Canada’s top chefs should offer seal meat on their menus as part of the battle against Russian propaganda as well as celebrities who have spoken out against the seal hunt, a senate committee heard. At the same hearing, independent Senator Bev Busson suggested mega-singing star Taylor Swift might be used to convince young people to chow down on seal. But animal rights activists say claims that Russian propaganda is behind the problems of Canada’s seal industry is a bizarre conspiracy theory. Instead, they point to the ban by 35 nations on commercial seal products as the real reason the industry has declined. The ban, however, hasn’t stopped some from looking for new ways to revive the commercial seal industry. more. >>click to read<< 11:33
Author Archives: borehead - Moderator
Vessel Review: F/V Arctic Fjord – Alaska Pollock Trawler to be Deployed in Bering Sea
Seattle-based seafood company the Arctic Storm Management Group has taken delivery of a new trawler-processor optimised for catching Alaska pollock in the Bering Sea. The newer F/V Arctic Fjord has a length of 324 feet (99 metres), a beam of 68.9 feet (21 metres), a draught of 28.5 feet (8.7 metres), space for 152 crewmembers and processing personnel, and a wave-piercing bow that reduces fuel consumption and slamming in rough seas. Approximately 4,000 cubic metres of fish products including fish meal and fish oil can be stored in the holds. Pkotos, specs, more, >>click to read<< 14:25
Five people, three companies convicted of 18 violations in N.S. halibut fishery
A major investigation into the halibut fishery in the Sambro area of Nova Scotia has led to multiple fines and licence suspensions. Five people and three companies were convicted of 18 violations of the Fisheries Act and Regulations. The Department of Oceans and Fisheries (DFO) conducted the investigation, according to a Tuesday news release.DFO originally laid 66 charges against eight individuals and five companies in 2021. “Harvesters who break the law give themselves an unfair advantage, undermine the effective management of the fishery, and threaten the sustainability of our shared fishery resources,” says DFO in the release. Links, more, >>click to read<< 10:43
Fairhaven and New Bedford fire crews respond to commercial fishing boat fire in Fairhaven
New Bedford and Fairhaven fire crews are on the scene of a boat fire in a vessels docked at the bottom of Washington and Water streets in Fairhaven Thursday morning. According to a source on the scene, the boat, named the Carrabassett, was under repair when it caught fire. A 2021 report in the Provincetown Banner when the vessel was grounded in Cape Cod waters, states the Carrabassett was previously named Cowboy and was part of a fleet that belonged to “The Codfather,” Carlos Rafael until it was sold to Blue Harvest Fisheries in 2020. more, >>click to read<< 09:30
Commercial redfish fishery to reopen, but pending quota threatens to push some fishers out
“It hurts me to talk about it,” says Brad Genge, a 51-year-old inshore fisherman from Anchor Point, on the west coast of Newfoundland’s northern peninsula. Genge says what should have been a good news story – the Government of Canada’s historic reopening of the east coast commercial redfish fishery – is hitting fishermen in this province hard. “Worst news we could have gotten,” says Genge. “Only thing that could have hurt more is if they came down and hit us in the face with a piece of lumber.” “We are done, we are out of the fishery,” says Genge, who tied up his trawler, the BNB Mariner, in early February. Video, more, >>click to read<< 08:22
Commercial Fisherman Pleads Guilty to Income Tax Evasion
A crew member on commercial fishing vessels operating out of New Bedford pleaded guilty today to evading nearly $300,000 in federal income taxes. Rodolfo Membreno, 49, of Fall River, pleaded guilty to one count of evading and defeating taxes before U.S. District Judge Richard G. Stearns. Judge Stearns scheduled sentencing for May 15, 2024. Membreno was indicted by a federal grand jury in April 2023. From 2013 through 2021, Membreno earned more than $1.3 million working as a commercial fisherman. During the calendar years 2013 through 2019 Membreno failed to file federal income tax returns. more, >>click to read<< 07:25
The story of the Gaul trawler tragedy, 50 years on
On January 22, 1974, the Gaul – a deep sea factory ship designed for long trips – set sail from Hull for Norwegian fishing grounds. At some time in the night of February 8-9, the trawler went down in heavy seas north of Norway, with the loss of all hands. It was later described as “the worst ever single-trawler tragedy”. At the time of the disappearance, mystery surrounded the fate of the trawler. No mayday signal had been received and it was only when the vessel failed to report in that alarm bells were raised. Stuart Russell, who was working on the Hull Daily Mail’s news desk, recalled how there was uncertainty from the outset. As with other trawler tragedies, the Mail got a crew list from the ship owners and the reporters went out to visit the relatives. more, >>click to read<< 06:26
