Category Archives: Canada
Baffin Fisheries’ new ship stranded in Athens after engine fails on maiden voyage
Crew members aboard Baffin Fisheries’ Inuksuk II have spent more than 14 days docked in Athens, Greece after an engine failure stalled the fishing vessel on its first voyage. “We are very disappointed. This was entirely unexpected,” Baffin Fisheries CEO Chris Flanagan said in an interview. “We knew there would be some break-in period and glitches with a brand-new vessel. There always are and that’s expected. But we didn’t expect anything like this to happen.” more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 19:12
Fishing boat Captain Craig Sock honoured for Bravery
Craig “Jumbo” Sock, the Elsipogtog fishing boat captain who lost his life while rescuing members of his crew in 2021, was honoured Thursday with the Governor General’s Medal of Bravery. The Governor General’s office said in a news release that Sock was one of 38 Canadians to receive the Medal of Bravery during a ceremony in Ottawa Thursday. The award was presented to his widow, Sue Ann Sock, and their children, Tessa and Tyrone Sock. “On April 3, 2021, Captain Craig Sock lost his life rescuing the crew of the fishing vessel Tyhawk,” the citation from the Governor General said. “During a storm at sea, the boat capsized, trapping Sock and a crewmate in the wheelhouse. He freed his crewmate and then found the remaining crew on the overturned hull. Captain Sock re-entered the water to rescue an unconscious victim, pushing him to safety moments before disappearing underwater. Sadly, the captain did not resurface. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 14:50
Right whale population grows 4%, but extinction remains a threat
Conservationists are calling on the government, shipping and fishing industries to save the North Atlantic right whale from extinction despite an increase in its population. Researchers studying the whales said this week that the population increased to an estimated 372 in 2023. That’s an increase of about four percent from 2020, and “heartening news” after the whale’s population fell by about 25 percent from 2010 to 2020. The population of the right whale, which can weigh up to 150,000 pounds (68,039 kilograms) and lives off the East Coast, plummeted in the 2010s. Stressed by global warming and vulnerable to ship collisions and entanglement in fishing gear, their numbers fell to fewer than 360 by the early 2020s. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 12:29
The fatal truth about commercial fishing
A note from the authors: Dear readers, we have wanted to cover this story for a long time. Given the fishing tragedies this province has endured, we acknowledge this is a difficult subject. This reporting honours those lost at sea, doing what they loved most: fishing. We recognize the collective grief of families, communities and the entire province. We hope this work illuminates what’s going wrong on the water and helps bring more fish harvesters home safely. Inshore harvesters dealing with trauma after incidents like the ones we describe can access PTSD coverage through workers’ compensation (WorkplaceNL). For anyone else, 811 can connect you with mental health supports in your community.
“My god, what are you doing to me?” says Brenda Gould, remembering the words she shouted into the sky that fateful day in 1989. The Port au Choix woman had just learned that her 22-year-old son Brendan, known as Ben, drowned while fishing off the coast of the Northern Peninsula. It wasn’t the first time tragedy knocked at Gould’s door. Eleven years earlier, in 1978, her husband Gabriel, 35, also drowned while fishing. Photos, Video, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 17:41
More Vineyard Wind blades must be removed, repaired
Vineyard Wind must remove an unknown number of blades that have already been installed south of Martha’s Vineyard while it repairs others, the company announced Wednesday. The project also received permission from the federal government this week to resume blade installation after it removes and repairs the components in the coming weeks. The latest announcement suggests investigations found more defective blades similar to the blade that failed in July and comes after the project quietly delivered at least four turbine blades from New Bedford to Cherbourg, France, where GE Vernova operates a blade manufacturing plant. >more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 11:48
Canada Expands Seal Harvest Licences in NB, PEI
Seal harvesting is an important and valuable activity for many Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities. In Canada, it is managed in a sustainable, well-regulated, and humane way that supports Canada’s Indigenous, rural, remote, and coastal communities. In response to growing interest in participating in the seal harvest, today, the Honourable Diane Lebouthillier, Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, announced that personal use seal licences will be available to harvesters in New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island. The focus of this harvest is harp and grey seals which DFO assesses to be in the healthy zone of the Department’s precautionary approach framework. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 13:43
Regulators delay increase in minimum lobster size till July
Regulators formally delayed increasing the minimum size of lobsters harvested in the Gulf of Maine to July. The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, the regulatory body that oversees the fishing industry, voted Monday to delay the resolution by six months. The changes were previously slated to take effect in January, but opponents have argued it would give Canadian lobstermen – unimpacted by the change, though they share the waters – an unfair advantage in the market. Lobstermen also have claimed the change could practically eliminate the harvest of some of the industry’s most popular lobster sizes. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 21:06
