Category Archives: Mid Atlantic

Coast Guard, good Samaritans assist disabled fishing vessel crew off Barnegat Light, New Jersey 

 The Coast Guard and good Samaritans assisted four mariners Tuesday after the 64-foot commercial fishing vessel F/V Monica became disabled about 85 miles from the New Jersey coast. F/V Monica was reported to be experiencing transmission issues and a Coast Guard Station Barnegat Light 47-foot Motor Life Boat (MLB) crew safely towed the vessel to Lighthouse Marina, in Barnegat Light. Good Samaritans aboard the nearby commercial F/V Alexandria Dawn heard the distress call and diverted to help. The F/V Alexandria Dawn crew arrived on scene and initiated a tow of the F/V Monica towards Barnegat Light. 3 photos, more, >>click to read<< 13:29

Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 74′ Steel Scalloper/Dragger, Caterpillar 3412

To review specifications, information, and 38 photos’,>click here<, To see all the boats in this series, >click here< 08:29

Maine’s lobster fishermen struggle with efforts to save right whales

Willis Spear stands in the backyard of his Yarmouth, Maine home. Behind him are dozens of yellow and green lobster traps. Spear, 67, spends most of the winter preparing these traps to be deployed in the Gulf of Maine come April. It’s a task this lifelong lobster fisherman has carried out each year since he was a child. “The water gives us life,” Spear said on an unusually warm winter day in late February. Over the last decade, lobster fishermen in Maine have faced increasingly stronger financial headwinds, from the price of fuel to the revenue they are receiving for the lobster themselves. The lobster-fishing industry generates hundreds of millions of dollars for Maine’s economy each year. Video, more, >>click to read<< 18:37

Fisheries Survival Fund Calls for Reevaluation of Draft PEIS on Offshore Wind Development Impacts on Scallop Fisheries in the New York Bight

The Fisheries Survival Fund (FSF) has submitted to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) regarding the Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (Draft PEIS) for the New York Bight Wind Energy Area. The FSF, representing the majority of full-time Limited Access scallop fishermen on the East Coast, has raised significant concerns over the inadequacies of the Draft PEIS in addressing the impacts of offshore wind development on scallop fisheries, which are among the most valuable federally-managed commercial fisheries in the United States. The FSF argues that the Draft PEIS, while prepared under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA), fails to adequately mitigate the impacts of offshore wind development on the Mid-Atlantic scallop resource and does not sufficiently reduce wind farm interference with scallop fishing activities. more, >>click to read<< 06:55

State fisheries advisory committees to review issue paper on trawling closures to protect submerged aquatic vegetation

A controversial proposal that could lead to shrimp trawling area closures to protect submerged aquatic vegetation took a step toward future consideration by the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission last week. The commission, policy-making arm of the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries, voted during its quarterly business meeting in New Bern to refer an issue paper pertaining to the concept to its northern, southern and shellfish/crustacean advisory committees to get input from the public. Glenn Skinner, executive director of the N.C. Fisheries Association, a Morehead City-based trade and lobbying group for commercial watermen, said he and his members are concerned, in part because the state has already permanently or seasonally closed more than 1.2 million acres of estuarine waters to shrimp trawling. more, >>click to read<< 10:18

Most New Jerseyans say they do not want massive wind farms at the shore 

Support for building wind turbines off New Jersey’s coast has taken a dive in the last four years, particularly among residents of shore towns, a Stockton University Poll reveals. Currently, half of the state’s residents are on board with plans to erect wind turbines at sea for electricity, a sharp fall from the 80% support measured in a 2019 survey. Back in 2019, nearly 80% of New Jersey adults were all for offshore wind farms, with a strong backing from 77% of coastal dwellers. Now, only 33% of those living near the coast are fans of the idea, according to the latest findings. more, >>click to read<< 17:20

