Category Archives: International News
Wind farms: Where are all of the ocean saviors?
The precautionary principle has deep roots finding expression in sayings such as ‘an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure’ or ‘better safe than sorry’. The use of the precautionary principle in ecosystem management is especially important,,, Repeated failures of management highlighted by the collapse of northern cod off Canada, the California sardine fishery, and herring, sandeels, blue whiting and capelin stocks in the North Sea have demonstrated the need for this approach in order to help address scientific uncertainty. Yet when it comes to protecting huge swaths of ocean,,, Clog 
our near shore and offshore waters with hulking (approaching 1,000 feet tall today, who knows what’s in store for tomorrow?) structures supporting huge rotors with tips moving through the air at velocities approaching 200 miles per hour? So what? Festoon our sea beds with electrical cables carrying huge amounts of electricity, And what of undersea server farms,,, >click to read< 15:43 Nils E. Stolpe/FishNet USA. © 2021 Nils E. Stolpe, July 31
The grants have been an absolute lifeline – Resilience Fund Supports the Fleet
More than 850 fishing vessels affected by Coronavirus and Brexit have received resilience funding from the Scottish Government this year. ‘I’m hugely grateful for the Scottish Government’s speedy response to our dire situation, firstly in March 2020 when there was the COVID-19 ‘market collapse’ and then in February in when the chaos caused by Brexit export restrictions hit us like a brick,’ said Kenneth Lamond, owner and skipper of the F/V Dunan Star which trawls for prawns around Skye, Small Isles and the Minches. ‘The speed with which the grant package got to boats saved many jobs and livelihoods up here – we couldn’t have got to sea without this aid and I would have had to let my crew go. The timely assistance is directly responsible for three families’ continued livelihoods and our tiny fishing community around Elgol would have been really struggling without this aid.’ >click to read< 13:58
Water content deductions keeping harvesters sitting out the summers sea cucumber fishery
Sea cucumbers represent a $10-million industry in Newfoundland and Labrador, according to Fish Food & Allied Workers president Keith Sullivan. The creatures are a delicacy in Asian countries and other markets, and fetch a price of 70 cents per pound, according to the province’s fishery pricing panel. When catches are landed, processors drain the water inside sea cucumbers to remove the weight of the sea water from the buying price. 
Harvesters used to deduct 23 per cent of the sea cucumber’s weight across the board to account for the water, but that percentage has been changed in the past year, and Sullivan says the harvesters’ bottom lines are being impacted. “Whereas other years you might be getting paid for 80 per cent or close to that of the animal, this year in a couple of cases we’re talking just over 50 per cent,” >click to read< 11:43
HEY POLITICIANS !!! The levelized cost of floating offshore wind farms – It is a financial disaster.
Last year, I wrote a blog post setting out the financial situation of Hywind, the UK’s first commercial floating offshore windfarm, and indeed the first in the world. It was an ugly tale, with a hugely lossmaking operation kept in the black only by a vast transfer of subsidies. However, Hywind has recently published its second set of financial results since it became fully operational,,, Situated off Peterhead, in what appears to be something of a sweet spot for wind, yadda. yadda, Meanwhile its costs are extraordinarily high. We already knew that its capital cost, at £8.9m/MW. was around three times the that of fixed offshore wind. But its opex costs are also much higher, >click to read<, Also a follow up article: “Clues to the levelised cost of tidal stream” – Yesterday, I set out the levelised cost of floating offshore wind turbines. In this article, I will look at what we know about the levelised cost of tidal stream energy, and show that it is probably even higher. >click to read< 15:32
Italy: A day in the life of a fisherman
“Being a fisherman is not only one of the riskiest jobs, it’s also a highly unregulated profession. Every year, dozens of fishermen die in Europe. In 2019, at least 16 lost their lives and hundreds were injured. In this episode of our Ocean series, we join the crew of Captain Davide Sanulli, who harvests mussels off the coast of Emilia-Romagna in Italy. He admits that his days are not always easy, but he never complains. video, >click to watch< 09:33
