Daily Archives: January 10, 2013

King salmon disaster relief gets caught in political net – handy-dandy bona-fide official fishery disaster declaration

Remember how last summer, Alaska’s king fisheries collapsed due to low runs? And then in September, the state got its handy-dandy bona-fide official fishery disaster declaration from the U.S. Department of Commerce, which is a lot like saying, “Help is maybe kind-of sort-of on the way.” The designation makes those regions impacted by fishery disasters eligible for federal funds. But it takes an act of Congress to allocate the money. And, as of now, waiting for help to arrive to Alaska’s commercial fishing communities is looking more and more like a bit from Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot. Read More

Lockheed Martin’s Technology-Infused Mobile Fish Pen

The inability of wild fisheries to supply the burgeoning demand for healthful and protein-rich seafood has given rise to a robust aquaculture industry that has helped alleviate the threat of overfishing in the world’s oceans.Lockheed Martin has teamed with Kampachi Farms of Hawaii and Illinois Soybean Association to develop an innovative new system that could produce a sea change in fish farming. Read more

BP The deadline for claim forms to be filed for the settlement’s Seafood Compensation Program is Jan. 22. fishing vessel owners, captains and deckhands

bp projectsafeThe deadline for claim forms to be filed for the settlement’s Seafood Compensation Program is Jan. 22. BP agreed to pay $2.3 billion for seafood-related claims by commercial fishing vessel owners, captains and deckhands. Read More

NOAA administrator to step down; some actions sparked controversy. hee hee yeah!

environmental-watchdog[1]“Under her leadership, NOAA has focused on restoring fisheries to sustainability and profitability, restoring oceans and coasts to a healthy state, ensuring continuity of the nation’s weather and other environmental satellites, developing a weather-ready nation, promoting climate science and delivering quality climate products, strengthening science and ensuring scientific integrity at NOAA and delivering the highest quality science, services and stewardship possible,” the administration said. “Healthy oceans and coasts and a nation prepared for sever weather, disasters and climate change are keys to economic recovery and prosperity.” Wow, just, wow. Read more!

Feds to explain test of NC coastal wind farms

Federal officials picked those spots because they are attractive for commercial offshore wind development while also protecting natural resources and minimizing conflicts with military operations, shipping and fishing. Read more

WHITE SHARKS HEADED FOR CALIFORNIA ENDANGERED SPECIES LIST (if it’s the last thing they do, they will stop fishing)

The California Department of Fish and Game will recommend that the Northeast Pacific population of white sharks be listed as a threatened or endangered species under the state’s Endangered Species Act. Read More

Center for Biological Diversity, Oceana Inc and Turtle Island Restoration Sue the NMFS/F+WS (us) AGAIN! Loggerhead’s at the brink of extinctio………

The lawsuit said loggerheads were already being pushed to the brink of extinction and that the government had failed to comply with deadlines set under the Endangered Species Act to establish protected areas or “critical habitat” for loggerhead sea turtle populations. The suit, brought by the Center for Biological Diversity, Oceana Inc and Turtle Island Restoration, cited the destruction or degradation of nesting and foraging habitats, pollution including oil spills, climate change and sea level rise among other threats to the long-term survival of the marine turtles. Of course,  “incidental capture, injury and death by commercial fishing fleets”. Read More

North Carolina Commercial fisherman Jeremy Blair Myers killed in a fishing accident

North Carolina Wildlife Officer Matt Criscoe said Jeremy Blair Myers, 34, of Wilmington, was killed after his clothing got caught in a fishing reel, slamming his body into some equipment on the boat. Criscoe tells WECT.com that Myers was by himself on his boat when the accident happened. More

ASMFC Initiates First Coastwide Stock Assessment of Black Drum Data Sought for Assessment

ARLINGTON, Va. -– January 9, 2012 — The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission has begun work on the first coastwide stock assessment of black drum. The assessment will evaluate the health of the black drum stock and will be used to inform fishery management activities.  The Data Workshop will take place April 15-19, 2013 at the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, 217 Fort Johnson Road, Charleston, South Carolina. For those interested in submitting data and/or attending the black drum data workshop (space is limited), please contact Jeff Kipp, ASMFC Stock Assessment Scientist, for details at details at  [email protected]  This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or 703.842.0746. The deadline for data submission is March 15th, 2013.  ASMFC Website

HARVEY B. MICKELSON – UMass administration owes everyone answers on SMAST, the answers to the questions put forth herein must be forthcoming.

Apparently the administration of UMass Dartmouth is not going to respond to my request of having a public dialogue on its future relationship with the fishing industry. Those of us who have engaged in the seafood industry and who lived smastthrough the pre-SMAST years and have an understanding of the impact of SMAST on the domestic fishing industry are entitled to answers. Read more

GOP bills aid NOAA, not fishing – $261 million for two highly controversial programs

manatthewheelOne line item in the two amendment package calls for spending $150 million for “Regional Ocean Partnership grants,” which fund non-government organization involvement in the National Ocean Policy’s “marine spacial planning” initiative.

The other item authorizes spending $111 million on a “weather satellite data mitigation gap reserve fund.” Read more