Category Archives: International
Almost 300 homes on Bere Island without power after sea trawler damages underwater ESB cable
An Island of more than 200 people off west Cork has lost electricity after large fishing trawlers damaged an undersea ESB cable. Bere Island has been without power for its approximately 280 ESB customers since the incident yesterday afternoon. An undersea diver is attempting to locate the damaged cable so restoration work can be carried out. “The outage occurred yesterday afternoon (4 January) as a result of a fishing vessel accidentally coming into contact with a cable running from Castletownbere to Bere Island,” a spokesperson said. more, >>click to read<< 16:00
Flawed snow crab price-setting system needs overhaul soon, FFAW says
The president of the Fish, Food & Allied Workers union says time is ticking on getting a new formula-based seafood pricing system in place ahead of the 2024 season. A November report from the province’s three-person fish price-setting team submitted to the provincial government said the current seafood price-setting process is flawed and changes need to be made to avoid another tie-up that halted the snow crab industry for six weeks last season. The report offered nine recommendations, including that a formula-based pricing system be implemented by the end of January. FFAW president Greg Pretty said that process is underway. more, >>click to read<< 14:16
“Offshore wind is in trouble,,, US offshore wind slammed by runaway costs
The US offshore wind industry, banking on a big boost from the landmark Inflation Reduction Act, has found itself face-to-face with a major hurdle that’s been right there in the name all along: inflation. In fact, the law might even be making it worse. More than 10 gigawatts of offshore wind projects along the US East Coast, the equivalent of roughly 10 nuclear power reactors, are at serious risk as higher costs force developers to re-crunch the numbers for proposals originally modeled years ago, before a runup in interest rates and material costs. Orsted A/S, the Danish wind giant, said this week it’s prepared to walk away from projects unless it gets even more government aid. Other developers are already paying tens of millions in penalties to exit contracts they say no longer make financial sense. more, >>click to read<< 08:20
Hampidjan Canada becomes latest CatchCam distributor
SafetyNet Technologies has entered into a strategic partnership with Hampidjan Canada Ltd. As the latest distributor of SafetyNet’s CatchCam underwater camera, Hampidjan is set to bring innovation tin Newfoundland and Nova Scotia,o the forefront of the Canadian fishing industry. Based in Newfoundland and Nova Scotia, Hampidjan Canada is an integral part of the local fishing industry. Specialised in providing reliable equipment for commercial fishermen, their position makes them ideal distributors for CatchCam in the Canadian market. more, >>click to read<< 11:54
Fishermen fear for future of industry in Cromer crab row
The Cromer Shoal Chalk Bed is the world’s longest chalk reef, stretching more than 20 miles along the coast from Weybourne to Happisburgh, and has provided a living for generations of fishermen. But there are now fears for the future of this centuries-old industry. This is because three sections of the reef have now become ‘no fishing zones’ as part of a study to compare the damage being caused to the chalk bed by natural causes and potting – the traditional method of using pots to catch crabs and lobsters. The ‘natural disturbance study’ is being carried out by the Eastern Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority (EIFCA) and comes after a report by Natural England found fishermen dropping pots on the seabed was damaging the chalk. photos, more, >>click to read<< 10:21
We used AI and satellite imagery to map ocean activities that take place out of sight, including fishing, shipping and energy development
A newly published study in the journal Nature combines satellite images, vessel GPS data and artificial intelligence to reveal human industrial activities across the ocean over a five-year period. Researchers at Global Fishing Watch, a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing ocean governance through increased transparency of human activity at sea, led this study, in collaboration with me and our colleagues at Duke University, University of California, Santa Barbara and Sky Truth. We found that a remarkable amount of activity occurs outside of public monitoring systems. Our new map and data provide the most comprehensive public picture available of industrial uses of the ocean. more, >>click to read<< 15:52
Tories claim bigger earnings add up to Brexit boost for Scottish fishing
Scottish fishers are reaping the rewards of a Brexit boost to the value of their catches, the Tories have claimed. However, the Scottish Government insists the industry is worse off overall. Figures obtained from the government show a 27.4% boost to sales income for larger vessels – those 79ft and up – in the three years to 2022. These boats netted fish and other seafood worth a total of £3.5 million in 2022. This is compared with landings valued at £3m in 2021 and £2.8m in 2019. Crews on these vessels saw their average monthly sales incomes increase from £22,000 to £31,000. more, >>click to read<< 06:39
Canada pledges to work with U.S. over competing claims to Arctic sea floor