Bristol Bay Fisheries Report: July 30, 2021
It’s the final Fisheries Report of the 2021 season! Each summer, Alaskans take to the rivers, bays and oceans to subsistence fish. Some head out to set nets, others may use dip nets, all to stock up on enough fresh fish to last the winter.,, The late sockeye run to the Chignik River may be on track to meet its low-end escapement, but the early run likely won’t hit the mark. The Chinook run hasn’t reached its escapement, either. Commercial fishermen only had three openers to target pink and chum salmon in the inner bays. But lots of people spent the summer tendering in Bristol Bay. There will be one final daily run summary posted online Monday August 2nd, and the final season summary will be available mid-September. >click to read< 08:32
Fish tails – on the final #FishyFriday of July
Hard to believe looking across the harbour this morning that six hours before this was taken both St Marys and Sennen lifeboat were patrolling the Scillys as gusts up to 69mph caused chaos both ashore and at sea. An impatient fleet gets the gear sorted before leaving the quay and heading back to sea.. first away was the hake netter Ajax, Fish, photos, >click to read< 22:47
New €20 million fishing vessel arrives in Killybegs
The ‘Antarctic’ is one of the most modern and high tech pelagic fishing vessels in Europe. It is owned by Teresa and Eamon McHugh who operate the Antarctic Fishing Company. Sons Eamon J. and Gerard are also deeply involved in the family business, with Eamon J. managing the shore side and Gerard fishing alongside his father as skipper. While the hull for ‘Antarctic’ was built by Karstensen Shipyard in Skagen. Denmark, everything onboard the new vessel was supplied by Killybegs-based companies. “Barry Electronics has installed the electronics while Sea Quest supplied the hydraulics, winch and crane package. Sea Quest supplied the full RSW-machinery and vacuum unloading packages and KT Nets and Swan Nets supplied the nets and life-saving equipment. >click to read< 20:10
Occupational Change! From Wall St. to the T.V. Tuna Fleet!
Tuna fisherman Captain Bobby Earl was fishing off the coast of North Carolina last summer when his boat exploded, a saga that the Baysider chronicles in this season of Wicked Tuna: Outer Banks, a fishing reality show. While Earl counts escaping the blazing boat as among “the most surreal experience[s] of my life,” the Wall Street manager turned commercial fisherman has had a rather unusual life trajectory. Earl was born and raised in Bayside, Queens, before rising through the ranks on Wall Street. When the housing market crashed in 2008, Earl got fired from his job as a regional manager for Bank of America investments. 2008 changed my life too. >click to read< 11:44
Who is Jim Pattison? Empire builder and billionaire
At 92 he heads a sprawling empire spanning everything from farm equipment to groceries to Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Pattison is 92, a billionaire many times over, and still helms as chief executive and chairman the company he founded in 1961: the Jim Pattison Group. It would be difficult to find a Canadian entrepreneur with more diverse business holdings. The Jim Pattison Group, owned 100-per cent by Pattison himself, is an umbrella company covering businesses in industries spanning agricultural equipment, signs, packaging, groceries, wine, West Coast fishing, and forestry. He even owns the Ripley’s Believe It or Not! franchise and Guinness World Records. According to Pattison, his group of companies recorded total sales of $12.7 billion in 2020, while employing 51,000 workers, and doing business in 95 countries. >click to read< 09:09
Iconic sardine carrier restoration larger than first predicted
When Campbell “Buzz” Scott embarked on restoring Pauline, a 1948 sardine carrier, he knew it was going to be a bit of a project. Scott and the nonprofit OceansWide have dreams of reviving the 83-foot vessel and repurposing it for educational programs, as well as it being a launching pad for the organization’s remotely operated underwater vehicle. But Scott’s initial assessment was off. Pauline doesn’t need a revival; it needs a resurrection. 
“This is going to be a total rebuild with the exception of the keel and a few of the other timbers, which are still original from 1948,”,, “At the time, we thought we could get away with a few planks and a new engine and putting a new topside on,” Scott said. While painting the boat, they found a rotted plank, which led to finding another and another. >click to read< 08:12
Equinor to trial safe fishing with floating offshore wind farm at Hywind Scotland. No Dragging, though.
