Tag Archives: Chris Voss

Fishermen come out to clean Summerland beach of old lobster traps and other random items

At the request of the Summerland Beautiful organization, Santa Barbara area fishermen rallied to help clean up a beach. The Commercial Fishermen of Santa Barbara responded to the call for cleanup efforts. The traps were tied up and towed out to a boat and loaded up. Other discarded fishing items were also gathered up. In addition, the group collected three bags of trash a stroller and other random items. The CFSB has been involved in other cleanup operations mainly to collect lobster traps. video, >click to read<  11:31

Fishing industry gets hooked up again after Santa Barbara harbor was closed by sand

With the weekend reopening of the Santa Barbara harbor, the fishing industry is getting back on schedule, and some are calculating losses. While weather conditions are always a variable, the sand blockade was said to be one of the biggest and fastest hits to the harbor entrance in recent memory. The commercial fishing industry saw many boats docked instead of out in the Santa Barbara Channel. Island Hooker boat owner Robert Church was asked about the harbor issues while working on his vessel in a harbor slip. “Nobody likes to see the sandbar shutting anyone out. There’s a lot of commercial fishermen in the harbor and it affects everybody who is a commercial fisherman.” >click to read< 07:53

California lobstermen ride high-price wave from China

Since it became home to California’s first lobster fishery in the early 1870s, the coastal city of Santa Barbara has established a long and proud history of lobster fishing. The industry is now experiencing a surge in demand because of a trade war between nations that are thousands of miles across the Pacific Ocean. Almost all of the lobsters caught in the waters off of Santa Barbara’s coast this season will end up in China, where an ongoing dispute with Australia has worked to the advantage of California’s lobster fishing community. The surge in demand from Chinese markets has resulted in high prices that fishermen and distributors here say are without precedent, as well as plenty of uncertainty. >click to read< 08:36

Coronavirus threatens California lobster industry

Roughly 95% of commercially caught lobster in California is shipped to China, where customers are willing to pay premium prices. “Traditionally, Chinese New Year is when we get the biggest price,” says lobster fisherman James Voss. “This year, that happened to coincide with the coronavirus and China stopping all wild animal imports into the country. So our price went from the highest it’s been all year to the lowest.” Photos, >click to read< 14:44