16 February 2021
SEATTLE - In order to capture the economic impacts of Pacific halibut, the IPHC has designed a series of surveys to gather information from the sectors relying on this resource. Developing an accurate and representative Pacific halibut multiregional economic impact assessment (PHMEIA) model requires active participation of our stakeholders, who we ask for necessary data for analysis.
Active participants to the Pacific halibut fisheries (commercial, processing, and charter sector) can complete the following surveys for 2020, but also retrospectively submit information for 2019. The benefits of providing both year’s information are:
Data for 2019, covers pre-covid-19 operations, can be considered a baseline suitable for drawing conclusions under normal circumstances and used for predictions.Data for 2020, covers an abnormal year of operations, can be used to assess losses incurred by the Pacific halibut sectors, but also sectors’ resilience to unfavorable circumstances.
Please fill in the IPHC economic survey by clicking the following links:
Commercial Vessel Expenditures Survey (Revised form)Processing Plant Expenditures Survey (Revised form)Charter Sector Expenditures Survey (New)
For further information on the IPHC’s Economic Research visit https://www.iphc.int/management/economic-research or contact the IPHC Secretariat at secretariat@iphc.int or 206.634.1838.
Washington State Cares Act Fisheries Disaster Relief Application period opens with eligibility for Alaska permit holders
NOAA Fisheries recently approved Washington State’s CARES Act fisheries disaster relief spend plan, beginning a 45-day application period. Applications will need to be uploaded to the PSMFC’s website by 5:00 p.m. PST on March 25, 2021 or postmarked on March 25, 2021. The Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission (PSMFC) will review applications and distribute funds to qualifying applicants and anticipates making payments in May 2021. Many commercial fishermen who are Washington state residents and commercial fish in Alaska will be eligible. Alaska’s spend plan, which also provides eligibility to Washington state residents in some circumstances, is still under review by NOAA Fisheries.
Washington’s spend plan authorizes direct payments to fishery participants. There is one pool for the $38.5 million allocated to non-tribal commercial fishing, shellfish aquaculture, seafood processing and charter industry participants. The state anticipates a variety of claims from fishery and seafood related businesses that range from small sole proprietorships to large corporations. Because of this variability, direct payment amounts are uncertain and will depend on the total number of claims. Washington expects claimed losses to exceed funds and its spend plan provides several scaling measures that proportionally reduce payments to ensure distribution across the range of eligible applicants. In the unlikely event of a surplus, a second application period will open.
The spend plan sets a qualifying period for losses incurred as a direct or indirect result of COVID between January 1 and July 31, 2020, whether for the full seven months or any partial consecutive period of four weeks or more. Applicants must self-certify a 35 percent gross revenue loss for their fishery business in 2020 compared to average revenue for the same time frame from 2015-2019. The spend plan provides several options for fishermen without the full five-year fishing history to calculate their revenue losses. Applicants will need to compile and retain the documentation needed to report the claimed revenue loss but will not have to submit those records to the PSMFC.
Washington state residents who commercial fish in Alaska are eligible to apply if they have an Alaska Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission vessel license or permit or IFQ permit for crab, halibut or sablefish, and their Washington residence is the listed address. Fishermen who have received other forms of CARES Act assistance are eligible to apply but must certify that the sum of aid received and traditional revenue will not exceed their average annual revenue earned over the past five years.
The PSMFC recommends that all applicants review the spend plan before filling out the application. Commercial fishermen can direct residency and other questions direct to the PSMFC by email at WACares@psmfc.org or by phone at 1-866-990-2738. The PSMFC’s spend plan website is available here:
https://www.psmfc.org/cares-act-the-coronavirus-aid-relief-and-economic-security-act
Washington spend plan and application are available at the following links:
http://www.psmfc.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/SPEND-PLAN_FINAL_WA_20210122.pdf
http://www.psmfc.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/WA-CARES-Act-Application-20210208_FINAL.pdf
ALFA is providing overviews of these programs as general information for commercial fishermen. This information is not legal or financial advice. ALFA urges individuals interested in these programs to contact the PSMFC, their attorney or accountant for specific advice regarding eligibility for their particular situation.
The pandemic could change U.S. fisheries forever. Will it be for better or for worse?
