News Updates for The Week of July 22, 2022
Fishing mentorship in MD, record Spanish hogfish in NC, and the science of sustainable trawling!
Upcoming
Meetings

July 28: Spiny Dogfish Advisory Panel Webinar

August 1: Bluefish Advisory Panel Webinar

August 2-4: ASMFC Summer Meeting

August 8-11: MAFMC Meeting

August 9: American Eel Technical Committee and Stock Assessment Subcommittee Webinar

August 10: Atlantic Striped Bass Technical Committee and Stock Assessment Subcommittee Webinar

August 18: Northern Shrimp Section Meeting Webinar

September 12-16: SAFMC Meeting

September 27-29: NEFMC

November 6-10: ASMFC 2022 Annual Meeting, Long Branch, NJ
Jobs

(Open Until Filled)

(Open Until Filled)

(Due: July 24)

(Due: August 1)

(Due: August 15)

(Due: August 24)

(Due: September 5)
Public Comment

August 8: NOAA is seeking public comment on potentially designating a new national marine sanctuary in Hudson Canyon off the coast of New York and New Jersey (Find more here). 

August 19: NOAA Fisheries is seeking comment on a first-ever draft Equity and Environmental Justice Strategy. This draft national strategy describes the path that NOAA Fisheries will take to incorporate equity and environmental justice into the vital services we provide to all stakeholders (Find more here).

August 22: BOEM, in consultation with the National Marine Fisheries Service and affected coastal states, held meetings through July to discuss draft guidance for ways to mitigate impacts from offshore wind projects on commercial and recreational fisheries and fishing. Comments can still be submitted through August 22. (Find more here).
MD DNR: Fishing Mentorship Offered by Maryland Department of Natural Resources

The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) invites college students and adults aged 18 and older to free mentored fishing training and practice sessions in August. The program will comprise four sessions in various locations in Anne Arundel and Prince George’s counties, culminating with a fishing tournament on August 13.

Participants will learn about regulations and licenses, fish identification, tackle box components, casting, knotting, and general fishing skills All participants will receive and keep a fishing rod and reel.

Find more information here.

MD DNR: Maryland Underwater Grasses Hold Steady in 2021

The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) announced that the 2021 underwater grass abundance in Maryland’s portion of the Chesapeake Bay remained stable compared to the previous year, with a slight decrease of 1%, or 350 acres. Baywide, underwater grasses increased by 7%.

Despite record high rainfall and stream flows in 2018 and 2019, long-term monitoring by DNR has identified major reductions in polluted runoff entering the Bay as a result of Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay restoration activities. These improving trends in cleaner water provide multiple benefits including being beneficial to the Bay’s underwater grasses. 

Find more information here.
ME DMR: Shark Safety Message from the Department

Summer is in full swing and more people are enjoying time on our coastal waters. The Maine Department of Marine Resources wants to remind swimmers, paddlers, and surfers to be safe while in or on the water. While relative risk of a shark attack is very small, risks should always be minimized whenever possible in any activity on the water. The chances of having an interaction with a shark can be reduced if you follow this advice:

  • If you choose to swim, surf, or paddle, be aware of your surroundings
  • Stay close to shore
  • Swim, paddle, and surf in groups
  • Avoid areas where there are seals or schooling fish
  • Avoid murky or low visibility water
  • Avoid shiny jewelry when in or on the water
  • Limit splashing
  • Avoid swimming at dawn/dusk when lighting is low
  • Adhere to all signage at beaches and follow lifeguard instructions

Find more information here.
NH FGD: Latest Issue of NH Wildlife Journal Introduces Readers to Horned Pout Fishing, Lobsters, Watershed Education, and the State’s Official Spider

In the latest issue of New Hampshire Wildlife Journal magazine (July/August 2022), readers will learn about one of the most unique and exciting angling opportunities which occurs by moonlight throughout the state: horned pout fishing. Let’s Go Fishing Program Coordinator Kyle Glenncross and aspiring angler Sydney Philippy spend an evening under the stars targeting bullheads and covering the basics about how to attract and catch this unique species of fish.

Summer in New England conjures images of rocky coastlines—and delicious fresh seafood. Marine Biologist Joshua Carloni, leader of the Department’s Lobster Monitoring and Research Team, checks in with new findings regarding the larval life cycle of the iconic American lobster, the most valuable single-species fishery in the US and Canada. For those who are anxious to get back to school, Nicola Whitley explains the importance of the Watershed Education in New Hampshire schools, a program for students to learn about the species, habitat, and importance of the state’s watersheds.

Find more information here.
NC DMF: State certifies first state record Spanish Hogfish, which is also a world record

The N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries recently certified the first state record Spanish Hogfish (Bodianus rufus), which was also certified as the All-Tackle World Record in 2021. Dr. Robert W. Timson of Southport caught the 2-pound, 11-ounce fish offshore of Frying Pan Tower nearly a year ago, on July 17, 2021.

