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Fisheries

Northeast
Fisheries

ME - Rep. Faulkingham (R-Winter Harbor) Pitches $1,000,000 State Contribution to Lobster Legal Defense Fund

A public hearing will be held Thursday to discuss a bill aimed at providing financial support to the Maine Lobstermen’s Association (MLA), a group that represents Maine’s lobster industry.

International
Fisheries

Thailand - Ghost nets haunt Labuan waters

LABUAN: Labuan waters have not been spared from ghost nets - fishing nets lost or abandoned at sea.

Coastwide
Fisheries

USA - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Partners Announce More than $39.2 Million for Fish Habitat Conservation

Through the National Fish Habitat Partnership (NFHP) (www.fishhabitat.org), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and partners are providing more than $39.2 million to support 95 fish habitat conservation projects in 24 states.

West Coast
Fisheries

CA - Judge rules that NMFS has not done enough to prevent humpback whale death

AP – A U.S. judge last week ruled that the National Marine Fisheries Service violated the law when it failed to develop a plan to prevent West Coast commercial sablefish fishermen from harming humpback whales.

Arctic & Antarctica
Fisheries

CAN - Herring advocate skeptical about precautionary principle in Strait of Georgia

Despite concerns of various groups and individuals about herring extirpation in the Strait of Georgia, Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) says the area comprises about 50 per cent of coastwide herring biomass. Still, it prioritizes conservation and takes a precautionary approach to protect the health of future stock.

Pacific Northwest
Fisheries

WA - NWAA Launches Grassroots Campaign Spotlighting Damage Done by DNR Commissioner Hilary Franz’s Political Decision to End Commercial Net Pen Fish Farming In Washington

COVINGTON, WA / In a new campaign launched today, Washington fish farming workers, who have grown affordable, high-quality fish in Puget Sound for over 40 years, are speaking out for the first time to expose the pain they and their families have endured as the result of DNR Commissioner Hilary Franz's unilateral and unscientific decision to ban fish farming in state waters.

West Coast
Fisheries

CA - Sandia Creek Drive Bridge Replacement and Fish Passage Project Begins

Non-profit conservation group California Trout has begun construction on a Sandia Creek Drive bridge replacement and fish passage project in San Diego County.

Hawaii & Alaska
Fisheries

AK - Board of Fisheries votes on Bristol Bay king salmon management plan

The Alaska Department of Fish & Game Board of Fisheries voted on a final version of the King Salmon Management Plan that will take effect in the Bristol Bay area.

Northeast
Fisheries

ME - Maine lobster industry sues California aquarium for 'red list' that led to boycott

Several Maine lobster industry members are suing the Monterey Bay Aquarium for defamation over its decision to downgrade American lobster to its red list, which resulted in boycotts.

Gulf of Mexico
Fisheries

AL - Red snapper frustrations boil over in Alabama as feds place strict limits on 2023 season

The latest dispute is part of a decades-long battle over the science behind red snapper assessments. It’s a scientific battle waged between federal and state bureaucrats that shows no signs of letting up any time soon.

Northeast
Fisheries

ME - A year after record-breaking catch, value of Maine lobster landings are lowest in a decade

PORTLAND, Maine — Maine lobstermen hauled in the least valuable lobster catch in a decade last year, when a decrease in price per pound and higher operational costs gave them less incentive to get out on the water.

West Coast
Fisheries

CA - Plummeting salmon population could trigger closure of fishing season in California waters

California Chinook salmon populations have fallen to their lowest levels in years, according to new estimates released by state and federal scientists—a decline that could trigger a shutdown of the commercial and recreational fishing season along the coast.

Hawaii & Alaska
Fisheries

AK - Alaska’s Fisheries Are Collapsing. This Congresswoman Is Taking on the Industry She Says Is to Blame.

Mary Peltola won her election by campaigning on a platform to save the state’s prized fisheries. A powerful fishing lobby is standing in her way.

Northeast
Fisheries

ME - Lobster industry wages legal battle over recent regulations, while new ones remain frozen

Feb. 27—Maine's lobster fishery may have received a six-year reprieve from any new federal regulations, but lobstermen are still wrapped up in litigation over the most recent rule changes, which they say are burdensome and needless.

Northeast
Fisheries

ME - Rep. Allison Hepler: More and better data can protect lobstering and right whales

The word “reprieve” is being used to describe the late-December federal action that produced a 6-year delay in implementing federal whale rules, as well as new funding for research and gear innovations in the lobster fishery.

Pacific Northwest
Fisheries

WA - New report says salmon still struggling | The Journal of the San Juan ...

A new report released by the Governor’s Salmon Recovery Office shows that salmon in Washington still are struggling and face increasing difficulty brought on by climate change and other challenges.

Gulf of Mexico
Fisheries

GOM - US court strikes down Gulf of Mexico charter boat tracking rule

It was a victory for a group of Florida and Louisiana charter operators who filed a lawsuit in 2020.

International
Fisheries

World - Award-winning ocean experts call for UN to ban high seas fishing at treaty talks

The recipients of a 2023 environmental award have called on the United Nations (UN) to ban fishing on the high seas. Ocean fisheries experts Rashid Sumaila and Daniel Pauly have jointly won the Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement. They made the plea in an open letter ahead of critical UN treaty negotiations on the matter.

International
Fisheries

EU - Fisheries, aquaculture and marine ecosystems: transition to clean energy and ecosystem protection for more sustainability and resilience

"Much of our economy depends on nature. Fisheries are quite possibly the sector where this link is most direct. Europe’s marine ecosystems and the fish, shellfish, algae, and plants that are part of them are crucial to the economic viability of fisheries. With these proposals we aim to build a sustainable relationship with our seas." Frans Timmermans, Executive Vice-President for the European Green Deal

International
Fisheries

CAN - Fisheries Department to shut 15 salmon farms off B.C.'s coast to protect wild fish

VICTORIA — The plight of British Columbia's endangered wild salmon came first Friday in the decision against renewing licences for 15 open-net Atlantic salmon farms in the Discovery Islands area off Vancouver Island, says the federal fisheries minist

International
Fisheries

Chili - Fishing communities create marine refuges to protect Chile’s biodiversity

In Chile’s Valparaíso region, artisanal fishers have created grassroots marine reserves to protect marine biodiversity. The areas are small, some of them just 15 hectares (37 acres) in size, but they provide a haven for marine creatures to grow and reproduce.

International
Fisheries

CAN - Shrinking salmon: Hatchery Practices are Called into Question

Commercial salmon fishermen all along the West Coast of North America may be paying a serious price in lost poundage to help put dollars in the pockets of 267 Alaska fishermen who hold state permits to seine salmon from the waters of Prince William Sound if new research is to be believed.

International
Fisheries

Sweden - The coastal cod population is not extinct

The rumour that the coastal cod is extinct is not true. Through DNA analyses, researchers at the University of Gothenburg have identified that there are still juvenile coastal cod off the west coast of Sweden. However, it is still difficult to find any mature adult cod in the area.

Southeast
Fisheries

FL - New Artificial Reef Set Up Off Florida’s Gulf Coast

A new artificial reef is now in place in the waters off Destin-Fort Walton Beach, Florida.

Northeast
Fisheries

MD - Watermen form Shore-wide caucus

EASTON — With the appointment of a well-known environmental leader to the top natural resources position in Annapolis, Eastern Shore watermen decided it’s time to gear up to defend their livelihoods.