The Counter
2.18.2021
Not unlike its effect on humans, the pandemic’s impact on the seafood industry has been variable, erratic, often devastating. The first symptoms appeared long before Covid-19 gained a stronghold on U.S. shores, as China went into its first lockdown and a critical export market disappeared overnight—seafood processors and dealers in Maine saw international demand for lobsters temporarily vanish. Then as social distancing rules kicked in here, another major organ of the U.S. supply chain—restaurants, where most seafood purchases are made—fell limp. Then Covid outbreaks at processing plants caused the system to further buckle, leaving many fishermen with nowhere to sell their catch. Prices for many species plummeted. Some fishers gave up for the season, leaving boats tied up at the docks.
Setting Biden's seafood policy table -- Op Ed in The Hill
BY LINDA BEHNKEN AND MIKE CONROY, OPINION CONTRIBUTORS — 02/16/21 10:30 AM EST 80
The Hill
Fishermen have been invited to be partners with the Biden administration on ocean policy and we are prepared to engage. Hard work, honest dialog and commitments to justice and equity will ensure that we remain at the table and not on the menu.
January’s executive order tackling climate change includes ambitious provisions that set agencies on a course to climate mitigation. Most importantly for America’s commercial fishing families, the order established two parallel processes to secure direct input from fishermen on, respectively the appropriate ways to conserve 30 percent of U.S. lands and waters by 2030, an initiative known as 30x30, and ways to make our fisheries more resilient to climate change.
To read the entire op-ed, click here
https://thehill.com/opinion/energy-environment/538931-setting-bidens-seafood-policy-table
Young Fishermen’s Development Act offers training, resources for the industry’s newest participants
KCAW - Raven Radio
Feb 16, 2021
Click here to listen to a radio interview with Linda Behnken, the director of the Alaska Longline Fishermen’s Association, and Marissa Wilson, the director of the Alaska Marine Conservation Council. Both worked over the last few years to advocate for the Young Fishermen’s Development Act, which was signed into law in December. They discuss how the law was created, and how it will benefit young people hoping to enter the fisheries.
One Alaska king salmon is worth the same as two barrels of oil right now
Anchorage Daily News
Author: Laine Welch | Fish Factor
Published February 9
Seafood sales “are on fire” in America’s supermarkets and one king salmon from Southeast Alaska is worth the same as two barrels of oil.
That’s $116.16 for a troll-caught chinook salmon averaging 11 pounds at the docks vs. $115.48 for 2 barrels of oil at $57.74 per barrel on Feb. 3.
As more COVID-conscious customers opted in 2020 for seafood’s proven health benefits, salmon powered sales at fresh seafood counters. Frozen and “on the shelf” seafoods also set sales records, and online ordering tripled to top $1 billion.
Those are some takeaways from a National Fisheries Institute Global Marketing Conference hosted online by SeafoodSource News.
Here is a sampler of what experts called “eye-popping” 2020 retail sales reflecting America’s trend to eat more fish:
IRI, a world leader in market data, said overall sales at in-store fresh seafood counters jumped 28% to $871 million, led by salmon with a 19% increase to $2.2 billion.
Biden administration should steer clear of environmental colonialism -- Op Ed in Anchorage Daily News
Op Ed in Anchorage Daily News
Author: Linda Behnken
Opinion
In the next few weeks, the Biden administration is expected to take sweeping climate action as promised. The president has already done so on day one, including laudable actions such as rejoining the Paris Agreement and promulgating systematic review of Trump administration environmental rollbacks.
But very soon, we expect to see an executive order advancing an initiative called “30x30″ (pronounced ‘thirty-by-thirty’) that calls for the protection of 30% of the world’s oceans to commercial extractive use by 2030. For Americans, this could mean sealing off our access to an area of the ocean larger than Texas off the continental U.S. and Alaska. The move is staggering in its scope, and it could do severe harm to fishing communities.
