Alaskan pollock caught off the coast of Alaska by its group company in the U.S. The products are then produced by Maruha Nichiro’s directly-operated factory, the New Ishinomaki Factory, and its group business, Maruha Nichiro Kyushu.“All points of processing and selling are done with the environment in mind,” the company said in one of their “Reel Stories” about frozen foods.And in this case, it’s MSC certified Alaskan pollock for the win.
https://www.seafoodnews.com/Story/1274779/MSC-Certified-Alaska-Pollock-For-The-Win
Federal Register Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Pacific Cod by Catcher Vessels Less Than 50 Feet Length Overall Using Hook-and-Line Gear in the Central Regulatory Area of the Gulf of Alaska A Rule by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on 03/29/2024 NMFS is prohibiting directed fishing for Pacific cod by catcher vessels less than 50 feet (15.2 meters (m)) length overall using hook-and-line (HAL) gear in the Central Regulatory Area of the Gulf of Alaska (GOA). This action is necessary to prevent exceeding the A season allowance of the 2024 total allowable catch (TAC) apportioned to catcher vessels less than 50 feet (15.2 m) length overall using HAL gear in the Central Regulatory Area of the GOA. https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2024/03/29/2024-06738/fisheries-of-the-exclusive-economic-zone-off-alaska-pacific-cod-by-catcher-vessels-less-than-50-feet Taking and Importing Marine Mammals; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Alaska Fisheries Science Center Fisheries and Ecosystem Research A Notice by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on 03/29/2024 NMFS has received a request from the NMFS Alaska Fisheries Science Center (AFSC) for authorization to take marine mammals incidental to conducting fisheries and ecosystem research in the Pacific and Arctic Oceans over the course of 5 years from the date of issuance. Pursuant to regulations implementing the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS is announcing receipt of AFSC's request for the development and implementation of regulations governing the incidental taking of marine mammals. NMFS invites the public to provide information, suggestions, and comments on the AFSC's application and request. https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2024/03/29/2024-06755/taking-and-importing-marine-mammals-taking-marine-mammals-incidental-to-alaska-fisheries-science FYI’s Sarah Webster Named New Science Projects Director as John Gauvin Retires from AKSC SeafoodNews.com by Peggy Parker - March 29, 2024 Sara Webster has been tapped as the new Science Projects Director at the Alaska Seafood Cooperative (AKSC), a cooperative fishing group working to improve the management of Bering Sea flatfish and other non-pollock groundfish species. Webster will replace John Gauvin, who spent close to 30 years in the role, beginning April 2024.Webster’s strong fisheries science background and her experience with a broad range of species and user groups were key to her hiring.“We couldn’t have asked for a better person to take over for John than Sarah,” said Glenn Merrill, AKSC Vice President. “She not only brings a strong science background and expertise in many Alaska fisheries but has already worked collaboratively with many fisheries sectors and agencies through her work at the FAST lab and ADF&G. We are pleased that she will be carrying on the forward-thinking, science-based advancements that the AKSC is known for.”Prior to joining AKSC, Webster worked on recreational groundfish research in the charter fishing sector for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Earlier she managed the research program for Alaska Pacific University’s Fisheries, Aquatic Science and Technology Program, also known as the FAST Lab. There she supported a wide range of projects working with the non-pelagic, pelagic, scallop, and charter industries.She also worked directly with halibut fishermen and processors when she served on the International Pacific Halibut Commission’s (IPHC) Management Strategy Advisory Board. Webster holds a master’s degree in environmental science from Alaska Pacific University, and her thesis was on size-at-age and diet composition of Pacific halibut.“Working with stakeholders has always been a highlight of my work,” said Webster. “From my perspective, the knowledge gained and ideas generated from industry is invaluable to furthering science, practical management, and sustainable fisheries. I am also excited to continue the type of research John Gauvin has established at AKSC. His approach to working with industry on constant improvement to lower habitat impacts, reduce bycatch, and increase targeted fishery efficiencies is really appealing to me.”Webster is the group’s second Science Project Director. The group was formed in 2008 with adoption of Amendment 80 to the Bering Sea fisheries management plan, which allocated trawl groundfish among fishery sectors and allowed the formation of harvesting cooperatives by catcher/processors involved in these fisheries. The A80 fisheries include Atka mackerel, Aleutian Islands Pacific Ocean perch, yellowfin sole, flathead sole, rock sole and Pacific cod.Gauvin will continue some of the science projects already underway for the Cooperative, after April.“AKSC and the entire Amendment 80 community would like to thank John for his long dedication to our fisheries. Using science-based innovation, he has been a driving force, working collaboratively with academia, federal and state agencies, and fishermen to address the challenges we have faced with positive benefits for the fishery and the environment,” said Merrill.AKSC members — Fishermen’s Finest, North Star, F/T Ocean Peace, O’Hara Corporation, and United States Seafood — have reduced bycatch, impact on the seafloor and the marine ecosystem while still catching fish that feed millions of people every year. https://www.seafoodnews.com/Story/1274788/Sarah-Webster-Named-New-Science-Projects-Director-as-John-Gauvin-Retires-from-AKSC
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