“Not For Sale”: Ocean City Firmly Rejects US Wind Offer

Ocean City officials have issued a resounding public rejection of offshore wind company US Wind’s Community Benefits Package offer. The Community Benefits Package, which was extended to various Delaware Coastal Towns as well, included up to $2 million disbursements to communities over a 20-year period. According to Ocean City, in exchange for the commitment, US Wind expects local government officials to refrain from commenting negatively or objecting to US Wind’s offshore project.  Ocean City Mayor Rick Meehan says US Wind approached him in December with the Community Benefits Package offer. more, >>click to read<< 12:53

Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 68′ Fiberglass Dragger, 3408 Cat, /State and Federal Permits

To review specifications, information, and 38 photos’,>click here<, To see all the boats in this series, >click here< 08:52

An era ends: Wanchese seafood operation to close in March

Started as a small business 88 years ago by a native Outer Banks fisherman, the Wanchese Fish Co., now a global behemoth, is closing the doors of its production fish offloading and packing operations here. The fish operation on Mill Landing Road in this historic fishing village on the south end of Roanoke Island will be shuttered March 29,,, Wanchese Fish Co., located along the wharf in Wanchese Marine Industrial Park, was purchased by Cooke Seafood USA in 2015, part of the Cooke family’s international aquaculture and seafood company. The Wanchese company had maintained its family-owned operation after the sale.  Wanchese Trawl & Supply Co., a marine and fishing equipment retail store that Wanchese Fish Co. started in 1976, will remain open, Richardson said. Also, Shoreland Transport USA, an associated cargo and freight company based in Suffolk, will continue to operate its Outer Banks route. more, >>click to read<< 10:57

NCFA WEEKLY UPDATE FOR February 19, 2024

Proposed shrimp trawl area closures to “protect” submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV). Once again, the North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission (MFC) will be discussing adopting further regulations for North Carolina’s shrimp trawl fishery. At the February MFC meeting they will be reviewing recommendations from the Division of Marine Fisheries to close numerous areas to shrimp trawling to “protect” SAV. While the NCFA shares fishermen’s concerns over the areas DMF wants to close to trawling our primary concerns are not with the specific areas DMF wishes to close. Our concerns are, first, are the areas closures, any of them, necessary, and second, is the process proposed for implementing these closures, specifically proclamation authority, legal? Are these closures necessary? more, >>click to read<< 13:03

“You saved someone’s life,”- Commercial Fisherman makes dramatic rescue

Near sunset last Nov. 6, commercial fisherman John Genther of Madison was steering his boat back home after a day of catching whelk when he spotted a bright blue object about a half mile ahead in the water. As he maneuvered closer, he realized it was a man wrapped in winter clothing, without a life preserver, clinging to the side of an overturned skiff in 55-degree water. Genther immediately recognized the signs of hypothermia and knew what to do, thanks to a first aid training he completed less than two weeks earlier. “You saved someone’s life,” said Nick Lajoie, commander and chief of response for Coast Guard Sector Long Island Sound, speaking to Genther and a roomful of attendees at a ceremony on Feb. 8 honoring the heroic act. “It’s a big deal.” more, >>click to read<< 10:22

50 commercial watermen and women help with 10th annual Lost Fishing Gear Recovery Project

The North Carolina Coastal Federation has announced that the 10th year of its Lost Fishing Gear Recovery Project is wrapping up, and usable, tagged lost gear is ready to be reclaimed. The Coastal Federation said that along the state’s coast, 50 commercial watermen and women collectively spent nearly 150 working days on the water throughout January retrieving lost crab pots from the sounds. An additional part of the project will take place in Marine Patrol District 1 in the northeast region, the nonprofit said. Whole pots, in good condition, recovered from the Albemarle and Pamlico Sound region will be available for the rightful property owners to claim. This includes crab pots retrieved from the Virginia state line and Manteo to Swan Quarter and from the Outer Banks to Ocracoke. more, >>click to read<< 09:25