FFAW DEMONSTRATION IN CORNER BROOK THURSDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2024,
FFAW-Unifor is holding a demonstration tomorrow, Thursday, February 8, 2024, at 1:00pm outside of the DFO Building located at 1 Regent Square in Corner Brook. The Demonstration is to call attention to federal mismanagement of fisheries – in particular the recent decision by Minister Diane Lebouthillier to allocate nearly 60% of the newly commercialized Unit 1 Redfish fishery to a handful of corporate offshore draggers, instead of the 100 or so inshore, owner-operator vessels that rely on it. Minister Lebouthillier has failed in her capacity as Minister to make decisions based on her mandate and the federal Fisheries Act. Specifically, management decisions should prioritize social, economic, and cultural factors as well as the preservation and promotion of the independence of independent license holders. None of which was evident in the Minister’s decision. more, >>click to read<< 16:11
Pot Half Full: Cordova boats find success in Kodiak crab despite uncertainties
As crab fisheries around the state become increasingly unstable over the last two years, fishermen have found reliable opportunities in Kodiak. Several Cordova vessels and captains journeyed to Kodiak this past month to participate in the 2024 Kodiak tanner crab fishery, a state fishery managed by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G). The fisheye opened at noon on Jan. 15 and closed on Jan. 21. This year Guideline Harvest Levels (GHL) allowed for 3,480,000 pounds of crab to be harvested by the fleet, down from the 7,300,000 pounds GHL in 2023. Last year the fleet staged a strike over the low grounds price of crab resulting in more than a week’s delay to the season. Although the price rose only marginally this season, the fleet went fishing on the regularly scheduled opener. Photos, more, >>click to read<< 14:37
Orsted, months after a $4 billion write-off on offshore wind, decides to cut jobs, halt dividends, and quit several markets
Orsted has struggled to keep its promising wind projects alive in recent times. High costs tied to Inflation, elevated interest rates, and supply crunches took a toll on Orsted as it wrote off $4 billion linked to two large New Jersey wind projects in October. At the time, the company described America as the “most painful part of its portfolio” that it would have to make that hard decision of de-risking from—a blow for President Joe Biden’s administration that had pinned great hopes to the country’s investment in green energy. more, >> click to read<< 12:13
A treasured industry and an endangered species compete for survival
On a cold morning in January, Chris Welch is already out preparing his boat. This time of year, his days begin before sunrise. It’s a ritual he’s grown accustomed to — at just 35 years old, he’s already spent decades working in the lobster business. “I started lobstering when I was six.” Welch said. Being a lobsterman in Maine is less of a job and more of a lifestyle. It’s a family business for many, including Welch, whose learned the ropes from his grandfather. But recently, the focus is less on what lobstermen’s ropes are pulling up and more on what may be running into them. Video, more, >>click to read<< 10:23
Pair of bills makes electronic monitoring of state-regulated fisheries a possibility
Nels Evens is a longliner and gillnetter, and the executive director of the Petersburg Vessel Owners Association. He says he’s not sure what the bills’ aim is. “Because it is so broad, and we don’t understand what it’s really trying to get at, we’re not supportive of it,” he said. The pair of bills – Senate Bill 209 and House Bill 294 – stem from a discussion at last year’s Board of Fisheries meeting. The Board was trying to figure out how to enforce regulations that require Area M fishermen to keep chum salmon, instead of tossing them back in favor of much more valuable King salmon. Area M is along the Alaska Peninsula and Eastern Aleutians. It intercepts some chum salmon bound for western Alaska. more, >>click to read<< 08:53
Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 70′ Steel Stern Dragger, Permits, 600HP Lugger Diesel
To review specifications, information, and 9 photos’,>click here<, To see all the boats in this series, >click here< 07:50
Shrimping: an endangered tradition
