Some of us lament a world where fake reality TV plots, uber-famous starlets way below my age demographic and head-exploding talk show hosts rule the airwaves, as it can be a bit difficult to get the media spotlight focused past the eye candy and on “the real issues.” You know – the substantive, grown up policy stuff like genuine efforts to bring scientists, industry, citizen groups and government together to solve ocean acidification, species loss, declining fisheries, coastal erosion, and red tides.

Well, say no more, ladies and gentlemen, because the National Ocean Council has brought us the sleekest, the sexiest, the most seductive and alluring draft ocean policy implementation plan of this – or any other – presidential administration.

Am I joking? Maybe a little. But, let me know if you really want to sit down for a 45 minute Powerpoint presentation and discussion that analyzes, for example, the structure of a regional planning body in a comprehensive regional ocean planning process. Because it turns out that real issue is actually a very important component of starting to develop agreement between large companies, day boat fishermen, coastal developers and beach-loving families on how to keep oceans clean, healthy and open for business. Not really TMZ-type material.

The National Ocean Policy is really laid out in a 96 page document called the Final Recommendations of the Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force and on page 32 it details the nine priority objectives that will implement the National Policy. Today the National Ocean Council released a draft implementation plan for those nine priority objectives. This is a big step forward for implementing the National Ocean Policy and will eventually lead to some serious action on issues such as the need to develop ecosystem-based management approaches to cleaning up the polluted runoff that increasing fouls Cape Cod beaches each summer.

The Final Recommendations took a hard working group of 25 agency leaders (see page B-I) and their staff over a year to hold hundreds of meetings, review thousands of comments and interview dozens of business, economic, national defense, scientific and community experts in a process to develop our Nation’s first ever attempt to get all of its various departments and agencies pointed in the same direction and working together to improve ocean health and management. Creating the National Ocean Council and developing the draft implementation plan has taken another year. That’s because improving ocean health and keeping oceans healthy is hard work. Not having healthy oceans and coasts is costly to our economy, causes job loss and destroys livelihoods and communities. So, spend a few moments to check out the draft implementation plan. Help support the National Ocean Policy. Ask your friends, co-workers and elected officials to support the National Ocean Policy.

Power down the big screen and dive into a real issue.

You’ve probably never seen Atlantic menhaden on a restaurant menu, and maybe you’ve never even heard of this little fish. But Atlantic menhaden, which have been called the “most important fish in the sea,” need your help.

Atlantic menhaden (Photo credit: Phillip Jones, courtsey of South Carolina Department of Natural Resources)

Atlantic menhaden are small, oily fish that are an important food for striped bass, bluefish, tuna, whales, porpoises, seabirds, and many other wildlife – but they are also caught for use as lobster bait or in a variety of consumer products such as pet food and fish oil supplements. While menhaden used to be abundant along the east coast of the United States, overfishing has resulted in the population dropping to a historic low. A declining menhaden population is detrimental to the marine ecosystems and predators that depend on this fish and to New England’s coastal economies, whose commercial and recreational businesses rely on the fish that prey on menhaden.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC), a deliberative body made up of representatives from the coastal Atlantic states that coordinates the conservation and management of the states’ shared fishery resources (including menhaden), recently took an important first step to protect the menhaden population by laying out a plan to increase the number left in the ocean and preserve the marine ecosystems that depend upon this important fish. The ASMFC will meet in November to vote on the plan – so the time to make your voice heard in support of protection for menhaden is now. Click here to send a message to the ASMFC urging it to approve actions to protect menhaden from overfishing and restore the population to healthy levels.

Make your voice heard, and help us save the “most important fish in the sea.”

Bi-partisan legislation proposed by Senators Whitehouse (D-RI) and Snowe (R-ME) to establish a National Endowment for the Oceans received a shot in the arm recently, when the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works approved a proposal set forth earlier this year to fund the Endowment. Senator Whitehouse, a member of the Committee, called the approval a major step forward in getting the Endowment launched and said that its funds would help protect Rhode Island’s oceans and support the fishing, research and tourism jobs which are central to Rhode Island’s economy.

The Committee voted to approve the RESTORE the Gulf Coast States Act of 2011, which would set up the Gulf Coast Restoration Trust Fund, financed by the billions of dollars in Clean Water Act penalties expected to be paid by BP and others responsible for the Gulf oil spill. Half of the interest generated from the Gulf Coast Restoration Trust Fund – projected to be tens of millions of dollars in the first year alone – would be used to create the Endowment.

Funds from the Endowment would go towards restoring habitat, managing fisheries, planning for sustainable coastal development, acquiring coastal properties for preservation and relocating critical coastal infrastructure in Rhode Island, Maine and in coastal areas nationwide.

The legislation is pending approval by the full Senate.

CLF has long been supportive of the program and applauds both Senators Whitehouse and Snowe for their efforts to make the Endowment a reality.

“The Senators’ shared vision for a National Endowment for the Oceans demonstrates not only a commitment to our precious resources, but also an understanding that without funding we will be unable to do the comprehensive regional planning we need to restore habitat and protect our unique and vital ocean spaces,” said Tricia K. Jedele, vice president and director of CLF’s Rhode Island office.