The federal government is pledging to work with its American counterparts after the U.S. claimed parts of the Arctic sea floor that Canada also wants. Grantly Franklin, spokesman for Global Affairs Canada, said in an email that Canada expects to follow the process set out in a United Nations treaty despite the fact the U.S. hasn’t ratified the Convention on the Law of the Sea. “Canada and the U.S. are in frequent communication with regards to the continental shelf in the Arctic and have expressed their commitment along with other Arctic states to the orderly settlement of overlapping claims,” Franklin wrote. more, >>click to read<< 19:43
Exploring the viability of large-scale hatchery production of Atlantic surf clams for fishery enhancement
Fishery stock enhancement strategies – also known as restocking for conservation purposes, or sea ranching for economic purposes – have gained interest among U.S. stakeholders as challenges associated with food security, marine habitat degradation and potential job losses increase due to anthropogenic stressors. The Atlantic surf clam (Spisula solidissima) is considered one of the most important commercial clam species harvested in the United States. It is a large marine bivalve that is distributed from the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina; however, the fishery for Atlantic surf clam is based off the Mid-Atlantic coast, where surf clams have historically been most abundant. more, >>click to read<< 13:18
NZ Fishing Company Fined for Exposing Crewmembers to Asbestos
New Zealand’s largest deepwater fishing company has been slapped with a fine after being convicted with a charge Sealord pled guiltywhile working on-board the 50-year-old fishing vessel F/V Will Watch. Last August, Sealord pled guilty to failing to properly protect workers from the risk of harm from exposure to asbestos. In December, that charge resulted in the company being fined about US$196,000, a substantial penalty but less than the statutory maximum of US$983,000. more, >>click to read<< 11:54
Restaurant Chain Lobster Mac & Cheese Ranked Worst to Best, According to Customers
Both mac & cheese and lobster shine as individual dining options. Now, picture them combined into one spectacular dish. A delightful fusion of contrasting flavors and textures, lobster mac & cheese elevates a classic comfort food into a gourmet experience. Although the exact origins of when and where lobster was first added to this gooey dish are unknown, according to The New York Times, its popularity surged in 2011 following a record-breaking harvest of Maine lobster. Eager to test your taste buds? Here are some of the best and worst chain restaurants to get your lobster mac & cheese fix, as rated by customers! photos, more, >>click to read<< 10:16
The quintessentially British fish and chips is endangered. Why?
Ever since she was old enough to walk, Terrilea Coglan was climbing aboard fishing boats that set sail each morning from the rocky beachfront of Hastings to harvest the key ingredient in Britain’s most iconic dish: fish and chips. The day’s catch travels just a short way from the boats up to the seaside fish and chips shops, or “chippies,” that pride themselves as much in the freshness of the fish as in the secret recipes for their gooey batter. Coglan’s parents and grandparents were in the fish trade, and now her sons are, too. But these days Coglan fears they may be the last. Photos, more, >>click to read<< 07:54
Are right whales big business for nonprofits?
Forget the green economy, the deep blue economy has it beat by a nautical mile. Ever wonder how much money is spent trying to protect the North Atlantic right whale? Ask any of the non-profit corporations that participate in funding to save them. Here in Maine, at least nine non-profit organizations support right whale conservation efforts, in addition to state agencies and the University of Maine. Nationally, the North Atlantic Right Whale Consortium shows 47 environmental organizations it identifies as “partners” on its website. Another 37 environmental groups signed a PEW charitable trust letter to Congress last March, critical of what it believed to be too little funding to protect the species. more, >>click to read<< by Jane Carpenter 08:36
‘I’m a fisherman who hasn’t caught a fish in two years because of ridiculous Welsh laws’
It’s a boggy December morning on the Cleddau river and Alun Lewis is tending to his four miniature horses and a few boats moored up on his four acres of land. We’re in the quiet hamlet of Landshipping that looks out onto the large expanse of water which is otherwise only 50 or so feet wide at other times of the year. It is prime time for Alun – one of the world’s last six compass net fishers – to don his waders and float his little handmade 150-year-old wooden boat towards the estuary. Compass net fishing has been in Alun’s family for generations. His grandfather, Dennis Lewis, died in the boat in 1966 after he had a heart attack on the water. He was found by Alun and his father, Glyndwr Lewis, floating on the river in the boat the following morning. Glyndwr, who died last month aged 92, is pictured in the boat with his father and siblings as a small child. photos, more, <<click to read<< 07:01
Help Alaska’s fisheries: Reduce methane emissions
NOAA now confirms that another critical Alaska fishery is in decline due to successive marine heat waves. First there was the loss of 10 billion snow crabs and the close of the once-lucrative Bering Sea crab fisheries; now we know that climate change (warming seas) is the culprit behind the crash of chum salmon on the Yukon-Kuskokwim. Both these fisheries are the life blood to many Alaskan communities and villages. From the Yukon to Kodiak, from the Arctic to Ketchikan, Alaska’s coastal fisheries must now confront the dual threat of heat waves and ocean acidification. more, >>click to read<< By Linda Behnken and Kate Troll 15:48
