Louisiana Congressman Garret Graves is the primary sponsor of H.R. 3094, legislation that would strip the National Marine Fisheries Service of its authority to manage red snapper in the Gulf of Mexico, and to turn that authority over to the five Gulf states. Rep. Graves has provided a number of justifications in support of such […]
Using Common Sense about Unmanaged Forage Fish About every 6 to 8 months, my job experiences a bit of an implosion. I think that’s what keeps things exciting and certainly causes me to open my mind a bit more to other people’s perspectives. It’s not that I welcome such chaos, I’m told it just comes […]
And the recreational fishing community needs to weigh in As fishermen, particularly those of us who spend a good amount of the season offshore, we should all be acutely aware by now that things are likely going to change. If you aren’t, this is your heads-up. Rarely does a week or two go by where […]
Photo: Red Snapper in Gray’s Reef National Marine Sanctuary, by Greg McFall/NOAA. Out here on the West Coast, we’ve been watching the Gulf Coast red snapper management battle with a keen interest. It’s been an ugly one. Fishing sectors pitted against one another. Fundamental disagreements on whether management is necessary, let alone effective. And an […]
Does it take aliens for us to protect our natural resources? Photo Credit: Dan Cherry, of the NW Sportfishing Industry Association Independence Day used to be one of my favorite movies, and one of my favorite holidays, too. Now, because of the sequel, and because this holiday’s fireworks festivities in my new neighborhood shook the […]
We all get it… So why they hell don’t fisheries managers? Top photo by John McMurray Localized depletion… Pretty self-explanatory right? You scoop up tons and tons of bait fish in a pretty specific area, then they just aren’t there anymore. Sure, some may remain, maybe even a good amount. But those big schooling concentrations […]
Sunset over Stellwagen Sanctuary. Photo courtesy of Anne Smrcina, NOAA Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary When various conservation organizations began pushing the concept of marine protected areas (MPAs) back in the late 1990s, I didn’t like the idea at all. Back then, the MPAs being proposed were, with few if any exceptions, so-called “ocean wilderness […]
Fire from an oil train derailment in Mosier, Oregon. Photo by Michael O’ Leary. I know, no-brainer, right? It’s been a busy week, and couple of months for that matter, here in the Pacific Northwest. It seems, despite domestic and world-wide market demand, coal and oil corporations are looking to the Pacific Northwest to export […]
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