News Updates for the Week of November 7, 2022

FishLine app to promote local fresh seafood in RI, grants awarded to restore free-flowing water in coastal NYS, and the Island Nation Niue designates its entire EEZ a marine park

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Upcoming

Meetings


November 10, 14, 17:

Mid-Atlantic Council to hold public hearings on Atlantic Surfclam and Ocean Quahog Species Separation Requirements


November 16: NOAA Virtual Public Hearing on the Development of a Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument Omnibus Amendment


November 30: Redefining North Atlantic Right Whale Habitat-Use Patterns under Climate Change Webinar


December 5-9: SAFMC Meeting


December 5-9: Bluefish and Spiny Dogfish 2022 Research Track Peer Review


December 6-8: NEFMC Meeting


December 12-15: MAFMC Meeting


January 10-12: Marine Resources Education Program (MREP) Southeast Fisheries Science Stakeholders Workshop, Falmouth, MA


January 31: NOAA Mid-Atlantic Northeast Cooperative Reach Summit 


January 31- Feb 2: ASMFC 2023 Winter Meeting


February 15: NOAA New England Northeast Cooperative Reach Summit


February 21-23: Marine Resources Education Program (MREP) Southeast Fisheries Science Stakeholders Workshop, Tampa, FL


March 21-23: Marine Resources Education Program (MREP) Southeast Fisheries Science Stakeholders Workshop, Hanover, MD

Jobs


Recreational Angler Interviewer -- Delaware, ACCSP

(Open Until Filled)


MRIP Field Technician -- VMRC 

(Open Until Filled)


Fisheries Observer, Protected Species -- VMRC

(Open Until Filled)


Shellfish Hatchery Technician in Maine -- Running Tide

(Open Until Filled)


Information and Education Coordinator -- MA DMF

(Open Until Filled)


Research Associate -- Commercial Fisheries Research Foundation

(Due November 11)


Fishery Management Specialist (1 vacancy in multiple locations) --- NOAA

(Due: November 11)


Fishery Management  Specialist (4 vacancies in multiple locations) -- NOAA

(Due: November 14)


Climate Change Communications Specialist Intern: Washington D.C. (VIRTUAL) -- Environment for the Americas

(Due: November 15)


Assistant Director for Communications and Engagement -- University of Maryland Sea Grant

(Due: November 15)


Science Manager at Western Flyer Foundation

(Due: November 15)


Chief Operating Officer -- Maine Lobsterman's Association

(Due: November 15)


Biologist Trainee (2 vacancies) -- NJ FW

(Due: November 17)


Atlantic Coastal Fish Habitat Partnership Director -- ASMFC

(Due: November 18)


Assistant Professor of Marine Affairs: Fisheries Management and Policy -- University of Rhode Island

(Due: December 15)


Policy Analyst/Policy Support Specialist -- Cardinal Point Captains to work in NOAA ONMS

(Open Until Filled)


Research Technician in the Benthic Ecology Lab -- Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium

(Open Until Filled)


Research Associate I -- Nova Southeastern University 

(Open Until Filled)


Aquaculture Impact Investing Specialist -- World Wildlife Fund (WWF)

(Open Until Filled)


Director of Ocean Justice (Climate & Plastics) -- Ocean Conservancy

(Open Until Filled)


Director of Restoration Science -- Coral Vita

(Open Until Filled)


Fisheries Gear Research Technician, NOAA

(Open Until Filled)


Various Fisheries Observer Positions, AIS


Various NOAA Positions, Lynker Technologies


Various Ocean and Fisheries Positions, Ocean Associates Inc.

Public Comment


November 23: Mid-Atlantic Council is seeking public comment on Atlantic Surfclam and Ocean Quahog Species Separation Requirements

(Find more here)


November 25: NOAA Fisheries is seeking public comment on the Incidental Take Regulations and related Letter of Authorization for the Ocean Wind 1 Offshore Wind Energy Project offshore of New Jersey. Comments may be submitted through November 25. 