Let me be clear: Commercial fishermen are on the front lines of climate change, and we have been calling for meaningful climate action for years. We support reductions in carbon emissions globally, and our organization has worked to reduce the Southeast Alaska fleet’s emissions. Nationally, we have led the world in our sustainable fisheries management, including prohibiting bottom trawling in more than 76% of our oceans already, without the need for blanket prohibitions. We proudly provide sustainable high-quality protein to both domestic and foreign markets, and this year provided over 400,000 seafood meals for free to families in need to address regional food insecurity. Despite all this, fisheries stakeholders have had no meaningful opportunities whatsoever to engage in policy discussions around this initiative.
The 30x30 initiative is an example of what is commonly called “environmental colonialism.” Policies that would wall off traditional fishing grounds and inhibit access without proper consultation increase corporatization of resources, disrupt local food systems and crush small-scale food producers in favor of mega-industrialized approaches. Just like in the US, small-scale fishermen around the world support coastal economies and food security. Although small-scale fishermen are seldom the cause of overfishing, they often bear the brunt of colonial policies simply because their catch is not monetized and therefore under-valued by global market assessments. Closures that place fisheries out of reach for artisanal fisheries abroad, or community-based fisheries here at home, will increase poverty, hunger and ultimately increase, not decrease, pressure on local resources.
Social justice, food security and climate solutions in the ocean require deep engagement of local stakeholders and triple-bottom-line solutions that integrate ocean, community and people. Marine reserves that exclude low-impact fisheries and ignore the essential contribution of sustainable fisheries to community health and food security cannot be part of the ideal model. Marine reserves that exclude food producers but allow sport fishing represent the worst aspects of white privilege colonialism — setting aside parts of the ocean for those who can afford to play at catching fish while disenfranchising those who support local economies and regional food security.
In his inaugural address, President Joe Biden issued a clarion call for the new administration: “Let’s begin to listen to one another again. Hear one another, see one another, show respect to one another. Politics doesn’t have to be a raging fire, destroying everything in its path.” Community-based fishermen have been loud and clear, seeking to be heard, acknowledged and respected, not consumed in a fire of colonialist policies that would sweep us aside. Ocean climate solutions must happen not to us, but with us.
Surely the Biden-Harris administration is committed to deeper engagement with the working people who risk their lives to feed the nation. The fishermen of America are standing by to be made a part of the team.
Linda Behnken is a commercial fisherman based in Sitka, and serves as executive director of the Alaska Longline Fishermen’s Association. She served nine years on the North Pacific Fishery Management Council, two years as a U.S. Commissioner to the International Pacific Halibut Commission, and has been involved in state, federal and national policy for almost 30 years. In 2016, she received a White House Champion for Change of Sustainable Fisheries award and in 2020 received the Heinz Foundation award for the Environment for her work promoting sustainable fisheries.
Seaweed Farm Training Program -- February 2, 2021
Alaskans can now register for an online webinar to be eligible to attend a seaweed farm training technical workshop.
Registration for the program is now available on the Alaska Sea Grant website and will remain open until February 1, 2021. In 2020, this program was held in Kodiak, Ketchikan, and Sitka as part of Phase 2 of the Alaska Mariculture Initiative. In February of 2021, this program will be held again for a new cohort of participants, and will be conducted virtually via Zoom due to COVID-19 health and safety mandates.
Registration Deadline February 1st, 2021
Webinar February 2nd, 2021 @ 4-6pm AST
To register, visit: alaskaseagrant.org or https://alaskaseagrant.org/event/seaweed-farm-start-ups-training-program/
More information is available at: afdf.org
Click link to see flyer on workshop: https://documentcloud.adobe.com/link/review?uri=urn:aaid:scds:US:b4a273cd-7fa6-4ed5-b872-b66f48b2ad2e
This virtual format will allow significant expansion of the training program, from 48 participants in 2020 to over 100 in 2021. Registration for the training program will be completed in two parts: 1) all interested Alaska residents are invited to register for a webinar to be held on February 2, 2021 at 4:00pm-6:00pm AST; and 2) webinar attendees will then be eligible to register for an in-depth series of virtual technical multi-day workshops over one week beginning on February 22 (2-3 hours each session). Participation in the February 2 webinar is required to be eligible for the technical workshop series. Please see attachment for a press release on the training program.
Coast Guard issues warning to mariners turning off AIS
Bulletin from the U.S. Coast Guard
ASTORIA, Ore. --- The Coast Guard is issuing a warning to mariners and commercial fisherman about the dangers and legal consequences of disabling a vessel's Automated Identification System.
