Tag Archives: North Coast state Sen. Mike McGuire

Does California need a state crustacean? Jim Wood authors bill to urge Dungeness crabs

A new bill introduced on Friday would designate Dungeness crab as California’s state crustacean. Introduced by Assemblymember Jim Wood with North Coast State Sen. Mike McGuire as the principal co-author, the bill purports to give the humble decapods official respect as a scuttling tentpole of the state’s fishing industry. In Humboldt County, crabbing is a significant economic boon to many fishermen, though recently, they have had little to “shell”-ebrate. Annual delays to crabbing season, smaller hauls and ongoing price negotiations with fish distribution companies present ongoing struggles pinching local fishermen. more, >>click to read<< 18:33

McGuire tackles crabbing, whale entanglement issues at committee hearing

“Domoic acid levels in the Pacific this year have been trending upwards, especially in Northern California,” McGuire said at the start of the hearing, held at Aquarium of the Bay in San Francisco. “Humboldt, Del Norte and southern Oregon have appeared as hot spots along the West Coast.” And while the 2015 crabbing season and spike in entanglements was one of the more talked-about issues during the hearing, McGuire added, “We do not expect another statewide closure like we saw in 2015.” This year alone, there have been 27 confirmed whale entanglements. That’s down from the 71 reported in 2016, but it is still more than double the state average.>click to read<10:31