A fishing boat carrying 2,600 gallons of fuel sank off the western shore of San Juan Island on Saturday, releasing an oily sheen that spread for 2 miles in critical habitat for the Northwest’s endangered orcas. The crew aboard the F/V Aleutian Isle radioed for help Saturday, saying they were taking on water. They abandoned their sinking ship and clambered into the skiff they normally use to maneuver the boat’s purse-like net to capture salmon. Two other salmon-fishing boats, the F/V Marathon and the F/V Intruder, rescued the five-person crew before the U.S. Coast Guard arrived. The 58-foot F/V Aleutian Isle sank to the seafloor in more than 100 feet of water about 2 p.m. How much of the boat’s fuel spilled is unknown. >click to read< 07:55
Category Archives: Pacific
Efforts to remove sunken vessel near Victoria are difficult due to conditions
A small fishing vessel remains underwater two weeks after it sank off the coast of San Juan Island, Washington, and the U.S. Coast Guard says removal efforts are difficult due to strong water conditions. On Aug. 13, the Aleutian Isle sank near the U.S. Island — approximately 25.6 kilometers east of Victoria. Dumping an estimated 9,854 litres of diesel oil, sheen covered several kilometers of water and threatened marine life while sparking a joint response between U.S. and Canadian agencies. Video, >click to read< 09:06
Divers hope to wrap up work, raise sunken fishing vessel near San Juan Island soon – Two weeks after an oil spill began off the west side of San Juan Island, divers began work that will allow them to plug a sunken fishing vessel more than 200 feet below the surface. >click to read<
FERC Staff Recommend Removal of Lower Klamath Dams in Final Environmental Document
After nearly two decades of painstaking negotiations and political turbulence, the largest river restoration project in American history is set to begin early next year. This morning, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) staff released the long-awaited Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for license surrender, decommissioning and removal of four dams – Copco No. 1, Copco No. 2, J.C. Boyle and Iron Gate – on the Lower Klamath River, a move that would restore over 400 miles of critical salmon spawning habitat in the Klamath Basin. The 1,242-page document contains FERC staff’s evaluation of the environmental, cultural and economic impacts associated with dam removal. In short, staff agree that dam removal is the best path forward. >click to read< 10:08
Energy companies reach $13 million deal to resolve criminal charges over OC oil spill
The company that operates an underwater oil pipeline that ruptured last year, spilling 25,000 gallons of crude into the ocean off Huntington Beach — forcing a closure of beaches and fisheries — has agreed to pay nearly $13 million to resolve a federal criminal indictment over the spill, prosecutors announced Friday. As part of the agreement, Amplify Energy Corp. and two of its subsidiaries will plead guilty to violating the federal Clean Water Act, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. >click to read< 19:40
Commercial fisherman’s union concerned over Ottawa’s rejection of Pacific Salmon Commission recommendations
The commercial fisherman’s union has expressed its concerns over Ottawa’s recent rejection of the Pacific Salmon Commission’s (PSC) recommendations which were accepted by the U.S. The PSC’s recommendations, which advocate for a certain amount of commercial fishing, were presented to both countries after a review by fisheries experts from Canada and U.S, said UFAWU-Unifor in an Aug.19 statement. PSC’s mandate is to protect salmon stocks and has long been trusted to enforce the Pacific Salmon Treaty. “Despite PSC recommendations that would support a fishery, the Fraser River Panel announced that ‘all Canadian Panel Area waters remain closed to commercial salmon fishing,’ citing a precautionary approach,” stated the union in a media release. >click to read< 11:13
B.C. fishermen fume as their Americans counterparts fish
Commercial salmon fishers and environmentalists are crying foul, for opposite reasons after U.S. fisheries officials let American fishers hit the water while the Canadian government kept their counterparts ashore. After several years of historically low runs, the Pacific Salmon Commission (PSC), an international fisheries management organization, estimated last week that enough sockeye, about 4.4 million, would return to the Fraser River to support a commercial fishery. American fisheries managers adopted the commission’s estimate, opening a small commercial fishing window over the weekend. But in a rare disagreement, Canadian officials did not, citing concerns the run would be nearly one million fish smaller than predicted, and kept Canada’s waters closed. >click to read< 10:16