Maine lobster industry reacts to right whale found entangled in rope

Maine’s lobster industry is responding following the discovery of a dead North Atlantic right whale near Martha’s Vineyard last month. According to federal authorities, the whale was entangled in fishing rope, including portions traced back to Maine. While NOAA has yet to determine the exact cause of the whale’s demise, Maine lobstermen are fearing potential blame. “They’re going to say that the rope, you know, caused harm to the whale, and over time, it just was a very slow death,” said John Drouin, a Lobsterman from Cutler with over 40 years of experience. The incident marks the first documented interaction between a right whale and Maine fishing gear in over two decades. more, >>click to read<< 11:49

Sam Parisi asks, How Accurate is NOAA and NOAA Fishery Survey Science?

The agency is not required to compare their results with other independent science. The unproven science may bring concern on the health of fish stocks the industry depends upon. Our Fishermen and Fishing Industry depend on sound science. We need a Magnuson Act Amendment which would require NOAA to compare their science with other independent scientific surveys before any restrictions are placed on, or allocation cuts are enacted.  Thank you, Sam Parisi. (click here to comment) 07:22

Harkers Island residents demand removal of neglected shrimp boat disrupting local harbor

The bottom line is the community wants this eyesore gone. Miss Becky has drifted around Brooks Creek Harbor for 2 years. It’s labeled as a derelict vessel by the Wildlife Resource Commission, which means it’s a vessel that is neglected with an identifiable owner. The owner is Douglas Oneil Junior who was just released from prison after being convicted of felony littering charges with his vessels. He faces those same charges with this shrimp boat. Video, more, >>click to read<< 09:11

New England Fishermen Fear NOAA Retaliation as Feds Pin Dead Whale on Maine Lobstermen

For the first time in twenty years, the death of a North Atlantic Right Whale has been linked to Maine fishing gear, according to a federal environmental agency. Found dead off of Martha’s Vineyard on January 28 near Joseph Sylvia State Beach, the juvenile, female whale was described as having been entangled in a rope that was “deeply embedded in the tail.” According to the U.S. Commerce Department’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) — parent agency of the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) — the rope found on the whale contained purple markings that are consistent with water trap and pot buoy lines used by lobstermen in Maine. Photos, more, >>click to read<< 07:22

Captain Jimmy Ruhle Honored Posthumously with New Cooperative Research Award

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council named Captain Jimmy Ruhle as the first recipient and namesake of a new award that recognizes outstanding contributions to cooperative fisheries research in the Mid-Atlantic region. His son, Captain Robert Ruhle, accepted the award on his father’s behalf during the Council’s meeting last week in Arlington, Virginia. Jimmy Ruhle was a lifelong commercial fisherman, a former Council member, and a trailblazer in cooperative fisheries research. He had an instrumental role in the creation and success of the Northeast Area Monitoring and Assessment Program (NEAMAP) Mid-Atlantic/Southern New England trawl survey, a cooperative fishery-independent survey of coastal waters from Cape Hatteras north to Cape Cod. Since 2007, the survey has been conducted biannually aboard Jimmy’s vessel, the F/V Darana R, by a team of Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) researchers working in partnership with Jimmy and his crew. more, >>click to read<< 13:11

Oregon fishermen, tribes angered by surprise announcement on offshore wind energy areas

Federal officials say Oregon’s wind energy areas were developed “following extensive engagement and feedback from the state, Tribes, local residents, ocean users, federal government partners, and other members of the public” and are based on reducing conflicts with ocean users, particularly commercial fishermen. The areas avoid 98% of the locations recommended for exclusion due to their importance as commercial fishing grounds, they said. But local groups representing fishermen and Indigenous communities said that narrative is inaccurate and the federal government’s engagement with local communities was perfunctory at best, failing to take into account suggested impacts on local fishing areas, the environment and views that are sacred to tribes. The groups said the announcement caught them by surprise since Gov. Tina Kotek had asked the federal agency last June to pause identifying and leasing offshore wind areas so the state could fully evaluate potential impacts on the environment and economy. more, >>click to read<< 10:07

Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 40′ H&H Lobster Boat, 575HP Scania DI 1242M Diesel

To review specifications, information, and 9 photos’,>click here<, To see all the boats in this series, >click here< 08:01

Southern Shrimp Alliance Submits Comments Opposing Request by Government of Vietnam to be Treated as a Market Economy

Over the objection of a large and diverse group of American industries and producers, the U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) is currently conducting an administrative proceeding to determine whether Vietnam should Government of Vietnam a market economy for the purposes of our antidumping duty laws. Commerce’s current practice treats Vietnam as a non-market economy (NME) and applies special rules to address the distortions caused by the government of Vietnam’s control over the country’s economy. Under these special rules, Vietnamese shrimp exporters that are controlled by the government are subject to a 25.76 percent antidumping duty rate. more, >>click to read<< 11:23

Six offshore wind turbine sites planned off Barnegat Light, draw large crowd to Toms River

A plan to place wind turbine farms in six areas of ocean off the Jersey Shore brought a crowd to the Clarion Hotel and Conference Center on Thursday, where the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management fielded questions and concerns. Federal personnel met with more than 100 offshore wind supporters, critics and curious residents over a plan to develop an area of the Atlantic known as the New York Bight. Gus Lovgren, a fourth-generation fisherman, has a vessel named the Lilly Rose docked in Pleasant Beach. Lovgren worries that his family’s century-long fishing heritage in the United States is coming to an end. He said offshore wind farms could block his access to more than half of his usual fishing grounds. The wind farms will bring “devastation and the extinction of our industry,” Lovgren said. photos, more, >>click to read<< 07:29

States edge closer to regional fund for fishermen hurt by offshore wind projects

A New York state energy agency, in collaboration with Massachusetts and nine other East Coast states, took a concrete step Thursday toward establishing that fund. The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority issued a request for proposals seeking a firm to design and develop the regional fund and a standardized claims process for the fishing industry. The process would apply regardless of which wind project caused the economic loss. In as few as 16 months, the states hope to have a claims process established, a third-party administrator selected, and millions of dollars from offshore wind developers that can be doled out to affected fishermen of any Eastern port as needed. The fund is a response to several projects that are slated to come online along the Northeast amid a lack of any national solution. more, >>click to read<< 14:53

The Plaintiffs in the Supreme Court’s Big Chevron Case Moonlight as Anti–Offshore Wind Activists

William Bright, Wayne Reichle, and Stefan Axelsson have a lot in common. They live in Southern New Jersey and run commercial fishing operations whose catch includes Atlantic herring, silvery little bottom-dwellers that feed on krill and fish larvae. They are plaintiffs in a Supreme Court case that could soon kneecap federal agencies’ ability to write and enforce regulations. And for the past few years, they’ve had a common adversary: offshore wind developers. Plaintiffs in one of the most closely watched cases this term participated in efforts to block two major renewables projects off the coast of New Jersey, Ocean Wind 1 and 2. The campaign against Ocean Wind 1 and 2 was aided by a network of conservative groups and corporate backers, who rejoiced when Danish energy firm Ørsted canceled both projects in November. Now, when the Supreme Court rules on Chevron this spring, these groups may have a much bigger win to celebrate. more, >>click to read<< 06:53

Orsted, months after a $4 billion write-off on offshore wind, decides to cut jobs, halt dividends, and quit several markets

Orsted has struggled to keep its promising wind projects alive in recent times. High costs tied to Inflation, elevated interest rates, and supply crunches took a toll on Orsted as it wrote off $4 billion linked to two large New Jersey wind projects in October. At the time, the company described America as the “most painful part of its portfolio” that it would have to make that hard decision of de-risking from—a blow for President Joe Biden’s administration that had pinned great hopes to the country’s investment in green energy. more, >> click to read<< 12:13

Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 70′ Steel Stern Dragger, Permits, 600HP Lugger Diesel

