Daily Archives: February 6, 2018

Headless tuna in the woods case still an open investigation

The Gloucester man charged with illegally disposing a headless tuna in woods off Revere Street last fall had his case continued for another five weeks in Gloucester District Court on Monday. But a spokeswoman for NOAA Fisheries’ Office of Law Enforcement said that agency has not yet begun to advance its federal case against Harold E. Wentworth, 40, of 24 Liberty St., and crew members of his fishing vessel, the Went-Way, over their alleged illegal landing of the fish last October. >click to read< 18:41

FISH-NL – Ottawa’s failure to include adjacency principle in Fisheries Act amendments ‘grave injustice’

The Federation of Independent Sea Harvesters of Newfoundland and Labrador (FISH-NL) says Ottawa’s failure to include the principles of adjacency and historical attachment in the reformed Fisheries Act — to ensure inshore harvesters have priority access to fish off their shores — is a grave injustice. “It’s one thing for the Trudeau government to move to protect the independent commercial fishery, but that’s useless unless harvesters have fish to catch,” says Ryan Cleary, President of FISH-NL. >click to read< 15:15

Minister announces changes to federal fisheries act

Federal Fisheries and Oceans Minister Dominic LeBlanc announced today $284.2 million to support the restoration of protections to fish and fish habitats taken away by the former Conservative government in 2012, and to incorporating new modern safeguards in the industry. It was part of amendments to the Fisheries Act that LeBlanc outlined at a news conference in Vancouver. “To preserve, protect and help restore our environment we need a Fisheries Act that Canadians can trust,” LeBlanc stated. >click to read< 15:05 

David Boyd – No footprints in the snow

I write this from my son’s living room, high in the east-end hills of St. John’s, overlooking the bustling streets of Newfoundland’s capital city, and I think — yesterday I spent my day repairing Father’s old fishing premises, now mine, in a small fishing village in Notre Dame Bay — a world far removed from the consciousness of the decision-makers in the upper chambers of the Confederation Building, visible now through the early morning mist. And I think, I think as I watch my grandkids absorbed in their devices, of my own childhood in that small fishing village — a place I will not name because it could be any of hundreds of outport communities — of the freedoms we enjoyed and the idyllic childhood we shared with our parents in the fishing boats and stages of our youth. >click to read< 13:30

Fatigue the cause of fishing vessel’s grounding

On 6 March 2017, the uninspected commercial fishing vessel ‘St. Dominick’ grounded in Pumicestone Bay, Alaska. The engine room flooded within 10–20 minutes of the grounding, and the four crew abandoned the vessel a short time later. None of them were injured, and no pollution was reported, but the vessel, valued at $1.1 million, was deemed a constructive total loss. US NTSB issued an investigation report on the accident. >click to read< 13:02

Survey of world’s unprovoked shark attacks singles out South Carolina

South Carolina was singled out in a worldwide survey of unprovoked shark attacks because it doubled its numbers in 2017. The Florida Museum of Natural History released the data, which showed a 2017 world total of 88 confirmed unprovoked shark attacks, 30 provoked attacks, and 18 cases of boats being attacked by sharks. Only five of the unprovoked attacks were fatal worldwide, none of which were in the U.S., says the report. Among the other top states for unprovoked attacks: Hawaii (6), California (2) and one attack each in North Carolina, Massachusetts, Texas and Virginia.  Australia was second to the United States in unprovoked attacks with 14.>click to read< 12:12

Watch new Serene being launched in Poland

A NEW 82-metre pelagic trawler made for the Whalsay based Serene Fishing Company has been launched in Poland. A ceremony for the partly-outfitted vessel took place in Gdansk on 1 February. The new Serene is due to be handed over to its owners later this year. She was built by Nauta Shiprepair Yard and will be completed at Denmark’s Karstensens Skibsvaerft. The old Serene was sold to new Norwegian owners last year. >click for video< 11:15

Whooshh growing rapidly in Europe, stalled by U.S. regulations

The difference between the Whooshh fish transport system and traditional fish ladders — data suggests — is like the difference between crossing the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range with the Donner Party or snug inside the club car of the California Zephyr. Yes, fish can theoretically navigate fish ladders to get around dams and other impediments, but research over the past seven years shows that it’s a perilous journey that often takes several days and leaves the lucky survivors bruised, battered and too weak to complete their upstream migration. In contrast, the Whooshh transport system literally whooshhes the fish up and over the dam in a matter of seconds via a seamless pneumatic tube system that works something like a gentle vacuum. >click to read< 10:02 

4 things to watch for in Canada’s new Fisheries Act

The federal government will unveil long-awaited changes to Canada’s Fisheries Act later today. For federal Fisheries Minister Dominic LeBlanc, this is a rhetoric-meets-reality test on several hot-button issues. Fishermen and corporations are watching to see if LeBlanc fulfils promises to strengthen protections to preserve the independence of inshore fisheries.,,, Environmentalists also want to see a commitment to “science-based decision making,” and an “ecosystem” and “precautionary” approach to fisheries management,,, >click to read< 09:31