Pacific Council News Fall 2019: Habitat and Ecosystem

Habitat report Jordan Cove The Council has sent a letter to the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) on the proposed natural gas pipeline project for the Jordan Cove Liquefied Natural Gas facility. The letter comments on the agencies’ proposed changes to their Resource Management Plans, which exempt the pipeline from complying […]

Pacific Council News Fall 2019: Highly Migratory Species

Regional fisheries management organizations discuss bluefin tuna stock status, allocations In September the Council recommended that U.S. Commissioners to the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) negotiate an equitable allocation of harvest opportunity for Pacific bluefin tuna between the Eastern Pacific Ocean and the Western and Central Pacific Ocean. The WCPFC is a treaty-based organization established […]

Pacific Council News Fall 2019: Salmon and Halibut

Final salmon rebuilding plans approved In September the Council adopted rebuilding plans for Strait of Juan de Fuca natural coho, Queets River natural coho, and Snohomish River natural coho, subject to approval by National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS).  Each plan contained two alternatives for rebuilding the stock.  Under Alternative I, management would remain the same […]

Pacific Council News Fall 2019: Groundfish

Cowcod rebuilt; other stock assessments adopted Cowcod has been rebuilt ahead of schedule, the Council announced in September. The cowcod (Sebastes levis) stock south of 40°10’ N. latitude was managed under a strict rebuilding plan that severely constrained West Coast fisheries in California for two decades. Rebuilding cowcod was achieved through large area closures, non-retention […]

Pacific Council News Summer 2019: Enforcement

Coast Guard gives annual report on West Coast activities The U.S. Coast Guard’s Thirteenth and Eleventh Districts gave their annual presentation to the Council  in June. Some highlights are provided below; see the full report. In 2018, there were 877 fisheries boardings and 11 significant fisheries violations in West Coast waters. About a third of the boardings were […]

Pacific Council News Summer 2019: Administrative and other stories

Legislative report In June the Council has received a request from Senator Maria Cantwell for comment on HR 2236, the Forage Fish Conservation Act. The Council responded with a letter emphasizing the actions that the Council has already taken to protect forage fish species. HR 2236 would amend the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA) to require Scientific and […]

Pacific Council News Summer 2019: Habitat

Habitat Report Jordan Cove letter In July the Council sent a letter to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on the proposed Jordan Cove Liquified Natural Gas Terminal and Pipeline, which would transport liquified natural gas (LNG) 229 miles from near Klamath Falls, Oregon to the coastal export terminal in Coos Bay, Oregon for shipping across the […]

Pacific Council News Summer 2019: Highly migratory species

Highly migratory species shorts Deep-set buoy gear: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) presented an analysis of the biological impacts of a deep-set buoy gear fishery in June. The data comes from observer records and logbooks for deep-set buoy gear exempted fishing permit activity from 2015 through early 2019, and shows how many targeted and non-targeted species were caught with […]

Pacific Council News Summer 2019: Coastal Pelagic Species

Coastal pelagic species shorts Proposed sardine rules: On July 1, NMFS published harvest specifications and management measures for the 2019-2020 Pacific sardine fishing year based on Council recommendations at the April 2019 meeting. The biomass estimate of 27,547 metric tons (mt) places sardine in the “overfished” category, meaning the Council and NMFS must develop a […]

Pacific Council News Summer 2019: Pacific halibut

Transfer of halibut management authority moves forward Plans to transfer management of the non-Indian commercial directed halibut fishery from the International Pacific Halibut Commission (IPHC) to the Council are moving forward. In June, the Council committed to working closely with the IPHC and stakeholders on transitioning the management of this fishery, and outlined the Council’s […]