Daily Archives: July 17, 2014

Canada and the United States have ratified an agreement on updates updates to the Pacific Salmon Treaty

The Honourable Gail Shea, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, announced today that Canada and the United States have ratified an agreement on updates to the Pacific Salmon Treaty (PST). These changes will help ensure the long-term sustainability of Fraser River sockeye and pink salmon stocks while supporting an economically viable fishing industry on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border. Read more here 22:20

Tacoma’s oldest shipyard, the 90-year-old J.M. Martinac Shipbuilding Co. to be sold on courthouse steps Friday morning

 Joe Martinac Jr., the shipyard’s president, and the last of a long line of family shipyard managers, said eleventh hour efforts to find new business for the shipyard failed to produce new contracts that would stave off the shipyard’s auction. “There were boats to be built out there, but we just couldn’t put those deals together with this hammer over our heads,” he said. Read more here 21:28

New England Set Gear Fishermen – Final Rule – Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Plan. Are you Affected?

Whale management areasNMFS issues this final rule to amend the regulations implementing the Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction. This rule revises the management measures for reducing the incidental mortality and serious injury to the North Atlantic right whale, humpback whale, and fin whale in commercial trap/pot and gillnet fisheries to further the goals of the MMPA, and the ESA. . Read final rule in the Federal Register 18:49

The Hookpod – New UK invention to save the albatross

Designed by brothers’ Ben and Pete Kibel, based in Devon, UK, and trialed extensively by the RSPB Albatross Task Force on behalf of BirdLife International, it is small in size and it said to have huge implications for saving the albatross from extinction. Read more here 17:57

King concerns drive Cook Inlet fisheries

23523_354387901211_7651997_aStrong sockeye returns and low king numbers continue to drive the interplay of several Cook Inlet fisheries. Sport, commercial and personal-use fishermen all target Cook Inlet sockeyes. They also catch king salmon. Lots of info here, but we can expect that from Alaska fish reporter,Molly Dischner , Read more here 17:20

This is Fish Radio. I’m Laine Welch – Do it yourself energy audits for fishing boats.

 Just as with a home audit to try and understand where your energy is going, how your vessel is consuming energy and finds places where it might be wasted or not used as efficiently as possible, and frankly, most fishing vessels are not very energy efficient.  Listen to the audio, and Read more here 16:33

The status of world fish stocks, fisheries and the impact of fishing – May 1 2014

From the Far Reach’s of Alaska- IDrive restaurant imports fresh (frozen) scallops

Long past her untimely demise, These scallops come to sunny Orlando from the Bering Sea. It is on the Arctic Hunter ?, Oceanaire noted, that the fishermen “catch, shuck, clean, size-sort, box and rapid-deep-freeze the Alaska Weathervane within four short hours of capture. Read more here 13:25

Jones Inlet Seafood Co., Executives plead guilty to committing fraud, falsifying records and violating the Lacey Act.

Jones Inlet Seafood Co., the company’s president, Michael G. Mihale and company vice president Bruce Larson Jr. admitted they underreported the amount of summer flounder they caught between June 2009 and December 2011 by 56,000 pounds, the Department of Justice announced. Read more here  10:33 From US Justice

Maine’s lobster industry feeling pain of slow start – Some say the crustaceans are ‘back on the old time clock’

David Cousins, president of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association and a South Thomaston lobsterman, said lobstermen expect shedding to pick up and catches to escalate at the end of this month, if not the end of the week. He said the slow season indicates that Maine lobster are “back on the old time clock” of shedding later in the summer. Read more here 09:13

The Scots Bay Wharf takes a whacking

 The Scots Bay wharf took a serious pummelling during post-tropical storm Arthur. Waves generated by gale-force winds ripped out the midsection of the wharf near Cape Split on the Bay of Fundy, leaving fishermen to scramble to find other ports for their boats. About 15 metres of the wharf was flattened, leaving a large gap between the two end sections. Read more here 08:50

For all the Hard Merch Fans of Wicked Tuna, some haul out shots from GMG

Hard Merch Haul Out GMGDave Marciano’s hard Merchandise Hauled Out At The East Gloucester Marine Railways See the rest at Good Morning Gloucester, the funky, hip blog from Cape Ann! 08:07

Fishery disaster relief a difficult effort – A Story of the Have’s, and the Have Not’s

sct logoFormer Mayor Scott Lang, who criticized NOAA for setting up a slow process, said the aid plan is becoming “a Christmas tree, trying to do too much with too little for too many people.” “Only 100 or so permit holders of the approximately 700 federal groundfish permit holders in Massachusetts would receive direct federal assistance,” Keating wrote. “The plan also neglects the crew members and supporting shoreside industries who continue to struggle to stay financially solvent as a result of the groundfish disaster.” What a mess! Read more here 07:42

GDT Letter: Fishing disaster: Where are the ‘responders?’

gdt iconThere is a letter about the NE fishing disaster a GDT that I can’t access, but post the notice for those that can access the site. The perversion of Community Newspaper Holdings Inc. free article venue that allows five page views, while they now require up to four or five page views per article, removes non subscribers from these important to the fishing industry issues. Here is the link to the GDT. 07:16

Coastal Louisiana land loss worth price to fix, study will attempt to show

Clint Guidry, president of the Louisiana Shrimp Association, said fishermen are told decisions will be based on science, but they remain skeptical. “I notice you guys have a very bad habit of cherry-picking science,” Guidry said. The main concern about the diversions comes from the amount of fresh water that would be introduced into diversion areas. Some fishermen are convinced it will destroy fishing as they know it. Read more here 07:01