Anxiety, depression are top issues faced by people who make their living on the sea
The number of people working in fisheries and aquaculture who are calling a dedicated industry counselling service on Prince Edward Island has more than doubled over the last fiscal year. From May 2022 to May 2023, the service counselled 24 people. That jumped to 64 people in the 2023-24 fiscal year. “The stigma for reaching out [about] mental health, I think that’s decreasing in our society generally. So it becomes more socially acceptable and people give themselves permission to reach out,” said social worker Frank Bulger. The program has been offered since 2019 by Frank Bulger Personal and Family Counselling, on behalf of the P.E.I. Fishermen’s Association and the P.E.I. Aquaculture Alliance. Bulger administers the program, along with a counsellor in Summerside and one who works remotely from Alberta. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 06:29
Federal court denies FFAW request for injunction against reopening of northern cod fishery
Federal court denies FFAW request for injunction against reopening of northern cod fishery. In July 2024, the FFAW requested a judicial review of the federal fisheries departments’ decision to reopen the northern cod fishery with a total allowable catch of 18,000 tonnes. Later, the FFAW requested an injunction against federal Fisheries Minister Diane Lebouthillier’s decision, made in June, to allocate 18,000 tonnes of cod for Canadian harvesters, and 1,080 tonnes for the offshore sector. Yesterday, the court denied the request for an injunction, stating that FFAW failed to demonstrate that irreparable harm. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 11:25
Fishermen greet DFO baby eel licence plan with uncertainty
The department is offering 120 fishermen currently employed by the eight commercial groups their own small licences for next year’s season, in what the letters say is a bid to “broaden the distribution of benefits” of the fishery. It is also offering elver licences to 30 fishermen currently licensed to catch adult eels. Austin Townsend, a 26-year-old elver fisherman from Lockeport, N.S., said while the proposal looks good for him on paper, he’s suspicious of the “Robin Hood” tactic where quota is simply plucked from the commercial groups, and worries he could be worse off financially. He said in a good season, he will make between $40,000 and $90,000 working for Shelburne Elver, which has the equipment to hold elvers and the networks to export them. But Townsend said if he goes it alone, he will still likely have to sell to a middleman who will take a cut. Photos, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 14:23
N.S. minister hopes changes to fish buyer, processor licences will help curb illegal activity
The Nova Scotia government is introducing new licence conditions for fish buyers and processors that officials hope will help crack down on illegal fishing. Kent Smith, the province’s fisheries minister, detailed the changes in a letter that accompanied a package sent to licence holders earlier this month. Changes include moving to two-year terms and aligning processor licences with Canadian Food Inspection Agency requirements. Processors will also be required to report the source location of fish and fish products entering the facility and the location of sales at both the provincial and country level. But the biggest changes focus on Nova Scotia’s king crustacean, lobster. Lobster buyers will be required to provide the locations and details pertaining to all holding and handling facilities they own, lease or use. Licence holders will only be allowed to store and/or handle their lobsters at facilities listed on their buyer’s licence. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 12:15
DFO ordered to improve officer gear to counter threat from ‘criminals’ with firearms
In a report issued Friday to the Fisheries Department, the federal Labour Program’s compliance unit concludes “protective equipment and tactical protocols” currently used during fisheries investigations are inadequate. The investigator concludes fishery officers in the Maritime region are having to confront people with weapons, including cases where intelligence indicates the fisher “keeps an assault rifle on board.” The report also says there are cases where “outlaw motorcycle gangs are armed with firearms.” It concurs with fishery officers that “a number of the illegal fishers that officers deal with regularly are convicted violent criminals and have threatened officers directly and on social media.” Doug Wentzell, the federal Fisheries Department’s regional manager for the Maritimes, said in an interview last week that a number of officers have refused field work, but he declined to say how many. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 10:45
Call for Changes to Gulf of St. Lawrence Redfish Fishery Management, Inshore Fleet Demands Immediate Action
The 4R inshore fleet is calling on the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) to implement immediate changes to the management of the Gulf of St. Lawrence Unit 1 Redfish Fishery. Dozens of harvesters rallied outside the Barry Group plant in Curling today as members look to the federal government for urgent changes to access the small, time sensitive fishery. “DFO has not established harvest control rules that allow for a sustainable fishery for the 4R fleet, despite the critical importance of this resource to local communities,” explains Jason Spingle, FFAW-Unifor Secretary-Treasurer. “Minister Lebouthillier’s decision to allocate the majority of the fishery to the corporate dragger fleet has left the inshore fleet struggling to survive, and current rules mean they cannot access the small bit of quota do they have,” Spingle says. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 14:09
Save the Dates for the 2025 U.S. – Canada Lobster Town Meeting!
