Fish & Fisheries

"Mercury levels in yellowfin tuna caught in the Pacific Ocean have been rising at a 3.8% annual rate since 1998, according to a new study."

"In a landmark settlement with three environmental groups, the U.S. government has agreed to adopt new rules that ensure seafood imported into the United States meets high standards for protecting whales and dolphins."

"PORTSMOUTH, N.H. — In November, regulators from the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration shut down recreational and commercial cod fishing in the Gulf of Maine, that enchanting arm of the coastal sea stretching east-northeast from Cape Cod. They did not have much choice: Federal law requires action to rebuild fish stocks when they are depleted, and recent surveys revealed cod populations to be at record lows, despite decades of regulations intended to restore them."

"There is more than one way to measure prescription drug use."

"The United States is poised to tackle illegal fishing and seafood fraud on a broader scale than ever before, with the release today of a set of recommendations that calls for everything from "boat-to-plate" traceable fish to international enforcement."

"Americans eat more seafood than just about anyone else. Most of it is imported from abroad. And a lot of it — perhaps 25 percent of wild-caught seafood imports, according to fisheries experts — is illegally caught."

"Here’s some good news for wild salmon lovers: Right before Thanksgiving, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced new restrictions on pesticide use in California. The first-of-its-kind move is aimed at protecting salmon and steelhead trout native to the state’s rivers and it sets the stage for protections that could benefit salmon along the Pacific coast."

"The Atlantic bluefin tuna gained protections from overfishing in the Gulf of Mexico and the waters off North Carolina under a federal rule published on Tuesday to better regulate a species coveted by sushi lovers."

"California's three-year drought threatens to wipe out the last of the Muir Woods coho salmon that make their way each year from the Pacific Ocean to spawn in a freshwater creek running through the redwoods near San Francisco, state officials said on Monday."

"A federal judge blocked the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from taking action against a massive proposed mine in Alaska."