Swimming Against the Tide
Russian Crab and Antey, two prominent Russian crab-catching companies, signed an agreement with a Russian government agency to invest 224 billion roubles ($2.3 billion) to build 18 crabbers in the next few years and expand the Far East’s coastal processing infrastructure. Under the agreements signed during the Vladivostok Economic Forum, Antey intends to build eight crabbers and launch two port complexes housing fish processing infrastructure. Russian Crab plans to add ten new vessels to its fleet. Russian crab currently runs a fleet of 37 vessels, Antey has 52 in operation. Both companies participated in the first round of the crab auctions. Photos, more, >>click to read<< 09:01
New Year Honours: Lobster fishery, marine reserve are sources of pride for industry veteran
“Show me the data,” is the catchcry of Larnce Wichman. His more than 40 years in the Marlborough rock lobster industry convinced Wichman that what can be measured can also be managed. And as the chairperson of the Kaikōura Marine Guardians, he believes the principle applies equally to conservation. Wichman has been named an officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the New Year Honours list for his services to the seafood industry and marine conservation. He recently retired as the executive officer of Cramac 5, which represents commercial lobster fishers on the South Island’s east coast. photos, more, >>click to read<< 14:31
Fishing chiefs urge ministers to work with industry, not against it
Fishing chiefs have urged the Scottish Government to work in tandem with the industry and help avoid a repeat of the Highly Protected Marine Areas (HPMAs) “fiasco” of 2023. Their plea comes at the end of a year in which, with the support of coastal and island communities, they fought off plans to limit fishing in at least 10% of Scotland’s seas. The Scottish Fishermen’s Federation (SFF) said it wanted “collaboration rather than conflict. “As we look ahead into next year, we urge ministers to resist the doom-laden and over-simplified platitudes of the corporately-funded environmental NGOs non-governmental organisations) who have their own agenda – banning fishing, regardless of the consequences. photos, more, >>click to read<< 12:51
Lobster Market Outlook, Industry Size, Growth Factors, Investment Opportunity 2024-2032
IMARC Group, a leading market research company, has recently released a report titled “Lobster Market Report by Species (American Lobster, Spiny Lobster, Rock Lobster, European Lobster), Weight (0.5 – 0.75 lbs, 0.76 – 3.0 lbs, Over 3 lbs), Product Type (Whole Lobster, Lobster Tail, Lobster Meat, Lobster Claw), Distribution Channel (Food Service, Retail), and Region 2024-2032.”The study provides a detailed analysis of the industry, including the global lobster market share, size, trends, and growth forecasts. The report also includes competitor and regional analysis and highlights the latest advancements in the market. How Big is the Lobster Market? more, >>click to read<< 10:36
2,788 incidents coordinated by Coast Guard in 2023
In 2023, the Irish Coast Guard coordinated responses to 2,788 incidents which is the second highest number in 5 years (2,976 in 2021). August was the busiest month with a total of 391 incidents. The incident count covers the range of services provided by the Coast Guard. Services include search and rescue, maritime casualty support and pollution preparedness and response. IRCG also provides air ambulance services to the HSE including day and night aeromedical services to the offshore islands, assists An Garda Síochána with missing person searches, including inland and mountain rescue, as well as provision of other support to the Emergency Services. photos, more, >>click to read<< 09:56
Darwin fisherman Daniel Schoolmeester granted bail after allegedly holding workers captive without pay
A fisherman accused of holding workers captive on his boat in the Northern Territory has been granted bail in the Darwin Local Court. Daniel Schoolmeester is accused of forcing at least four people to work on his ship as forced labour and keeping them in servitude. Prosecutor Annabelle Bridgland argued against bail citing the serious nature of the offending. Ms Bridgland told the court they had identified nine more potential victims. more>>click to read<< 07:11
U.S. preparing to claim new ocean territory off Arctic Alaska and in central Bering Sea
United States ocean territory could expand by an area more than twice the size of California, with most of that in ocean areas off Alaska, under a claim being prepared by the federal government. The U.S. State Department this month announced results of a two-decade program to map the extended continental shelf areas beyond the nation’s 200-mile exclusive economic zone. Much of the focus was on the Arctic Ocean, where bathymetric and geologic surveys by federal agencies produced the first detailed maps of a complex seafloor with a series of canyons, ridges and deep-sea plateaus. The U.S. State Department this month announced results of a two-decade program to map the extended continental shelf areas beyond the nation’s 200-mile exclusive economic zone. more, >>click to read<< 16:08
Fisheries observer turns up dead in latest incident in Ghana waters
