Gulf Coast Fisherman Newsletter
September 1, 2009 (MASGP-09-001-09)
NEW SHARK REGULATIONS PROPOSED
The National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA Fisheries) is proposing several measures to end overfishing and rebuild blacknose sharks and other shark populations. A recent stock assessment found that the blacknose shark population is depleted, and the current rate of fishing on this stock is unsustainable. The proposed annual quota would be 6,065 blacknose sharks, or 14.9 metric tons (weighed without head, guts and fins). Only commercial fishermen with a directed permit would be allowed to land blacknose sharks under this quota. To support rebuilding, the proposed rule would prohibit the landing of all Atlantic sharks with gillnet gear—the primary way blacknose sharks are caught—from South Carolina south, including the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea. The annual quota for small coastal sharks other than blacknose would be significantly reduced from the current quota. This includes species such as Atlantic sharpnose , finetooth and bonnethead. The proposed quotas for blacknose and the non-blacknose small coastal sharks represent an overall 76 percent reduction in landings by weight of small coastal sharks.
The proposed rule also promotes the live release of shortfin mako sharks by commercial and recreational fishermen to help rebuild Atlantic makos. This is an international fishery; U.S. catches are less than 10 percent of the Atlantic-wide catch. The United States will pursue action at the international level to end overfishing of shortfin mako sharks. In addition, the proposed rule would add smooth dogfish to the species managed by NOAA Fisheries by requiring a federal fishing permit and an annual commercial quota. NOAA will identify essential habit for smooth dogfish, a species that lives in coastal waters and ranges from Massachusetts to the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea.
MANDATORY ELECTRONIC REPORTING ON THE HORIZON
In an effort to address the need for improved data collection, the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council agreed during its August meeting to begin the process of establishing mandatory electronic reporting systems criteria for all managed Gulf fisheries, setting a deadline of February 2010. The Council also will pursue general criteria for mandatory electronic record-keeping and reporting requirements for all sectors and all fisheries. They expect to have that criteria established within six months. The Council is seeking assistance in defining sector specific electronic data reporting systems requirements. An Ad Hoc Data Collection Advisory Panel will be established, which will be comprised of knowledgeable sector representatives, including participants in the development of the Marine Recreational Information Program. Anyone interested in serving on the Advisory Panel should submit a letter and resume to:
Phyllis Miranda
Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council
2203 N. Lois Avenue
Suite 1100
Tampa, FL 33607
Materials may also be faxed to: 813-348-1711; or e-mailed to Phyllis.miranda@gulfcouncil.org. Resumes and letters must be received no later than close of business October 13, 2009. Expected time commitment is two of three, two-day meetings per year. Members are not compensated; however, travel expenses are reimbursed.
ALABAMA LICENSES
The sale of Alabama hunting and fishing licenses for the 2009-2010 season began September 1, 2009. The Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources reminds hunters and anglers that all recreational licenses expired on August 31, 2009. Residents ages 16-64 are required to purchase a license to hunt or fish in Alabama. Prices are currently $24 for a resident all game license and $16 for a resident small game license. An all game license is required for hunting deer and turkey in Alabama. A resident freshwater fishing license is $12, while a saltwater fishing license is $21. Seven-day saltwater trip licenses are $9 and are valid for 168 consecutive hours.
All recreational hunting and fishing licenses are available for purchase
with credit card 24 hours a day on the Department Web site at www.outdooralabama.com and by telephone at 888-848-6887. Most licenses are also available at
sporting goods retail outlets, county courthouses and marinas. Saltwater
recreational fishing licenses are only available through vendors with
the ability to sell them electronically. This includes online and by
telephone, Marine Resources offices in Gulf Shores and Dauphin Island,
probate offices using the electronic sales program, and any electronic
point-of-sale location, which includes retailers such as Walmart, Bass
Pro and Academy. Besides name and address, the following information
is needed to purchase a hunting or fishing license: driver’s license
number, date of birth, sex, height, weight, eye color and hair color.