(Find more here)


November 25: NOAA Fisheries is seeking public comment on Atlantic HMS Exempted Fishing and Related Permits in 2023

(Find more here)


November 30: GA DNR is seeking public comment on a proposed fishing regulation change relative to use of blueback herring as bait. Comments may be submitted through November 30. 

(Find more here)


December 4: NOAA Fisheries is seeking public comment on the Draft North Atlantic Right Whale and Offshore Wind Strategy which seeks to minimize the effects of offshore wind development on right whales and their habitat. Comments may be submitted through December 4. 

(Find more here)


January 3: NOAA Fisheries is seeking public comment on the proposed rule for the Atlantic Mackerel Rebuilding Plan and 2023 Atlantic Mackerel Specifications. Comments may be submitted through

January 3.

(Find more here)

ASMFC: Douglas Grout and Jason McNamee Named Captain David H. Hart Award Recipients for 2020 and 2022


At its 80th Annual Meeting in Long Branch, New Jersey, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission presented Douglas Grout, New Hampshire’s Governor Appointee, and Dr. Jason McNamee, Rhode Island Administrative Commissioner, the Captain David H. Hart Award for 2020 and 2022, respectively. The Commission instituted the Hart Award in 1991 to recognize individuals who have made outstanding efforts to improve Atlantic coast marine fisheries. The Hart Award is named for one of the Commission’s longest serving members, who dedicated himself to the advancement and protection of marine fishery resources, Captain David H. Hart, from the State of New Jersey.


Find more information here.

RI DEM: New Website Tools and "FishLine" App to Help Local Consumers Find Local Fresh Seafood


The Rhode Island Seafood Marketing Collaborative has launched a mobile app and a redesigned website to heighten Rhode Island consumers’ awareness of the value, appeal, and year-round availability of fresh, local Rhode Island seafood, the Department of Environmental Management (DEM) announced today. Developed in partnership with the Commercial Fisheries Center of Rhode Island, the new app, FishLine, lets consumers search for fresh seafood to buy from seafood markets, farmers’ markets, and restaurants, as well as directly off the boat from fishermen.


The FishLine app and newly updated SeafoodRI.com website are examples of ways that the state is trying to boost its commercial fishing and seafood industry, and strengthen Rhode Island’s local food system and food economy.


The app and website list more than 40 restaurants, seafood markets, grocers, and direct sellers that offer local seafood, profiles about local species and harvesters, and tips for how to cook and enjoy it. Direct sellers and other seafood retailers can use the app to post real-time updates on landings and sales opportunities, helping consumers geo-locate the opportunities to purchase and enjoy RI seafood closest to where they are located.


Find more information here.

GA DNR: 2023 DNR Career Academy


The Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is looking for the next generation of DNR employees who will care for Georgia’s natural and cultural resources. This summer, DNR invites high school students to a week-long summer camp where students will have the opportunity to explore future career options, receive training and education, and make connections with current DNR employees. Attendees will work alongside field professionals and receive hands-on training from game wardens, park managers, and wildlife, fisheries, and marine technicians while traveling across the state visiting wildlife management areas, state parks, fish hatcheries, historic sites, and Georgia’s coast.


The program will take place next July 16-22, 2023 in Mansfield & Jekyll Island, GA. The application period is open now until November 30.


Career Academy students will learn about all major aspects of working for DNR. As part of the Career Academy, students will take part in:

  • Electrofishing and fish habitat creation
  • Prescribed burns and land management
  • Boating and firearms safety
  • Trailblazing and state park management
  • Saltwater fisheries surveys and methods

 

After the program, students can receive continued mentorship from DNR employees to stay on track for future careers with DNR. Eligible students can also choose to earn optional technical college credit upon completion of the Career Academy. 


For more information here

DE DNREC: Pilot Changes to Delaware Surf Fishing Permit Program for 2023


The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control announced changes are to be piloted for the 2023 surf fishing permit program after record interest in the program in 2022. One of the biggest changes will be the elimination of a cap in effect since 2019 on the number of permits sold annually. The DNREC Division of Parks and Recreation will replace the cap for 2023 with a technology-based reservation system for managing capacity on summer weekends, when the state’s surf fishing beaches are in highest demand.


