News Updates for The Week of August 4, 2022
Young environmentalists in DE, MD grant for watershed studies, and new species discovered at the bottom of the ocean!
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Upcoming
Meetings
August 9: SAFMC FISHstory - Using Citizen Science to Describe Historic Catches Webinar
August 9: American Eel Technical Committee and Stock Assessment Subcommittee Webinar
August 10: Atlantic Striped Bass Technical Committee and Stock Assessment Subcommittee Webinar
August 17: Climate change scenario planning deepening webinar
August 18: Northern Shrimp Section Meeting Webinar
August 23: Climate change scenario planning deepening webinar
September 27-29: NEFMC
November 6-10: ASMFC 2022 Annual Meeting, Long Branch, NJ
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Jobs
(Open Until Filled)
(Open Until Filled)
(Due: August 15)
(Due: August 19)
(Due: August 19)
(Due: August 23)
(Due: August 24)
(Due: September 5)
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Public Comment
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with the National Marine Fisheries Service and affected coastal states, held meetings through July to discuss draft guidance for ways to mitigate impacts from offshore wind projects on commercial and recreational fisheries and fishing.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).
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MD DNR: Maryland Awards Climate Resilience Grants to 12 Communities
The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) announced the award of more than $2 million to 12 climate resilience projects to help communities prepare for, and recover from, climate-related impacts. These competitive grants are designed to help communities plan and design solutions to withstand flooding and other weather-related events.
The projects selected will identify and prioritize vulnerable communities, incorporate climate change data and information into existing plans and policies, and develop nature-based or natural solutions to control flooding. Funding is provided by Governor Hogan’s Resiliency Through Restoration Initiative, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Find more information here.
MD DNR: Department Awards Outdoor Environmental Education Grants for Watershed Studies
The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has announced $128,000 in awards for student and youth outdoor science, and watershed education in the state. The following schools and nonprofit organizations will receive funding during Fiscal Year 2023.
- Adkins Arboretum, ShoreRivers, and Caroline County Public Schools will engage second grade students in the “Bees, Seeds, and Healthy Streams” field experience at the Arboretum. Through an outdoor issue investigation, students will discover how can native plants, pollinators, and people interact to create thriving land and water habitats.
- The Accokeek Foundation and Prince George’s County Public Schools will help students learn about the perspective of Indigenous communities and the interconnectedness of the environment, cultural preservation, land and water rights, tribal sovereignty, stewardship of ancestral homelands, and Indigenous stewardship ethics.
- Living Classrooms Foundation will engage 500 students from five Baltimore City Public Schools in the School Leadership in Urban Runoff Reduction Project. This project-based learning experience centers on preventing stormwater runoff pollution through six hands-on environmental education experiences during the school year.
Find more information here. |
NC DMF: Division Releases Annual Fishery Management Plan Review
The N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries recently released the 2021 Fishery Management Plan Review. The Fishery Management Plan Review summarizes available information, such as long-term trends in catch, biological data and management, through 2021 for North Carolina's state-managed species. It also provides links to information on federally-managed and interstate-managed species important to North Carolina. It is available on the Division website at https://deq.nc.gov/fishery-management-plans.
Find more information here. |
GA CRD: Students Graduate From Inaugural DNR Career Academy
The inaugural class of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources’ Career Academy graduated Friday during a ceremony on Jekyll Island.
Twenty-one high schoolers from across the state were selected from a pool of more than 250 applicants for DNR’s first-ever Career Academy, held July 17-23 at Charlie Elliott Wildlife Education Center and the Georgia 4-H Center at Camp Jekyll.
The Career Academy gave students hands-on opportunities to learn about careers with DNR’s Wildlife Resources, Law Enforcement, Coastal Resources, and State Parks and Historic Sites divisions, explained Lindsey Brown, the program’s director.
“Our goal with the Career Academy is to show students first-hand what it takes to work for Georgia DNR and how they can gear their education and training toward that path,” Brown said. “It’s an immersive program where students shadow full-time DNR staff, explore career opportunities, and learn what it takes to manage the natural resources of the largest state east of the Mississippi River.”
