Category Archives: International News
Maine congressional delegation wants more info before whale rules released
The four members of Maine’s delegation said Wednesday they want information from NOAA about how new findings will be incorporated into the draft rules. NOAA completed a peer review process of the data tool it’s using to create the regulations, and the delegation wants to know what impact that will have on the rules, the members said. >click to read< 14:03
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Researchers, marine pilots work to prevent vessel strikes from killing Alaska whales
Over the past decade, federal officials have logged 77 incidents of vessels hitting whales in Alaska waters. About three-quarters of those, were endangered humpbacks. But, it’s not clear why those strikes keep happening. A group of federal researchers and marine pilots have teamed up to combine what scientists know about whale behavior with what marine pilots know about ships.,,, That’s important as NOAA has logged 182 whale strikes in U.S. waters over the last decade. But that’s an undercount: ships aren’t legally required to report when they hit whale. And sometimes they don’t even know it’s happened. >click to read< 12:18
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Fishing fleets deserve better than this if they’re not to be sunk by Brexit – Sir Barney White-Spunner
Few industries resonate more with the British public, and not least in the coastal towns and cities of Yorkshire, whose many marginal constituencies may prove an important battleground on December 12. Fishing may not be the force it once was, but many communities are still culturally and financially dependent on the vessels of all sizes that, among other things, provide our national dish and bring hundreds of jobs to the region. >click to read< 11:29
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LETTER: Standing up for our fishery
A famous Newfoundland and Labrador politician was once asked about the impact of seals on the fish stocks off our coast. He replied using the wit many good Newfoundland orators are known for and said something to the effect of well, they don’t eat Kentucky Fried Chicken. He was absolutely right then and the same holds true today as we see thousands of tons of fish consumed daily off our shores by these cute-looking mammals with voracious appetites for cod, crab and other lucrative species; the same fish our harvesters and processors depend on,,, by Paul Lane >click to read< 07:21
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Most likely Carnival Cruise Lines is responsible for 18+ Right Whale deaths in the past 3 year, at which rate they would soon be extinct.
Human caused Right whale deaths have suddenly, in sync with a plummeting whale birthrate, put the right whale on the path to extinction.,,, There is the simple answer, to halt the march towards extinction. There is an easy way to prevent those 18 deaths and at least bring that -18 up to 0. We can stop the majority of the anthropogenic Whale deaths with a simple Cruise Ship lane modification between PEI and the tip of the Gaspe Peninsula. Prior to 2007 ships were almost solely responsible for Right whale deaths, but since 2008 fishing line entanglement deaths have increased and fishermen have become the main target. However data from the past 3 years indicate many more ship strike deaths than entanglement deaths. >click to read< 12:41
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Rafael’s own fishery complaints opened door to his downfall. Coast Guard report details extensive fishing violations
In January 2015, angered by cuts to his portion of federal groundfish disaster relief, Rafael publicly railed against the process and said he planned to sell his more than 40 vessels and the approximately 60 federal fishing permits attached to them. And with that, five federal law enforcement agencies saw their opening.,,, New Hampshire fisherman David Goethel, in the question-and-answer segment, complained that none of the fish dealers who participated in the scheme — particularly Rafael’s infamous New York dealer — were indicted. >click to read< 06:14
Coast Guard report details extensive fishing violations – “I can’t tell you how angry my fishing community is over this,” Marshfield fisherman Ed Barrett said. Barrett felt NOAA, the New England council and fishermen knew that Rafael was fishing illegally. Rafael had a long history of fishing violations and bragged openly about how he could beat the system, and yet Audyatis said the investigation that eventually caught him didn’t start until 2015. >click to read<
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FISH-NL dissolves, application dead in the water
Time has run out for FISH-NL, which announced today it is ending its membership drive far below the required number of signatures, and the group is being dissolved. Ryan Cleary, president of the Federation of Independent Fish Harvesters of Newfoundland and Labrador, made the announcement Tuesday. >click to read< 14:58
