Wednesday, April 21, 2021

Alaska Pacific Council Works Late into the Evening to Finish Setting Salmon Seasons SeafoodNews.com by Susan Chambers - April 19, 2021 Thanks primarily to one run of coho, the Queets River coho, and the Klamath River run of fall Chinook, fishery managers last week had an extraordinarily tough time finding ways to afford salmon fishermen some time on the water while also protecting sensitive rusn of fish. The Pacific Fishery Management Council worked until 9 p.m. on the last day of the meeting to finalize the North of Cape Falcon sport, commercial and tribal fishing seasons for Washington and the northern bit of Oregon for this year. Fishery managers and Council members wrapped up their South of Cape Falcon business earlier in the day. The recommendations will be forwarded to the National Marine Fisheries Service for approval by May 16, 2021. “There will be some restrictive commercial and recreational seasons this year along much of the coast,” Council Chair Marc Gorelnik said in a press release. “Forecasts for some Chinook and coho stocks are quite low, which made our job more challenging this year.” The seasons provide recreational and commercial opportunities for most of the Pacific coast and achieve conservation goals for the numerous salmon stocks on the West Coast, the Council said. The Council heard reports from commercial, recreational, and tribal representatives on the challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as ways the Council could provide meaningful fishing opportunities and economic support for coastal communities. In Washington and northern Oregon, fisheries are limited by the need to constrain catch of lower Columbia River natural tule Chinook and specific Washington coast coho salmon stocks. Three Washington coho stocks are either overfished -- Queets River, Strait of Juan de Fuca -- or are rebuilding -- Snohomish coho -- which was a concern when structuring fishing seasons. "Forecasts for most Washington coastal coho stocks are lower than in 2020," the Council's 2020 Preseason Report II states. The fishery management plan's maximum sustainable adult spawner objective for Queets natural coho is 5,800; projected ocean escapement values for the 2021 preliminary season alternatives ranged from 3,300 to 3,500, while the preseason forecast for age-3 Queets coho is only 3,900. It didn't give fishery managers a lot to work with. The Quinault Indian Nation was primarily concerned with the impacts to the Queets River coho. "All of the 2021 salmon management alternatives, coupled with last year's terminal area fisheries, exceed the maximum allowable exploitation rate of 20% for southern coho management units in low status under the [Pacific Salmon Treaty] Southern Coho Agreement," the Quinaults wrote in a statement early in the week. "The minimum spawning escapement for Queets natural coho needs to be 3,150 fish … . "Equitable sharing of the conservation responsibility is required," the tribe added. Fishery managers did their best, working late into the evenings on modeling to achieve the requisite escapement goal while creating workable seasons. "I believe we are past the impasse," Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife intergovernmental salmon manager Kyle Adicks said when making a motion, subsequently approved by the Council, to approve a natural escapement of 3,154 Queets River coho. The Council then finalized seasons that would allow for those 3,154 coho. These will allow other fisheries to be prosecuted while Queets coho meets its rebuilding trajectory, Adicks added. In some instances, the final numbers were better than in 2020. North of Cape Falcon, the overall non-Indian total allowable catch is 58,000 Chinook coastwide,compared to 54,000 last year, and 75,000 marked hatchery coho, compared to 28,500 last year. Of those overall numbers, tribal ocean fisheries north of Cape Falcon are similar in structure to past years, with a spring season targeting Chinook and a summer fishery for all species. Quotas include 40,000 Chinook and 26,500 coho, compared with 35,000 Chinook and 16,500 coho last year. Non-Indian ocean commercial fisheries north of Cape Falcon include traditional seasons in May-June for Chinook and in July to September, in the summer, for Chinook and coho. These fisheries will have a 30,750 Chinook quota, an increase over the 27,640 last year, and a marked coho quota of 5,000, compared to 2,000 last year. Low abundance forecasts for Klamath River fall Chinook will keep most Oregon and California fisheries checked with limited seasons this year. Management measures are designed to provide fishing opportunity for the more abundant Sacramento River fall Chinook while reducing impacts on Klamath River fall Chinook for this year. Commercial fisheries in the area from Cape Falcon to the Heceta Bank line are open now through April 30 for all salmon except coho. Starting May 1, Cape Falcon to Humbug Mt. will open through June with intermittent closures, and will be open continuously in September and October with weekly limits. The area will be open for all salmon, with a 10,000 marked coho quota, intermittently during July and August. In the area from Humbug Mt., Oregon to the Oregon/California border, also known as the Oregon Klamath Management Zone, the Chinook season opened in late March and continues in April and most of early May. It is also open in June and July with monthly catch quotas and weekly limits in place. The area from the Oregon/California border to the southern