Last spring, the Division of Parks and Recreation initiated a comprehensive review of the program in response to unprecedented permit sales for the 2022 season – including the opening day for sales, when the online permitting system was temporarily overwhelmed and surf fishing permits sold out in just a few hours. The historic sales volume peaked at 742 permits being issued per minute, with the sales cap of 17,000 permits reached in under four hours. DNREC’s review of the program looked nationally at best practices and other states’ models for viable solutions to improve the sales process, delivery of permits, compliance with surf fishing regulations, enforcement and public safety – all with a goal of providing access to surf fishing on state park multi-use beaches while protecting the natural resource.


Find more information here.

NYS DEC: Nearly $350,000 in Grant Awards to Support Marine Water Quality, Conservation, and Flood Protection


New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Basil Seggos announced $347,484 in grants were awarded to coastal organizations and municipalities to help restore free-flowing waters to benefit water quality, conserve and restore valuable habitat for aquatic species, and increase flood resiliency. Funding Will Advance Plans to Reconnect Migratory Habitat for Native Fisheries in Westchester and Suffolk Counties.


The projects awarded funding will support planning and engineering for a dam removal, construction of fish ladders, and right-sizing of culverts that impact American eel and river herring. Both species are designated as New York Species of Greatest Conservation Need. River herring and American eel are diadromous, migrating between freshwater and saltwater during their lifecycles. These species play a vital role in the ecosystem and are an important food source for recreational and commercial fish, marine mammals, migratory birds, river otters, and other mammals. Migratory fish populations have been significantly impacted by coastal development and barriers to tidal waterways such as dams and culverts that restrict access to vital freshwater spawning and nursery habitats.


Find more information here.

NYS DEC: Striped Bass Cooperative Anglers Program


Do you want to have a more active role in the conservation and management of striped bass? By joining the NYS DEC Striped Bass Cooperative Anglers Program (SBCA), you can take part in an effort to help manage and maintain a healthy striped bass population.


New York State is required by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) (leaves DEC website) to supplement the Marine Recreational Information Program (MRIP) (leaves DEC website) with additional information from our recreational fishery. We satisfy this requirement with the help of New York State volunteer recreational anglers.


Volunteer anglers are provided with logbooks to record information about their fishing trips, scale envelopes to take scales from striped bass, and instructions on what information is needed and how to properly collect it. The logbook information helps us determine the catch per unit effort (CPUE= fish caught/hours spent fishing) or fishing success for striped bass in New York waters. Scale samples are used to determine the age of the fish.


Find more information here.

FL FWC: Reminding Boaters to Go Slow and Look Out Below


November is Manatee Awareness Month, an important time for boaters to go slow and lookout below to watch for manatees as they travel to warmer water sites around the state.


While manatees are large, they can be difficult to see in the water. That is why it is important to: follow guidelines and follow all manatee protection zones; look out while boating; wear polarized glasses and always give them space. Manatee protection zones are marked by waterway signs and maps of manatee protection zones are available online at MyFWC.com/Manatee by clicking on “Data and Maps.”


During the colder months, seasonal manatee zones require boaters to slow down in certain areas to prevent manatees from being injured or killed by motorboats or personal watercraft. Boat strikes continue to be a major threat to Florida manatees. Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) law enforcement officers are on patrol in state waters to inform boaters of the seasonal manatee speed zones and take appropriate enforcement actions. Boaters are reminded to abide by the regulatory signs they see on the water. 


Find more information here.

SCDNR: Sea Turtle Season Wraps with High Nest Numbers


South Carolina’s official sea turtle nesting season concluded October 31, 2022 with welcome news. Data collected by agency staff and its volunteer network showed an estimated 8,004 nests laid along state beaches this year, the second-highest number on record.


