Gene Buck, Senior Analyst
Congressional Research Service
Library of Congress
Washington, DC 20540-7450
e-mail: <gbuck at crs.loc.gov>
Mr. Buck also makes the following request: "To further assist me in providing
a
broad scope of information resources to Congress, I would appreciate being
added to any mailing lists of publications, news releases, newsletters, etc.
relevant
to marine mammals and fisheries. Where there is a subscription cost, a sample
copy would provide a basis for deciding whether or not a subscription could
be
justified. Thanks for your assistance in this matter."
*************************************************************
CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH SERVICE SUMMARY OF
FISHERIES NEWS FOR OCTOBER 1996
Summary follows:
SALMON ALONG THE PACIFIC COAST
.
Cook Inlet Salmon. On Nov. 11-18, 1996, the Alaska Board of
Fisheries will meet to consider revisions to all 13 upper Cook Inlet salmon
management plans. No oral public testimony will be taken, but testimony is
being sought from various advisory committees. [Assoc Press]
.
Sonar Counting Lawsuit. In late October 1996, Alaska Superior Court
Judge Mark Woods ruled that state fishery officials have a duty to exercise
reasonable care in operating fish-counting sonar devices. Such a ruling
allows
further court consideration of a lawsuit by Yukon River fishermen against the
AK Dept. of Fish and Game that sonar counting was misused, leading to an
early closure of the 1994 Yukon River salmon commercial and subsistence
fisheries. The fishermen are seeking damages in the millions of dollars, and
are seeking class-action status for as many as 10,000 fishermen. [Assoc
Press]
.
Tentative Agreement with Mid-Columbia Dams. In late October
1996, public utilities reached a tentative 5-year agreement with federal and
state fishery managers allowing operators of 5 mid-Columbia dams more
flexibility in choosing among fish protective measures as long as successful
juvenile salmon passage is increased to 95% by the year 2001. This
agreement is the first part of a 3-part habitat conservation plan for
hydropower
operations on the mainstem Columbia River -- the other 2 parts address
hatchery compensation and habitat improvement. The habitat conservation
plan is being developed to better accommodate hydropower operations should
mid-Columbia steelhead trout be listed as a threatened or endangered
species. [Assoc Press]
.
Overgrazing Damage? On Oct. 25, 1996, the Columbia River
Inter-Tribal Fish Commission sent a letter to OR Gov. Kitzhaber and the
Clinton Administration alleging that the Forest Service has allowed cattle to
overgraze riparian areas in the Grande Ronde and John Day watersheds
(Wallowa-Whitman and Umatilla National Forests) such that ESA-listed
Snake River chinook salmon are being adversely affected. The Forest Service
responded that it had followed forest plan guidelines and the NMFS biological
opinion resulting in the removal of cattle earlier than anticipated when
forage
use limits were reached, and that a fence damaged last spring was being
rebuilt. [Assoc Press]
.
Coho Salmon Listing. On Oct. 24, 1996, the Pacific Coast
Federation of Fishermen's Associations Board voted to support ESA listing of
all three proposed coho salmon populations in California and Oregon. Oct.
25, 1996 was the deadline imposed by U.S. District Judge Susan Illston in
July 1996 for NMFS to announce its decision on whether or not to list various
populations of coastal coho salmon as threatened under the Endangered
Species Act. On Oct. 25, 1996, NMFS announced that it was listing central
California coho salmon as threatened and would take an additional 6 months
to consider whether or not to list two additional coho salmon populations in
northern California and Oregon. [NOAA press release, Assoc Press, Pacific
Coast Federation of Fishermen's Assoc. press release]
.
Yakima Logjam. On Oct. 23, 1996, Kittitas County Commissioners
will discuss what to do about a 300-foot-long logjam in the Yakima River that
some residents consider threatening to bridges, residences, and utilities.
Fishery managers contend this logjam provides some of the most productive
and critical salmon habitat in the Yakima River drainage. [Assoc Press]
.