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New Environmental Defence Fund Report Details Actions Needed to Create Climate-Ready Fisheries
“Even with the necessary actions to control emissions and investments to reduce carbon dioxide already in the atmosphere, changes in the ocean already underway will continue and even accelerate,” said Eric Schwaab, senior vice president for EDF Oceans.,,, The five pathways articulated in the report focus on steps that can and must be taken by governments, NGOs, fisher organizations, academia and multilateral organizations in order to create greater resilience and sustainability of fisheries. The pathways include: >click to read< 06:57
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Families of French fishermen who died off Cornwall will have to wait for answers
An inquest opened last week into the deaths of two of the five men who died when the French fishing vessel Bugalen Breizh sank 14 years ago off the Lizard.,,, The families of the victims have been fighting for answers ever since the tragedy and have previously claimed that a Nato submarine involved in a military training exercise was responsible. >click to read< 12:56
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Skipper not keeping proper lookout when boat wave drowned recreational fishermen, court told
Three men out fishing for fun died when their boat was almost “run over” by a fishing vessel whose skipper was not paying enough attention, a court has heard. David Marr was “entirely distracted” and only found out about the deadly near-miss his scallop dredger had been involved in from the radio, hours later. Marr, 53, of Tower Hill in Peterhead, Aberdeenshire, is charged with failing to maintain a proper lookout,, >click to read< 11:36
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A dark horizon
If you’re an Alaska commercial salmon fishermen, be forewarned; the farmers in Wisconsin are coming for you. Enter the marketers. “A Better Ocean in Your Backyard” is the new marketing theme of Superior Fresh, a recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) farm in America’s Heartland: “Until now, it’s been impossible to get truly fresh Atlantic salmon in the Midwest, not to mention salmon of the incredible quality that Superior Fresh offers. Healthy, delicious, and without the same contaminants you’d find in the wild. And we did it sustainably to boot.” The word that will, or should, jump out to Alaskans (everyone, everywhere) there is “wild.” >click to read< 10:33
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Green Energy: Proposal to import Canadian Hydro into New England faces familiar pushback
Central Maine Power anticipated smooth sailing for a proposal for bringing Canadian hydropower into New England after the so-called “Northern Pass” stalled in New Hampshire. After all, CMP already owned the entire path along existing utility corridors and through remote forests.,, Jon Reed, who’s heading up the Clean Energy Matters campaign, said the goal is to ensure residents understand the environmental and economic benefits for Maine are real. Furthermore, the full financial cost is being borne by Massachusetts ratepayers.,, Maine’s governor, Democrat Janet Mills, remains a supporter of the transmission project after CMP proposed $258 million in incentives, >click to read< 07:08
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Skipper Alan and the Ajax are back in town!
Arriving at 630am the Ajax took up a berth near the ice works, having steamed down from Macduff’s shipyard in Scotland following a major refit including new main and genset engines.and the replacement of the foremast with a hydraulic landing/gear crane,,, There are a bunch of great photo’s, and a very cool video showing us around the vessel! Thank you, Lawrence! >click to view< 13:28
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Cooke Aquaculture agrees to pay $2.75M to settle lawsuit over salmon net-pen collapse
Cooke Aquaculture has reached a settlement to pay $2.75 million in legal fees and to fund Puget Sound restoration projects, putting an end to a Clean Water Act lawsuit that followed the 2017 collapse of one of the fish-farming company’s net-pen structures.,,, The legal settlement, which awaits federal officials’ review and a judge’s signature, bookends a contentious and litigious chapter in the fight over fish farming in Washington waters that resulted in the termination of some of Cooke’s leases, a $332,000 fine to Cooke from state regulators and a ban on farming nonnative fish, >click to read< 12:09
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My afternoon with a Galway Hooker
