Daily Archives: December 30, 2013
Tarr Senate bill targets seafood marketing
BOSTON – State Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr, renewing his call to confront “serious threats to the survival of the groundfish industry in Massachusetts,” has filed legislation aimed at putting the state’s clout behind marketing seafood products. Tarr, the Gloucester Republican, said his bill is aimed at aiding an industry that remains caught in a federally recognized “economic disaster” since September 2012 and now continues to deal with NOAA-imposed groundfishing landing limits of up to 78 percent in the current fishing year, which runs through April 30. Read more@gdt 20:37
Mike Voisin’s Widow to Walk the Hill A Year After Husband’s Death
The owner of one of Louisiana’s oldest and best known oyster-processing companies, Mike Voisin was instrumental in founding the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board in 1984, as well as the Oyster Walk. He was an outspoken voice, supporting both the quality of Gulf seafood, as well as the culture of its community. Read [email protected] 20:23
Kodiak’s Local Fishermen Voice Opinions For New Gulf Catch Share Plan
This is Fish Radio. I’m Stephanie Mangini. Kodiak locals take action in new Gulf catch share plan. More after this…listen @fishradio 16:45
Bristol residents question offshore wind project – Fishermen voice concern
BRISTOL, Maine — A committee appointed by the Bristol Board of Selectmen plans to determine whether the town has any say over a proposed offshore wind project 2 ½ miles off Monhegan Island — and 10 miles away from Bristol. Read more@bdn 15:18
Yuba County Water Agency’s FERC relicensing applications – Conservation groups decry lack of protection for fish
While some groups are excited about the what the Yuba County Water Agency’s FERC relicensing applications contains, other groups are lamenting what is missing — namely, provisions that address removing barriers to native spawning habitat for endangered fish. Charles Sharp’s comment at the article clarifies some real issues. Read more@appealdemocrat 14:35
Texas’ Matagorda Bay suffering from drought, water use
Dwindling rains, a stubborn drought and more demand for water upriver in Austin have taken a toll on the crabs, shrimp, oysters and fish that provide livelihoods for coastal communities. “We’re in bad shape already. The shrimp and oysters are almost gone,” said Treybig, a self-appointed defender of the bay and an advocate for people who depend on it to make a living. Big shrimp boats are chained up on shore; Treybig said their owners couldn’t make enough fishing to pay for fuel. Read more@dallasnews 12:53
Oregon Coast to see new restricted areas – become off-limits to fishing and other “consumptive” recreational pastimes and commercial fishing beginning Wednesday.
Restrictions begin at two new marine reserves at Cascade Head just north of Lincoln City and at Cape Perpetua south of Yachats, as well as slightly less-restrictive rules at marine protected areas north and south of both reserves and on the western edge of the reserve at Cascade Head. All fishing is prohibited inside the boundaries of the reserves, and the taking of invertebrates as well as seaweed and wildlife also is banned. Along the shoreline, the prohibitions apply to areas that are marked in orange on the reserve/protected area maps. Read more@statesmanjournal
Rocky Barker: The Endangered Species Act survives, but not all species will
Aldo Leopold’s seed of wisdom grew into the law that has become the foundation of ecosystem protection for 40 years. President Richard Nixon signed the Endangered Species Act into law Dec. 28, 1973. It put into U.S. statutes what Leopold’s classic 1940s essay, “Round River,” called for — saving all the parts of the natural world. “To keep every cog and wheel is the first precaution of intelligent tinkering,” Leopold wrote. Read more@idahostatesman 09:50
Secret Memo Casts Doubt on Feds’ Claims for Science Library Closures
A federal document marked “secret” obtained by Postmedia News indicating the closure or destruction of more than half a dozen world famous science libraries has little if anything to do with digitizing books as claimed by the Harper government. Read more@thetyee 09:38
Editorial: NOAA leadership grades spotlight agency’s low credibility
The word that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s strategic management has drawn scathing reviews in a new survey assessing federal worker satisfaction should come as no surprise. By all appearances, NOAA has no meaningful national leadership since last February’s overdue exit by then-administrator Jane Lubchenco, whose willful destruction of the fishing industry through her catch share policies and other actions helped plunge Gloucester’s diminishing fleet and the Northeast groundfishing industry into the economic disaster that even her own Department of Commerce recognized in September 2012. Read more@gdt 05:33