Hywind Scotland’s operator Equinor and Scottish government agency Marine Scotland will work together to better understand how fishers can safely operate around and within floating offshore wind farms. In a survey scheduled for 2022, Marine Scotland will test three kinds of fishing gear: creels, fish traps and jigging lines at Hywind Scotland.,, California dreaming – Elsewhere in floating offshore wind, BOEM has decided to determine industry interest in developing offshore wind at two sites in a 1,033km2 area off central California,,, >click to read< 22:05
The lobster genome map – ‘It’s an encyclopedia on how to make a lobster’
Lobster already live in a variety of different habitats around Atlantic Canada, from the relatively warm waters of the Northumberland Strait through progressively warmer waters on P.E.I.’s North Shore, the east coast of Nova Scotia, and the Bay of Fundy. “We want to really understand how that temperature stress is going to impact different stages of lobster, and if that’s going to be the same impact in different areas of Atlantic Canada,” >click to read< 09:24
Flawed rescue? – Franklin D. Roosevelt asked for plans for a low dam. Joe Biden wants windmills
“The federal role in damming the Columbia tied in well with the New Deal belief that the government should stimulate economic recovery by putting people to work and encouraging the creation of public utilities,” records a National Park Service history of the river’s Grand Coulee dam. “Franklin D. Roosevelt, elected president of the United States in 1932, asked for plans for a low dam with foundations strong enough to support a higher dam later, one that would back water up to the Canadian border.” (President Joe Biden’s efforts to grow offshore wind) No thought was given to the river’s salmon. “Of all the impacts that caused extinctions of 
Columbia River Basin salmon and steelhead, dams were the most significant. “The dam wiped out runs that spawned in tributaries that drained into the Columbia from that point, river mile 596, to the headwaters, a distance of 645 river miles. Adding the tributary miles where salmon spawned nearly doubled the distance. >click to read< 14:36
Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 49’11″X19′ Novi Lobster/Gillnetter, Cat 3306, Substantial Price Reduction
To review specifications, information, and 26 photos, >click here< , To see all the boats in this series >click here< 11:50
Alaska Supreme Court upholds $20,000 fine for Metlakatla fisherman in fishing rights case
The Alaska Supreme Court has upheld the conviction of a Metlakatla fisherman who was fined for fishing without the proper permits. The case is part of a long-running dispute over tribal sovereignty. In 2014, U.S. Coast Guard officers reported a Metlakatla tribal member fishing in a closed area without a state commercial fishing permit. When they boarded the boat they found a few dozen coho salmon, which the skipper reportedly said he intended to sell. Metlakatla resident John Scudero Jr. was cited for three commercial fishing violations and fined $20,000 after a one-day trial the following year. >click to read< 08:27
Dunmore East fishermen tell Minister: “All the problems go away if you get more quota.”
The Marine Minister visited the picturesque Dunmore East harbour on one of the hottest days of the year, he faced some searing questions about the future of the fishing fleet, including from a young fisherman who asked him to fight for more quota. “Every year it’s getting harder,” another fisherman said. A fifth generation Dunmore East fisherman told the Minister: “All the problems go away if you get more quota.” Around 20 fishermen gathered at the famous Co Waterford harbour to air their grievances with the minister,,, >click to read< 07:38
Nothing Green Here! Offshore wind farm turbines could number 30,000 globally by 2030
The price of offshore wind turbines,,, Turbines are up to 70% steel, which is made from recycled or newly extracted iron, which is processed from ores. These ores are removed from rocks by blasting causing disruption to the natural environment, and often from sites with cultural significance to indigenous people. The mined ores are then transported by large trucks, crushed, refined, processed and shipped. Whether it’s emissions from machines processing and transporting the ores or air and water contaminants released during extraction, mining creates pollution. Converting the iron into steel also contributes to climate change. Globally, the iron and steel industry is responsible for 11% of CO₂ emissions. Steel plates are shipped and then rolled into curved sections, people and machines weld these to form long tubes, which are loaded onto vessels, transported to sea and assembled,,, processes which are largely powered by fossil fuels. >click to read< 16:05
No Crabs, No Scallops: Seafood Is Vanishing From Menus in U.S.
