November 2011 MAINE COASTAL NEWS Page 11. Commercial Fishing News MISCELLANEOUS COMMERCIAL FISHING NEWS


Agencies directed to take actions to encourage Iceland to change whaling policy


In a report to Congress, the President concurred with the Secretary of Commerce’s recommendations and directed federal agen- cies to take actions to encourage Iceland to change its whaling policy.


In July, then-Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke, in line with requirements under the Pelly Amendment of the Fishermen’s Protective Act, issued a certification stating that Iceland’s policy of permitting its nation- als to engage in commercial whaling and export of endangered fin whale meat is dimin- ishing the effectiveness of the International Whaling Commission conservation pro- gram. The IWC adopted a commercial whal- ing moratorium in 1982.


“Iceland’s disregard for the Interna- tional Whaling Commission’s global morato- rium on commercial whaling is unaccept- able,” said Monica Medina, U.S. commis- sioner for the IWC. “The actions the Obama Administration is now taking are designed to support the conservation of the world’s whale populations and convince Iceland to stop hunting whales.”


In 2004, the Commerce Department cer- tified Iceland as a country that is undermining the effectiveness of the IWC through its lethal scientific research whaling. In 2006, the Commerce Department retained Iceland’s certification for its commercial whaling. Sec- retary Locke’s new certification this year recommended that the President direct U.S. officials and agencies to undertake a number of stronger diplomatic actions in response to Iceland’s commercial whaling activities, and evaluate further potential responses to Iceland’s harvest of whales outside of IWC control.


The United States continues to support the moratorium on commercial whaling and believes that the IWC should address con- servation issues as a priority, as the threat to whales has increased since the commission was first established in 1946. The Department of Commerce will immediately begin to imple- ment the President’s directives and continue to examine other options for responding to Iceland’s whaling practices.


The Pelly Amendment requires the President to report to Congress on any action he takes in response to Secretary Locke’s July certification within 60 days.


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NOAA Releases First National Bycatch Report


Establishes methodology, baseline for future studies


A new NOAA report of data collected in 2005 will help the agency’s scientists better monitor progress in reducing bycatch – the non-target fish, marine mammals, sea turtles, and seabirds caught incidentally in fishing. Bycatch costs fishermen time and money, harms endangered and threatened species, affects marine and coastal ecosys- tems, and makes it more difficult for scientists to measure the effect of fishing on the stock’s population, and for managers to set sustain- able levels for fishing. Preventing and reduc- ing bycatch is an important part of ensuring sustainable living marine resources and coastal communities. The 2006 reauthoriza- tion of the Magnuson Stevens Act, the nation’s principal law for living marine re- sources, made bycatch reduction a priority, leading NOAA to establish a bycatch reduc- tion program to develop technological de- vices and other conservation engineering solutions.


While the National Bycatch Report does not represent an estimate of current bycatch rates, it is the first to compile collect regional data about U.S. commercial fisheries into one nationwide report, found that 17 percent of fish caught commercially were harvested un- intentionally. The report also details the num- bers of marine mammals, sea turtles, and seabirds caught incidentally during fishing operations in 2005. The retrospective report provides a baseline for measuring bycatch reduction and establishes a consistent, com- prehensive methodology for future studies. “Fisheries managers, the fishing indus- try, and the environmental community share the goal of preventing and reducing bycatch, which is an important part of ending overfish- ing and ensuring sustainable marine re- sources,” said Richard Merrick, Ph.D., NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service chief scientist. “This report helps us under- stand the extent of bycatch in the U.S. and the quality of our data about bycatch. As we update this report, we will see improvements in data quality and will measure the progress we believe management measures and tech- nologies are having in reducing bycatch.” Since 2005, important steps have been taken to address bycatch in fisheries across the country. NOAA’s Bycatch Reduction Engineering Program, which began in 2008,


supports scientists working side-by-side with fishermen to test gear and fishing modi- fications which are often inspired by fisher- men. The program has helped generate changes in fishing practices and technologi- cal solutions like “weak hooks,” which bend under pressure to allow the heavier bluefin tuna to free themselves from longline fishing hooks meant for yellowfin tuna and sword- fish.


Cooperative research with fishermen across the country has helped design and test fishing gear to avoid bycatch, allow nontargeted species to escape nets or lines, and reduce harm to those species inciden- tally caught and released. NOAA’s law en- forcement personnel routinely assist fisher- men through outreach and education pro- grams to ensure proper use of required bycatch-avoidance gear, like turtle excluder devices.


The report provides baseline bycatch estimates for 481 species, including marine mammals, sea turtles, seabirds, and fish. It also presents bycatch estimates for 81 fisher- ies, which are defined by a combination of area, species, and fishing gear. A fishery can be made up of more than one fish species. The report showed large differences between regions and fisheries in 2005. In some regions, such as the Pacific Northwest and Alaska, where fishermen can more easily catch fish without interacting with nontargeted species, unintended catch of


fish amounted to seven percent in 2005. In other regions, where multispecies fisheries are more common, fishermen may find it much more difficult to avoid nontargeted species. The report also evaluated the quality of bycatch data from the period for 152 federal fisheries or fisheries with federal data collec- tion programs, finding that 46 percent had high-quality data in 2005. NOAA is working to improve the quality of bycatch data through regional fisheries observer pro- grams and developing best practices for es- timating bycatch. The report also includes recommendations on how bycatch data can be improved.


To complete the report, NOAA exam- ined a variety of sources, including data from at-sea fisheries observers, commercial fish- ing logbooks, and production reports. NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service scientists from each regional office, science center, and headquarters office were in- volved in developing the estimates and the report, including scientists who undertake stock assessments for fish and protected species.


Actions by NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service, stakeholder groups, and the regional fishery management councils have also reduced bycatch. In the southwest region, bycatch of whales, dolphins and por- poises has been reduced by half since 1997,


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