Fisheries

SAN JUAN CHANNEL, Wash. — The earthy, fishy smell wafted aboard Joseph Gaydos’ research vessel first. Then came the guttural growls. Dozens of massive tan Steller’s sea lions were resting on the rocky islet.

WASHINGTON — Today, EPA issued a Final Determination under the Clean Water Act to help protect Bristol Bay, the most productive wild salmon ecosystem in the world. With this action, the Biden-Harris Administration is protecting certain waters that are important to sustaining Southwest Alaska’s salmon resources from disposal of dredged or fill materials associated with developing the Pebble deposit.

Warming weather has kept clam predators active, and a slow response to possible solutions has led to frustrations.

Once one of the largest fisheries on the East Coast, Peconic Bay scallops have faced near complete die-offs on Long Island since 2019.

Whether the fishery is harming the endangered right whale is a matter of vehement debate, but local chefs, restaurateurs, fishmongers and ordinary people are still cracking into Maine's iconic crustacean.

Increased sea lice infestations, scientists say are caused by salmon farms, threaten the already-vulnerable wild Pacific salmon populations in western Canada, worrying conservationists and First Nations.

The regional council wants to allow fishing in protected waters via "customary exchange," drawing the ire of Papahanaumokuakea's Hawaiian stewards.

Low meat yields and domoic acid pushed the first day of the 2022-2023 crabbing season to Jan. 15

As predicted in September, a state rule change due to be implemented Wednesday will drastically reduce the size of the area within the Pensacola Bay System in which oysters can be farmed and harvested.

Maine lobster fishermen received a Christmas gift from Congress at the end of 2022: A six-year delay on new federal regulations designed to protect critically endangered North Atlantic right whales.

Calling it the “the third step in (a) four-step Clean Water Act Section 404(c) review process,” the Environmental Protection Agency’s Region 10 announced a recommendation to restrict mining use in Bristol Bay watersheds.

Scientists sighted North Atlantic right whale #4904 with a severe entanglement off the coast of North Carolina during an aerial survey. The survey was conducted by Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute with funding from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

PORTLAND, Maine — Lobsterman Curt Brown had already logged a full day on the water by the time he pulled up to a fishing wharf just blocks from downtown Portland restaurants bustling with lunchtime diners.

The Bering Sea snow crab population has crashed in recent years. Scientists say warming water helped drive the collapse. (NOAA Fisheries)

Less than five years ago, prospects appeared bright for Bering Sea crab fishers. Stocks were abundant and healthy, federal biologists said, and prices were near all-time highs.

Just before the holidays, Maine’s congressional delegation took bold legislative action that has the potential to save Maine’s lobster industry and the island and coastal communities that depend on it.

In January 2019, the Korean-flagged fishing vessel Oyang 77 sailed south toward international waters off Argentina. The vessel had a known history of nefarious activities, including underreporting its catch and illegally dumping low-value fish to make room in its hold for more lucrative catch.

The omnibus spending legislation includes a rider that freezes new federal regulation of lobstering practices. President Biden is expected to sign the bill into law.

If you love oysters, you may want to stop reading, because the latest news about the delicious shellfish is not good, for consumers or the fishermen who depend on them for their livelihoods.

Oyster harvesters on the Texas coast are facing twin threats to their way of life: The state shut down reefs to prevent overfishing and following recent reports of illness after people ate Texas oysters.