Prices went “crazy,” says Mike Price, who co-owns the Greenwich Village restaurant, and so he yanked them off the menu. Over in Napa Valley, Phil Tessier, the executive chef at a popular spot called PRESS, did the same. And in Atlanta, at the tapas joint the Iberian Pig, chef Josue Pena didn’t stop at scallops. The Alaskan halibut and blue crab are gone, too. That last one was a killer, Pena says. Crab croquettes had become a signature dish. “People were like ‘what’s up?’” But, he says, with wholesale costs soaring like they are, “the price we had to charge to be profitable was almost insulting.” For restaurants across the U.S., the re-opening from Covid lockdown has been anything but easy. >click to read< 11:47
Men at work on the Manin on a muggy Monday morning in Newlyn
Hardly a breath of wind to disturb the tranquil waters of Newlyn this morning as the crew of the Ocean Pride struggle to pull the Sapphire II back into her berth before making her way to the slip cradle. Meanwhile on the fish market there are couple of big trips of haddock and other quality white fish for the Irish trawler Unity. hake from the Ajax, and quality flats form the beam trawler Sapphire II. Lots of beautiful fish, beautiful photos! >click to read< 08:08
Greek traditional wooden boat builders a dwindling craft
Each beam of wood, each plank, has been felled, trimmed and shaped by one man alone, hauled and nailed into place using techniques handed down through generations, from father to son, uncle to nephew. But the current generation could be the last. The art of designing and building these vessels, done entirely by hand, is under threat. “Unfortunately, I see the profession slowly dying,” said Giorgos Kiassos, one of the last remaining 
boatbuilders on Samos, an eastern Aegean island that was once a major production center. “If something doesn’t change, there will come a time when there won’t be anyone left doing this type of job. And it’s a pity, a real pity,” Kiassos is working on two: a 45-foot pleasure craft and a 30-foot fishing boat. The boats are being made to order, with the bigger one costing around $70,000, and the smaller one around $35,000. >click to read< 11:41
Fake ‘Green’ Energy: So Much Spent On Wind & Solar For So Little Return
Wind and solar are not just costly they are entirely useless. Never in the field of energy generation has so much been spent, by so many, for so little return. Forget the colossal and endless subsidies, forget the community division, forget the environmental destruction and landfills full of toxic blades and panels and start with the fact that wind and solar are simply incapable of delivering electricity as and when we need it. On that score, we’ll hand over to John Hinderaker for a look at wind and solar power’s utterly pathetic performance in the USA. At AmericanExperiment.org, my colleague Isaac Orr deals a double-barreled blow to the fantasy of “green” energy. First, after all of the hype surrounding wind and solar energy, where did Americans actually get their energy in 2020? >click to read< 09:20
New vessel is part of the Atlantic Dawn Group’s ambitious programme of fleet renewal
Built for the McHugh family in Killybegs, Ella G-233 is primarily a pelagic vessel with options for whitefish, and replaces Star of Hope. Ella has been delivered by Mooney Boats and has stylish lines, courtesy of its Vestværft design. At 24.47 metres and with an 8.10 metre beam, this compact pelagic catcher complements the company’s three new Salt-designed 64 metre vessels currently under construction. Veronica, Lauren and Leila are being built at the Cemre Shipyard in Turkey. Photos, nice video, >click to read< 18:03
State of the art super trawler Mekhanik Sizov launched in Russia
The Admiralty Shipyards, located in St. Petersburg, have been the scene this Sunday of the launching ceremony of the super trawler of last generation Mekhanik Sizov. The ceremony, held during the day of Russian Navy Day, was attended by the country’s president, Vladimir Putin. Ships of this type measure 108 meters in length and 21 meters in beam. In addition, they have warehouses of 5,500 cubic meters. The ST-192 project ships reach a speed of 15 knots (almost 28 kilometers per hour), while their autonomy allows them to remain in the open sea for 45 days with a crew on board up to 139 members. photo, gif, >click to read< 13:21
The RNLI is now a taxi service for human traffickers in the Channel migrant crossing crisis
