Philippines Requires Rebuilding of Sardine Fisheries
Following campaigning by Oceana and our allies, the Philippine government announced it will require all 12 of the country’s fisheries management areas (FMAs) to implement a national plan to rebuild sardine fisheries by March 2024. Sardines are a key resource in the Philippines, accounting for 15% of the total fish catch and the nation’s marine fisheries. They are also an affordable, nutrient-rich protein, making them a popular choice in many Filipino households. This high commercial demand, however, has led to rampant overfishing and population decline. Oceana advocated for this science-based management plan, which was approved in 2020, to help restore the health and long-term abundance of the species. The comprehensive plan includes rules for catching sardines, closed seasons, and limits on juvenile catch. It also requires measures to empower artisanal fishers, such as opportunities for fishers to generate alternative income during closed seasons. Oceana will continue to work with artisanal fishers, coastal communities, and governmental officials to ensure the plan is properly implemented across the FMAs.
Following campaigning by Oceana and our allies, the Philippine government announced it will require all 12 of the country’s fisheries management areas (FMAs) to implement a national plan to rebuild sardine fisheries by March 2024. Sardines are a key resource in the Philippines, accounting for 15% of the total fish catch and the nation’s marine fisheries. They are also an affordable, nutrient-rich protein, making them a popular choice in many Filipino households. This high commercial demand, however, has led to rampant overfishing and population decline. Oceana advocated for this science-based management plan, which was approved in 2020, to help restore the health and long-term abundance of the species. The comprehensive plan includes rules for catching sardines, closed seasons, and limits on juvenile catch. It also requires measures to empower artisanal fishers, such as opportunities for fishers to generate alternative income during closed seasons. Oceana will continue to work with artisanal fishers, coastal communities, and governmental officials to ensure the plan is properly implemented across the FMAs.
July, 2023
Magnuson-Stevens Act Success Stories
May, 2023
Newly Approved Innovative Fishing Gear Will Reduce Bycatch off West Coast
Following campaigning by Oceana and its allies, the National Marine Fisheries Service legally authorized the commercial use of an innovative fishing gear that will protect whales, dolphins, sea turtles, and other ocean animals from fishing entanglements off the U.S. West Coast. Called deep-set buoy gear, this gear is designed to catch swordfish in a clean and profitable way. Legal authorization of this gear type is a critical step in the transition away from mile-long drift gillnets, a highly unselective fishing method that had previously entangled many other ocean animals. This newly approved fishing method consists of a floating buoy supporting a single vertical line with up to three baited hooks that is deployed during the day when swordfish feed at deeper depths than most other species. The buoys indicate when a fish has been caught, so fishers can retrieve their catch within minutes of it being hooked. Swordfish caught with deep-set buoy gear earn a much higher price per pound than those caught in drift gillnets because the fish is fresher and not damaged by a net. Additionally, the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch program added swordfish caught with deep-set buoy gear and harpoons to its Green List as a “best choice.” The Green List includes seafood recommendations for businesses and consumers based on seafood that is well managed and caught in ways that cause little harm to habitats or other wildlife.
Following campaigning by Oceana and its allies, the National Marine Fisheries Service legally authorized the commercial use of an innovative fishing gear that will protect whales, dolphins, sea turtles, and other ocean animals from fishing entanglements off the U.S. West Coast. Called deep-set buoy gear, this gear is designed to catch swordfish in a clean and profitable way. Legal authorization of this gear type is a critical step in the transition away from mile-long drift gillnets, a highly unselective fishing method that had previously entangled many other ocean animals. This newly approved fishing method consists of a floating buoy supporting a single vertical line with up to three baited hooks that is deployed during the day when swordfish feed at deeper depths than most other species. The buoys indicate when a fish has been caught, so fishers can retrieve their catch within minutes of it being hooked. Swordfish caught with deep-set buoy gear earn a much higher price per pound than those caught in drift gillnets because the fish is fresher and not damaged by a net. Additionally, the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch program added swordfish caught with deep-set buoy gear and harpoons to its Green List as a “best choice.” The Green List includes seafood recommendations for businesses and consumers based on seafood that is well managed and caught in ways that cause little harm to habitats or other wildlife.
