EDFish

Restaurants and Community Working for Sustainable Fisheries Policy

By / Published: July 24, 2009

groupshotcompressed.jpgIt isn’t often that a neighborhood restaurant wades into complex policy discussions about fisheries management, so kudos to Bob Klein of the traditional Italian restaurant Oliveto’s in Oakland for hosting a Fisheries Forum on Saturday.  The restaurant not only serves delicious, sustainable seafood – it’s also willing to go the extra mile to help educate its customers and the wider community of the importance, challenges, and opportunities of fisheries management.

EDF’s marine ecologist Rod Fujita and Pacific Ocean program director Johanna Thomas were invited to be panel participants, along with Erika Feller of The Nature Conservancy, Zeke Grader of the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations and Larry Collins, a crab fisherman from the San Francisco Bay Area. The panel was moderated by Ed Ueber, a former manager of the Cordell Bank Marine Sanctuary.

About 30 people showed up at Oliveto’s to learn about the potential of catch share programs – like the recently approved West Coast groundfish IFQ — and community fishing associations – like the innovative Cape Cod Hook Association —  to improve the economics and sustainability of fishing along the Pacific coast. Following the panel discussion, participants were treated to an amazing Italian Riviera-style fisherman’s stew comprised of all local fish-rockfish, squid, and clams – with wild fennel pollen, saffron, and olives.

Bravo to Oliveto’s and all the participants for their commitment to providing fresh, local, delicious and sustainable seafood from the Bay Area and the California Coast. Hopefully the good meal and good discussions were the beginning of a fresh dialogue, as we all have a stake in preserving California’s rich fishing communities.

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New Decisions Make Pacific Groundfish More Grounded

By / Bio / Published: June 29, 2009

Trawl boat on the water.Just last week our fisheries policy guru, Shems Jud, attended the Pacific Fishery Management Council meeting in Spokane, WA.  After a six year process, this meeting was the last opportunity for the Council to develop and decide on unfinalized components of the Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) or catch share program for the trawl sector of the Pacific Groundfish fishery.

A few positive highlights to report from the meeting:

  • Most importantly, implementation of the program will not be pushed back and is still on track for the target date of January 1, 2011.
  • The precedent-setting Adaptive Management Program (AMP), a tool that promotes social, economic and conservation goals by pro-actively dedicating ten percent of the fish quota to a “public trust” like pool, will be implemented in year three of the program.
  • The carry over provision—which works like a cell phone plan’s roll-over minutes, but for your fish quota—will remain in the fishery’s management plan.

The program is nearing the finish line now after more than a five year stakeholder design process. Last November, the Council made a historic decision by voting unanimously for a catch share management system in the groundfish trawl sector, one of the four major sectors of the fishery.  Instead of managing just a single stock, this complex catch share will manage the largest number of species of any fishery in the U.S.  In addition, there are unprecedented features to the program, including the AMP and providing for fishermen to fish their quota using other gear types.

Next Steps?  NMFS still has to draft a regulatory package that lays out the specifics about how the catch share will actually work.  This proposal will be reviewed by the Council in September in a process called “deeming”.  In the coming year, the three West Coast states will work with NMFS on making sure the new infrastructure and staffing are in place in preparation for the fishery to transform to catch shares on time by 2011.  And finally, this landmark decision will need the signature of Gary Locke, the Secretary of Commerce.

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Senior Scientist Rod Fujita Comments on NMFS’ New Salmon Biological Opinion

By / Published: June 17, 2009

Two weeks ago, the National Marine Fisheries Service release a new Biological Opinion on the ecological challenges of salmon populations in the Pacific, including the California Bay-Delta (Sacramento-San Joaquin). EDF Senior Scientist, Rod Fujita comments on NMFS Biological Opinion and how the efforts of the Bay-Delta Conservation Plan must equally match those of NMFS. Read his full post on EDFish’ sister blog, On the Water Front.