Most nests in South Carolina belong to loggerhead sea turtles, which accounted for over 99% of nests in 2022. But loggerheads weren’t the only species to visit the coast this year. Green sea turtles laid an estimated 21 nests on beaches ranging from Myrtle Beach to Edisto Island, a record number for South Carolina. The threatened green sea turtle is an infrequent nester on state beaches, but young greens are more common in South Carolina salt marshes and tidal creeks, where they find shelter and food.


South Carolina’s federal recovery goal for loggerheads is 9,200 nests. Nest numbers are just one of many considerations and milestones that are part of the national Recovery Plan for the loggerhead sea turtle, but they’re part of a growing body of research suggesting the species is on a positive path.


Find more information here.

Lenfest: Announcing a Request for Proposals on Managing Protected Areas in a Changing Ocean


The Lenfest Ocean Program is seeking proposals for research and planning grants focused on developing and providing usable information about managing protected areas in a changing ocean. Changing ocean conditions due to climate variability and change, such as increasing temperature, ocean acidification, and deoxygenation, among others, are already impacting marine ecosystems worldwide. However, there is limited information and guidance about how established marine protected areas (MPAs) should consider the changing climate in their management. To that end, we have opened a request for proposals (RFP) targeted at advancing on the challenge of how to consider climate change in MPA management.


Find more information here.

DOI: National Academies of Science Seeks Nominations for New Committee for Offshore Wind Energy and Fisheries


The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management announced that the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine will establish a new 15-member committee on offshore wind energy and fisheries. The committee will serve as an independent, credible forum to discuss the state of science and pressing concerns related to the intersection of offshore wind with fisheries. They are seeking representatives from: state and local government; academia; non-governmental organizations; commercial and recreational fisheries; and the offshore wind energy sector. Nominations are due November 9.


BOEM seeks to expand and improve its communication with the fishing community on offshore wind energy activities. This is an opportunity to provide feedback on offshore wind development activities specifically through a fisheries lens. We encourage you to submit nominations for consideration.


Find more information here.

NOAA Fisheries: Now Accepting Applications for the 2023 Shark Research Fishery


NOAA Fisheries is now accepting applications from commercial shark fishermen interested in participating in the 2023 Shark Research Fishery. A completed application and required vessel information must be submitted by December 2, 2022 for consideration.



Shark Research Fishery permits allow fishermen to land sandbar, other large coastal sharks, small coastal sharks, smoothhound, and pelagic sharks from federal waters in the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean Sea. The permit is subject to 100-percent observer coverage—participants can fish without an observer when not on a Shark Research Fishery trip. The scientific data collected by fishery observers is used in shark stock assessments.


Find more information here.

What We're Reading

Whales ingest millions of microplastic particles a day Blue whales consume up to 1bn particles over a feeding season with as-yet-unknown impacts on health (The Guardian)


The Global Climate Breakdown: Is Climate Change a Crime? A leader from Vanuatu discusses an effort to bring climate damages before the International Court of Justice (Sierra Club)


Small island, big ocean: Niue makes its entire EEZ a marine park A small island nation, designated its entire EEZ (about the size of Vietnam) as a multiple-use marine park called Niue Nukutuluea (Mongabay)


When a massive project threatened endangered sturgeon, science intervened (Bay Journal)


Welcoming Herring Home In Howe Sound, British Columbia, a new generation of stewards is keeping careful tabs on the comeback efforts of a tiny fish with big cultural value (Hakai Magazine)


How to move a country: Fiji’s radical plan to escape rising sea levels In Fiji, there is a plan to relocate dozens of villages that could soon be underwater due to the climate crisis (The Guardian)


How Rare Are November Hurricanes? November hurricanes and tropical storms such as Nicole are relatively rare, but they can—and do—form (Scientific American)


A stolen beach and the black market for sand It's in concrete, in glass, in your cell phone. But there isn't enough sand in the world for everyone, and we're starting to run out (NPR)


New Study Finds the World's Largest Population of Giant Oceanic Manta Rays The 14-year study identified more than 2,800 individual giant manta rays in Ecuador (Marine Megafauna Foundation)

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