To review specifications, information, and 9 photos’,>click here<, To see all the boats in this series, >click here< 07:50

A Voice for Commercial Fishermen – Sharon Lee Peele Kennedy of Buxton, North Carolina has passed away

Born February 9, 1956, Sharon Lee Peele Kennedy, a lady known for her beautiful smile and her passion for life, passed peacefully at her home in Buxton on January 26, 2024, with her beloved sons by her side and surrounded by her loving family. Sharon was the force that started NC Catch and became a voice for the commercial fishing industry. Sharon’s name will forever be part of NC Catch, Outer Banks Catch, and the Outer Banks Seafood Festival. Being the daughter of a commercial fisherman, her passion ran deep for the industry. Just as passionate about cooking, Sharon wrote multiple cookbooks and hosted a radio show for the past ten years that carried the name of her cookbooks, “What’s for Supper.” more, >>click to read<< 08:55

New Rutgers Study Confirms Hypoxic Event Last Summer off the New Jersey Coast by Jim Lovgren

In a scientific report released in December 2023 by Associate Professor Grace Saba, and Professor Josh Kohut using underwater robots, called “Gliders” to track ocean water quality, specifically, oxygen concentrations and PH levels, the researchers discovered that large areas of the New York Bight suffered a hypoxic event last summer.  The study suggests that any of a number of factors could have caused these conditions, including a change in normal ocean stratification, increased input of nutrients which increase phytoplankton production, increased sea temperatures, and a few more. Conveniently missing from the possible causes of this hypoxic event is the impact of the offshore wind research vessels that have been extensively using high powered sonar and seismic devises throughout the New York bight area for over a year now. Also ignored was any outreach to the scallop fishermen along the coast who have been reporting unusual amounts of “clappers”, which are dead scallops, in their tows. In an article posted in the spring of 2023 in Fisherynation.com, “Is the Great Fishkill of 1976 About to be Repeated?“, I suggested that the New York bight could see an environmental catastrophe that could rival or surpass the great fish kill of 1976 and would be caused by the decomposing bodies of the dead sea creatures killed by the seismic and Sonar assault on the ocean bottom by offshore wind research vessels. Links, more, >>click to read<< 19:46

From Bubba Gump to bust? American shrimpers face extinction.

On a chilly December morning, the captain of the Miss Patti is ready to throw his lines and go shrimping – well, almost. Brian Jordan’s deckhand is in a foul mood, and it’s no wonder why. Is any of this worth it?  Here on the tiny working waterfront of Tybee Island, Georgia, the hesitancy is logical. Shrimp prices cratered this year, and hundreds of boats from Brownsville, Texas, to Harkers Island, North Carolina, remained dockside. The problem hasn’t been a lack of shrimp or the price of diesel. Instead, freezers across the United States are filled to the gills. A glut of imported shrimp has dropped the price to about half of what shrimp boats received in the 1980s. At stake is the livelihood of Mr. Jordan and shrimpers like him nationwide. They can’t compete with overseas rivals who raise and harvest shrimp in lower-cost “aquaculture’’ farms. more, >>click to read<< 13:06

Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 36′ Calvin Beal Lobster/Scalloper, 550HP Iveco Cursor 9 Diesel

To review specifications, information, and 35 photos’,>click here<, To see all the boats in this series, >click here< 08:31

NTSB Issues Safety Alert on Personal Locator Devices for Mariners

A new safety alert issued by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) to provide each crewmember with a personal locator device. These devices improve a mariner’s chance of rescue during an emergency. During an emergency at sea, a mariner’s chance of survival decreases if search and rescue cannot quickly and accurately identify their location. Personal locator devices, such as personal locator beacons (PLB) or satellite emergency notification devices (SEND), can accurately pinpoint a person’s location. NTSB investigations found that currently available personal locator beacons provide a location accuracy of about 300 feet and a nearly instant search and rescue notification when activated. more, <<click to read<<17:24