Category Archives: Pacific
Ropeless gear is not the silver bullet – New technology promises to save the whales by reducing the need for crab fishing lines.
“We are working with fishermen to see what works and what doesn’t and what allows the fisherman to survive economically,” says Geoff Shester, a Monterey-based scientist with nonprofit Ocean. In June, the Ocean Protection Council awarded $500,000 for the testing of pop-up gear in the coming fishing season. The money will pay for five prototypes, including designs by Marina-based Desert Star Systems and Watsonville-based McFarlane Marine Services. The money will also go to fishermen participating in the research. A new crab industry group, California Coast Crab Association, is pushing back. Its president, Ben Platt, described the RAMP regulations as “an existential threat to our livelihoods”,,, >click to read< 08:39
Ilwaco: Commercial tuna season starts strong
The commercial albacore tuna season kicked off over the weekend with fisherman delivering their first catch of the 2020 season to local processors. Favorable weather and sea conditions culminated in a successful start, fishermen reported. “The last couple days were excellent,” said commercial fishermen Christian Johnson of the F/V Two Fishers upon delivering 7,300 pounds of tuna to Ilwaco Landing on Tuesday, July 14. Johnson was out fishing for 10 days along with fellow commercial fisherman James Plymer before returning to port Tuesday. Photo’s, >click to read< 16:37
Ship Conducting Undersea Surveys Ordered to Pause Work Following Conflict With Local Crab Fishermen
After successfully requesting a cease-and-desist order from the California State Lands Commission, local crab fishermen will be able to finish out the last few days of the season without worrying about conflicts with a ship that was conducting surveys off the North Coast. The survey work appears to be connected with proposals for high-speed, transpacific fiber-optic cables linking Southeast Asia to the United States. Cable companies have expressed interest in landing a trunk line stateside via the Harbor District’s wastewater discharge pipe, which runs from the Redwood Marine Terminal II (site of the old pulp mill) out to sea. Ken Bates, vice-president of the Humboldt Fishermen’s Marketing Association,,, >click to read< 20:45
“Why can’t I buy fresh, local fish?” – Locally caught fish are scarce in fishing towns, an irony one Sointula family is working to change
It’s a new way of doing business for Jordan Belveal, a fourth-generation fisherman. Instead of selling to wholesalers, who almost always export the catch, Belveal and his family are marketing their catch directly to consumers in a new community supported fishery venture called Island Wild Seafoods. It could be an answer to the perpetual, “Why can’t I buy fresh, local fish?” question, repeated in fishing towns all over Vancouver Island. “So many people approach us looking to buy seafood, complaining that they just can’t find halibut, or lingcod or spot prawns,, With each inquiry of where to buy fresh fish, the Belveals thought more about selling it direct. >click to read< 09:17
Coast Guard medevacs injured fisherman 100 miles off Coos Bay
A Coast Guard aircrew medically evacuated a 26-year-old man Saturday morning off the fishing vessel McKenzie Rose 100 miles west of Coos Bay. The fishing vessel’s captain used a marine radio to hail watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector North Bend at approximately 5:30 a.m. to report a member of the crew sustained a head injury and was in need of medical attention. The McKenzie Rose began to transit toward shore to more quickly rendezvous with the Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter aircrew. >Video, click to watch, read< 21:55
In Coastal Oregon, Fishing Gear Makers Strive for Sustainability
Sara Skamser makes and modifies commercial fishing nets in Newport, Oregon. The co-owner of Foulweather Trawl got her start in the commercial fishing business as a crew member on small crab and salmon boats. Net skills, like sewing and splicing, became one more thing to help Sara land a gig. “In the late 70s and early 80s, I was bucking to get on a big boat,”,,, That dream hit a dead end when Sara asked some of 
Newport’s larger operations to let her join their crews. “These guys just absolutely turned purple,” she says. “And so the bottom line to that is I invoice those people now,” she laughs., About a half hour south on the coastal highway, Leonard Van Curler is also making fishing gear. Some of the tools he uses are similar to Sara’s, such as the shuttle-like “needle” he uses to knit mesh. But what he’s making are crab pots,,, >click to read< 15:43
Westport feeling deep loss after fishing tragedy
“You couldn’t get those two boys to sit still for too long, they were real adventurers,” Cole Rutzer, a 22-year-old Westport man whose body was found July 3 on the beach of a remote island near Kodiak Island, Alaska. He and his longtime friend and fishing boat crewmate Dylan Furford had taken a skiff from the larger boat to explore the island. Furford is missing and the Coast Guard has suspended its search. The two were part of a four-man 
crew on the Westport-based Pacific Dynasty, fishing for Dungeness crab. Rutzer’s dad, Greg, is the captain and his cousin, Brent Gilbertson, was the other crew member. The boat had dropped crab pots and had some down time so Cole Rutzer and Furford, also in his early 20s, had gone to Tugidak Island, taking Trigger, Cole’s dog. >click to read< 08:07
Setting the New Normal – Point Steele
With concern over the 2020 Bristol Bay salmon season and Covid-19, there was only optimistic excitement at Washington State’s Velocity Marine as the yard’s latest newbuild headed for sea trials.,, With a capacity of 18,000 pounds (8165kg) in RSW, Point Steele will deliver to the tender multiple times in an opening. Even loaded, the boat can be expected to make roughly half the light boat’s speed. Lenco trim tabs help optimise performance under different load conditions. To make these speeds Point Steele is powered with a pair of Cummins QSC8.3 engines. photo’s, >click to read< 17:01
