MINNEAPOLIS – This week marks the 35th anniversary of the Magnuson-Stevens Act (MSA), the federal law that is helping to rebuild America's depleted ocean fish populations and ensure their long-term sustainability.
While the law has laid the groundwork, Peter Sorensen, professor of fisheries, wildlife and conservation biology at the University of Minnesota, believes individuals can also make a difference through their buying decisions. He cites examples where consumers have driven the market toward sustainable fishing practices - such as cod.
"They now catch them by hand-line off Cape Cod and sell them as a gourmet product in Boston, just because many people won't buy the ones off the large fishing fleets that have basically been almost responsible for the extinction of that species."
Sorensen recommends checking the Monterey Bay Aquarium's "Seafood WATCH" program (http://bit.ly/McxPS). It includes online resources, pocket guidelines, and even phone 'apps' that provide the most up-to-date information on making sustainable fish and seafood purchases.
Whether buying at a market or restaurant, or stocking a home aquarium, Sorensen says it's a good idea to ask where the fish came from.
"If it was caught in a sustainable way, a thoughtful way – marketed and shipped in a thoughtful, environmentally friendly way – they will, of course, know how it was captured, where it came from, and probably how old it is. If they don't know, that almost always means that it came from a third party whose reliability should be questioned."
While consumer demand plays its part, Lee Crockett, director of federal fishery policy for Pew Environment Group, believes federal policy has a critical role in preserving the nation's fisheries. He remembers his days with the Coast Guard off New England, when huge Russian fishing trawlers dwarfed his little patrol boat.
The Magnuson-Stevens Act initially put a stop to foreign over-fishing in American waters, but it paved the way for a U.S. fishing fleet that also over-fished, says Crockett.
"And so in 1996, the Congress passed the first set of amendments to the Magnuson Act that were designed to change the law from promoting fishing to conserving fish. So, there were requirements to not put economics before conservation when setting catch levels for rebuilding depleted fish populations."
Another round of amendments in 2006 set catch limits and since then, notes Crockett, several species are on the road to recovery, including bluefish, summer flounder, sea scallops, and red snapper.
Some in the fishing industry are calling on Congress to relax MSA restrictions because of their economic impact on fishermen, although Crockett is convinced there are better alternatives than weakening conservation.
"One of the ways that is sort of win-win for everybody is programs called Cooperative Research, where you take fishermen, and you use their expertise and their vessels to go out and collect information on the fish in the ocean. So, you're providing some economic benefit for the fishermen, and you're developing some better information to manage our fish."
get more stories like this via email
A new report found four dams in the Columbia River Basin are big emitters of methane.
Research from the organization Tell The Dam Truth showed the four lower Snake River dams in eastern Washington emit the equivalent of 1.8 million metric tons of carbon dioxide each year.
Robin Everett, deputy western region field director for the Sierra Club, said it undercuts some of the claims the dams are helping provide the region with clean energy.
"It's really clear from this report that we have to take this a lot more seriously that there are some real impacts as far as emissions go from these dams," Everett asserted.
The reports showed the dams produce the equivalent emissions of burning 2 billion pounds of coal annually. Defenders of the dams counted they are important for barging and irrigation for the area's agricultural lands.
But Everett pointed out the dams have another effect on the region: they block the dwindling population of salmon and steelhead from traveling upstream on the Snake River. She noted it not only hurts fish populations but the tribes relying on them.
"We have an obligation for them to be able to fish and if there are no fish to fish, we have broken the treaties," Everett contended
Chinook salmon are also an important source of food for orca on the West Coast. Everett added protecting salmon is important for tribes and the region as a whole.
"Our moral obligation to the salmon and the orca that depend on them are met as well," Everett concluded.
Disclosure: The Sierra Club contributes to our fund for reporting on Climate Change/Air Quality, Energy Policy, Environment, and Environmental Justice. If you would like to help support news in the public interest,
click here.
get more stories like this via email
A proposed pumped-storage hydroelectric facility for Cuffs Run near the Susquehanna River in York County has been challenged by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation.
The foundation filed a motion to intervene in the proceedings with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, which is considering granting a preliminary permit to build a 1.8-mile-long dam for the project.
Harry Campbell, science policy and advocacy director for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, said they are working to stop the project in order to protect the unique Cuffs Run area and its ecological benefits for future generations.
"If approved, this project would destroy it about 580 acres of prime farmland, fields and forests, some of which have not been disturbed in about 100 years," Campbell pointed out. "Those farms, fields and forests exist harmoniously with and in support of a plethora of plant and animal life."
The foundation is circulating an online petition and encouraged Pennsylvanians to provide comments before Sunday.
The stream is home to naturally reproducing brook trout. Advocates worry the $2.5 billion project would also be harmful to the Susquehanna River. Campbell noted about 40 families would be displaced.
"For those who call Cuffs Run home, it's more than just a place to live. It's their heritage and they want it to be part of their legacy," Campbell asserted. "This project just simply is the wrong idea in the wrong place. In order to honor that heritage and that legacy, we need to preserve this area."
Campbell emphasized the Cuffs Run project is about 993 acres of land draining into a 2.5-mile unnamed tributary. He added in terms of stream habitat, the rocks, pebbles and woody material have been identified as among the best in the region for supporting critters living in the water.
Disclosure: The Chesapeake Bay Foundation contributes to our fund for reporting on Energy Policy, Rural/Farming, Sustainable Agriculture, and Water. If you would like to help support news in the public interest,
click here.
get more stories like this via email
Tennesseans want more say in how the Tennessee Valley Authority plans for their future electricity needs and a bill now in Congress could give the public more influence.
The "TVA Increase Rate of Participation Act," would require a more open decision-making process for the utility.
Brianna Knisley, director of public power campaigns for Appalachian Voices, said the TVA is currently developing its new Integrated Resource Plan to meet future energy demands. The bill would require more public participation in the plan's proceedings.
"Right now the stakeholders who get to provide input early on in the IRP process are all hand-selected by TVA," Knisley pointed out. "You can't choose to be in that IRP working group. And those are the only folks who get substantial input in the architecture of the IRP, as it's being designed."
The utility serves more than 10 million people across six states. The TVA said it is reviewing the legislation. A draft of the plan will be published at a later date. The TVA said it already has a "robust stakeholder engagement plan."
After the plan is released, Knisley noted public input happens during what's known as the scoping phase of the National Environmental Policy Act. Open houses are set up, where the TVA answers questions from the public. Knisley encouraged Tennesseans to raise any of their concerns during the public and virtual hearings.
"I think additional public input into our region's long-term energy plan is only going to strengthen outcomes," Knisley contended. "And make that long-term energy plan better meet the needs of the Tennessee Valley, as a whole."
She added it is important for Tennesseans to work with Congress on the best way to improve public input in the TVA decision-making process.
Disclosure: Appalachian Voices contributes to our fund for reporting on Energy Policy, Environment, Environmental Justice. If you would like to help support news in the public interest,
click here.
get more stories like this via email