Concern for BC sockeye salmon as return estimates drop by millions – The Pacific Salmon Commission’s pre-season estimate of 9.8 million returning fish went down to 5.5 million Monday, prompting environmentalists and fishers alike to express concern. >click to read<
New generation keeps Pacific City’s famous dory fleet afloat
In 2003, when Shawn Farstad tracked down the dory boat his father sold in 1988, the boat was rotted and the owner was asking “a fortune.” But it had been built by Farstad’s grandfather, skippered by his dad and named for his sister, Susann, and mom, Janet. So, Farstad and his wife, Crystal, paid the price. Then, Farstad took the Su-Jan home, stripped it down to the bones and built it all over again. In this coastal home of the Pacific City dory fleet, the bond between fisher and boat runs deep. Today, Farstad builds dories and helps maintain the fleet. The demand for his work is growing as the dories grow older and need more care. 5 photos, >click to read< 10:11
F/V Aleutian Isle: Unified Command continues response to pollution incident off San Juan Island
Daily overflights have shown the amount of sheening remains minimal. This sheening is originating from periodic venting of diesel from the fuel tanks. A barge and crane are being transported from Seattle to San Juan Island to assist in raising the vessel. Additionally, due to the depth of the wreck, divers are required to use specialized gas mixtures which are currently being produced. Once mixed, the gas must settle and be tested for proportionality, and then shipped to the San Juan Island team. The crane, barge, and gas mixture are estimated to arrive later this week. Once received, removal operations will begin. >click to read< 20:10
Fishermen first aid and safety training coming to Charleston
Commercial fishing is a dangerous and challenging occupation. Everyone wants to be safe, but the risk of injury is always there. With this in mind, a team from Oregon State University and Oregon Sea Grant developed Fishermen First Aid and Safety Training, designed around the principles of wilderness first aid to better enable fishermen to prevent and treat injuries they are likely to encounter at sea. This year OSU is partnering with the Charleston Fishing Families to host FFAST August 29 and 30 from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at their office near the Charleston Marina. >click to read, with additional links< 14:33
Steps continue to remove sunken boat from seafloor near San Juan Island
Response teams continue to take gradual steps to remove the F/V Aleutian Isle from the seafloor after the 49-foot fishing vessel sank last weekend west of San Juan Island. Teams are moving forward with a plan to remove the whole commercial vessel and have it placed onto a barge, where contaminants can be safely removed, according to a Friday news release from the U.S. Coast Guard 13th District Pacific Northwest. “This is the best course of action to ensure the removal of as much pollutants and contamination as possible from the environmentally sensitive area,” the statement said. >click to read< 20:20
Fishermen, Con Groups Appeal Nordic Aquafarms’ Environmental Report Certification
Two weeks after the Humboldt County Planning Commission certified the Final Environmental Impact Report (FEIR) for Nordic Aquafarms’ planned land-based fish factory on the Samoa Peninsula, the decision is being appealed to the Board of Supervisors. On Thursday, leaders of three local nonprofits, the Redwood Region Audubon Society Chapter, the Humboldt Fishermen’s Marketing Association and 350 Humboldt, submitted a letter to the supervisors and to John Ford, the county’s director of planning and building, initiating the appeal. The letter alleges that the environmental report, which was prepared for the county by local engineering firm GHD, violates the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) by understating several of the project’s impacts, including its greenhouse gas emissions, its energy use and the threats it poses to commercial fisheries and coastal and bay ecosystems. >click to read< 11:44
After the storm: Survivor recounts Pelican Bay storm 50 years later
David Alan Shinkle vividly remembers the day he lost his grandfather. It was 50 years ago, on Aug. 16, 1972 – a day that would change the course of his life. It was the day a tragic storm took the lives of 13 fishermen in Pelican Bay. Shinkle, like many young men and women, had the pleasure of spending summers with his grandparents. He remembers beachcombing, shooting guns and just doing the things that young boys do. When he was a teenager, he started fishing with his grandfather Clayton Dooley. Dooley was captain of the “Dixie Lee,” a 35-foot diesel-powered trawler based out of Brookings. When he and his grandfather left the Brookings boat basin early the morning of the storm, the skies were overcast and it was lightly raining. 2 photos, >click to read< 12:08