KMZ boundary, also known as the California KMZ, will be closed to conserve Klamath River fall Chinook. Elsewhere in California, Chinook seasons in the Fort Bragg area, from the southern KMZ boundary to Point Arena, will be open August 1-17 and all of September. The San Francisco area, Point Arena to Pigeon Point, will be open intermittently mid-June through mid-August, and all of September. The Monterey area, Pigeon Point to the Mexico border, will be open intermittently from May to mid-August. There will also be a season from Point Reyes to Point San Pedro, a subset of the San Francisco area, consisting of three openings in early October ranging from one to five days each. The Council developed three management alternatives in early March for public review and further analysis. The review process included input from federal, state, and tribal fishery scientists and fishing industry members; public testimony; and three public hearings held by webinar. The decision must be approved by NMFS. Coastal states will adopt fishery regulations for state-managed waters that are compatible with the Council’s actions. https://www.seafoodnews.com/Story/1196920/Pacific-Council-Works-Late-into-the-Evening-to-Finish-Setting-Salmon-Seasons International Conservation Alliance for Seafood Solutions aims for bigger impact Seafood Source by Ned Daly - April 20, 2021 The Conservation Alliance for Seafood Solutions has announced a series of changes aimed at helping the seafood industry achieve greater adoption of sustainable practices and innovation. The changes are intended to support the organization’s 10-year goal of achieving 75 percent of global seafood production rated as environmentally sustainable or making verifiable improvement, and making sure safeguards are in place to ensure social responsibility. https://www.seafoodsource.com/news/environment-sustainability/conservation-alliance-for-seafood-solutions-aims-for-bigger-impact Environment/Science A decade after Fukushima nuclear disaster, Alaska expands seafood monitoring KCAW by Jacob Resneck - April 19, 2021 State environmental regulators announced Monday they’re expanding radiation testing of commercially harvested Alaska seafood to include crab using a Gamma radiation detector at a state laboratory in Anchorage. That’s thanks to continued federal funding from the Food and Drug Administration. https://www.kcaw.org/2021/04/19/a-decade-after-fukushima-nuclear-disaster-alaska-expands-seafood-monitoring/ Labeling and Marketing #3MMI - Pacific Halibut and Salmon Market Update TradexFoods - April 19, 2021 2.4 million pounds of new season Pacific Halibut have been harvested which translates to about 8 percent of the 39 million pound fishing limit set for 2021. Typical of the start of the season, grounds prices are again too high to freeze and fish have been getting sold fresh. The current landscape for Salmon is that inventories are short and will continue to remain short until the new season starts (which is around June). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXceUELXj5k FYI’s The Alaska State Legislature (2021 - 2022) Meetings Joint Meeting with Senate Resources Committee Presentation: Barriers to Global Seafood Trade by TELECONFERENCED 04/21/2021 03:30 PM SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON WORLD TRADE At-Sea Processors Association -- Testimony <Invitation Only> -- **Streamed live on AKL.tv** http://www.akleg.gov/basis/Meeting/Detail?Meeting=SWTR%202021-04-21%2015:30:00#tab2_4 Peter Pan Seafood Welcomes Shannon Grant to Human Resources Director Role Perishable News - April 16, 2021 ANCHORAGE, Alaska —Peter Pan Seafood Company, LLC recently welcomed Shannon Grant to its team as director of human resources. In her role, Grant’s main focus will be to carry out one of the core values established when Peter Pan came under new ownership earlier this year: Hire and empower talented people. https://www.perishablenews.com/seafood/peter-pan-seafood-welcomes-shannon-grant-to-human-resources-director-role/ American Seafoods executive joins board of non-profit SeaShare SeaShare donates seafood companies' bycatch to foodbanks across the United States. Intrafish by Dominic Welling - April 15, 2021 5:02 Rasmus Sorensen, executive vice president of global sales at American Seafoods, has joined the board of SeaShare, a non-profit organization that promotes partnerships between government agencies, seafood companies and food banks to donate fish to people in need. https://www.intrafish.com/people/american-seafoods-executive-joins-board-of-non-profit-seashare/2-1-997164 News Release: Vice Adm. Linda L. Fagan nominated to be Coast Guard Vice Commandant, first Coast Guard female 4-star admiral USCG - April 19, 2021 WASHINGTON – Vice Adm. Linda L. Fagan has been nominated by the White House to be the next Vice Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard. She currently serves as the commander of the Coast Guard Pacific Area, overseeing all Coast Guard missions from the Rocky Mountains to the waters off the East Coast of Africa. Fagan concurrently serves as commander, Defense Force West and provides Coast Guard mission support to the Department of Defense and Combatant Commanders. Fagan is a 1985 graduate of the Coast Guard Academy and is the Coast Guard’s first-ever Gold Ancient Trident, the officer with the longest service record in the Marine Safety field. https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/USDHSCG/bulletins/2cd64a8

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