The Lobster Institute’s 20th annual U.S. – Canada Lobster Town Meeting will be held January 29-30 at the Atlantic Oceanside Hotel in Bar Harbor, ME. Registration is open exclusively to commercial fishermen until October 20, after which registration will open to the public. A complete program will be shared next month, but preliminary agenda items include: Industry Sector Updates, Ecosystem change – What is going on in the ocean? Comparing assessment and management approaches in Canada and the US and how they relate to the US gauge increase. Market impacts of the gauge increase: short and long-term. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 09:32
Now or never
Fishermen in Newfoundland and Labrador may have acquired a reputation of getting riled up and rowdy when things aren’t going their way: crashing news conferences, for instance, or blocking the doors to Confederation Building in St. John’s. Carl Hedderson and the handful of harvesters left on the northern tip of Newfoundland say they are not those kinds of fishermen. “Nobody hears us because I guess we’re not complaining enough,” says Hedderson. Since 2022, Carl Hedderson has been quietly but diligently advocating to the federal government to issue new lobster permits so he and the other fishermen in the area can both assess and access the lobster stock and save a way of life that Hedderson says will die with his generation. “That’s the only thing that’s going to save us,” said Hedderson. photos, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 07:01
Federal fisheries officers refusing duties because of violence on the water in N.S.
Federal fisheries officers in Nova Scotia say they’re refusing some enforcement duties because of threats to their safety, as they await Ottawa’s response to their complaints. The union representing the officers says its members have been shot at, that people have tried to steal their firearms, and that officers — and their families — have been threatened for trying to stop illegal fishing. Commercial fishers, meanwhile, are calling for increased enforcement, saying that illegal and unregulated fishing is becoming more frequent across the province. “We want real, tangible enforcement activity placed upon the illegal, black market lobster activity that’s ongoing throughout the Maritimes,” said Dan Fleck, executive director of the Brazil Rock 33/34 Lobster Association, in a recent telephone interview. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 07:52
$100K worth of lobster seized from southwest N.S. facility, 1 Arrested
Federal fisheries officers have seized more than 5,900 kilograms of lobster as well as documents and electronic records during the search of a facility in Shelburne County, N.S. One person has been arrested and is being investigated for potential charges under the Fisheries Act in connection with maintaining a lobster pound without the required licence, according to the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. Social media posts from the federal department said officers obtained a search warrant for the operation that happened on Wednesday. DFO said in its posts that “fishery officers have been taking enforcement measures ranging from compliance awareness to making arrests and seizing unauthorized catch, equipment and vessels.” more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 13:28
Tuna selling at a higher price for some local fishermen
This year’s tuna season has been described as successful by some eastern PEI fishers. Allen Fay fishes out of North Lake. “There are lots of fish around,” he said. “They’re fetching a much better price than earlier years.” Fisherman Lucas Lesperance has had a similar season. “They’re definitely up in prices. It’s the same old story; supply and demand,” said Mr Lesperance. Fishing out of Naufrage, he has caught five tuna so far, the biggest of which being 490 lbs. “This year we were a little further offshore (to start), they were hanging around deeper waters but have moved closer with the bait,” he said. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 10:35
Nova Scotia: GCIFA wants fewer sites considered for offshore wind
Concerned about the effects of massive turbine installations and operations on or near commercial fishing grounds, the Guysborough County Inshore Fisherman’s Association (GCIFA) wants two of the six sites being considered for offshore wind (OSW) farms in Nova Scotia removed from the list of potential future development areas (PFDAs). We request [that these PFDAs] be deleted from further consideration. “The Canso-based organization – representing roughly 150 small-boat harvesters on the Eastern Shore – also raises issues over use of the Middle Bank PFDA and the combined size of the areas under consideration and suggests that all OSW farms be located around Sable Island, where there are “very low [existing] commercial landings,” and they can do the least harm to harvesters. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 07:59
Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 45′ x 19′ Dixon Lobster/ Scalloper W/ Permit, 750HP John Deere 6135
To review specifications, information, and 11 photos’, >click here<. To see all the boats in this series, >click here< 06:23
Canada’s largest fishing vessel delivered
Baffin Fisheries has taken delivery of new 80-metre trawler F/V Inuksuk II, the largest fishing vessel under the Canadian flag, which is scheduled to soon start operating on shrimp and Greenland halibut (turbot) for its Inuit owners. Inuksuk II has been built to a Skipsteknisk ST-119 design with an 80-metre overall length, a beam of 18 metres and a 2700 cubic metre fishroom capacity for 1320 tonnes of Greenland halibut or 930 tonnes of shrimp. Accommodation on board is for a crew of up to 34. The new trawler has been built at Tersan in Turkey. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 08:58
NAFO Annual Meeting 2024: Key Decisions on Cod and Redfish Stocks
A joint proposal from the EU and Canada led to the reopening of the fishery for Northern cod in Divisions 2J, 3K, and 3L, with a revised sharing arrangement. This update was necessary, as the previous provisions had been in place since 1991. The EU’s share was increased to reflect its current composition, ensuring a fairer allocation of fishing rights. Additionally, fishing opportunities for 3M cod were increased, with existing technical measures maintained to protect the stock. NAFO’s decision rewards the fishing sector’s conservation efforts by increasing opportunities while maintaining caution to safeguard stock sustainability. A joint proposal from the EU and Canada led to the reopening of the fishery for Northern cod in Divisions 2J, 3K, and 3L, with a revised sharing arrangement. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 08:03
N.S. judge upholds fisheries minister’s right to impose licence moratorium
A Supreme Court of Nova Scotia judge has rejected an attempt by a Meteghan lobster processor to have the courts overturn a decision made or upheld by three fisheries ministers in Nova Scotia Lobster Hub Inc. first applied for a fish buyers and processors licence in February 2021. The company wants to process snow crab in addition to lobster at its processing plant. The Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture rejected the application, citing a moratorium placed on those licences unless they were tied to an aquaculture operation or secondary processing. The freeze has been in place since 2018 while the department reviews its licensing policy. The company appealed but Liberal fisheries minister Keith Colwell rejected it about a month before the PCs took power in 2021. The company tried to lobby Premier Tim Houston about a year later, expressing concern about Colwell’s reasoning. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 12:35
San Marco VII – New crabber/trawler to operate in Canada’s Gulf of Saint Lawrence
Pêcheries Michel Turbide, a fishing company owned by boat skipper Marco Turbide of Quebec, has taken delivery of a new combination trawling and crab fishing vessel built by Canadian shipyard Chantier Naval Forillon. The Navanex-designed San Marco VII will be operated primarily in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence, where it will fish for redfish and snow crab depending on the season. The newbuild has a steel hull and an aluminium superstructure. Power is provided by a Yanmar main engine driving a Kaplan four-blade propeller to deliver speeds of up to 10 knots. The engine produces a high enough torque for trawling operations. Specifications, photos, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 06:56
Fishing group, N.S. fisherman happy with Canada-France halibut deal
Canada and France have reached a deal to try to end a long-simmering dispute over halibut fishing on Canada’s Atlantic coast. In exchange for a three per cent share of the Canadian quota, French fishing vessels will fish outside Canadian waters and agree to have their catch monitored. According to Shelburne fisherman Gary Dedrick, French fishermen have been harvesting in Canadian waters outside the designated French fishing zone surrounding St-Pierre-Miquelon, France’s eight small islands off Newfoundland’s southern coast, and not limiting their catches. “They will be allowed to fish Atlantic halibut in their own territory and also outside 200 miles, but they won’t be able to fish in Canadian waters,” said Lapointe, who is looking to federal authorities to increase monitoring and catch reporting now that there’s a formal agreement. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 14: 19