Oregon State Police conducts week-long ocean patrol
The entire OSP Marine Fisheries Team participated in a week long ocean enforcement effort aboard the Guardian, patrolling ports from Pacific City to the Oregon/California border. The enforcement focused on commercial and sport fisheries. Team members contacted a multitude of commercial vessels fishing for whiting, pink shrimp, sablefish, halibut and salmon. Two commercial troll salmon boats were cited for Commercial Troll Prohibited Method: more than four spreads per wire. One vessel had six spreads per wire and the other vessel had one wire with 10 spreads and another three with 6six spreads. 2 photos, >click to read< 16:15
Sunken fishing boat shifts into deeper water in Salish Sea leaking fuel in orca habitat
An update from the U.S. Coast Guard says the 15-metre F/V Aleutian Isle has shifted since it went down Saturday off Washington state, near San Juan Island, roughly 25 kilometres east of Victoria. The vessel, loaded with about 10,000 litres of diesel and oil, was originally resting in about 30 metres of water, but U.S. officials say it is now some 60 metres below the surface. The coast guard says the added depth presents more logistical challenges that the on-scene dive team is working to resolve. Divers are also trying to gather and remove a large fishing net that has floated free of the wreck and the Coast Guard update says officials are watching the area closely even though no marine mammals have been reported nearby. >click to read< 17:55
Fishing vessel aground near Westport
The F/V Lady Debbie ran aground at about 4 a.m. near Cohassett Beach, according to the chief petty officer at U.S. Coast Guard Station Westport. The Coast Guard responded and at daybreak, the six people onboard the grounded boat walked to shore. No one was hurt. >click to read<, This story is breaking, and we will update it as we get more information. 12:46
Capt. Duffy Duncan of Astoria has passed away
The man, myth and legend, Capt. Duffy Duncan, of Astoria, passed away unexpectedly to the sea in the sky on Aug. 7 at the age of 74. All knew him to be larger than life, with an infectious laugh, and always ready with a crazy fishing story, weather or stock report. One of his biggest accomplishments was securing a United Nations contract to ferry the fishing vessel Tropac 5,000 miles across the Pacific to American Samoa, where he was integral in training the local fisherman modern tuna fishing techniques, later becoming their biggest industry. Numerous bets were placed on their lives prior to the risky voyage. The mission was completed in just 27 days, and they were warmly greeted by the U.S. Coast Guard and governor. He owned and operated several commercial fishing vessels, including the Viola II, Piranha, Carly D., and the Patricia Ann, both locally in Astoria and Bristol Bay, Alaska. >click to read< 09:08
Fishing vessel sinks off San Juan Island; Coast Guard responding to oil spill
All five crew members aboard the F/V Aleutian Isle were rescued by a good Samaritan as the vessel sank, the Coast Guard announced. Around 2 p.m., Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound got a report that the Aleutian Isle was taking on water near Sunset Point and was in need of emergency assistance. An Air Station Port Angeles MH-65 Dolphin helicopter, a Station Bellingham 45-foot response boat, and the 87-foot Coast Guard Cutter Swordfish (WPB-87358) all responded, the Coast Guard said. Once it knew that all crewmembers were accounted for, the Coast Guard started a pollution survey and began response efforts with partner agencies. Around 5 p.m., a visible oil sheen covering nearly 2 miles was seen on the water. >click to read< 07:37
Oregon Senators, Governor responds to offshore wind farms concerns during clean energy tour
During a clean energy tour of Oregon, KATU questioned the US Secretary of Energy, Jennifer Granholm, Oregon Senators Ron Wyden, Jeff Merkley and Governor Kate Brown on issues surrounding wind farms slated for the Southern Oregon Coast. “It’s too early honestly we don’t know it’s a lot like the wave energy technology it’s still being built it’s still being created,” said Oregon Gov. Kate Brown when asked if she would advocate funding for preliminary wind farm testing ahead of federal leases planed for Southern Oregon offshore areas. “We really need to understand all of the impacts upfront before we rush into this,” said Heather Mann Executive Director of the Midwater Trawlers’ cooperative. >click to read< 09:56
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Strategy to Reintroduce Sea Otters is Flawed
