NOAA Fisheries FishNews – February 7, 2018

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February 7, 2018 HIGHLIGHTS NOAA Fisheries at Seafood Expo 2018 At this year’s Seafood Expo, NOAA Fisheries has a full agenda of open meetings and conference sessions on key topics affecting the seafood community. Our new Assistant Administrator, Chris Oliver, will be attending this year to discuss the Administration’s priorities related to seafood. For the second year, we have our fellow Federal agencies co-exhibiting with us to provide a one-stop shop for all your questions and clarifications. Hope you can attend a session and drop  by Booth #181. See you in Boston! Commerce Trusted Trader Program Webinars Join NOAA Fisheries for a presentation on our proposed rule to establish a voluntary Commerce Trusted Trader Program for U.S. seafood importers—a valuable complement to the U.S. Seafood Import Monitoring Program. The proposed Trusted Trader Program would maintain the effectiveness of SIMP while also streamlining the reporting and recordkeeping requirements for U.S. importers who commit to establishing internal traceability and auditing measures. Webinars will be held February 15 and 28. Surveying Untrawlable Fish Habitats in Alaska NOAA Fisheries scientists are designing the first large-scale image-based fish survey in Alaska, and one of the first untrawlable habitat surveys in the nation. Historically, bottom-trawl and mid-water acoustic surveys have been the main source of fishery-independent data. Now, cameras can access steep, rocky areas and new fisheries research tools can save hundreds of hours in analyzing photographs. West Coast Report: State of the California Current in 2017 The California Current Integrated Ecosystem Assessment is an interdisciplinary research effort led by NOAA scientists along the U.S. West Coast. Its goal is to provide scientific support for ecosystem-based management of the California Current ecosystem. A new report summarizes the most recent data, from 2016 and early 2017. Pacific Islands Big Fish, Little Fish: Habitat and Fish Size An international team of researchers, led by the Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, published a new study investigating variation in fish size across the largest coral reef ecosystem on Earth, the Australian Great Barrier Reef. They found that habitat features had a surprising and complex effect on fish: fish adapted different survival strategies, and grew to different sizes, depending on the amount of wave action in that region of the reef. Southeast Proposed Spiny Lobster Rule – Open for Comment By March 4, please submit your comments on a proposed rule for Regulatory Amendment 4 to the Fishery Management Plan for Spiny Lobster in the Gulf of Mexico and the South Atlantic. The amendment would increase the catch limit for spiny lobster while prohibiting the use of traps for recreational harvest in federal waters from North Carolina to Georgia. Update from Gulf Council January Meeting The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council met in New Orleans, January 29 to February 1. Read a summary of the Council’s actions and other topics under consideration. The Council is also seeking applications for open seats on the Reef Fish and Shrimp Advisory Panels, due March 16. South Atlantic Update Winter 2018 Available The latest issue of the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council newsletter, South Atlantic Update, is now available. Read about the Council’s latest actions, possible changes to cobia management, updates on mutton snapper and shrimp, and results from a catch reporting pilot project. Greater Atlantic Watch Out for Whales off Virginia NOAA Fisheries established a voluntary vessel speed restriction zone 54 nautical miles east-southeast of Virginia Beach to protect an aggregation of three right whales sighted in the area on January 26. This zone is in effect through February 10. GARFO Releases 2017 Year in Review Report The Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office announced the release of their third annual Year in Review report. Highlights from 2017 include finalizing the deep-sea coral protection zones in the Mid-Atlantic, successful projects in improving fish passage, and the designation of critical habitat for Atlantic sturgeon. February Recreational Black Sea Bass Season NOAA Fisheries announces a February recreational season in 2018 for black sea bass in federal waters. Virginia and North Carolina will also participate in the February season. Measures for the rest of the 2018 recreational black sea bass will be developed separately. NOAA Approves Atlantic Deep-Sea Red Crab Quota NOAA Fisheries is implementing Atlantic deep-sea red crab quotas for the 2018 fishing year. The 2018 quota is 1,775 metric tons, the same quota that has been in effect since 2011. Events February 8–12  North Pacific Fishery Management Council meeting in Seattle. February 8–March 8 Public meetings on the Draft Proposed Program for the National Offshore Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program, held in cities around the nation. February 10 Free, family-friendly NOAA Open House in Silver Spring, Maryland. February 10 and 24 Two training workshops on electronic reporting requirements, hosted by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council, in Massachusetts and New Jersey. February 13–15 Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council meeting in Raleigh, North Carolina. February 15 Free Atlantic Shark Identification workshop in Corpus Christi, Texas. February 15 and 28Webinars on a proposed rule to establish a Commerce Trusted Trader Program. February 22  Free Protected Species Safe Handling, Identification, and Release workshops in Gulfport, Mississippi. March 5–9 South Atlantic Fishery Management Council meeting in Jekyll Island, Georgia. March 7 and 13 Two free Protected Species Safe Handling, Identification, and Release workshops in Florida and Texas. March 8–14 Pacific Fishery Management Council meeting in Rohnert Park, California. March 14–16 Western Pacific Fishery Management Council meeting in Honolulu. March 15 Free Atlantic Shark Identification Workshop in Fort Pierce, Florida. Announcements February 9 (Extended) Applications due for the position of Executive Director of the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council. February 16 Proposals due for contract work assessing the importance of Atlantic chub mackerel to the diets of recreationally important highly migratory species. February 20 Applications due for summer 2018 student internships at NOAA Chesapeake Bay Office. February 28 Nominations due for two U.S. seats on the International Pacific Halibut Commission. March 2 Complete proposals due to state Sea Grant Programs for 2018 National Aquaculture Initiative funding. March 7 Pre-proposals due for 2018 Coastal Resilience Grants funding. March 9 Applications due for 2018 Chesapeake Bay-Watershed Education and Training (B-WET) funding. March 12 Applications due for 2018 Great Lakes Restoration Initiative funding. March 16 Applications due for open seats on the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council’s Reef Fish and Shrimp Advisory Panels. March 30 Applications due for 2018 student summer programs at Woods Hole Science Aquarium. Federal Register Actions Visit regulations.gov for a list of only those actions open for public comment. Scroll search for National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. For a list of all daily actions, check the Federal Register online. Corrections or technical questions should be sent to the FishNews Editor at editor.fishnews@noaa.gov. www.fisheries.noaa.gov

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