Daily Archives: September 6, 2014

Turf War: Canadians heat up lobster fishing in ‘gray zone’ off Cutler

CUTLER, Maine — The disputed “gray zone” around Machias Seal Island has become a bone of contention again for Maine lobster fishermen who set traps in the region.  also ply the disputed waters, and there are more of them this year, which does not sit well with Down East lobstermen. Read the rest here 20:16

Pacific Rim nations agree to halve take of dwindling bluefin tuna

Japan, South Korea and the United States agreed Thursday on new annual limits on the catch of dwindling young bluefin tuna in an effort to double the population within a decade. The conservation plan announced by the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission after a meeting in the western Japanese city of Fukuoka aims to boost the depleted stock by counting the accidental catch of young bluefin tuna by long-net trawling as part of the regulated take. Read the rest here 11:27

Goliath grouper grows in anglers’ wrath

Goliath grouper, lionfish eggs, shark chum and gun silencers are among the topics top state wildlife regulators will ponder next week. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission meets Sept. 10-11 in Kissimmee.The Goliaths are sucking up spiny lobsters, reef fish and other marine life, they say, tipping the food web’s balance. Read the rest here   Watch video here  11:02

NCFA Weekly Update

NCFAWeekly Update for September 5, 2014 as a PDF 10:33

Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber’s festering dispute with the commercial fishing community comes to a head

At the governor’s invitation, five lower Columbia River representatives met with Kitzhaber in his office at the World Trade Center in Portland. The conflict centers on a dramatic change in fish allocation and gear policy that Gov. Kitzhaber put in motion in an Aug. 9, 2012 letter to the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission. The essence of that shift was to end “perennial and divisive conflicts,, Read the rest here 09:55

Coast Guard Commercial Fishing Vessel Examiners – Voluntary dockside exams in Craig and Klawock Sept. 22 through 24

uscg logoVoluntary dockside exams are free. The Coast Guard has an online vessel-specific checklist generator at www.fishsafe.info.  Vessel operators can print out a list of all safety requirements.  Contact Jim Paul at 617-2523 or Marc Dash at 617-7843.  09:39

Buying our representatives – Wall St Environmentalist campaign spending on midterms to see huge jump this year

earthjustice $upereco-manLeague of Conservation Voters $25 million- Natural Resources Defense Council Action Fund PAC $4 million- Environmental Defense Action Fund 1 Million- Steyer’s NextGen Climate Action Committee Mega$$  – The spending will be largely devoted to key Senate races but will also go to a handful of gubernatorial and state legislative contests. The increased funding reflects the growing role of environmentalists as political money players. Read the rest here 09:04

Sable Island: Criminal colonists settle on deserted island

The very name Sable Island conjures up romantic images of crazed French prisoners murdering their guards as the penal colony engulfs in the flames of mutiny. No? Read on.,, France sought a base to set up a fishery and fur trade and to eventually explore the land beyond. By 1598, the scramble for the Americas ignited fighting among the Portuguese, Spanish, French and English. So Îles de Sable — or Sand Island — seemed a viable spot to settle. Read the rest here 08:21

Alaska-made film takes aim at salmon farming

Sara Pozonsky, a lifelong Alaska fisherman and owner of Wild Alaskan Salmon Company, believes salmon farms are a perilously overlooked environmental catastrophe. And she’s launched an advocacy effort to help nudge the issue into the spotlight. Read the rest here  07:30