The USFWS study fails to estimate costs to taxpayers; impacts to key local fisheries such as Dungeness crab and sea urchin; neglects to fully examine the impacts to local port and harbor activities and fishing communities and fails to directly clarify to impacted Tribal Nations that no ceremonial and subsistence uses – or control of otter populations negatively impacting other important Tribal resources – are permitted under current Federal law. For Oregon and California coastal communities dependent on Dungeness crab, sea urchin, and other shellfish, reintroducing sea otters in an area where they have been absent for more than 100 years will spell big trouble. Yet, a recent report from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) concludes it is “feasible” to reintroduce them to Southern Oregon and Northern California. >click to read, with links< 08:19
TUNAVILLE – Point Loma’s proud Portuguese past, and present
The Point Loma boundaries of Lowell to Talbot streets, and as high up the peninsula as Willow Street, by the 1930s, had earned the moniker “Tunaville.” Here has been home to an immigrant Portuguese populace settled as far back as 1885, and by the 1940s had become a bustling tuna fishermen’s haven. Early Portuguese fishing settlements grew along the base of Kellogg and McCall streets in La Playa and Roseville. Interestingly, the natural tidelands at the time meandered as far inland as today’s Scott Street. “In remarkably short order, each fisherman owned his own dory. photos, >click to read< 14:58
Long Beach man replicates family history with winning model boat
Over the past eight years, Bob Daley painstakingly built a fishing boat replica from scratch. Although it was on a much smaller scale this go around, it wasn’t the first time Bob constructed the vessel, affectionately dubbed the Mary Anne II. During the 1950s, Bob and his two brothers worked as fishermen to put themselves through college. Unable to afford a boat large enough to sustain their business, they built their own and named it the Mary Anne II after their youngest sister. From April 1950 to May 1951, the Daley family’s driveway in Long Beach served as a makeshift shipyard. Bob 
and his brothers worked on the Mary Anne II nearly every day as their mother watched from the kitchen window, wringing her hands. “She was kind of a worrier, always wondering what was going to go wrong,” Bob said. But she always brought the boys sandwiches for lunch. And Mary Anne, the boat’s namesake, tagged along with lemonade and fresh cookies. Photos, >click to read< 09:42
Massive Fish Kill in the Klamath River After Flash Floods Inundate its Waters with Debris
Shocking photographs from Siskiyou County near Happy Camp show thousands of dead fish in the Klamath River after flash floods sent a deluge of debris into the fragile river ecosystem. The Klamath River Watershed runs through the burn zone of the McKinney Fire, the 60,000-acre wildfire that has destroyed over 80 homes and caused at least four deaths. S. Craig Tucker, Ph. D, a spokesman for the Karuk tribe, told us that on the nights of August 3 and 4 during rain, there was a “massive debris slide out of areas impacted by the McKinney Fire” that flowed into the main stem of the Klamath after flash flooding at or near Humbug Creek and McKinney Creeks. Photos, >click to read< 11:24
A True Pioneer – Captain Magne Kristoffer Nes has passed away
Magne Kristoffer Nes passed away in Edmonds, WA, surrounded by his loving family. Magne was born in Karmøy, Norway to Didrik and Elen (Ella) Nes, the fifth of nine siblings. Magne’s distinguished 64-year commercial fishing career took him around the world, including Hawaii, where he retired from fishing. Magne was a true pioneer with an endless thirst for research, whether it be for fishing or safety. Magne was one of the first to employ survival suits in Alaskan waters, he obtained permission to bring medical prescription chests on fishing vessels and was one of the first to have a doctor on 24-hour standby through single sideband radio. Magne held over 125 Alaska commercial fishing licenses along with record-breaking crab deliveries. His many fisheries included king crab, salmon and scallops, just to name a few. He was awarded twice by The Norwegian Commercial Club for outstanding seamanship, vessel maneuvering and for his contributions to the North Pacific fishing industry. >click to read< 09:32
Dory boat captain loses right to fish after multiple poaching incidents
OSP Fish and Wildlife Division brought charges against a commercial fishing captain operating a dory boat in Pacific City. NOAA Enforcement Officers assisted in the case. Tillamook County officials completed sentencing procedures June 27 for Charles “Joe” Evens, of Tillamook. Evens violated the terms of his commercial license by keeping fish he caught instead of selling and documenting the catch with a fish dealer. He must pay $400 in fines, of which $300 will go to ODFW as restitution. He will also complete 80 hours of community service. The judge sentenced him to five years bench probation, during which time he is prohibited from angling or assisting others in angling. He is also suspended from obtaining commercial or recreational licenses for five years. >click to read< 10:32
