Monthly Archives: June 2014
Bristol Bay Fisheries Report for June 27, 2014 By Mike Mason
The Bristol Bay Fisheries Report for Friday June 27 includes an update on the strong push of sockeye into and through the Nushagak District and a story about the efforts by the BB-RSDA to study a driftnet buyback program in Bristol Bay. We also take a look at the latest harvest and escapement numbers for Bristol Bay and hear about a project to use photo’s from the fishing grounds to fight development of the controversial Pebble Mine. Listen to the report here 11:17
Djúpivogur and the fight for the livelihood in small communities all over the world
The Icelandic fisheries policy, built on transferable quotas that follow the vessels, has secured that fishing is a thriving business in Iceland and at the same time it has helped secure sustainable fishing. Or that is the official story. Video, Read more here 08:42
Return of the seals to Plettenberg Bay
Fishermen have been pointing fingers at seals for decades,,,Despite evidence to the contrary, the fishing industry continues to lay the blame for collapsing fish stocks on seals rather than on its own unsustainable practices. (what say ye?) Read more here 08:06
BLACK: If N.S. strikes oil, results might not be that striking
Imagine for a moment that the search for oil in Nova Scotia’s offshore over the next two years is a roaring success, leading to a prolonged period of further exploration and development. What might be the consequences of such a development? In particular, what impact would it have on achievement of the goals set out in the Ivany report? Read more here 07:49
Red Snapper Reallocation Suspended in Favor of Recreational Management Solutions
Key West, Florida – Citing the need for management changes in the recreational fishery and overwhelming opposition to reallocation by Gulf residents, the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council voted Thursday to defer action on Amendment 28, a proposal that would take a portion of the red snapper fishery from Gulf seafood providers for the exclusive use of recreational fishing. Read more here 07:27
No Fukushima radiation found in Alaska seafood
Alaska health officials say testing of Alaska seafood revealed no radiation contamination from Japan’s Fukushima nuclear plant, which was damaged by a tsunami in 2011. Read more here 07:24
Drug bust on fishing boat leads to more charges
Ketchikan police have charged another suspect in relation to a November drug bust on board a fishing boat in Bar Harbor. Shawn D. Petersen, 30, has been charged with third-degree controlled-substance misconduct, after police allegedly found two bags of methamphetamine — totaling just under a gram — near where Petersen allegedly was sitting on Nov. 20, when police made contact with him on board the fishing vessel Prince. Read more here 07:20
GUEST COMMENTARY: ‘Bully politics’ won’t solve Southcentral salmon conflicts
Editor’s note: The following originally ran June 20 in the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman in response to Howard Delo’s “Valuable Information” in the Frontiersman June 12 and Delo’s posted comments on June 5 titled “Commercial fishing single biggest factor impeding successful Northern District coho run returns.” Read more here 07:05
Shrimpers cited for fishing in BP closure zone – Catch dumped back into the water
BATON ROUGE – Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Enforcement Division agents cited numerous fishermen on May 26 for allegedly fishing in the BP oil spill emergency commercial fishing closure zone. Agents seized and returned the shrimp taken to the water since they were considered a public health risk to the consuming public. Read more here 06:55
Fishing quota carryover reeled in by NOAA
NOAA on Friday issued a final rewriting of fishing quota carryover rules that were thrown out last spring in federal court. Seafood consultant James Kendall, who was on the New England Fisheries Management Council when it wrote the carryover provision, said the reversal by the court may mean more disasters like the Northern Edge. When the boat sank in 2004, it was on a fishing trip to finish up on a prior trip that had to end prematurely because of mechanical problems. Read more here 06:30
Shark Fin Controversy – The Pew Nuts are Cracked!
NOAA is attempting to strengthen an existing federal law against shark finning. While it would be easy to assume that advocates for the protection of sharks would be greeting these measures warmly, the reality is anything but. Pew, an advocacy group based out of D.C., has been a vocal proponent of ending shark finning,, Read more dogma here 17:13
Managers ‘cautiously optimistic’ about Yukon king goals – Strong sockeye catches continue
The 2014 Yukon River king run could come in stronger than managers expected before the season began, they said during a June 24 conference call with Yukon residents. Other commercial fisheries throughout the state are also taking off. Statewide, the commercial catch through June 24 was 5.8 million salmon, including 4.1 million sockeye. Read more here 16:08
Scallop boats remain the same after change to open access
Despite a new management structure, Alaska’s commercial scallop fisheries will look much the same as they have in prior years when they open July 1. Read more here
When tragedy strikes people gather. Some to offer words to console, some because they feel drawn to share in the grief and others to help in any way they can.