The salty ocean air, the smell of pluff mud, seafood restaurants line the streets, yet shrimp boats sit docked at the harbor. This is the scene pictured in the future by local shrimper and president of South Carolina’s Shrimpers Association, Rocky Magwood, as a result of imported shrimp. Shrimping has long been a tradition and staple of the local Charleston industry, with generations of shrimpers selling their product locally and beyond. A proud heritage and position for many shrimpers. However, as a result of increasingly high levels of imported shrimp, local shrimping jobs are at risk, according to Rocky Magwood. “The p rice of shrimp is terrible,” Magwood said. “Most shrimpers are broke right now.” photos, more, >>click to read<< 06:32
Crawling with crab … at last
Pacific County boat decks are finally crawling with healthy Dungeness crab after a two-month regulatory delay, a tardy start due to violent seas and a disastrous fire that wrecked a top processing plant. We were out 24 hours and we got 25,000 pounds,” said F/V Brandy owner Ryan Walters, 42, upon returning to port with crew Monday, Feb. 5, to offload at Safe Coast Seafoods in Ilwaco. It was their third successful trip of the season, Walters said, in what has been a busy start to the season for area crabbers. Historically, three-quarters of the commercial volume is landed within the first few weeks of the season, when fishing pressure is the heaviest. “We missed the first day, and wish we would have stayed in the second — the weather wasn’t very nice,” Walters said regarding the rough weather and ocean conditions that kept most in the marina on opening day. 10 photos, more, >>click to read<< 15:26
Catch-22 on the Baltic: The Twilight of Poland’s Coastal Fishermen
Antoni Struck looks like a casting director’s idea of a fisherman. He also looks very much unlike those members of the Association of Polish Coastal Fishermen who tend to wear a fancy watch and drive a nice set of wheels. In fact, when the Association meets in the local town hall, some of the attendees look less like fishermen and more like businessmen who happen to have a stake in fisheries. Struck sits through these meetings in his unbranded workwear and sturdy boots, arms folded stubbornly across his chest, looking as though he has just stepped off his boat and is in no mood to be pushed around. “A man can put up with a lot of things,” he is fond of saying. “But he needs to know just one thing: what it is for.” Photos, more, >>click to read<< 13:18
Unalaska pushes back against proposed bycatch restrictions on pollock fishery
Unalaska leaders are pushing back against a proposed petition to eliminate Chinook bycatch in the Bering Sea Alaska pollock fishery. Nearly 100 tribes and communities in western Alaska, including the Association of Village Council Presidents, signed an emergency petition that would set a zero-bycatch limit on Chinook salmon in the pollock trawl fishery for 180 days. Unalaska Mayor Vince Tutiakoff Sr. said in a letter that a zero-cap would “effectively shut down the entire pollock fishery of the Bering Sea,” and create a “dire situation” for Unalaska. links, more, ??click to read<< 11:19
Fishing advocates say California salmon disaster fund is too low
The $20.6 million allocated for federal relief for California’s Chinook salmon stocking is only two-thirds of the state’s aid request, and threatens the existence of fishing businesses, California commercial fishermen and rental recreational groups said, on Monday. In a letter to U.S. Commerce Department Secretary Gina Raimondo, the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Association, the Golden Gate Fishermen’s Association and the Northern California Guides and Sportsmen’s Association called for “immediate full funding of salmon disaster funding assistance” at $30.7 million. Data sought by state officials. “The state’s economic analysis already falls short of expected needs, and the federal disaster aid package adds insult to injury,” fishing group leaders wrote in their joint letter. more, >>click to read<< 08:56
Peterhead landings hit new record
With £232 million worth of catches traded across its quaysides, Peterhead set a new record for fish landings in 2023. This smashes the 2022 figure of £220 million, which was also a modern era record, by a comfortable margin, and cements Peterhead’s position as the largest fisheries port in Europe. ‘It was a very successful year for landings, with a notable increase in pelagic landings due to the economic link which is more than compensating for a decline in shellfish landings,’ said Peter Duncan, Peterhead Port Authority’s Head of Fishing – Commercial. In recent years PPA has invested over £50 million in an ultra-modern fish market and quayside improvements that allow for vessels to land at all states of the tide. more, >>click to read<< 07:46
Will $2.9 million in grants actually help Mississippi fishermen?