Those born on or after August 1, 1977, and purchasing a hunting license
will also need to provide a hunter education number. Hunter education
class information is available at
www.outdooralabama.com/hunting/education.
MISSISSIPPI-ALABAMA SEA GRANT WELCOMES NEW STAFF MEMBERS
Niki Pace has joined the Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium Legal Program as research counsel. In her new role, she will provide research about ocean and coastal legal issues to Sea Grant constituents and other agencies. She also will supervise law student research and writing projects and serve as editor of Water Log, a quarterly legal publication. Pace has a bachelor’s degree in geology with a certificate in environmental planning and policy from the University of Southern Mississippi. She earned a Juris Doctor degree at Lewis & Clark Law School, where she also received her LL.M. (Master of Laws degree) in environmental and natural resources law. She is licensed in Mississippi and Oregon. The Hattiesburg, Mississippi native recently relocated to Oxford, Mississippi from Portland, Oregon. The Legal Program is housed at The University of Mississippi.
Meg Goecker has joined the Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium office at the Auburn University Marine Extension and Research Center in Mobile, Alabama as a habitat restoration specialist for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Restoration Center. She will be in charge of developing a community-based restoration program in Alabama. In her new position, she will give technical assistance to help improve restoration project design, ensure environmental compliance and advance restoration techniques. She also will support collaboration with public, private and agency partners to identify and prioritize restoration projects. Goecker already is working with The Nature Conservancy on a project funded for $2.9 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The Nature Conservancy will create submerged breakwater reefs along two stretches of shoreline, protecting more than 18 acres of habitat for submerged aquatic vegetation and creating almost two acres of oyster reef. Goecker recently returned to the United States after spending the last five years in Australia working on marine policies while employed as an evaluation and reporting officer with the State of South Australia. Goecker has a bachelor’s degree in biology from Michigan State University and a master’s degree in marine science from the University of South Alabama Dauphin Island Sea Lab.
FOOD SAFETY BILL
On July 30, 2009, in a major step toward an overhaul of the nation’s food safety system, the House of Representatives passed legislation to require more frequent inspections of processing plants and give the government the authority to recall tainted foods. House passage sets the stage for the Senate to take up the issue, though probably not until the fall. The Obama administration has voiced strong support for a comprehensive food safety bill. The legislation seeks to remedy problems in the food safety system that have been discussed for decades.
The measure would require the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to conduct inspections every 6 to 12 months at food processing plants that it deems high-risk. These could include plants that have experienced food safety problems in the past or that handle products that spoil easily like seafood. Lower-risk processing plants would be inspected at least once every three years and warehouses for packaged foods at least once every five. Backers of the legislation have complained that some facilities go a decade or longer between FDA inspections.
To help finance the inspections, the bill would impose a yearly fee of $500 on the food processing plants, with a $175,000 cap for large companies with multiple plants. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that the fee would generate $1.4 billion over the next five years, covering about 40 percent of FDA’s costs in carrying out the expanded inspections and other requirements in the bill. Among the bill’s other provisions are heightened inspection requirements on imported foods, a mandate that processing plant records be made available to inspectors and investigators, and a requirement that processing plants develop elaborate safety plans meant to head off problems before they arise. In addition, the bill would direct FDA to create a system that would better trace food products and ingredients as a way of quickly getting to the source of future outbreaks of food-borne illness.
2010 TIDE TABLES AVAILABLE
The 2010 Mississippi Tide Tables are available free from this office and at many area marinas and bait shops. Call or write and we’ll put one in the mail for you. You can also stop by and pick one up here at the office between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. They will also be available online after the first of the year at the Mississippi State University Extension Service website.
(http://msucares.com/pubs/publications/p0850new.pdf)
Sincerely,
Dave Burrage
Marine Resources Specialist
MSU Coastal Research and Extension Center