Lobster fishing industry reps remain concerned about illegal fishing
A hastily organized meeting with senior Fisheries Department officials on Tuesday did nothing to quell concerns among commercial lobster industry representatives about illegal fishing and insufficient enforcement along coastal communities. The meeting came together hours after people attending a gathering of the Maritimes Region Lobster Advisory Committee in Dartmouth, N.S., walked out in protest when a motion to change the agenda to deal only with enforcement and illegal fishing was rejected. “It’s the No. 1 industry in Atlantic Canada and we feel abandoned,” Dan Fleck, executive director of the Brazil Rock 33/34 Lobster Association, told reporters after walking out of the morning session. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 07:26
Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 36′ Wayne Beal Lobster Boat, 675HP, Scania D1-13 086M Diesel, Video
To review specifications, information, and 10 photos’, and Video, >click here< To see all the boats in this series, >click here< 06:09
Canada announces deal with France on contentious Atlantic halibut fishery
Months of negotiations have resulted in an agreement between Canada and France allowing fishers from a tiny archipelago near Newfoundland a portion of the annual Atlantic halibut catch, officials announced Monday. Fishers from the French territory of St-Pierre-Miquelon will be allowed three per cent of the total allowable catch, which is set each year by Canada, the federal Fisheries Department said in a statement. Ihe department has been working with France to reach such an agreement since 2016, the department said. “I am confident that we’ve reached an equitable agreement that will ensure the long-term health of the Atlantic halibut stock while supporting the economies and coastal communities of both Canada and France,” Fisheries Minister Diane Lebouthillie said. more, CLICK TO READ<< 15:02
International Whaling Commission meets this week, will they discuss the US whale slaughter? By Jim Lovgren
The International Whaling Commission [IWC] meets this week from September 23 rd to the 27 th , in Lima Peru. The commission was established in 1946 and is a specialized regional fishery management organization created to provide for the proper conservation of various different Whale species, with the goal of supporting the orderly development of the Whaling industry. For two hundred years fishing vessels hunted down Whales bringing some species to the brink of extinction. Unlike the American slaughter of Buffalo, where they were killed solely for their hide, and the carcass left to rot, the Whaling industry utilized almost every part of these animals, with many indigenous populations being dependent on them as their main food source. This brings us to the present marine mammal slaughter being perpetrated by multi-national wind companies along the US east coast. In 2016 NOAA declared an unusual marine mammal mortality event was taking place with Humpback, Minke, and Northern Right Whales. Around that time research and construction was started on the Block Island wind project. more, >>CCLICK TO READ<< 16:11
Ottawa shirked own guidelines when it reopened commercial cod fishery, say scientists
Fisheries scientists say the federal government ignored its own guidelines when it hiked cod quotas off the northern and eastern coasts of Newfoundland and Labrador last June. The scientists, some of whom worked for Fisheries and Oceans Canada for decades, say they’re struggling to understand the decision to reopen the commercial Northern cod fishery. “I was baffled when I heard the news”, said Noel Cadigan, a long-time DFO scientist who now works at Memorial University’s Marine Institute. “And that hasn’t changed.” A May 6 briefing note obtained by CBC/Radio-Canada shows DFO recommended against reopening the fishery to offshore vessels and increasing quotas. But it also assured Federal Fisheries Minister Diane Lebouthillier that lifting the moratorium and hiking the total allowable catch, as all six Liberal MPs from Newfoundland and Labrador were pushing her to do, would nevertheless align with the Fisheries Act and its rules on stock management. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 11:15