I should probably start by saying it’s not what you think, but more on that later.,,, But back to the hooker. In nautical terms, a hooker is a specific kind of traditional wood fishing boat — unique to the west coast of Ireland. Usually black on the hull and with vibrant colored sails, the hooker has a striking look and it’s built to withstand the strong winds that the Atlantic whips up. As modern commercial fishing techniques have overfished the Galway Bay and slowly ground away at the small family fishing industry, time had also somewhat left behind the classic old history of the hookers. Photo’s, >click to read< 07:58
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Operations continue in New Brunswick as Connors Bros. files for creditor protection
Connors Bros., a major producer of seafood products in New Brunswick, has filed for protection from creditors, but it has reassured fishermen and others who depend on the company that things will carry on as usual.,,, That’s the understanding of Melanie Sonnenberg of the Grand Manan Fishermen’s Association. Sonnenberg said the company reached out to the group to assure members that there would be no interruptions in operations, and that bills would continue to be paid. >click to read< 17:35
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All about Andrew – the fisherman who became Patron Saint of Scotland
The Bible tells us he was a fisherman who converted to Christianity and became one of Jesus Christ’s original disciples, so perhaps it’s no surprise he’s also the patron saint of fishermen and fishmongers. Why he’s the patron saint of singers and pregnant woman – and is believed to offer protection against sore throats and gout – is not so clear. Saint Andrew never actually visited Scotland during his lifetime but his kneecap, arm and fingerbone did arrive in Scotland – among other relics after his death. Fourth century monk Saint Rule was instructed to take them and sail west,,, >click to read< 14:32
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Offshore wind farm proposals causing concerns for fishing industry
Sen. Susan Sosnowski (D – Dist. 37, South Kingstown, New Shoreham) was pleased to hear about the changes made to two offshore wind farm proposal last week, calling the revisions “positive development.” The developers of this project, Mayflower Wind and Vineyard Winds, are hoping to place an 84-turbine array off Martha’s Vineyard and another 15 turbines in the Rhode Island Sound. According to Sosnowski, she still has some remaining concerns. Same here, Senator! Where are the cease and desist orders? >click to read< 11:04
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Ropeless Fishing Gear: New Crab Pot Could Help Reduce Whale Entanglements
Last year 46 whale entanglements were reported off the West Coast, and crab gear was responsible for about a third of them. According to Derek Orner, a bycatch reduction program coordinator with the National Marine Fisheries Service, this a growing problem,,, His agency recently announced grants for several ropeless fishing gear projects, including a new kind of crab pot developed by Coastal Monitoring Associates of California. >click to read< 09:43
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Hawke’s Bay commercial fisherman Karl Warr wants the public to see the job for what it is.
He’s installed a camera on board his boat to live stream what he’s doing to a website. “Personally it’s about, you know, showing the provenance of the product to our customers so rather than me tell them how it is, it’s right there on film to have a look yourself.” He’s broadcasting his methods to the world. Even his bycatch, the species he doesn’t intend to take, will be seen. It’s a risk he’s willing to take. Video, >click to read< 14:32
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U.S.-China trade war is a boon for Atlantic Canada’s lobster harvesters. But what’s the catch?
Exports of Canadian lobster rose to a record $266-million from $112-million in the 18 months between January, 2018, and June, 2019. Meanwhile, U.S. exports have plummeted, especially in Maine, where live lobster exports to China collapsed by 81 per cent between June, 2018, and the same month this year. It’s all pumping millions of dollars into Atlantic Canada, fuelling a boat-building boom, sending pickup-truck sales soaring and giving lobster crews six-figure salaries, a significant raise from the recent past. >click to read< 10:17
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George Washington’s Thanksgiving Proclamation
“Americans don’t know it and children aren’t taught it, but George Washington is responsible for our Thanksgiving holiday. It was our first president, not the Pilgrims and not Abraham Lincoln, who led the charge to make this day of thanks a truly national event.” On October 3, 1789, George Washington issued his Thanksgiving proclamation, designating for “the People of the United States a day of public thanks-giving” to be held on “Thursday the 26th day of November,” 1789, marking the first national celebration of a holiday that has become commonplace in today’s households.
