WASHINGTON – Wednesday, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a new report entitled, Federal Fisheries Management: Efforts to Reduce and Monitor Unintentional Catch and Harm Need Better Tracking. The report found that federal efforts to monitor and reduce bycatch in U.S. fisheries are lacking. “Alaskans and our fishing families know bycatch is a huge […]
WASHINGTON – Wednesday, Representative Mary Peltola (AK-AL) introduced a pair of bills to restrict bottom trawling and reduce bycatch – the bipartisan Bycatch Reduction and Mitigation Act and the Bottom Trawl Clarity Act. “Since coming to Congress, I’ve worked to make fish and fishing policy the issue of national importance it deserves to be,” said Rep. […]
Petition did not meet criteria necessary for emergency action NOAA Fisheries denied a request for emergency action to institute a cap of zero on Chinook salmon bycatch in the Bering Sea pollock fishery. The request was submitted on January 17, 2024. It effectively asked Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo to close the Bering Sea pollock […]
Washington, D.C.— Thursday, U.S. Representative Mary Peltola shared a letter to NOAA Administrator Janet Coit expressing deep concern over the recent NOAA Fisheries report revealing that nine killer whales were incidentally caught in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Island (BSAI) groundfish trawl fisheries this year, with just one released alive. As the issue of marine […]