For more information on CLF’s ocean conservation work, please visit here.

This morning at 9 a.m. at the State House in Boston, the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation will hold a field hearing on the first year of implementation of Amendment 16 to the Northeast Multispecies (Groundfish) Fishery Management Plan.

Amendment 16, as readers of the CLF Scoop may know, has been in effect since May 2010. While some predicted dire revenue losses under the new sector system implemented by Amendment 16, the National Marine Fisheries Service recently reported that all-species gross revenues for the groundfish fleet in the 2010 fishing year–$297.7 million–were $26.6 million more than gross revenues in the 2009 fishing year. Groundfish permit sales, an important indicator of consolidation at an organization level, were extremely low.

In a statement issued today, Peter Shelley, CLF Senior Counsel, said the following: “These outcomes show a healthy, adaptive fleet that has diversified to target multiple species beyond groundfish, and that has begun to take advantage of the added flexibility that the sector system in New England provides even in the challenging start-up year. Amendment 16 is an important step in the right direction for New England and New England’s fishermen. It should be supported in Washington, D.C., and efforts to improve the system should be spearheaded in New England as intended by Congress.”

To read the full CLF statement, click here.

Catch up with the latest news from TalkingFish.org, a blog brought to you by CLF and other organizations and individuals who want to see a sustainable fishing industry in New England and abundant fish populations for generations to come. TalkingFish.org aims to increase people’s understanding of the scientific, financial and social aspects at work in New England’s fisheries. Here’s what went on this week:

• September 20: “Attention shoppers: Finding local sustainable seafood just keeps getting easier” – Locally and responsibly harvested seafood is on the menu at your neighborhood supermarkets and restaurants! Join a CSF, find a retailer offering freshly-caught seafood, or look for products that are certified Gulf of Maine-caught and responsibly managed.
• September 22: “Fish Talk in the News – Thursday, September 22″ – A weekly update of recent news stories that might interest TalkingFish.org readers.

Catch up with the latest news from TalkingFish.org, a blog brought to you by CLF and other organizations and individuals who want to see a sustainable fishing industry in New England and abundant fish populations for generations to come. TalkingFish.org aims to increase people’s understanding of the scientific, financial and social aspects at work in New England’s fisheries. Here’s what went on this week:

• September 13: “Overfishing 101: It Ain’t Over Till It’s Over” – In the eleventh post in his “Overfishing 101 series,” Pew Environment Group’s Lee Crockett writes about the progress U.S. fishery management has made toward ending overfishing – but he cautions that our work is not done yet. “Plenty of hard work remains to ensure that strong catch limits are effectively implemented, enforced and adjusted to reflect the best available science over time,” Crockett writes. “Congress also will need to provide ongoing funding for data collection, monitoring and analysis. This will allow us to verify that fishing is occurring at sustainable levels and will inform us when America’s fish populations rebuild to levels that can support thriving fisheries and ocean ecosystems.”
  

• September 16: “Fish Talk in the News – Friday, September 16″ – A weekly update of recent news stories that might interest TalkingFish.org readers.

Catch the latest news from Talking Fish, the blog brought to you by CLF and others that is focused on the scientific, financial and social aspects at work in New England’s fisheries.

August 11: “New research on the Atlantic wolffish, a depleted species that needs our help,” by Talking Fish

August 10: “Growing concern for the status of river herring,” by Roger Fleming

August 9: “Fish Talk in the News – Tuesday, August 9,” by Talking Fish

With the record setting temperatures this past July, thousands of New Englanders decided to make their escape to the beach. Unfortunately, these relief-seekers were met with an unpleasant surprise: many found that their favorite spot was closed due to high pollution levels.

A place to escape is one of the numerous ways that New England’s ocean improves our quality of life: From fresh local seafood to over $60 billion a year of economic benefit in fishing and tourism to the promise of clean energy from offshore wind, our oceans provide us with ample bounty. However, this summer’s pollution problems are a stark reminder that we can’t take a healthy ocean for granted.

Today, we’re asking you to stand up for our oceans by standing up for the National Ocean Policy.

Thousands of miles away from New England, a freshman congressman from Texas is mounting a sneak attack on our ocean’s health. This congressman is threatening to cut funding for the National Ocean Policy – a policy designed to clean up our beaches and coastal waters, protect habitat for marine life, restore our fisheries and fishing industry, and promote responsible development of clean, renewable ocean energy.

Click here to urge your Representative in Congress to stop this sneak attack on our ocean.

Thankfully, Congress adjourned for the summer, but a vote could take place as soon as they return! So make sure your concerns are at the top of their list. Urge your reps to stand up for clean, healthy oceans and thriving coastal communities by supporting the National Ocean Policy today!

Catch the latest news from Talking Fish, the blog brought to you by CLF and others that is focused on the scientific, financial and social aspects at work in New England’s fisheries.

August 2: “Fish Talk in the News – Tuesday, August 2,” by Talking Fish

August 5: “Overfishing 101: A big fish story we should take seriously,” by Lee Crockett

For more Talking Fish posts, visit www.talkingfish.org.