HB 17-150

So FYI Ya'll, HB 17-150 proposes the re-authorization of using both gill nets as well as SCUBA while fishing. The bill was written by the Honorable Jose Palacios of Precint 1.

Just to get everyone up to speed, there have been management restrictions banning the use of gills nets and "SCUBA Spearfishing" in the CNMI. This bill proposes to abolish those restrictions. Although I have my own views on the subject I would much rather hear the thoughts of others. Please feel free to express your thoughts on the matter.

Laolao Bay's ICON Station Still Pending

After nearly a decade of discussions, strategizing, and justifying, the Laolao Bay CHAMP ICON Station remains tantalizingly 'almost installed.'  After serious progress last summer- permits finalized, site selected and base plate with anchor pins installed, the project remains stalled due to the need for an engineering study and the need to find funding for that study.  NOAA's Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory is continuing to foot the bill, but the US Government's continuing resolution (i.e. still no budget) means spending for special projects remains challenging.

Still, we remain optimistic that the station will finally hit the water this summer. The station currently resides at the commerical port in Saipan and PacIOOS technicians ( who are providing telemetry and some water qualtiy sensors) are working with AOML to make sure that all the pieces will work together when we finally get to the point of installation. 

To read about the ICON program, visit the newly revised: http://www.coral.noaa.gov/

To read about the history of the Laolao Station, visit: http://llbp7-log.blogspot.com/

To read about a (we hope) second ICON station site on Saipan, visit: http://manm1-log.blogspot.com/

CNMI MMT on Google Earth

CNMI's Coral Gardens long-term monitoring site is now a feature on Google Earth's "Explore the Ocean" layer. Mousing over the the ocean layer target icon (see the image on left) will trigger a popup window featuring the MMT site.  Rota DEQ's Gary Toves (retired) and PMRI's Peter Houk are featured in the image that provides a brief overview of the MMT's mission and a link to our home page.

MMT begins to Blog

We've just transitioned our current events to the Blogger platform to improve our transfer of information about current events. Past events have been migrated to the blog format and can still be accessed. Look for more frequent content updates from now on.

Flinders University Underwater Archaeology Training

MMT members from Coastal Resources Management learned the basics of surveying submerged wrecks this past July.  This training reflects the recent addition of the Historic Preservation Office to the CNMI Scientific Diving Program and builds the team's skills to manage vessel grounding events.  Jen McKinnon and Jason Raup led the training and will be returning next year to develop an underwater historical trail on Saipan.
7 Aug 09

Proactive Species Conservation to Include Guam

CRM has been awarded a second year of funding from NMFS Office of Protected Resources to assess the status of Atuhong and Tanguisson in CNMI and Guam.  Ecological surveys and interviews with fishermen will be conducted around Guam. A sonic tagging study on Saipan will help define home range sizes for Tanguisson. Learn more on our PSCG Webpage.

Personnel Changes

John Iguel, long-time MMT member, has transfered to DEQ the Technical Branch and will now support the MMT full-time.
Rodney Camacho and David Benavente have been hired by CRM as full-time Marine Technicians under the Coral Reef Section.  Both are former interns with the Coral Reef Initiative program and are recent college graduates. Their full-time addition to the team is a major boost in the program's capability to assess and monitor our marine environment.

Dr. Peter Houk, a nine year veteran of the MMT is leaving DEQ. He largely responsible for the current form and direction of the current MMT program.  He is taking a job as the executive director of the Pacific Marine Resources Institute on Saipan.