Two years after the disappearance of fisheries observer Emmanuel Essien off the coast of Ghana, another observer has vanished from a fishing trawler. According to his family, 38-year-old Samuel Abayateye was reported missing on Oct. 30. His decapitated body washed ashore nearly six weeks later. Abayateye was assigned to Marin 707, a Ghana-flagged vessel owned and operated by a South Korean company, World Marine Co. Ltd. His brother, Yohane, told Mongabay he last spoke to Abayateye on Oct. 24, when the observer called to say he was trying unsuccessfully to reach his supervisor in Marin 707’s home port of Tema to report an incident. more, >>click to read<< 13:31
Liafjord Heads For Home
Norwegian fishing company Liegruppen’s new pelagic trawler Liafjord is steaming home to Norway, having been handed over to its owners by the Cemre Shipyard in Turkey. The 71-metre by 15-metre beam Liafjord is designed by Salt Ship Design and follows the groundbreaking LNG-powered Libas, which was delivered by the same yard several years ago. Liegruppen opted not to go for the same LNG propulsion system for Liafjord, although the vessel has some respectable green energy credentials, with electric winches, heat recovery technology and a large battery pack as part of its hybrid propulsion. Photo, more, >>click to read<< 12:21
Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 44ft 11in Provincial Longliner Rod & Reel
To review specifications, information, and 30 photos’,>click here<, To see all the boats in this series, >click here< o7: 55
William Deas: East Neuk fisherman who skippered Reaper dies at 98
William Coull Deas, the embodiment of the once-thriving Scottish herring fishing industry, has died aged 98. Born in Cellardyke, from the age of 13 he fished all over Britain following the herring shoals. His father was a fisherman and his mother was a herring quine. William, known as Coull or Coulli, saw service with the Royal Navy during the Second World War before becoming a shareholder of the East Neuk boat, Fruitful. In more recent years, Coull skippered Reaper, a 1902-built two-masted herring drifter which had been restored by the Scottish Fisheries Museum at Anstruther. Photos, more, >>click to read<< 07:04
In St. John’s 150 years ago, a giant squid had its picture taken. That photo would ignite the world’s imagination
Before one remarkable moment in downtown St. John’s a century and a half ago, the giant squid lived only in the tall tales of sailors and fishermen. Then, thanks to a single photograph, the massive cephalopod immediately moved from the realm of fantasy to reality. And today “squid spirits” — as enthusiasts consider themselves — continue to marvel at the fact that there’s still so much mystery and awe around the creature 150 years later. “It was seminal. It pushed science’s understanding of giant squid ahead by leaps and bounds, and No. 1: it proved they were real,” says Jenny Higgins, a writer who works with the Maritime History Archive at Memorial University. This story starts in November 1873, when a group of fishermen in Logy Bay out on the water came across something much bigger than herring. Video,Images, photos, more, >>click to read<< 09:48
New Ring Netter Joins Newlyn Fleet
Built by G Smyth Boats in Kilkeel, new ring netter Inter-Nos PZ-46 made its delivery trip home to Newlyn to dock in its home port before Christmas. The Maxus Fast Cat has been designed and outfitted to fish for pilchards and is powered by a pair of Volvo Penta D8A5-A-MH main engines. The deck is laid out with a Spencer Carter 3000lb slave hauler with a MV500 motor and a Thistle Lift crane with a telescopic extension. more, >>click to read<< 08:31
Filmmaker Helgeland drew on his New Bedford fishing past for ‘Finestkind’
In a final scene of the film “Finestkind,” as the New Bedford-Fairhaven Bridge slowly pivots open, a father and son cross paths for what might be the last time. One is handcuffed in the back of a police van. The other is outward bound on a fishing trip. Most in New Bedford know the bridge as little more than a morning traffic jam. But for Brian Helgeland, the 62-year-old New Bedford-raised screenwriter who returned to his hometown to shoot his newest film, the bridge is a symbol of his childhood and his development as a writer. As a boy, Helgeland rode his bicycle over the bridge. As a young man working on scallop boats, he passed through the bridge as the first leg of a long voyage out to sea. And now, three decades later, the same bridge is also a set in his own film. Photos, more, >>click to read<< 06:45
CHRISTMAS CRACKER CREWS
Christmas was a time of conflict within Hull’s trawling industry. The clash was between love and money. Trawlermen loved to be at home over the festive season, living it up with their family and friends. The trawler owners, however, wanted their vessels at sea in order to land fish on the market for early January. The price of fish was always extremely high around 1 January, because all Scottish fishing ports were closed for the Hogmanay celebrations north of the border. The ships’ runners bore the brunt of this conflict of interests. They were employed to crew the ships (each firm had its own runner). It was a difficult job at the best of times, but especially during the run-up to Christmas. They did their job by fair means or foul. Different strategies were used to get the ships away. One was to sign men who had been on a ‘walkabout’ or were ‘blackballed’. A man who had been disciplined by the owners would be keen to ‘get shipped up’ and work his way back into the industry. Christmas was his best chance. Another devious method, when scraping the bottom of the barrel,,, photos, more, >>click to read<< 15:18