Thanksgiving Proclamation: >click to read< 20:20
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Fishing boss steps down from British firms amid probe into £6m handed to ministers in Namibia
A powerful fishing magnate has been forced to quit a network of companies in the UK after becoming embroiled in a major corruption probe. Thorsteinn Mar Baldvinsson’s family-run fishing empire has a major hold on Britain’s lucrative cod rights and sells fish to supermarkets including Tesco, Marks & Spencer and Sainsbury’s, as well as fish and chip shops across the UK. But after almost 40 years in charge, the man dubbed the ‘Codfather’ has had to put his career on hold. >click to read< 16:59
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Bugaled Breizh: Crew asked not to mention submarine, inquest told
A rescue helicopter pilot who attended a capsized French fishing vessel off Cornwall 15 years ago has told an inquest the crew was told not to mention the presence of a submarine. The trawler Bugaled Breizh sank in January 2004, with the loss of all five crew members. The inquest in Truro is examining the deaths of two of the men, Yves Gloaguen and Pascal le Floch. “I was not happy about this decision,” Capt Peter McLelland said. >click to read< 16:25
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Science Advances report says marine protected areas may not be enough to preserve biodiversity
The paper published Wednesday in the journal Science Advances said climate change will erode the effectiveness of “static” marine protected areas across the globe, and “dynamic ocean management” is needed to preserve biodiversity when species or ecosystems move because of a changing ocean. When the critically endangered whales appeared unexpectedly in the Gulf of St. Lawrence in 2017, the results were disastrous. Twelve right whales whales died and Canada implemented speed limits in shipping lanes and temporary fishing-zone closures. Nine more died this year. >click to read< 09:05
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Scientists review divisive whale risk reduction model
A panel of scientists gathered in Woods Hole, Mass., last week to evaluate a controversial “decision support tool” used by NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service to design proposed rules aimed at protecting endangered North Atlantic right whales and other large marine mammals from entanglement with fishing gear. Last spring, the NOAA Fisheries Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Team (TRT) recommended that the fisheries service adopt new rules that would, among other requirements, force Maine lobstermen to remove from the water 50 percent of the vertical lines used to connect traps on the bottom to marker buoys on the surface. >click to read< 11:07
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This tragedy was unimaginable for us, like it is for all fishing families’ — Alisha Marques, sister of lost New Bedford fisherman Mark P. Cormier Jr.
Coping with a tragedy “unimaginable for us, like it is for all fishing families,” Alisha Marques, the sister of Mark P. Cormier Jr., has started a GoFundMe page in honor of her brother and “lost fishermen.” Cormier, 35, is one of three crew members lost at sea Sunday after the New Bedford-based scalloper F/V Leonardo went down in churning waters off Martha’s Vineyard. >Click to read< Please >click here to donate< in the memory of Mark Cormier. 06:36
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Video: Lone fisherman who survived shipwreck off Martha’s Vineyard recalls harrowing ordeal
Ernesto Garcia, 50, was aboard the F/V Leonardo — a 56-foot scallop boat — that capsized and sank on Sunday afternoon as nine-foot swells and gusty winds battered the area. He was later rescued by a helicopter crew. “We caught a rogue sea,” Garcia told 7’s Jonathan Hall. “A wave came across in the opposite direction in which the waves were running.” Video, >click to watch< 20:56
All posts under F/V Leonardo, >click to read< 21:52
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New Jersey Legislature Succumbs to Humane Society’s Misinformation Campaign Against Sustainable Shark Fishing
The Garden State Seafood Association (GSSA) is disappointed with the passage of Assembly Bill A4845/S2905 today, which would prohibit the possession, sale, or trade of legally harvested shark fins in New Jersey.,,, “All this legislation does is to penalize legitimate, hard working fishermen of the state,” said Greg DiDomenico, Executive Director of GSSA. “Instead of acknowledging the leadership of our commercial industry, which operates a globally-recognized sustainable shark fishery, those supporting this legislation will penalize New Jersey fishermen, forcing them to discard a natural resource for no purpose.” >click to read< 09:15
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All-female lobster crew making waves
The Nellie Row looks just like any other boat slicing through the waves and darkness of the North Atlantic on the first day of Canada’s most lucrative lobster fishery. But the cheerful red and white vessel is distinct from hundreds of other boats racing out to sea Tuesday morning in one crucial aspect: there are no men aboard. Gail Atkinson is captain of the boat, named after her grandmother — a trailblazer like herself — and is leading what they believe to be Nova Scotia’s first all-female lobster crew. >click to read< 08:32
