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The Turtle Hurdle

Loggerhead sea turtle nesting subpopulations in the North Atlantic are on the decline, according to a new study released by the National Marine Fisheries Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

The study, a five-year status review for loggerhead sea turtles required by the Endangered Species Act, confirms what Oceana has been telling the federal government all along.

If there is to be any real chance for restoring sea turtle populations, the federal government is going to have to take major steps to protect sea turtles from commercial fishing gear that includes increased time and area closures and increased monitoring on commercial fishing fleets.

Sustainable Seafood: What's Best to Eat?

I was making plans for dinner with some friends the other night, and they asked if I had any special requests.

I replied saying that if we would be having fish, could it please be sourced from a sustainable fishery. I got an immediate response saying, "We definitely only do sustainable fish ... no wild stock for us."

I was flabbergasted. I have recently been doing some research on salmon farming in southern Chile and have come to realize just how unsustainable the fishery is. My friend's comment also made me realize how uninformed, or misinformed, the average consumer is.

It is certainly true that some wild-caught species such as bluefin tuna and Chilean seabass are facing commercial extinction and yet continue to be fished due to high consumer demand. But farmed species such as Atlantic salmon, which are continuing to grow in numbers and popularity, also cause their fair share of problems. The sustainability of wild-caught fisheries is influenced by the type of gear used for fishing, the amount of fish that is caught, and the incidental catch of non-target species. The sustainability of aquaculture operations is influenced by a different set of factors. Carnivorous species such as salmon are fed large quantities of fishmeal that are sourced from wild forage fish populations, thereby perpetuating the depletion of wild stocks.

Aquaculture can also have a significant impact on the surrounding environment.  Aquaculture species are often invasive and can compete with other predators in the ecosystem. Natural disasters, such as the recent earthquake in Aysen, Chile, heighten the threat of escaped fish. Disease is prevalent in many farms and can spread to wild populations.  Chemicals from antibiotics and excess nutrients from fecal materials cause high levels of pollution in the areas surrounding the pens.

The GOOD NEWS is there are both wild-caught and farmed species that provide a healthy and environmentally-friendly alternative. Check out these guides from the Blue Ocean Institute and the Monterey Bay Aquarium for the best options. You can also promote sustainable fisheries by supporting organizations like Oceana that advocate for marine conservation and sound fisheries management.

--Tess Geers is a deep sea intern at Oceana

Great South Channel Identified as Critical Habitat

New England Fishery Managers Vote to Protect Juvenile Cod


After nearly a 10-year struggle, the New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC) this week voted to designate the Great South Channel as a Habitat Area of Particular Concern (HAPC). The channel is located southeast of Cape Cod and provides habitat that is essential to the survival of juvenile cod populations. Officially designating this area as a HAPC under federal fisheries law will allow for special consideration in the coming years to conserve sensitive and rare marine habitat in the area.

“We all know, fishermen and managers alike, that the Great South Channel is a unique area for the New England Marine ecosystem,” said John Williamson, Fish Conservation Program Manager at the Ocean Conservancy in Portland, Maine.” Giving this area special attention is a necessary building block for healthy oceans.”

Juvenile cod have suffered from decades of overfishing and their populations continually fail to recover despite strict catch limits in recent years. Luckily, the Council accepted the advice their scientific advisory panel, the Plan Development Team, which recommended this area receive special treatment as an HAPC in August. The team noted that this location represented one of three ‘cluster areas’ for juvenile cod in the region.

“Scientific data shows a strong link between the extremely rare hard bottom habitat of the Great South Channel and the survival of juvenile cod,” said Gib Brogan, Campaign Projects Manager at Oceana. “If we don’t protect known nurseries from destructive fishing gear now, the future of the groundfish fishery will be at risk.”

The NEFMC will immediately begin to develop in-the-water management measures to conserve the important habitats of the Great South Channel HAPC and other habitat areas of particular concern that were chosen this June.

“This proactive step by the Council is an important part of the foundation of habitat management in the region,’ said Sally McGee, of Environmental Defense and chair of the Council’s habitat and ecosystems committee. “We hope that highlighting this important marine habitat will help the Council develop workable ways to enhance the recovery of depleted cod and lead to more robust oceans for everyone.”

In-the-water management measures are expected to be in place by 2009.

Polar Bears in Peril

A new series of reports from USGS suggest that two thirds of the world's polar bear population could be gone within 50 years. As the sea ice continues to recede with warming temperatures the polar bears will find it increasingly difficult to hunt.

Some commentators have suggested that this report is conservative and that Arctic sea ice could be a thing of the past by 2030, suggesting that polar bear losses could happen much earlier than 2050. You can read the press release from USGS here.

Sometimes a Picture Says it All

Straight up: How cool is this?

Loggerhead Sea Turtles Threatened with Extinction

FEDERAL STUDY CONFIRMS OCEANA’S CONCERNS:
Tens of Thousands of Loggerheads Killed Annually By Destructive Fishing Gear

Washington – All loggerhead sea turtle nesting subpopulations in the North Atlantic with trend data available are declining according to a new study released yesterday by the National Marine Fisheries Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. This includes sea turtles that nest in the United States, Caribbean and along the Yucatan peninsula of Mexico. The study, a five-year status review for loggerhead sea turtles required by the Endangered Species Act, confirms what Oceana has been telling the federal government for the past five years.

The federal agencies admit for the first time that "the most significant man-made factor affecting conservation and recovery of the loggerhead is incidental capture in commercial and artisanal fisheries." Tens of thousands of loggerhead sea turtles are killed annually in the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico by destructive fishing gear, including trawls, gillnets and longlines. Loggerheads also are captured and killed by commercial fisheries that use hook and line, seines, dredges and various types of pots and traps.

"It is clearly time for the federal government to step up and take control of sea turtle bycatch in commercial fisheries," said Elizabeth Griffin, Oceana’s marine wildlife scientist. "Taking the lives of tens of thousands of loggerheads every year will result in the disappearance of one of the oldest animals on Earth."

Loggerhead sea turtles are currently categorized as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act, which requires the National Marine Fisheries Service to take the necessary actions to protect the species in the water, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to protect their nesting areas on the beach. However, the National Marine Fisheries Service is allowing tens of thousands of sea turtles to be killed by commercial fishing operations annually.

When the number of sea turtles killed rises above the legal amount, the national fisheries service turns its head and lets it happen. "For years the government has argued that loggerhead populations were relatively stable and that further restrictions on commercial fisheries were unwarranted," said David Allison, director of Oceana’s campaign to save sea turtles. "Now the government can no longer deny or avoid taking action to address this serious problem."

The study showed that loggerheads nesting in South Florida declined 22.3 percent from 1989 to 2005 and 39.5 percent since 1998. In the Florida panhandle loggerhead populations have declined by 6.8 percent annually. Finally, the report shows that loggerhead sea turtle populations in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and northern Florida have declined by 1.9 percent each year. The loggerhead nesting population also has declined in the Yucatan, and a longer time series is needed to assess the populations that nest in the Dry Tortugas.

"If there is to be any real chance for restoring sea turtle populations, the federal government is going to have to take major steps to protect sea turtles from commercial fishing gear that includes increased time and area closures and increased monitoring on commercial fishing fleets," said Allison.