In 2023, it was declared that it was a federal fisheries disaster, making Mississippi fisheries eligible for assistance. “At this point, it’s more like a feel-good program,” said one fisherman. “Here, let me give you a little money, make you feel better.” It’s been five years since disaster struck the fishing industry in the gulf, and while fishermen have received some help since then, they say the response has been slow – too slow to actually be beneficial. Mark Kopszywa has found himself in a perpetual cycle of playing catch-up after taking such a big loss in 2019 and not being able to make up for it quickly. Video, more, >>click to read<< 06:29
Fishing regulators say no to catching more elvers, a most valuable species
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission needs to set a new quota for next year and beyond because the current management plan is expiring. The commission said Monday its only considering one option for next year’s limit and that is a little less than 10,000 pounds, the same level fishermen have been allowed to catch for several years. The commission is under pressure from fishermen who want the quota raised and from environmentalists who would like to see it reduced. Fishermen who have advocated for removing dams are good stewards of the elvers, said Darrell Young, president of the Maine Elver Fishermen’s Association. Many fishermen run through their quota in just a few days, he said. more, >>click to read<< 20:46
Senator Wicker Statement on the $2.9 Million Awarded to Mississippi Fisheries for 2019 Bonnet Carré Spillway Openings
U.S. Senator Roger Wicker, R-Miss., released the following statement after the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) awarded $2,993,283 in federal disaster relief funds to Mississippi’s shrimp and oyster fisheries. The funding is available because DOC declared a “commercial fishery failure” in 2020 after the repeated openings of the Bonnet Carré Spillway in 2019. The state will distribute the funds to fishermen, aquaculture businesses, and seafood processors to help cover some of their losses. “This funding is helpful, but it does not make the impacted businesses whole. It should not take years for disaster funds to trickle in. more, >>click to read<< 13:39
Can Taylor Swift help Canada’s seal meat industry, senate committee asks
Canada’s top chefs should offer seal meat on their menus as part of the battle against Russian propaganda as well as celebrities who have spoken out against the seal hunt, a senate committee heard. At the same hearing, independent Senator Bev Busson suggested mega-singing star Taylor Swift might be used to convince young people to chow down on seal. But animal rights activists say claims that Russian propaganda is behind the problems of Canada’s seal industry is a bizarre conspiracy theory. Instead, they point to the ban by 35 nations on commercial seal products as the real reason the industry has declined. The ban, however, hasn’t stopped some from looking for new ways to revive the commercial seal industry. more. >>click to read<< 11:33
New Beamer Delivered to Belgian Owners
A new beamer is a rarity these days and seeing a new such vessel being put into service is something of an event. The latest beam trawler to be delivered to owners in Belgium is Van Eyck Z-53, handed over to its owners following satisfactory sea trials carried out at the end of last year. The Savels family hads initially looked for a second-hand vessel to replace the 1981-built beamer that Steven Savels bought from Freddy Depaepe more than 25 years ago. But when the search proved inconclusive, with no suitable replacement to be found, they looked at the options for a new trawler and approached Van Eyck Z-53, which has delivered a number of new beamers in recent years to Belgian operators. The order for the new vessel was placed in 2022 and the hull arrived in Stellandam for outfitting a year later. Photos, more, >>click to read<< 10:39
Powerful winter storm pummels the Golden State
Millions of Southern Californians are waking up to a powerful storm that’s expected to linger over the region through Monday, bringing risks of dangerous flooding, road closures, power outages and other hazards. The slow-moving atmospheric river made its way into Southern California on Sunday afternoon after dousing the Bay Area and Central Coast earlier in the weekend. National Weather Service officials issued flash flood warnings for large swaths of San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Ventura and Los Angeles counties. The warnings were set to expire at 12 a.m. Monday but could be extended. It wasn’t just SoCal; the atmospheric river brought heavy rain and strong winds across the Bay Area and Central Coast earlier Sunday. more, >>click to read<< 09:40
No-farm farm