SURVEY: Please Help Extreme Gloucester Fishing: Restructure, Retool, Retrain, Revive and Reunite the U.S. Commercial Fisheries
Extreme Gloucester Fishing Commercial Industry Training Center is doing a U.S. Commercial Fisheries Survey – Please help Extreme Gloucester Fishing with our efforts to Restructure, Retool, Retrain, Revive and Reunite the U.S. Commercial Fisheries Take the Survey. 1. Do commercial fishermen care about their industry? 2. Should fish be owned before they are caught?, 3.,,, >click to read<, and please leave comments or suggestions, and connect with others to get things started! Thank you, Captain Joseph Sanfilippo 10:30
Crab fisherman files cease-and-desist against fiber-optic surveyors
The world’s longest fiber-optic cable may be coming to Eureka, but crab fishermen say ships associated with the project have disrupted what’s left of this year’s crabbing season. But longtime crab fisherman Ken Bates filed a cease-and-desist order this week against the survey ships, saying their presence threatens to destroy Dungeness crab gear, or worse, displace gear far into the ocean, where it could entangle whales and prompt the state to sanction the coastal industry. >click to read< 19:43
Newport restores water to commercial users – Fishing industry expresses gratitude
As part of the city of Newport’s declared water emergency, production at fish processing plants on the Bayfront had been halted. This action was taken because the city could not supply its industrial users with water,,, “There were financial losses and disruption in the fishing community when this happened, but we got though it.” Steele said the water-related restrictions and closures have been just one of many very different challenges this industry has had to face in the last few months. “It’s a resilient industry. We took a hit, but we kept the fishery up and running,” she said. >click to read< 12:46
America Needs To Stop Relying On Countries Like China For Seafood Markets
When Americans visit a supermarket and wander past the meat counter, they see this century’s equivalent of the fishmonger’s stall: the seafood department. Laden over crushed ice in glass cases sits an array of fish products — whole snapper or shrimp, maybe, but almost always pre-sliced filets in a bevy of hues. Oysters and clams complete the display. In the rare cases where stores divulge the provenance of seafood, placards will often list Thailand, China or South American countries. Less frequently, however, will one see U.S-raised or caught seafood in such displays. This is disappointing to the patriot who wishes to ‘buy American.’ >clickto read< 07:00
Could this, like spot prawns, be our next local seafood success? The hake catch is six times the size for wild salmon.
B.C.’s hake, also known as Pacific whiting or Merluccius productus, is a transboundary species that crosses Canadian and American waters. Both countries share management of the short-lived, bountiful species under a joint fishery treaty. “Their stock is healthy,” said Bruce Turris, executive manager of the Canadian Groundfish Research and Conservation Society. Turris, who represents the hake fishery on the joint management treaty and has worked with hake for more than 35 years, notes that Canada only harvested around 60 per cent of its total allowable catch in 2019. “We’re still not fully utilizing the resource,” he says. But “it’s not a resource that’s easily accessible,” said Turris, citing a steep investment requirement into the fishery. >click to read< 08:43
In Tribute – ‘Crabbing brings Florence’s Novelli family together’
Almost a year ago today I stepped onto The Aquarius for the first time. Amber and Kyle Novelli were taking me out on their crabbing boat so I could catch a glimpse into their everyday lives as commercial crabbers. Amber and I talked about the water and how dangerous getting out past the bar was; we talked about how unstable crabbing can be economically and how the weather really runs your whole life as a crabber. I asked her why she kept doing it with so much danger and uncertainty to face. She answered by telling me a story about a time they were out on the water fishing. It was early in the morning and, as she woke up, she wandered out to look at the ocean. That’s when she saw it,,, I listened to her and Kyle’s story of how they started fishing together,,, Victoria Sanchez, >click to read< 15:00
Fishermen’s News ceases publication after 75 years
The commercial fishing industry has seen dramatic events in the last 75 years, and during that time, Fishermen’s News has been around to document and report those changes. One of the most important changes, at least in the life of this editor, was the acquisition of Fishermen’s News by me and my brother, Peter, in 2000. Former publisher and editor Walt Kisner was ready to retire, and he didn’t want to sell his paper to “the man,” so he reached out to the sons of his former partner, Dick Philips. >click to read< 12:54
Mark Adams, an Alaskan fisherman and devoted family man
Mark David Adams, an Alaskan fisherman and devoted family man died peacefully on June 3, 2020 in Cordova, AK, at home. He was born in Spokane, WA, to Bonnie and Gene Adams on March 21, 1963 and grew up in Metaline, WA, where he graduated from Selkirk High School in 1981. He was known for his hilarious storytelling, his knack for managing his commercial fishing business with several boats and motley crews, and his unending enthusiasm for coaching basketball. Foremost, he was a loyal and loving family man whose children were his pride and joy >click to read< 09:39
California plans to protect whales from crab traps rankle all sides – one thing was clear, no one’s happy.
