Fish

Oslo, Norway - 05/25/2009 - Members of the Pure Salmon Campaign coalition, a diverse group of stakeholders from key farmed salmon production and consumption nations including Canada, Chile, Scotland, Ireland and the United States, urge Marine Harvest to eliminate its destructive environmental impacts by separating farmed fish from wild fish populations and finding new sources for fish feed.    » read more »

May 22, 2009 -- U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill announced today that the Department of the Interior is providing the State of Missouri with a total of $1,190,996 in federal grants to fund conservation and recovery initiatives for imperiled fish and wildlife throughout the state of Missouri.

Grants are distributed through the State Wildlife Grant (SWG) program. This project was selected to receive federal dollars for the development and implementation of programs that benefit fish and wildlife, including species that are not hunted or fished. The grants will support both planning and implementation activities and will assist in conservation of the highest priority Missouri wildlife, plants and habitat.    » read more »

Largest Number of Stocks Rebuilt Since 2001

May 19, 2009 -- NOAA’s Fisheries Service reported to Congress today that four stocks — Atlantic bluefish, Gulf of Mexico king mackerel and two stocks of monkfish in the Atlantic — have been rebuilt to allow for continued sustainable fishing. This is the largest number of stocks to be declared rebuilt in a single year since the fisheries service declared the first stock successfully rebuilt in 2001.    » read more »

HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam - 18 May 2009: IBM (NYSE: IBM) and FXA Group today announced a first of a kind collaboration with the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) and the Vietnamese State Agency for Technological Innovation (SATI) that will accelerate the adoption of traceability solutions to improve global food safety.    » read more »

Brussels, Belgium - 04/22/2009 - Uta Bellion, director of the Pew Environment Group’s EU Marine Programme, issued the following statement in response to the European Parliament’s vote today in favour of stronger control of the EU fleet.

“Today’s vote by the European Parliament reinforces the need to reverse the damage due to overfishing, such as decreased fish stocks and fewer fishing jobs.

“Annually, illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing is valued at an estimated €10 billion worldwide, and contributes substantially to overfishing and the depletion of marine resources. In EU ports, and for the EU fleet, there is currently no coherent or effective control.    » read more »

Washington, DC - 04/22/2009 - The Pew Environment Group today applauded Senator John Kerry’s (D-MA) introduction of the Shark Conservation Act of 2009 (companion of legislation introduced in the House by Rep. Madeline Bordallo of Guam) on the day before the EU Fisheries Ministers consider a new Plan of Action for Sharks that covers all European Union Member States’ waters.

“Sharks, the top predators in the marine environment, are rapidly disappearing from the world’s oceans,” said Joshua S. Reichert, Managing Director of the Pew Environment Group. “We are hopeful that this week’s events mark a turning point where governments around the world will take concrete steps to stop the widespread killing of these animals.”    » read more »

Low returns of Sacramento River fall Chinook will curtail commercial salmon fishing; Governor orders state agencies to help struggling coastal fishing communities

April 21, 2009 -- (Salem) - Today, Oregon Governor Kulongoski and California Governor Schwarzenegger requested that U.S. Commerce Secretary Locke declare both a resource disaster under the Interjurisdictional Fisheries Act, and a commercial fishery failure under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act.

Securing federal declarations under the Interjurisdictional Fisheries Act and the Magnuson-Stevens Act will provide important leverage for ocean fishermen seeking vital economic assistance.

“Salmon are a vital component of California and Oregon’s natural resources and provide    » read more »

04/21/2009 -- California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger today took action to avoid harmful impacts to the state’s economy following the California Fish and Game Commission’s vote to close the 2009 recreational salmon season. The Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC) voted to close the commercial salmon season on April 8. This is the second consecutive year that the state’s salmon fishery has been closed.

The Governor issued a proclamation declaring a state of emergency in California and sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke asking for his support in obtaining federal disaster assistance.    » read more »

Quirky fish is key to protecting coast's most fragile ecosystems

LOS ANGELES (April 15, 2009) – In an attempt to save a unique and endangered fish found only in the most fragile of California coastal habitats, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) will file a suit today against the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service after habitat protections were needlessly limited. NRDC fought to keep the fish on the Endangered Species List in 2000, and now a removal of habitat that the Service had previously labeled as essential to the species’ survival have forced a return to the courts.    » read more »

Washington, DC - 03/09/2009 - The Pew Environment Group today called upon the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council to diligently implement important new federal requirements designed to prevent overfishing and rebuild depleted fish populations.

The council is currently developing plans to apply the new federal rules, which became effective on February 17, 2009. These rules correspond to 2006 congressional amendments to the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the nation’s primary law governing management of U.S. fish populations.    » read more »

Jekyll Island, GA - 03/05/2009 - Holly Binns, Project Manager for the Pew Environment Group’s Campaign to End Overfishing in the Southeast, issued the following statement today about the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council’s 7 to 6 vote to halt red snapper fishing for six months, with an optional six-month extension, in the South Atlantic from North Carolina to Florida. The moratorium would go into effect as early as mid-June.    » read more »

Washington, DC - 02/12/2009 - Culling whales will not increase fisheries catches in tropical waters, according to a new paper supported by the Lenfest Ocean Program and published today in the journal Science. For years, Japan has argued that reducing the number of baleen whales in the oceans would improve fisheries because whales eat fish that are caught for human consumption. The study published today found that even a complete eradication of whale populations in tropical waters would not lead to any significant increase in fish populations.    » read more »

June 16, 2008 -- As summer approaches and fishing season shifts into high gear, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources is reminding anglers that preventing the spread viral hemorrhagic septicemia (VHS) will take the effort of everyone.

Although long known in Europe, VHS is a relatively new disease to the Great Lakes region that is capable of killing numerous species of fish by causing internal bleeding.

Fishing on Grand River, Michigan: Photo by Joel Dinda (CC)    » read more »

Key Seafood Buyers Support Vision for a Long-Term Sustainable Fish Supply

NEW YORK (May 8, 2008) – The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), in partnership with more than a dozen conservation organizations, today released clear, realistic steps companies can take to develop and implement a comprehensive corporate policy on sustainable, wild-caught and farmed seafood.

Chilean sea bass: Photo by Mike McCune (CC)    » read more »

Legislation would end 19 years of litigation over the San Joaquin River

May 7, 2008 -- Washington, DC – The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee today approved legislation sponsored by U.S. Senators Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer (both D-Calif.) that would implement a settlement to restore the San Joaquin River and reintroduce the California Central Valley Spring Run Chinook Salmon to the river.

Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta: Photo by brothergrimm (CC)

Companion legislation was approved by the House Natural Resources Committee last fall.    » read more »