Triumph II tows disabled dragger with 42,000 lbs of fish aboard through deep draft bar
The Coast Guard towed a 58-foot fishing vessel after the crew lost use of the main engine about 17 miles west of Willapa Bay Sunday. A boat crew aboard the Triumph II, a 52-foot Motor Life Boat from Coast Guard Cape Disappointment, met the crew of the fishing vessel F/V Ashlyne, a 58-foot dragger with four people and 42,000 pounds of fish aboard, and safely towed them across the Columbia River bar into Astoria, Ore. The Triumph II is one of four special purpose crafts specifically designed for the deep water bars located in the Coast Guard 13th District. The power and stability of the 52-foot Motor Life Boats make them the preferred asset for towing commercial fishing vessels across large bars, according to a Coast Guard statement. >click to read< 07:50
Strong sockeye salmon runs bode well for famed Fraser fishery
“The last bunch of years have just been nothing but doom and gloom when it comes to B.C. salmon,” said Granville-Island based fisher Steve Johansen, who just returned from “crazy” commercial fishing in Barkley Sound a week ago where sockeye returns were more than double Department of Fisheries and Oceans estimates. On the Skeena River, a key B.C. salmon river, returns have been 50 per cent higher than estimates. “I think everything else (that has) happened this summer before the Fraser runs is just making everybody’s anticipation and excitement just up a couple more notches,” Johansen said. >click to read< 12:50
Don’t Cage Our Oceans: Fish farming may threaten rare Gulf whale
The site approved for the Velella Epsilon fish farm in federal waters west of Venice is one of just three potential aquaculture opportunity areas under consideration off Florida’s Gulf coast. There are six others — three in the central Gulf south of Louisiana and Mississippi and three east of Texas — as well as 10 in the Pacific Ocean off the California coast. It’s part of a collusive effort between fish farming companies and the federal government to divide up national waters for profit, James Mitchell, legislative director of Don’t Cage Our Oceans, said. >click to read< 13:49
It’s time to end the era of billion-dollar ‘sealords’ and heed the fishermen
The recent New Bedford Light/ProPublica investigative report, revealing how a billionaire Dutch family currently operates as the largest New England fish-quota owner, confirms what fishermen have been warning lawmakers for decades: that replacing independent fishermen with outside investment firms will undermine economic, social and environmental goals. However, these warnings extend well beyond New England. The report outlines how Bregal Equity, a multi-billion dollar private equity firm based in the European Union, maximizes fishing profits from their New England quota holdings by slashing costs and reducing income to captains and crew. Catch share programs have been implemented in Alaska, the West Coast, and the Gulf of Mexico, as well as internationally, where the next generation of independent fishermen are being systematically replaced by non-fishing, outside investors who follow in the wake of Bregal. >click to read< By Captain Ryan Bradley 15:57
F/V Miss Katie Briefly Threatened to Sink to the Bottom of the Woodley Island Marina
While Woodley Island harbor staff were out doing their regular “dock walk” this morning, a daily check-up to make sure everything is as it should be, according to Harbor District CEO Larry Oetker, their practiced eyes noticed something up on F Dock. Or something down, rather. The Miss Katie, a commercial fishing vessel, was sinking. An oil sheen could be seen on the water, so the staff rushed to retrieve and place portable booms to contain and soak up the pollutant. Then they got on the horn and started calling people,,, >click to continue reading< 18:42
Evidence of invasive green crab that could wreak havoc on Alaska fisheries found near Metlakatla
An invasive species that could wreak havoc on commercial and subsistence fisheries has been found in Alaska for the first time. Biologists with Metlakatla Indian Community say they found the first evidence of European green crabs on Annette Island, near the southern tip of Southeast Alaska, in mid-July. NOAA Fisheries biologist Linda Shaw says they’re a particular threat to fellow shellfish. “They compete with juvenile Dungeness crab. They are shellfish predators, so things like clams, they would directly eat,” she said. “And then there’s also anecdotal information from British Columbia that they predate on juvenile salmon.” >click to read< 11:49