Oregon Salmon Plan. On Oct. 17, 1996, OR Governor Kitzhaber held
a formal news conference on his Coastal Salmon Restoration Initiative in
Portland, OR, and called on NMFS to request a six-month extension for an
ESA listing decision on coho salmon. NMFS is under court order to make a
listing decision by Oct. 25, 1996. [Assoc Press]
.
WA Coho Marking Halted. On Oct. 16, 1996, U.S. District Court
Judge Barbara Rothstein issued a temporary restraining order requiring
Washington state to stop fin-clipping coho salmon released by hatcheries for
up to 10 days while she reviews information on the program. Northwest tribes
requested the review, contending that coho marking could interfere with other
ongoing salmon research. Coho marking had started on Oct. 15, and was
mandated by the WA state legislature to allow fishermen to distinguish
between adult wild and hatchery salmon. [Assoc Press]
.
NPPC Independent Scientific Review Group. On Oct. 16, 1996, the
Northwest Power Planning Council (NPPC) and the expanded Independent
Scientific Review Group (ISRG) held a workshop in Boise, ID, to discuss the
ISRG's report "Return to the River: Restoration of Salmonid Fishes in the
Columbia River Ecosystem." Some ISRG members believe that removing one
of the Snake River dams may be the only way to save ID salmon. [NPPC
press release, Assoc Press]
.
BC Salmon Stock Status. The October 1996 issue of the American
Fisheries Society journal Fisheries contained a report that 142 British
Columbia salmon stocks have become extinct, with 624 of the remaining
stocks at high risk. A total of 9,663 stocks were identified, with 4,417
identified as not threatened and 4,172 whose status is unknown. [Assoc
Press, Fisheries]
.
CA Delta Water Pumping. On Oct. 11, 1996, the California Water
Resources Control Board approved a change in the point of water diversion
for the Westlands Water District, resulting in as much as an additional
130,000 acre-feet of water to be pumped from the Sacramento River Delta
annually during November and December. Although such pumping would
compensate for reduced spring pumping to protect San Joaquin fall-run
chinook salmon, environmentalists fear that the November-December pumping
will threaten the downstream migration of juvenile Sacramento River
spring-run
chinook salmon. [San Francisco Chronicle via Greenwire]
.
Snake River Sockeye Spawning. On Oct. 10, 1996, ID Dept. of Fish
and Game biologists reported that they have counted 13 spawning sites by
sockeye salmon in Redfish Lake. Spawning salmon are part of a group of 120
hatchery-raised adult sockeye salmon released into the Lake in September.
[Assoc Press]
.
Savage Rapids Dam Task Force. On Oct. 9, 1996, Oregon Governor
Kitzhaber's Savage Rapids Dam Task Force recommended keeping (not
removing) the Savage Rapids Dam and spending $13.3 million by the Grants
Pass Irrigation District for improvements to better protect steelhead trout
and
salmon. [Assoc Press]
.
Canadian Salmon Fleet Restructuring. On Oct. 9, 1996, a report by
British Columbia's job protection commission was released, revealing that in
the past two years the BC commercial salmon fleet's decline has cost the
provincial economy $180 million with 7,800 jobs lost. At the same time, the
sport fishing sector's decline has cost the economy $170 million with a loss
of
2,175 jobs. [Assoc Press]
.
Proposed ESA Listing of Steelhead Trout. On Oct. 7, 1996, NMFS
held a public hearing in Lewiston, ID, on the proposed Endangered Species
Act (ESA) listing of steelhead trout as threatened. On Oct. 3, 1996, the
Idaho
Fish and Game Commission wrote a letter to NMFS opposing the ESA listing
of steelhead trout, contending that listing would not help species recovery
and
could injure the ID economy. [Assoc Press]
.
Spring/Summer Chinook Salmon Propagation. On Oct. 1, 1996,
the Idaho Power Co. finished spawning 18 female wild summer chinook
salmon for artificial rearing at the Company's Pahsimeroi Hatchery. The
80,000 eggs obtained did not meet the Company's goal of 1.25 million eggs.
