On July 19th, President Obama signed an Executive Order establishing a National Policy for the Stewardship of the Ocean, Coasts, and Great Lakes.

This order strengthens ocean governance and coordination, establishes ocean management guidelines and adopts a framework for coastal and marine spatial planning to address conservation, economic activity, user conflict, and the sustainable use of our oceans, coasts, and Great Lakes.

A National Ocean Council (NOC) will be created to coordinate within the Federal Government and implement the National Policy. There will also be a committee to engage with state, tribal, and local authorities. 

FishWise would like to applaud President Obama for his proactive approach to ocean governance and health.

For more information on this announcement, see the White House website.

You've probably heard of Chilean seabass (aka Patagonian toothfish), a popular, but less sustainable, seafood product. There have been campaigns such as "Take a Pass on Chilean Seabass" and an exciting book on the pirate fishing of Chilean seabass (Hooked: Pirates, Poaching, and the Perfect Fish).

The name Chilean seabass (also known as Patagonian toothfish) refers to two species of long lived, deep dwelling species of fish that live mostly in the waters surrounding Antarctica, and are typically caught via bottom longline. Concerns surrounding these fish range from their inherent vulnerability, as Chilean seabass live to be over 50 years old and have low fecundity, the nature of bycatch, which includes endangered albatross, and poor management effectiveness due to substantial illegal fishing effort despite the governance of an international governing body. As a result, Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch Program (MBA SFW) has ranked Chilean Seabass as a red (unsustainable) fishery. It has been estimated that half of the Chilean seabass catch is from illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fisheries. 

The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) has certified one fishery for Chilean seabass off the island of South Georgia. This certification is for just 5% of the global Chilean seabass catch, but includes only legal, well managed, and seabird bycatch mitigated longline boats. Due to the added precautions taken in the MSC certified fishery, FishWise considers the certified Chilean seabass product to be more sustainable product, and a good example of improvements that can be made in a fishery.

On July 7^th FishWise participated in a call organized by NOAA on the most recent oil spill news.

NOAA said the first line of defense for protecting consumers and seafood is to constantly monitor fishery closure areas to allow for enforcement and correct closure locations based on the changing spill trajectory. The most current closure area map can be found here.  Seafood samples are also being analyzed for contaminants, and will continue to be for some time as closed areas begin to be re-opened. The dispersant effects are being analyzed, and whales and turtles are being closely monitored in the area of the spill.

Print a seafood safety fact sheet from NOAA.