Stakeholders on both sides of the aisle had complaints — environmentalists don’t think the protections go far enough, while industry groups say the regulations threaten the economic viability of the crab fishing industry. Set to take effect Nov. 1, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Risk Assessment Mitigation Program (RAMP) will serve as the primary mechanism for mitigating entanglement risk to humpback and blue whales and leatherback sea turtles whose populations are endangered and could suffer additional casualties due to getting caught in Dungeness crab fishing gear. The regulation would replace the interim authority given to the director of the Department of Fish and Wildlife,, >click to read< 09:13
#FishermensLivesMatter: Until this pandemic is over, say no to fishery observers being placed on fishing vessels
On July 1st the Trump Administration’s agency, NOAA will require that fishing vessels resume taking fishery observers on their fishing trips. Due to the Coronavirus pandemic these activities have been suspended for almost three months due to the danger of spreading the deadly disease among the
fishing industry and their families. Fishery observers are required by National Marine Fishery Service regulations to observe commercial fishing operations in almost all of our countries fisheries based on various criteria that include likelihood of interaction with marine mammals or other protected species, amount of bycatch in each fishery, adherence to regulations, and anything else they can justify to support this huge taxpayer money gobbling con game they have created. >click to read< by Jim Lovgren #FishermensLivesMatter 22:27
Two die after fishing vessel sinks near Florence
A well-known Florence couple has died when the fishing vessel they were on sank in the Siuslaw River bar early Monday morning., The two who died were reported to be Kyle and Amber Novelli of Florence. In addition to commercial crabbing, their business was Novelli’s Crab and Seafood in Florence. “With a heavy heart I am saddened to to inform the many award-winning crab chowder followers of the passing of Kyle and Amber Novelli,” Novelli’s Crab and Seafood reported on its Facebook page. “Sharing their love of crabbing was always their dream. Their personalities will forever leave a lasting impression on anyone who met them. >click to read< 19:26
Coast Guard assists after F/V Aquarius sinks near Florence, Ore. with loss of life
Coast Guard crews responded to a fishing vessel crew who abandoned ship in the early morning hours Monday near Florence. At approximately 1:50 a.m., Coast Guard watchstanders at Sector North Bend received a distress call from the captain of fishing vessel Aquarius stating all crew members were abandoning ship. The vessel had struck the south jetty in the Siuslaw River Bar and was beginning to take on water. Shortly thereafter, the 13th District command center received a signal from the vessels Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon [EPIRB].,, One responsive individual was located and rescued near the shoreline. He was able to confirm that two others were onboard the vessel with him when it sank. The helicopter crew located a second unresponsive person and hoisted them into the aircraft. They were brought to awaiting EMS at Florence Municipal Airport. >click to read< 17:24
Fishermen Haul in Monster Squid Off the Humboldt Coast
A pair of local fishermen hauled in a monstrous 14-foot, 150-pound squid while bottom trawling 10 miles from the Humboldt Bay Entrance Channel earlier this month. Fishermen Shane Ranstrom and Clark Ward of the “Joy Ann” say they were in 1,500 feet of water when they caught the enormous cephalopod on June 14. “Pulled up the Kraken last trip,” Ranstrom wrote on Instagram. >click to read< 17:02
An East Coast Perspective on Coronavirus Impacts
This was initially to be about how the New Jersey commercial fishing industry was coping with the coronavirus crisis. However, there is a seemingly infinite number of websites running commentaries on the national and/or international aspects of the ongoing pandemic in general and, surprisingly, as it specifically applies to and as it affects commercial fishing and the seafood industry. Considering this, sharing more than an overview of what the New Jersey industry, or at least that part of it that I have been in touch with, would probably not have much of an impact. But happily, at this point it seems that U.S. consumers aren’t really as averse to preparing quality seafood at home (when it isn’t available or is only limitedly available elsewhere) as most of us have believed. >click to read< By Nils Stolpe 12:05
North River Boats
Last spring, North River Boats added a new 33,750 square foot manufacturing building to house all commercial and large boat recreational fabrication. The upgrades have helped North River Boats set pace to build just over 300 vessels this year for a combination of commercial, government and recreational customers. Its current orderbook includes a mix of vessels ranging from fire, pilot and patrol boats to charter fishing vessels. “North River Boats has a very diverse strategy that includes offering several different boat models to many different market segments,” says Mike Blocker, the builder’s sales director., >click to read< 10:58