[Assoc Press]
.
Salmon Assistance. On Oct. 1, 1996, the U.S. Dept. of Labor
announced a grant of $1.55 million to assist 250 dislocated loggers and
salmon fishermen in Clallam, Jefferson, and Kitsap Counties, WA, with
employment search, vocational training, and support services. On Oct. 1,
1996, the Dept. of Commerce awarded the WA Dept. of Fish and Game $3.48
million to repair salmon hatcheries and fish ladders damaged by the February
1996 floods. On Oct. 1, 1996, the Dept. of Commerce awarded the WA Dept.
of Fish and Game $5.2 million to continue a buyout program of commercial
salmon permits. [Assoc Press]
.
MARINE FISHERIES
.
Texas Shrimper License Buyback. Nov. 30, 1996 is the deadline for
Texas licensed commercial shrimpers to submit applications to the Texas
Parks and Wildlife Dept. for a voluntary buyback program for shrimping
licenses. The buyback was authorized by 1995 Texas law and potentially
affects 3,300 licensed shrimpers. [Assoc Press]
.
Japan-South Korea Fisheries Talks. On Nov. 7-8, 1996, Japanese
and South Korean officials will meet in Tokyo for a third round of
discussions
to review the bilateral fisheries agreement between these nations. Japan is
expected to seek adoption of a new understanding that the authority to
control
illegal operations by fishing vessels should be granted to the country in
whose
waters the illegal operations occur. [Dow Jones News]
.
Pacific Tuna Regime. On Oct. 28, 1996, Japanese Fishery Agency
officials announced that they would seek to hold talks with other nations
concerning a plan for creating an international regime to control overfishing
of
Pacific tuna through monitoring of catches as well as by providing for the
collection and exchange of scientific data on these fish. The United States,
Canada, South Korea, and Indonesia were mentioned as supportive of the
Japanese plan. [Dow Jones News]
.
SC Crab Licensing. On Oct. 25, 1996, the SC Natural Resources
Board agreed to ask the SC legislature to raise license fees for out-of-state
crabbers by as much as 10 times their present cost. Other changes would
require that crab traps be modified to permit crabs to escape if the trap
were
lost, and would require color-coded trap buoys and vessel numbers. [Assoc
Press]
.
Pacific Whiting Allocation. On Oct. 25, 1996, the Pacific Fishery
Management Council agreed to recommend allocations of Pacific whiting
(hake) for the 1997 season. Vessels delivering to shoreside processors were
recommended to receive 42% of the quota, factory trawlers were
recommended to get 34% of the quota, and vessels delivering to mother ships
for processing were proposed to receive 24% of the quota. [Assoc Press]
.
Tuna-Dolphin. In late October 1996, the Inter-American Tropical Tuna
Commission met in La Jolla, CA, where it heard officials of the Clinton
Administration commit to renew efforts in the 105th Congress to pass
legislation modifying the existing ban on importing tuna caught by
surrounding
dolphins with purse seines in the eastern tropical Pacific. In addition,
Mexican officials announced that Mexico was suspending its participation in
accord with the Panama Declaration whereby current dolphin mortalities were
regulated. [Assoc Press]
.
Amchitka Leaks? In late October 1996, Greenpeace reported that its
researchers found evidence this past summer that radiation has been leaking
from U.S. underground nuclear test sites on Amchitka Island in the Alaska
Aleutian Island chain. Concern was expressed that radioactive elements
could migrate into the marine food chain and fisheries. On Oct. 29, 1996,
U.S. Dept. of Energy officials announced that they considered the Greenpeace
report serious and would launch a new study of Amchitka in 1997.
[Greenwire]
.
Gulf Disaster Aid Expansion. In late October 1996, NMFS
announced that its Gulf of Mexico fishery disaster program had been
expanded to provide compensation for uninsured losses and damage to
commercial fishing vessels and gear as well as charterboats from the major
storm of Mar. 12-14, 1993. The application deadline for this assistance is
Nov. 7, 1996. [NOAA press release]
.
