Today's Main Story: Tensions Flare in Oregon 
over Shrimp Stand Down, as Some Washington Boats Start Fishing
An agreement among Oregon pink shrimp fishing vessels to stand down from fishing to give the stocks more time to grow may unravel after just a few days. Nearly half a dozen shrimp boats from Washington traveled 250 miles to fish off Oregon's coast reportedly because there are more shrimp of larger sizes in the water. Oregon processors were considering whether to join the Washington boats and send their boats out to fish or continue to wait until the shrimp matured. Ultimately, they agreed to support the stand down, at least for the time being.“We are concerned that the strong stand taken by the Oregon shrimp fleet in support of conservation is being undermined by boats from other states,” said Rod Moore, Senior Policy Adviser for West Coast Seafood Processors Association. “As of now, our members continue to stand with the Oregon fleet and we again urge others to do the same.”
Squid prices for Chinese buyers are up 150 percent because of lower catches among the world's top suppliers. According to some large squid companies in Argentina, their squid catching volume has dropped by 60 percent so far this season compared with the same period last year.
In other news, Canada will add 135 science-related personnel to its staff at the DFO. The new hires would boost the DFO's science staff by about 15 percent. It is the largest increase in the department's workforce since the 1970s and early 1980s. “This level of hiring will almost certainly strengthen the capacity of ministry staff to provide high-quality science advice to decision makers," said Jeff Hutchings, a fisheries scientist, and professor at Dalhousie University in Halifax.
Japanese scallop catches from Hokkaido are down more than 30 percent for the 2015 fishing season which ended this past March. Landings compiled by the Hokkaido Federation of Fisheries Cooperative Associations totaled 333,252 tons. The production decline is blamed on sluggish performance in the main harvest grounds of the Okhotsk Sea and the Funka Bay. Lower production out of the Hokkaido region is expected to stretch into the 2016/2017 fishing season.
Finally, Russia may face a salmon shortage this year because of the algae bloom that wiped out about 100,000 tons of Chile's anticipated salmon production this year. In 2014, Russia turned to Chilean suppliers for salmon after it banned imports from its former top supplier Norway.
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