“Let’s hope this is one hell of an anomaly,” – Pandemic throws a wrench in salmon market
“If you want to categorize the bad news, the biggest factors are the sheer operating logistics for this industry in dealing with this virus, and keeping the workers safe,” he explains. “That’s one huge complexity. The second is the drastic drop-off in restaurant consumption, and the third is the drastic decline in people’s incomes. Those are the three major hits.” In a normal year, most of the uncertainty in the salmon market comes from the run itself; how the harvest compares to the previous year and how processors will keep up. >click to read< 08:49
Chasing Chinook: following Idaho’s migrating fish from the “Ocean to Idaho”
Kris Millgate has been traveling like crazy lately. Her schedule is relentless, similar to the migrating fish she is following. There’s little time for showers — maybe every 10 days — just stop for gas and get going. She sleeps by herself in the back of a loaned truck and camper.,, “I’m following salmon,” Millgate said. “I’ve been researching it for months and months and months. I feel like I’ve been living, breathing everything fish. This time of year, you have 15 hours of light. So, you’re working 15 hours, and I go back to my camper and input everything so I’m up all night. It’s kind of like a crazy crunch, but I love every minute of it. I’m not even tired like I think I should be.” >click to read< 15:14
Coronavirus is making it difficult for Whatcom’s commercial fishing fleet this season
A new report from the Regional Economic Partnership at the Port of Bellingham indicates the local fishing fleet is dealing with a host of hurdles this summer, particularly for fishing boat captains who want to go to Alaska. Crew safety is proving to be particularly tough to figure out, as shown by the three American Seafoods fishing boats that had more than 100 crew members test positive for the virus after docking at Bellingham Cold Storage in late May and early June. The report surveyed 69 businesses tied to the industry, including 59 commercial fishing boats. >click to read< 09:11
For fishermen traveling to Bristol Bay, Alaska Air confusion complicates early season
Alaska Air normally starts flying to the region June 1, but this spring it began on May 18th. It’s aiming for year-round service to the region. But the airline has struggled to regulate its schedule. I experienced this myself when I was making plans to come to Dillingham. I booked a flight from Portland to Anchorage, and then on to Dillingham on June 2. But about a week before my trip, I got an email saying that my flight was now headed from Portland to Seattle, Seattle to Anchorage — with no flight to Dillingham.,, Gregg Marxmiller, a Dillingham fisherman, said flights he had purchased for his crew-members were pushed back twice. He wasn’t notified either time. >audio report, click to read< 16:34
Crab Command and Control – California Dungeness Crab Fishing Gear Working Group
“Whales getting entangled in fishing gear is a huge crisis,” says John Mellor, a commercial fisherman and a member of the working group since its inception. “It has to be dealt with, and dealt with in real time.” Once or twice a month during Dungeness crab fishing season, which normally runs from November 15 to July 15, scientists in the working group conduct a series of mini research projects looking at four risk factors for entanglements: how many whales and sea turtles are around, where whales are likely to forage, the number and locations of recorded entanglements, and information about fishermen, including their landing data, license numbers, and the locations of their traps. >cxlick to read< 08:35
Fresh fish market proposed for Oceanside harbor to sell Seafood direct to consumers!
A group of local commercial fishermen hopes to create a weekly market at the Oceanside harbor where they could sell their catch directly to consumers. The idea sprang up as a result of the Coronavirus crisis, which closed sit-down restaurants everywhere. That greatly reduced the fishermen’s sales and left them looking for new outlets. Some of them decided to cut out the middleman and try selling their products to people at the harbor.,, Among the issues to be decided is whether the market will be overseen by a board of directors, elected by the fishermen, that would establish rules and guidelines for the venture,,, >click to read< 10:41
Government of Canada takes action to address threats to struggling Fraser River Chinook
Today, (June 19, 2020) Fisheries and Oceans Canada is releasing 2020 Fisheries management measures that will support the recovery of at-risk Fraser River Chinook populations, as well as protect the jobs and communities that depend on Chinook. The 2020 measures include additional restrictions to strengthen conservation as well as the flexibility needed where impacts to stocks of concern will be very low. These measures were developed following consultation with Indigenous communities, recreational and commercial fishing organizations, and environmental organizations. These measures are one component of a larger strategy intended to place at-risk Pacific salmon populations on a path towards sustainability. >click to read< 11:49