NC Fisheries Moratorium. On Oct. 24-25, 1996, the NC Moratorium
Steering Committee met to consider comments from 19 public hearings and
approve preliminary regulations to overhaul NC marine fisheries. Preliminary
regulations adopted on Oct. 25 must be approved by the NC General
Assembly. The proposal will be presented to a General Assembly
subcommittee on Nov. 12, 1996. A 3-tier licensing system is proposed --
commercial fishermen restricted to those who make most of their living
selling
fish, recreational fishermen who use commercial gears such as crab pots or
shrimp trawls, and hook-and-line sport anglers. For the first time,
recreational fishermen would be required to buy licenses, while the unlawful
sale
or purchase of coastal fish would become a felony. [Assoc Press]
.
First Russian Fishery Law. On Oct. 24, 1996, Russia's State Duma
approved the first draft of a bill that would regulate fishing and protect
aquatic
and marine resources. The bill would establish recommended fish harvests
from individual regions, regulate aquaculture, and establish various
protective
measures for aquatic and marine resources. This would be Russia's first law
to regulate Russian fisheries. [Interfax]
.
Shark Suntan. In the Oct. 24, 1996 issue of Nature, Univ. of Hawaii
scientists report findings that juvenile hammerhead sharks tanned in the sun,
showing increased melanin. This finding is believed significant because skin
cancers are rare in sharks, and could assist research on potential medical
treatment for skin cancer or its prevention. [Reuters, Assoc Press]
.
Chesapeake Bay. In mid-October 1996, the State of Virginia proposed
purchasing large oysters from watermen in Tangier and Pocomoke Sounds for
transplanting to an artificial reef at the mouth of the Great Wicomico River.
Larger oysters may possess some resistance to diseases that have
decimated oysters in the Bay. On Oct. 23, 1996, the Chesapeake Bay
Foundation announced they would fund this oyster buyout program if the
state program did not operate. On Oct. 29, 1996, the Virginia Marine
Resources Commission endorsed the state's plan to buyout and transplant
oysters from Tangier and Pocomoke Sounds to an artificial reef at the mouth
of the Great Wicomico River. On Oct. 29, 1996, MD Dept. of Natural
Resource managers surveyed oyster beds in the MD portion of Tangier and
Pocomoke Sounds, finding adult mortality rates of 50% to 75%. Such results
diminish prospects for a good harvest. [Assoc Press]
.
Pacific Island Tuna Industry. On Oct. 21-24, 1996, the 6th annual
Maui Pacific Center conference in Kapalua, Maui, HI, will focus on developing
an island-based tuna industry. [Assoc Press]
.
Power Plant Damage? On Oct. 21, 1996, MA Environmental
Secretary Trudy Cox called for a review of cooling water use by New England
Power Co.'s Brayton Point power plant, in response to charges that fish
populations in Mount Hope Bay dropped markedly after the Power Co. sharply
increased its use of cooling water in 1985. [Providence Journal-Bulletin via
Greenwire]
.
Vietnamese Fishery Officials. On Oct. 21, 1996, six Vietnamese
government officials arrived in the U.S. to spend 12 days visiting shipyards
in search of potential partners to build vessels for the Vietnamese fishing
industry on a trade mission funded by the U.S. Trade and Development
Agency. [Assoc Press]
.
West Coast Bottomfish Harvest Reduction. On Oct. 21, 1996, the
Pacific Fishery Management Council met in San Francisco, CA, to consider
proposals to significantly reduce harvest of four species of bottomfish --
yellowtail and canary rockfish, bocaccio, and chilipeppers. Proposals could
result in harvest reductions between 25% and 85% beginning Jan. 1, 1997,
with a potential loss to coastal communities of as much as $11.4 million --
the
equivalent of about 568 jobs. On Oct. 24, 1996, the Pacific Council reduced
the 1997 yellowtail rockfish allowable catch to 6 million pounds -- half of
the
1996 level. There is fear that most if not all the allowed harvest could be
taken as bycatch in the Pacific whiting fishery. [Assoc Press]
.