The fish measured 18 inches total length (from the tip of the snout to the tip of the compressed tail) and had an 11-inch girth. He caught it with a custom CTS rod with an Accurate Valiant 30 reel using crab with 30-pound test Sufix 832 braided line.

Find more information here.

NC DMF: NC Resilient Coastal Communities Program awards $1.14M for engineering and design projects

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Coastal Management (DCM) is awarding grants to 22 communities for Phase 3 of the Resilient Coastal Communities Program (RCCP). More than $1.14 million dollars will be made available for the completion of Phase 3. “Our coastal communities have seen the impacts of climate change firsthand,” said Governor Roy Cooper. “These grants will help make our state stronger and more resilient.”

Find more information here.
GA CRD: Georgia Outdoor Stewardship Program helps fund coastal estuary restoration

A project jointly funded by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will soon return a tributary of the Satilla River to its natural course as it was prior to man-made alterations created in the early 1900s. The $7.6 million project, announced this month, will restore salinity gradients, reduce shoaling, and increase tidal exchange by closing two man-made cuts in Umbrella Creek approximately 10 miles south of Brunswick.

Find more information here.

GA CRD: The Division is seeking applicants for Coastal Advisory Council

The Coastal Resources Division (CRD) of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is seeking qualified applicants to serve on a committee that advises CRD’s Georgia Coastal Management Program (GCMP).

The Coastal Advisory Council provides input and advice to GCMP staff in the development of programs and projects to guide the conservation and management of natural, cultural, and historic resources within the coastal area. The Council also provides insight into setting the annual Coastal Incentive Grant theme, which has provided more than $20 million in grant funds to nearly 450 projects during the past 20 years.

Current vacancies include:
  • Two Scientific Research Agency representatives
  • One Local Government representative of a municipal or county government within the coastal counties of Brantley, Bryan, Camden, Charlton, Chatham, Effingham, Glynn, Liberty, Long, McIntosh, or Wayne
  • One State Government or Regional Commission representative (other than DNR staff)

Find more information here.
DC DOEE: Mayor Bowser Honors 7 Leaders with 2022 District Sustainability Awards

The District of Columbia, alongside the Department of Energy and Environment (DOEE), honored seven entities at the 2022 District Sustainability Awards for their outstanding environmental leadership. The winners were announced by DOEE Director Tommy Wells through a short film that marked the 13th annual commemoration of the event.

The 2022 District Sustainability Awards winners are:

Find more information here.
FL FWC: Commission approves new guidelines for imperiled beach-nesting birds

At its July meeting, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) approved new Species Conservation Measures and Permitting Guidelines for four state-listed beach-nesting bird species, including the American oystercatcher, snowy plover, least tern, and black skimmer. All four species of state-listed beach-nesting birds are included in one set of guidelines, which is now available at MyFWC.com/speciesguidelines.

Find more information here.

FL FWC: Commissioners approve final rule establishing a Vessel Turn-In Program as part of derelict vessel prevention efforts 

At its July meeting, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) approved the final rule establishing a statewide Vessel Turn-In Program (VTIP) as part of the Derelict Vessel Prevention Program. The new rule will create a voluntary program to remove at-risk vessels before they become derelict, which helps Florida’s environment and public safety.

Find more information here.
NOAA Fisheries: Framework Adjustment 9 to the Atlantic Herring Fishery Management Plan Approved

NOAA Fisheries has approved Framework Adjustment 9 to the Atlantic Herring Fishery Management Plan. This action establishes a rebuilding plan for herring, adjusts accountability measure catch threshold triggers when a herring annual catch limit (ACL) or Management Area sub-ACL is exceeded, and revises and clarifies existing regulations.

Find more information here.
What We're Reading
Change is possible’: meet the Gen-Zers who embrace climate optimism. These people in their 20s decided to combat climate grief by taking on one small piece of the environmental crisis (The Guardian).


These Fins Were Made for Walking … and Then Swimming. Around 375 million years ago, a giant fish evolved limbs for walking. But some of its descendants reversed course on the evolutionary road, becoming swimmers again (The New York Times).

How Urchins and the Blob Tag Teamed Kelp Forests. From 2013 to 2016, the Blob derailed the ecosystem in the northeast Pacific. Years later, scientists are still uncovering new consequences wrought by this extreme heatwave (Hakai Magazine).


Offshore fish farms: a new wave of food production … or the ‘wild west’ of ocean pollution? Deep-sea aquaculture is proliferating around the planet, promising to ‘feed the world’. Yet many fear the harm this new frontier could wreak on marine life (The Guardian).

B.C.’s sea life is bouncing back, slowly, after the 2021 heat dome. Barnacles are making a return, but one scientist says his early estimation that a billion creatures died from record-high temperatures was too low (The Narwhale).

Where Glaciers Melt, New Ecosystems Emerge. Finding hope as mountain landscapes adapt to a warming world (Sierra Club Magazine).

How Indigenous Sea Gardens Produced Massive Amounts of Food for Millennia. By focusing on reciprocity and the common good—both for the community and the environment—sea gardening created bountiful food without putting populations at risk of collapse (Hakai Magazine).
Partner Agencies
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