In one of the stranger twists in the strange world of global salmon marketing, Alaska’s non-farm fish farmers played a role in convincing the Canadian city of Ottawa to order removal of billboards protesting farmed salmon. The reason? “False advertising.” And now the same environmental group involved in Ottawa – Wild First – is under fire in British Columbia for running radio advertisements claiming salmon farms have pushed wild Pacific salmon to “the brink of extinction,” according to the news website Business in Vancouver (BIV). That claim is about as far from the truth as one can get. Salmon in the Pacific are today at numbers never seen in recorded history, but most of them are pink salmon. Some scientists contend this explosion of pinks due in part to the free-range fish farming efforts of hatchery operators in Alaska and Russia has reached the point where it is wreaking havoc with the entire North Pacific ecosystem. more, >>click to read<< 07:50
Commercial Fisherman Jimmy Bourque, Sr., of St. Martinville, La, has passed away
Jimmy Bourque, Sr., a dedicated commercial fisherman, has sadly passed away at the age of 77, in his hometown of St. Martinville. Born on December 11, 1946, Jimmy’s departure on February 3, 2024, has left a void in the hearts of his loved ones and the community he cherished so deeply. Throughout his life, Jimmy exemplified a profound love for the Atchafalaya Basin. His passion for fishing was unmatched, and he would often lose track of time by the sounds of nature and the stillness of the water. The peace and tranquility he found in the Basin was captivating; it was a place where he could rejuvenate his spirit and connect with the natural world. more, >>click to read<< 19:06
Torbay lifeboat rescues trawler in dramatic operation off South Devon coast
Torbay RNLI received a request from Solent Coastguard to assist the trawler 18 miles south of Start Point – in force eight winds and four metre swells – whose skipper had reported water coming into his engine room. The station’s ‘Deputy Launch Authority’ on duty immediately launched the All-weather lifeboat with seven volunteer crew. The Severn Class ALB reached the trawler within 25 minutes. The RNLI had been informed sea water had reached up to the deck plates from bilges and appeared to be coming in through the propeller shafts. More water appeared when under power, but the exact source and cause could not be identified. Photos, more, >>click here<< 15:45Aquarium scientists ID dead whale found on Martha’s Vineyard
Scientists identified the dead North Atlantic right whale as a 3-year-old female known as #5120. NOAA Fisheries learned that the unnamed whale had washed ashore near Joseph Sylvia State Beach on Martha’s Vineyard on Jan. 28. The animal will undergo a necropsy this week to determine its exact cause of death. The Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) and the International Fund for Animal Welfare secured the whale, according to the aquarium. State law enforcement officials also collected rope entangled around and embedded in the whale’s tail and turned it over to NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement. In August 2022, researchers found the whale tangled up in fishing gear in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada. Several attempts were made in January and February of 2023 to disentangle the whale after she was located off Cape Cod. more, >>click to read<< 13:01
All the lives lost in shipwrecks off Cornwall since the end of WWII
The history of shipwrecks around our coast is long and tragic but is also a story of immense selfless courage exemplified in none other than the Penlee Lifeboat tragedy. Very few incidents have shaken Cornwall to its core as much as the loss of the lifeboat Solomon Browne on that fateful night on December 19, 1981. With winds at hurricane force 12 gusting to 90 knots, the eight-strong crew of the Solomon Browne put to sea that night in an attempt to rescue the eight people on board the coaster Union Star, which had lost power between Tater-du Lighthouse and Boscawen Point. All lives were lost. A permanent memorial stone to all 16 people who lost their lives that day now stands on the cliff above where the tragedy happened. Below is a list of incidents during which crews or passengers were lost at sea off Cornwall’s coast since the end of the Second World War. More than 130 people died in that period. photos, more, >>click to read<< 10:45
A Voice for Commercial Fishermen – Sharon Lee Peele Kennedy of Buxton, North Carolina has passed away
Born February 9, 1956, Sharon Lee Peele Kennedy, a lady known for her beautiful smile and her passion for life, passed peacefully at her home in Buxton on January 26, 2024, with her beloved sons by her side and surrounded by her loving family. Sharon was the force that started NC Catch and became a voice for the commercial fishing industry. Sharon’s name will forever be part of NC Catch, Outer Banks Catch, and the Outer Banks Seafood Festival. Being the daughter of a commercial fisherman, her passion ran deep for the industry. Just as passionate about cooking, Sharon wrote multiple cookbooks and hosted a radio show for the past ten years that carried the name of her cookbooks, “What’s for Supper.” more, >>click to read<< 08:55