They’re undoubtedly one of my favourite charities. And while I celebrate the bravery of the RNLI in that they’ll risk their own lives to save anyone irrespective of colour, creed, age or nationality, I’m not sure I’m supporting the Lifeboat Charity so they can act as an escort service for the French Navy in its abject failure to do its duty. That task seems to have fallen to them on a daily basis now the Channel migrant crossing crisis has reached a never before seen high point. Last week definitive proof arrived that when it comes to patrolling their borders and preventing vile people traffickers plying their dubious but ridiculously lucrative trade across one of the busiest shipping lanes on the planet, the French don’t have a Clouseau. >click to read< 09:54
The Herring Girl Collection: Barra Knitwear brand honours the Herring Girls legacy
It takes its name from the band of formidable young women from the Outer Hebrides who followed the shoals of herring around the British coast undertaking gruelling work to gut, cure and pack the fish for local merchants. While away from their families, the “Herring Girls” would pass the time knitting using patterns incorporating anchors, ship’s wheels, hearts, or marriage lines that were handed down through the years. Hundreds of young 
women, some as young as 15, left their homes in Barra, Lewis, Orkney and Shetland in the 1880s and the early 1900s to travel to industrial ports around the UK. The work that they carried out was gruelling,,, The women went on strike, twice, and were successful in achieving modest pay rises. Many of the girls met their future husbands at one or other of the fishing ports. >click to read< 12:57
‘This film is a love letter to Gloucester’ – Sundance winner ‘CODA’ premieres before local crowd
The charms of Gloucester exploded on the big screen at the local unveiling of the film “CODA,” a four-time winner at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. The special event Thursday evening, intended for those who worked or assisted in some way with the film, turned out to be “the” premiere after director Sian Heder learned that the West Coast screening was canceled.,, Heder thanked everyone involved in the film and the support of her family. “You don’t make a movie alone, and this was not an easy film to make,” she told the full house. “All this fishing stuff is such a crazy undertaking.” >click to read< 09:35
Ten pirates get 12 years in prison for kidnapping 18 crewmen from the F/V Hailufeng II
A court in Lagos sentenced 10 men to 12 years in prison on Friday for kidnapping the crew of a Chinese-flagged merchant vessel last year, the navy said, a verdict that officials hope will help tackle piracy in the waters off Nigeria’s coast. Federal high court Justice Ayokunle Faji, who also fined each man 250,000 naira ($608) for each of the three counts for which they were charged, said their actions in kidnapping 18 crew from the FV HAILUFENG II in May 2020, were “an embarrassment to the nation that has impacted the economy negatively”. >click to read< 22:36
How the U.S. Fishing Fleet Served the Navy and Coast Guard in WWII
In the early days of World War II, demand skyrocketed for vessels to fill the needs of the U.S. sea services. The Coast Guard was no exception as they competed with the U.S. Navy and U.S. Army for new construction as well as privately owned ships. Facing a high demand for vessels, the service turned to the U.S. fishing industry as a source for its cutters. These emergency acquisitions included East Coast trawlers, whalers from both coasts, and East Coast menhaden fishing vessels, such as the Emergency Manning vessel Dow (WYP 353). During World War I and World War II, the menhaden fishing fleet became a ready reserve for the Navy and Coast Guard. Both services needed small, shallow draft vessels for coastal convoy escort, mine planting, minesweeping, and anti-submarine net tending duty. Many of these vessels were purchased or leased, while others were loaned to naval forces by fishing businesses as their contribution to the war effort. >click to read< 18:28
Drone Joins HM Coastguard Search and Rescue Team
The first operational drone flight will join manned helicopters, planes, boats, and cliff rescue teams on lifesaving missions at sea and over land in North Wales for the first time, this summer. The drone was initially tested a year ago and recently during a phase of operational integration training, the drone flew for the first time in formation alongside both the HM Coastguard S92 helicopter and HM Coastguard’s King Air surveillance aircraft. >click to read< 12:13
