Founder’s Briefs: An occasional series where Mongabay founder Rhett Ayers Butler shares analysis, perspectives and story summaries. On the docks of Port Orford, a small fishing town on the southern coast of the U.S. state of Oregon, Aaron Longton runs a modest seafood business out of a garage converted into a processing room. On a […]

The measures were contentious. Many fishers feared the new rules would make their businesses unviable. Yet the biological results have been striking. In October 2025, officials announced that yelloweye rockfish (Sebastes ruberrimus), the final species previously classified as overfished, had recovered to “healthy” levels. Some scientists had once expected the rebound to take decades longer.

Today, most of the waters once closed to trawling have reopened. Advances in gear design are also reducing ecological harm. Modified nets, sensors and lighting systems help avoid unwanted catch, while semi-pelagic trawls keep heavy equipment off the seafloor.

Also check out older article https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/25-years-after-disaster-declaration-major-u-s-fishery-makes-a-comeback/