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2019-2020 US Pacific Territories Fishery Capacity-Building Scholarship Announcement, Applications due March 1, 2019
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The Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council and its Education Committee members are pleased to announce the availability of up to three undergraduate or graduate scholarships for the 2019-2020 academic year. These scholarships support the aspiration of American Samoa, Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) to build their capacity to effectively manage their fisheries and related resources through employment of their own people. These scholarships cover the cost of tuition and fees and some living expenses. However, for undergraduates, there is an expectation that the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) will be completed early and Pell grants obtained so the relevant university’s Financial Aid Office can determine the amount of aid needed. Click here for more information and a complete scholarship application. Funding for the scholarships comes in part from the NOAA Fisheries Pacific Islands Regional Office and Pacific Island Fisheries Science Center. For further details, please contact Sylvia Spalding at info.wpcouncil@noaa.gov or phone (808) 522-8220.
Press Release – Modern Recreational Fisheries Management Act Implications in the Western Pacific Region (10 January 2019)
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HONOLULU (10 January 2019) On the last day of 2018, President Trump signed into law the Modernizing Recreational Fisheries Management Act (S. 1520), also known as the Modern Fish Act. The bill, which had been stagnant since its introduction in 2017, was pushed through by the efforts of the same coalition of sports fishing organizations that earlier in the year supported the amended Billfish Conservation Act of 2012. The amended Billfish Act had major consequences for the commercial fisheries in Hawaii and the US Pacific Island territories by banning interstate commerce of a sustainable, traditional fishery in the islands. The Modern Fish Act, on the other hand, is more targeted toward the management of recreational fisheries in the South Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico but may have implications for fisheries management in the Western Pacific Region, i.e., the US Pacific Islands.
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