Rancid Shrimp Trial. On Oct. 18, 1996, after a 10-week federal
trial, a
St. Petersburg, FL seafood distributor and three employees were found guilty
of chemically treating spoiled, imported shrimp and reselling it throughout
the
U.S. to groceries and restaurants. [Assoc Press]
.
World Maritime Tribunal. On Oct. 18, 1996, 21 judges were sworn in
at Hamburg, Germany, to initiate the United Nations' International Tribunal
for
the Law of the Sea. This tribunal will work to resolve international
disputes
relating to the ocean and seabed. [Reuters]
.
Cyanide Fish Kill in Manila Bay. On Oct. 18, 1996, Philippine
officials announced that cyanide appeared to be the cause of a massive 30-ton
fish kill in Manila Bay observed on Oct. 11. The source of the cyanide was
unknown. [Assoc Press]
.
New England Groundfish. On Oct. 17, 1996, the U.S. Coast Guard
boarded a VA fishing vessel inside an area closed to fishing off Cape Cod and
seized its catch -- a ton of scallops, 1,700 pounds of monkfish, and 1,250
pounds of skate. The catch was valued at $17,000. Oct. 28, 1996 is the
deadline for applications to have fishing vessels with northeast multispecies
groundfish permits purchased under the Dept. of Commerce's $25 million
Fishing Capacity Reduction Initiative. By Oct. 21, 1996, NMFS had already
received 50 applications valued at about $14 million. The goal is to
purchase
at least 80 vessels. On Oct. 23, 1996, a ceremony was held at the MassPort
Fishing Pier in Boston to announce that the Catholic Church and the federal
government have agreed to cooperate to provide low cost health insurance to
fishermen. The health care program will be administered by the Roman
Catholic Archdiocese of Boston with $2 million in start-up funding provided
by
the Dept. of Commerce. On Oct. 29, 1996, NMFS published modifications to
groundfish regulations (Amendment 7) reopening some groundfish areas this
winter when market prices are higher in exchange for closures in the spring
to
better protect spawning. In addition, sink gillnetters will be allowed to
fish
the Gulf of Maine between Sept. 15 and Dec. 31 annually as long as nets are
equipped with acoustic devices to repel harbor porpoises from the nets.
[Assoc Press, Fed. Register]
.
Seabird Mortalities from Longline Fishing Gear. In mid-October
1996, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature-sponsored (IUCN)
World Conservation Congress, meeting in Montreal, Quebec, adopted a
resolution calling for widespread use of measures to prevent seabirds from
getting hooked and drowned on longline commercial fishing gear.
[Environmental Defense Fund/Defenders of Wildlife press release]
.
GA Crab License Moratorium. From mid-October through
mid-November 1996, the GA Dept. of Natural Resources will hold a series of
workshops to develop a management plan for commercial crabbing, including
whether or not to extend the current license moratorium. [Assoc Press]
.
Illegal Swordfish Importing Sentence. On Oct. 15, 1996, a MA man
was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 3 years and 10 months in prison for
illegally importing $4 million worth of swordfish from Canada, by lying about
swordfish weight to avoid methylmercury testing. [Assoc Press]
.
WA Geoducks. In mid-October 1996, the WA Dept. of Natural
Resources announced that it would auction additional harvest rights to
geoduck clams to protect its interests in a court case concerning treaty
tribe
allocations. This may cause previous successful bidders to default, claiming
that auctioning additional harvest rights will depress geoduck prices in
Asian
markets. On Oct. 25, 1996, the WA Dept. of Natural Resources announced
that six bidders won 110,000 pound quotas for harvesting geoducks on State
aquatic lands in Kitsap County, generating $3.8 million in revenue for public
aquatic enhancement projects. [Assoc Press]
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