Find more information here. |
DNREC: Department Honors Young Environmentalists, Youth Fishing Tournament Winners at Delaware State Fair
At the Delaware State Fair in Harrington, Governor John Carney and DNREC Secretary Shawn M. Garvin honored three Delaware students as DNREC’s Young Environmentalists of the Year for their work to protect, restore or enhance our state’s natural resources, and the three winners of the 2022 Youth Fishing Tournament.
“DNREC’s Young Environmentalist awards are an annual reminder of how today’s young people are stepping up to take leadership roles in caring for our natural resources and advocating for the health of our environment. Today, we recognize three of these young Delawareans who are already making a difference today to help ensure a better tomorrow,” said Secretary Garvin. “We also recognize the three young anglers who caught the most fish in this year’s Youth Fishing Tournament, a conservation-minded event to introduce children to the joy of catching – and releasing – fish.”
Find more information here.
DNREC: Emergency Dredging Project Restoring Navigability in the Murderkill River to Begin
An emergency dredging project is set to begin and be completed by the end of August to restore navigability in the Murderkill River, the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control announced. Permitted by and with modification approvals from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and DNREC regulators, the project calls for removing approximately 52,000 cubic yards of sediment from the river’s navigation channel. DNREC will then make beneficial reuse of the dredged sand to nourish up to 1,000 feet of eroding shoreline at South Bowers Beach.
Funding for the $2.3 million project comes from appropriations to DNREC made under fiscal year 2022 and 2023 Bond Bills, both of which named the Murderkill River as a dredging priority.
Find more information here. |
PA FBC: Quarterly Meeting Updates from the Commission
The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) began its quarterly meeting by encouraging anglers and boaters to have fun and remain safe while enjoying the water throughout the remainder of the summer season.
"The summer is a truly special time for individuals, families, and friends to gather for a fishing or boating adventure on a favorite local waterway, or to try somewhere new," said PFBC Executive Director Tim Schaeffer. "We're grateful to everyone who makes safety a priority before and during each trip and follows the rules of the water. Simply put, when you wear your life jacket and boat sober, you'll set yourself up for a fun day on the water and for many more seasons to come."
Find more information here. |
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MA DMF: Environmental Agencies Urge Caution When Operating Vessels and Personal Watercrafts Near Humpback Whales Within Plymouth Harbor
The Massachusetts Environmental Police (MEP) and the Department of Fish and Games’ (DFG) Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF) are advising all mariners operating vessels or personal watercrafts, such as kayaks and paddle boards, to use extreme caution near Plymouth, Massachusetts, where an aggregation of three juvenile humpback whales have been feeding for at least a week. These young whales are engaged in physically active feeding behavior that is very unpredictable, while feeding in a shallow area on menhaden (or “pogies”), a rich and highly abundant schooling forage fish that also attracts striped bass. This creates a safety hazard for both whales and humans.
Find more information here. |
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NOAA Fisheries: Ocean Models Help Link Environmental Conditions to a Fishery Stock Assessment
NOAA scientists used ocean models to develop more detailed information about a seasonal, offshore cold-water mass called the “cold pool.” They helped unlock a mystery: why have yellowtail flounder off southern New England and the Mid-Atlantic not rebounded despite nearly 30 years of recovery efforts?
They have linked fluctuations in this oceanographic phenomenon, the “cold pool,” to fluctuations in numbers of new, young fish entering this hard-pressed stock. Further, they show that incorporating this new information into the stock assessment improves the results. It reduces the uncertainty around estimates of spawning stock and incoming numbers of young fish (called “recruitment”). These are important indicators for fishery managers developing measures to promote recovery.
Find more information here.
NOAA Fisheries: First Comprehensive Policy on Mitigation to Conserve Natural Resources Released
NOAA is pleased to announce its first comprehensive Mitigation Policy for Trust Resources which will improve conservation through avoiding, minimizing and compensating for adverse impacts to natural resources, simultaneously advancing clean energy, infrastructure, and environmental goals. We conserve a broad range of natural resources including marine, estuarine, and freshwater resources across our many responsibilities. Mitigation is a conservation tool that includes avoiding, minimizing, or compensating for negative impacts to natural resources and their habitats resulting from regulated actions (such as federal permits) or injury (such as an oil spill).
Find more information here. |
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Offshore Wind’s Turbulent Future. The realization that turbulence created by deepwater wind turbines could upset the spring phytoplankton bloom has researchers warning the rapidly emerging industry to proceed with caution (Hakai Magazine).
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