April, 2023
The Net Consequence: Impacts of Set Gillnets on California Ocean Biodiversity
March, 2023
Pathway to Pop-Up Fishing Gear: A Roadmap to Authorizing Pop-Up Fishing Gear in the California Dungeness Crab Fishery
March, 2023
Deep-Sea Corals and Seafloor Habitats Protected in U.S. Pacific Waters
In the United States, the Pacific Fishery Management Council voted to reopen more than 4,500 square miles of Southern California ocean waters to recreational and non-trawl commercial gear used to catch groundfish while also permanently protecting more than 600 square miles of habitat including almost half of the area’s known deep-sea corals. These areas include coral and sponge ecosystems discovered by Oceana during a 2016 scientific expedition. The entire area remains closed to bottom trawling. This victory is a win-win for fishing communities and ocean biodiversity and is the result of a unique collaboration between recreational and commercial fishermen, Oceana, and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife who worked together to design the new conservation areas. The council also voted to protect five ecologically important areas off the Oregon coast from all forms of fishing gear used to catch groundfish and known to harm seafloor habitats, including bottom longlines and pots. These five areas, which total 182 square miles, are already protected from bottom trawling, and will now receive an additional layer of protection with this action.
In the United States, the Pacific Fishery Management Council voted to reopen more than 4,500 square miles of Southern California ocean waters to recreational and non-trawl commercial gear used to catch groundfish while also permanently protecting more than 600 square miles of habitat including almost half of the area’s known deep-sea corals. These areas include coral and sponge ecosystems discovered by Oceana during a 2016 scientific expedition. The entire area remains closed to bottom trawling. This victory is a win-win for fishing communities and ocean biodiversity and is the result of a unique collaboration between recreational and commercial fishermen, Oceana, and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife who worked together to design the new conservation areas. The council also voted to protect five ecologically important areas off the Oregon coast from all forms of fishing gear used to catch groundfish and known to harm seafloor habitats, including bottom longlines and pots. These five areas, which total 182 square miles, are already protected from bottom trawling, and will now receive an additional layer of protection with this action.
December, 2022
United States Protects Whales, Dolphins, Sea Turtles from Deadly Drift Gillnets
Following campaigning by Oceana and our allies, the United States will end the use of the large-mesh drift gillnets in its federal waters. These are mile-long, nearly invisible nets set overnight to capture swordfish. In the U.S., large mesh drift gillnets are currently only in use off the coast of California, where they entangle, injure, and kill thousands of other ocean animals each year including whales, dolphins, sea lions, endangered sea turtles, sharks, and other important fish species. This victory follows the completion of a multi-year voluntary transition program in California to compensate swordfish drift gillnet fishermen for turning in their permits and nets. The program, which was partially funded by Oceana, also incentivizes the use of more selective gear, such as deep-set buoy gear, to catch swordfish. As a result, roughly 50 miles of large-mesh drift gillnets have now been removed permanently from the ocean. The new law aligns state and federal policy to ban the use of this indiscriminate gear in all U.S. waters, and all remaining federal permits will be phased out over the next five years.
Following campaigning by Oceana and our allies, the United States will end the use of the large-mesh drift gillnets in its federal waters. These are mile-long, nearly invisible nets set overnight to capture swordfish. In the U.S., large mesh drift gillnets are currently only in use off the coast of California, where they entangle, injure, and kill thousands of other ocean animals each year including whales, dolphins, sea lions, endangered sea turtles, sharks, and other important fish species. This victory follows the completion of a multi-year voluntary transition program in California to compensate swordfish drift gillnet fishermen for turning in their permits and nets. The program, which was partially funded by Oceana, also incentivizes the use of more selective gear, such as deep-set buoy gear, to catch swordfish. As a result, roughly 50 miles of large-mesh drift gillnets have now been removed permanently from the ocean. The new law aligns state and federal policy to ban the use of this indiscriminate gear in all U.S. waters, and all remaining federal permits will be phased out over the next five years.
