Daily Archives: April 21, 2022

Notice of Lease Application Termination – American Aquafarms

The Maine Department of Marine Resources (DMR) has terminated the applications of American Aquafarms after the company failed to fulfill its legal obligation to demonstrate an available source of fish to be cultivated at its proposed salmon farms in Frenchman Bay. The source of Atlantic salmon proposed by American Aquafarms, AquaBounty of Newfoundland, Canada, did not meet the criteria for a “Qualified Source/Hatchery” as defined in DMR regulations (Chapter 24). Additionally, American Aquafarms failed to provide documentation demonstrating that the proposed source of fish/eggs could meet genetic requirements in law (§6071(4)). No further action will be taken on these applications. >link< 16:24

FRENCHMAN BAY UNITED HAILS REJECTION OF AMERICAN AQUAFARMS APPLICATION – The coalition opposing the proposed industrial salmon farm says the fight will continue. “Commissioner Keliher made the right decision,” said Frenchman Bay United board president Henry Sharpe. “We hope that the company has finally gotten the message that they are not welcome here and that it’s time to pull the plug on this destructive and ill-conceived project once and for all.”  >click to read<

Will Atlantic Canada lobster season break another sales record? Or will inflation curb consumer appetite,,,

Roger Fowlow is paying a lot of attention to the long-range marine forecast these days. Lobster season opens soon and he’s hoping the unsettled spring weather will ease off, giving him light winds to set his lobster pots. He used to catch cod, but with quotas so low, cod prices stalled for years at less than a dollar a pound, and fuel prices soaring this year. He said it’s not worth bothering with. Lobster is the money maker, and the last few years have given him good catches and good prices. Fowlow is confident of good catches again this year. But on the question of the price he might get paid, he’s not so certain. For P.E.I. lobster fisher Bethany McCarthy, inflation is already driving up the cost of running her boat. In addition to higher prices for fuel, she’ll have to shell out more money for bait this year, thanks to DFO’s decision to kill the mackerel fishery. photos, video, >click to read< 12:15

MP Alistair Carmichael requests Faroese meeting over Russian trawler concerns

Countries across the world have taken various actions to sanction the Russian economy in the wake of Vladimir Putin’s regime, including a campaign by islanders to prevent Russian vessels from making use of port facilities in Orkney and Shetland, but the Faroese government has continued to allow Russian trawlers to make use of fishing grounds shared with the UK. Mr Carmichael has requested a meeting to discuss local concerns further and to advocate for a change in Faroese policy on the issue, highlighting longstanding ties of friendship between the Faroes and the Northern Isles,,, >click to read< 11:02

Commercial fishermen talk offshore wind concerns

Offshore wind energy is one step closer to becoming a reality on the Central Coast, and with it, hundreds of potential jobs and renewable energy generation that will be much needed when the Diablo Canyon Power Plant closes. But the local commercial fishing industry continues to raise concerns over how such an undertaking will impact their livelihoods. BOEM released its draft environmental assessment for leasing the Morro Bay Wind Energy Area earlier this month and heard public comment on the report at an April 14 meeting. Further environmental assessment will be required before a wind farm project is actually approved and built—this draft just looks at the impacts of the leasing process. >click to read< 10:08

Be careful What you wish for … especially in fisheries management

I attended the NCMFC meeting on 2/23-2/25.  The first evening was public comment.  The majority of the speakers were CCA members, guides and individuals, who basically repeated the same script that was obviously authored by someone else and read over and over.,, In all my years as a recreational angler living in eastern NC.  I have NEVER, and I mean NEVER, seen the hate and disgust shown by a select group of anglers pushing the rhetoric of the CCA and other groups against commercial fishing.  I do not believe this is the average angler, but a group of self-centered, agenda driven, individuals, who stand to gain politically and monetarily from the closing of commercial fishing.   I get asked all the time how can I champion a sector that has gill nets and trawls?  I don’t think of it that way. by Easton Edwards, >click to read< 09:08

South Carolina: The 35th annual Blessing of the Fleet & Seafood Festival returns

It’s oh-fish-ial! The 35th annual Blessing of the Fleet and Seafood Festival is returning this weekend. The festival has one purpose: To celebrate Mount Pleasant’s local fishing and shrimping industry. Held at Memorial Waterfront Park on Sun., April 24, this free event features a boat parade, live music, a dance competition, and a shrimp eating contestThe festival also includes a ceremonial blessing of the fleet.  Attendees are encouraged to come hungry,,, >click to read< 08:05