That’s exactly what happened in Lark Harbour, the small community at the end of the south shore of the Bay of Islands, on Thursday evening. Hours earlier one man lost his life and three others were rescued after the boat they were in capsized while crab fishing near Little Port. Read more here 14:30
Feds Quintuple Allowed Catch on Endangered Salmon Species
Fisheries and Oceans Canada is allowing commercial fishermen to catch five times as many endangered coho salmon in anticipation of this year’s massive sockeye run on the Fraser River. Read more here 13:18
The Maine Lobstermen’s Association seeks end to federal ban on discussions related to supply
has asked the U.S. Department of Justice for relief from a 56-year-old restriction that limits the trade group’s ability to discuss management of the fishery. Read more here 11:46
Maine Lobstermen’s Association says 54-year-old consent decree doesn’t work anymore – Read more here 14:02
Revealed: whale-watching boats the greatest collision threat to whales
Whales are more likely to to be hit by whale-watching boats than any other identified vessel type, data from the International Whaling Commission shows. Plenty of charts and grafs. Read more here 11:30
Coast Guard rescue crews assist fishing vessel in distress 95 miles east of Chatam, Massachusetts
BOSTON — Coast Guard rescue crews assisted a fishing vessel in distress by air-dropping de-watering pumps after the 53-foot Canadian flagged vessel Island Cruiser collided with the 120-foot converted ferry vessel Esperanza June 26, 2014. Read more here 10:14
US scallop prices to remain high, winter increase predicted
The US scallop market remains edgy, with neither buyers nor sellers willing to lock into any long-term arrangements, sources told Undercurrent News. After some saw a slight dip in prices over the past couple of weeks, things are back to what now seems normal, despite what has been described as healthy landings. Read more here 09:57
Alaskan fisherwoman publishes third cookbook and travelogue
LaDonna Gundersen recently released her third cookbook, “My Tiny Alaskan Oven.” based on her experiences on the LaDonna Rose, her and her husband’s 32-foot commercial salmon fishing boat based in Ketchikan. The tiny oven of the title refers to the 18 x 21 inch diesel oil stove on the boat and its tiny “easy bake oven’” which is only big enough for an 11 x 7 inch pan. Read more here 09:36
AMSEA offers class on common commercial fishing injuries – Strains, sprains, pains and retraining the brain
An Alaska Marine Safety Education Association, or AMSEA, class offered Saturday at the Cook Inlet Aquaculture Association building in Kenai will focus on prevention for common injuries and ergonomics for commercial fishers — specifically gillnetters in the Cook Inlet. Read more here 09:31
Rescued fisherman found clinging to gas can
The Canadian military says three fishermen rescued off Newfoundland’s west coast on Thursday are lucky to be alive. A fisheries patrol vessel was in the area of Little Port when its crew spotted the overturned boat and people in the water. Read more here
Nova Scotia Fish processing industry facing ‘imminent’ labour shortage
The Nova Scotia seafood processing industry expressed concerns Thursday with changes to the federal government’s temporary foreign worker program as the province’s labour minister called for more flexibility from Ottawa. Read more here 09:07
Steve Urbon: Oceana pitches flawed fishing report undeterred
The environmental group Oceana seeks to impress us this week with Part 2 of a report on fishing bycatch, those fish that are brought up incidentally while fishermen target another species. “Wasted Cash,” the follow-up to “Wasted Catch,” says that fishermen are throwing $1 billion worth of fish away each year, over the side instead of going to auction. Read more here 08:50
Crab fisherman killed when boat overturns
The Canadian military says one fisherman is dead and three others were taken to hospital Thursday after their crab boat capsized off the west coast of Newfoundland. Read more here 23:15
New aquaculture regulations simplifies process, say’s Fisheries Minister Gail Shea
CALGARY – New federal aquaculture regulations announced Thursday would cut red tape and simplify the process for the industry, Fisheries Minister Gail Shea says. Read more here 21:33
Salty Dames – Women in Fishing
Google “women” and “fishing” and up will pop lots of calendar images of smiling ladies in bikinis, cradling impressive marine specimens they probably didn’t catch. But women have long been part of the seafood industry around the world: mending nets, landing fish, stocking aquaculture ponds, harvesting shellfish, working in markets and processing plants, running seafood companies, Read more here 16:31
U.S. Commerce Department announces 2014 regional fishery council appointments
The U.S. Commerce Department today announced the appointment of 22 new and returning members to the eight regional fishery management councils that partner with NOAA’s Fisheries Service to manage ocean fish stocks. The new and reappointed council members begin their three-year terms on August 11. Click here to read the full announcement. 16:10
Fishermen attack govt offices
Kannur, Jun 26 : Fishermen attacked four State Government Offices of the Executive Engineer (Harbor Engineering Department), Fisheries Station- Kannur and Awareness Center at Mapila Bay near Ayikkara and Sub Division Harbor Office at Ayikkara and damaged the windowpanes, doors, furniture and computers, following a protest march organized by the fishermen this morning. Read more here 16:01