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Eating My Way Toward More Sustainable Oceans

By / Bio / Published: June 9, 2009

Phoebe Higgins is a loan officer/project manager for the California Fisheries Fund, a project of Environmental Defense Fund.

I consider myself a green foodie, so I was really excited about Monterey Bay Aquarium’s “Cooking for Solutions,” an annual sustainable cuisine event. I got to meet world-famous chefs like Thomas Keller of The French Laundry and learn about sustainable seafood.

smoked black cod

Of course the food was out of this world. Who knew that an albacore tuna Reuben could taste so good? A close second was the mosaic fishcake paired with French breakfast radishes from Chez Panisse and a sardine crostini served up by Fish in Sausalito. Although the common thread behind these dishes was their “eco-friendly” status, I was really hoping the menu would share the stories behind the fish.

I’m always curious to know who caught the fish, where, and how the fisheries are being managed. In fact, I think food tastes better when I get to know the people who contributed to bringing it to my plate.

Phoebe Higgins with CFF consultant David Crabbe at Cooking for SolutionsMy project, the California Fisheries Fund, helps make this link. It supports fishermen who bring sustainable seafood to the American table. CFF is a $5 million, first-of-its kind revolving loan fund created to restore California’s fisheries, and we just gave out our first three loans. One of the borrowers, Roger Cullen, is a Morro Bay fisherman whose loan for a new vessel will allow him to fish for black cod and rockfish more efficiently with gear that reduces bycatch.

Roger unloads his catch with another CFF borrower, Morro Bay Fish Company, whose loan proceeds are helping grow its operations for unloading fish from local fishermen who use innovative trap and hook-and-line gear. After reaching the docks, much of this seafood is shipped to Central Coast Seafood, in Atascadero, CA. Their CFF loan has allowed them to upgrade its freezers and inventory and boost marketing for its sustainable products.

Butter-poached sole with cara cara orangesTo connect people directly with our borrowers’ products and highlight CFF investments, we held a big launch at Google headquarters in Silicon Valley on March 30th. More than 100 people heard firsthand from the very folks whose livelihood is centered around bringing wild-caught fish to our stores and restaurants. We chose Google as a host because, in contract with Bon Appétit Management Company, they have a strong commitment to purchasing sustainable seafood.

I think the fact that the launch was covered by Fast Company, GreenBiz and Sustainable Industries proves that the business community is starting to take note of the profitability of America’s sustainable fisheries. Best of all, I was able to sit down to a meal of eco-friendly fish and hear the story behind the food I was eating. I’ll never look at smoked black cod toasts and butter-poached sole with cara cara oranges the same way again!

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New Year Brings Over 20 Catch Share Management Programs to U.S.

By / Published: May 4, 2009

An IFQ for the Pacific groundifhs commercial trawl fishery is expected to be implemented in 2011.The West Coast is a big step closer to improving management of its valuable and struggling groundfish fishery.  A plan for individual fishing quotas (IFQs) was identified as a top priority for the groundfish commercial trawl fishery by fishermen and the regional fishery management council.  A goal for implementation in 2011 has been set.

This program and one in Alaska, along with the Gulf of Mexico’s recently approved commercial red snapper, grouper and tilefish IFQs are the newest additions to the United States’ catch share portfolio – now 20 programs strong. The first catch share in the U.S. was implemented in 1990 as an IFQs for the Atlantic Surfclam and Ocean Quahog fishery.  Since then, states like Alaska have led the way with IFQs, community development quotas and cooperatives for its halibut, sablefish, crab, and pollock fleets.  And, New England has implemented catch share “sector” management for portions of the hook and line and fixed gear cod fisheries. 

These various catch share programs have benefits not often found under traditional management — they are successful in keeping harvests in-line with catch limits, reducing wasted fish and helping fishermen improve business practices. 

Learn more about catch shares or see a fact sheet on IFQs.

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