Climate change information also is being purged from NOAA websites
More national and global media are reporting that Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has visited NOAA and has been combing through NOAA data and threatening staffers with job cuts and layoffs.
SeafoodNews.com reported on February 7 that the Washington Post reported that NOAA employees were told to stop contacting foreign nationals, including discussing treaties and seafood catch limits. “The move has put work on annual seafood harvest quotas on hold for now,” the Post said.
US Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) confirmed DOGE staff entered NOAA’s Silver Spring, Maryland building. He posted on Musk-owned X that DOGE was “infiltrating key systems & locking out career employees.”
What are potential impacts on US fisheries?
Politico reported that at least two NOAA-sponsored studies were halted by the Trump team – one of which was researching whether fishery quotas and fishing permits are distributed equitably – as part of the eradication of all diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) work.
NOAA scientists also were ordered to pause “all international agreements,” according to an internal email obtained by Wired, including communications with foreign nationals and participation in international commissions. That includes US communications with Canada regarding the International Pacific Halibut Commission and the Pacific Salmon Treaty.
“There is growing uncertainty regarding how the agency will proceed with its management of Alaska’s pollock and other federally managed fisheries, following Trump officials’ threats to downsize the agency,” wrote Rachel Sapin of Intrafish in an titled Crucial Alaska pollock fisheries decisions at stake as Trump administration takes aim at NOAA.
She added that uncertainty also surrounds how scientific research can proceed for Alaska pollock, groundfish and other species managed by NOAA. “The future management of fisheries decisions for not only pollock but Alaska crab and other groundfish species could also be impacted by the current upheaval at NOAA,” Sapin said. Federal workers at NOAA work in partnership with the Alaska Dept. of Fish and Game to coordinate management programs in both federal and state waters.
Bill Tweit, vice-chair of the North Pacific Fishery Management Council told IntraFish last week that he is worried about the impact of the Trump administration’s action on fisheries management.
“As one council member, I am extremely concerned about our ability to continue to maintain the highly productive, sustainable fisheries that are our hallmark as we face greater environmental challenges than ever with reduced resources and stability,” Tweit told Sapin. “Surveys, which are the bedrock of our process, will be reduced even further than the already lower than acceptable levels. We may not know for a couple of months how much they will be reduced.”
Tweit added that there were already concerns that a meeting happening this week on ways to reduce chum salmon trawl bycatch would not be able to move forward given issues related to Trump’s efforts to freeze federal funds. That action has since been paused by a U.S. federal judge. Intrafish reported.
Climate change research at risk
The new administration is also focused on purging information from NOAA that is climate-change related and has reportedly been removing some information on the topic from federal websites.
Intrafish reported that NOAA has been targeted by Project 2025, a conservative blueprint that calls for the “breakup of NOAA,” criticizing the agency as “one of the main drivers of the climate change alarm industry.”
Rachel Sapin wrote: “NOAA under the Biden administration made understanding climate change and its impact on US food security and fisheries a focal point. In 2023, NOAA released its first-ever seafood strategy.
The strategy outlined the agency’s direction over the next five years to support a domestic seafood economy. Created under the Biden Administration, the strategy was largely tied to helping the seafood industry become more resilient in the face of climate change, which is rapidly altering the location, size, and composition of US fisheries, according to NOAA.”