The Coast Guard has seen an alarming increase of commercial fishing and crabbing vessels disabling their AIS, purportedly in an attempt to keep their fishing spots secret from competition.
"AIS is a vital tool in a host of Coast Guard missions including Search and Rescue and Port Security," said Lt. Collin Gruin, boarding team supervisor at Coast Guard Sector Columbia River. "It's not only illegal to turn it off but also incredibly dangerous."
AIS is a maritime navigation safety communications system adopted by the international community to help save lives and facilitate safe transit of navigable waterways.
AIS automatically transmits vessel information to shore stations, other ships, and aircraft. That includes vessel identity, type, position, course, speed, navigational status, and safety-related information.
The regulation (33 CFR 164.46) in part states that all self-propelled vessels, at a length of 65-feet or more, engaged in commercial service and operating on the Territorial Seas (within 12-nautical miles of shore) must maintain AIS in effective operating condition, which includes the continual operation of AIS and its associated devices (e.g., positioning system, gyro, converters, displays) at all times while the vessel is underway or at anchor, and, if moored, at least 15 minutes prior to getting underway. Effective operation condition also includes the accurate input and upkeep of all AIS data fields; an AIS encoding guide has been provided to facilitate complying with this requirement.
Violators of this regulation can expect to receive a civil penalty up to a maximum of $35,486 per violation.
"Crabbers may think that they are protecting their businesses, but they are actually making search and rescue efforts more difficult if an emergency happens at sea," said Gruin.
-USCG-
Commentary: A haulout will benefit more than Sitka’s boats by Mia Anderson
Click here to listen to commentary on Raven Radio or read transcript below.
Hello, my name is Mia Anderson. I am a high school junior at Mt. Edgecumbe High School and I am also a fisherwoman.
For the past few years, I have spent my summers working on a commercial fishing boat. During my first summer, I traveled to Wrangell, Alaska, to help out with maintenance work that needed to be done on the boat. I helped with work such as painting and fiberglassing, while the captain did much of the electrical and mechanical work. However, despite the amount of work we did on our own, there was still a lot that required the help and work of people with more expertise. As a city-run operation, the Wrangell haulout provides over 100 local tradesmen with a clientele base to support their income, and that, plus the general operation, amounts to a majority of Wrangell’s economy. Wrangell’s haulout exemplifies the opportunities that a new marine haulout could provide for Sitka, economically and community-wise. According to SEDA, Sitka is home to “the largest commercial fishing fleet in Southeast Alaska.” We have a total of five harbors, amounting to 1,272 stalls and over one mile of transient docks. In 2020 alone, 600 vessels have docked in the Sitka Harbor system. In prior years, with no global pandemic, Sitka typically had 1,200 transient vessel visits. Taking these numbers, consider the wide range of opportunities and benefits that a city-run marine haulout could create for Sitka.
A Sitka-based haulout would be a great convenience and service not only to local fishermen and families but also to commercial fishermen who fish Southeast. It would be more cost-effective for fishermen to have their boats hauled out here than to travel to other areas such as Wrangell, Hoonah, and Bellingham. This would save local fishermen time and money, allow them to spend more time with their families, and keep money in the local economy as they purchase materials and supplies from local vendors and engage the services of local tradesmen. In addition, as people utilize the haulout, this will encourage other highly skilled workers to move to Sitka as they recognize the potential to earn a living. This would help build the population of our community, which has been decreasing in recent years due to high costs of living. Because Sitka is larger, it has more services available (like 24-hour grocery stores, multiple restaurants, two laundromats, two hardware stores, a fishing supply store, etc.), so it would likely be the haulout location of choice for many. All of these businesses and vendors profiting from the haulout would be paying sales tax, which would go back to the city as a profit. Profits could then be used for other public services like schools and libraries.
In conclusion, the marine haulout, especially a city-run one, would help to develop a stronger infrastructure for Sitka and, ultimately, a more sustainable future for the community. It would greatly support and benefit the local economy and community as a whole. At first, it may be difficult to see the profit and value of a haulout, but it will have a trickle-down effect that will ultimately profit the city, the local economy, the community, and the citizens.