Category Archives: Pacific
Coronavirus: Fishermen return from sea with a big catch and no place to sell
The coronavirus literally traveled over them from Asia to California while they were on the high seas catching tuna. They were as safe as anyone doing one of the most dangerous jobs, and now? Fishermen are returning home to California to find a state all but shuttered and nowhere to sell their catch. A handful of tuna boats filled with tens of thousands of pounds of fish are now floating off San Diego’s coast as they scramble to find customers. Many wholesalers stopped buying as restaurants were ordered closed except for takeout. photo’s, >click to read< 11:42
CDFW’s Salmon Evacuation Decision Pays Exceptional Dividends
In February 2017, damage to the Oroville Dam’s spillways prompted the evacuation of more than 180,000 people living downstream along the Feather River. The raging muddy waters also triggered an emergency decision to relocate millions of young salmon from the Feather River Hatchery to the Thermalito Annex Hatchery to be raised and held until river water conditions improved. Most, if not all, of the young salmon would have otherwise died when mud from the raging river overwhelmed the hatchery waters. >click to read< 08:39
Small Business Relief Tracker: Funding, Grants And Resources For Business Owners Grappling With Coronavirus
Some 30 million American small businesses are high on the coronavirus’ list of victims. Nearly half of these companies say the pandemic is to blame for unprecedented revenue declines, and with no clear end in sight, the possibility of temporary closures has become a reality for many. In an effort to help business owners find financial relief, we’ve rounded up all of the government agencies, private companies and nonprofit organizations that are extending support. We’ll be adding to this list as the situation develops, so check back for updates. >click to read< 13:01
Coronavirus: The country is shutting down. Shutdown NOAA’s Fisheries Observer Program, nationally. Right Now.
I am writing this editorial today as a responsible, conscientious American fishermen and citizen, in complete disbelief of the irresponsibility of a U.S. government agency during the current international coronavirus crisis. While the nation is in national emergency mode, states are closing public spaces, schools, universities, daycares, restaurants, encouraging social distancing, putting people in quarantine, outlawing large gatherings, and taking unprecedented emergency measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19, NOAA Fisheries is pursuing the complete opposite when it comes to the fishing industry and ignoring all public safety precautions. more by Hank Lackner, F/V Jason and Danielle >click to read<06:03
Some of the many reasons why federal marine sanctuary management is a bad idea
The claim: A sanctuary will enhance our economy. The fact: Not true.,, The claim: Sanctuaries have never harmed commercial or recreational fishermen.
The fact: Monterey sanctuary leadership led the effort in California’s marine protected area process to close many of the best fishing areas. This occurred despite early promises made by NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association) and elected leaders that the sanctuary would not create fishing regulations nor take actions that would threaten fishermen’s livelihoods. Mr. Christie refers people to sanctuary leadership’s testimony before the Morro Bay City Council in 2016. People who heard this testimony and who know of the sanctuary’s role in creating no-fishing zones found this testimony to be disingenuous, if not dishonest. The claim: Sanctuaries offer protection for endangered species,,, >click to read< 18:05
Dana Point Harbor fish market adapts to coronavirus restrictions with curbside service
It was the last day of the lobster fishing season Wednesday, March 18 and a Dana Point Harbor fish market was making the best of the new coronavirus restrictions. To accommodate customers, Jon’s Fish Market was selling the live ocean bugs curbside. They were also offering red snapper, halibut, mahi-mahi, bluefin tuna, yellow-tail and salmon.,, “Our production line is small and we process them in house,” Mansur-O’Keefe said, adding that she buys whole fish. “So we don’t have to shut down.” Mansur-O’Keefe said there are still hundreds of fishermen out on boats and her market will not only continue to feed customers in search of fresh food but also help fishermen with their livelihoods. Sometimes, how customers get their fish can be unique. Bartering,,, photo’s, >click to read< 11:36
Big Wave Surfing and Commercial Fishing with Matt Becker
The talented crew over at 805 Beer have been releasing these high-quality mini-docs for a while now — spotlighting different occupations, exploring fringe cultures, and generally celebrating life. This time they’ve given us a glimpse into the lifestyle of second-generation California surfer/fisherman Matt Becker, who makes his money off commercial fishing, and feeds his soul off surfing spots like Maverick’s. It’s not a safe or soft routine, but it’s the only way Matt would want to live. Video, >click to watch< 18:44
Jessie’s Ilwaco Fish Company’s largest creditors battle as receivership stalls
A hearing will be held to give the creditors of Jessie’s Ilwaco Fish Company a chance to replace the firm overseeing the receivership of the seafood processor. Jessie filed for receivership on Feb. 26, short changing several fishermen owed money by the company.,, Florian Mumford, captain of F/V Dream, Jim Kary, owner of F/V The Beachcomer and Kary’s nephew Ross Kary, sat in the courtroom while the two attorneys argued. >click to read< 07:35
Tell Your Congressmen and Senators: Our US Fishing Industry Faces The Coronavirus Disaster
With the Coronavirus being spread around the world and nations reacting to this threat in many different ways, from doing nothing, to closing the borders and full quarantines, the unintended effects of such government actions have yet to be fully felt. Granted the stock market has lost 30% in value in just 3 weeks time, the average American really doesn’t feel that unless he is living on his investment returns. With the closing of schools, and restaurants and any places of public gatherings an enormous crisis is being created because many people are being put out of work and some of them may not have a business to come back to when the crisis is over. The Coronavirus may topple an empire if we let it. >click to read< 06:17
“Looking Back”: The Keep Fishermen Fishing Rally
Measured by any meaningful criteria the Keep Fishermen Fishing rally held on the steps of the Capitol on March 21 was a stunning success. It was attended by thousands of fishermen from as far away as Alaska, twenty one Senators and Members of the House of Representatives, and at least a half a dozen other VIPs made room in their busy schedules to come out and address the people who attended. From the most conservative of the conservatives to the most liberal of the liberals, these politically divergent speakers had one message; fix the Magnuson Act and bring back the balance between conservation and harvest. For the second time at the national level recreational and commercial fishermen – no matter what fisheries they participated in, no matter what their disagreements on allocation or lesser issues were, and no matter where they were from – were standing together and demanding a return to the original intent of the Magnuson Act;,,, >click to read< 08:09
Protecting Commercial Fishermen from Preventable Diseases
Seamen take on a very high risk of injury compared to workers in many other industries. Hazards specific to the job create certain common types of accidents among maritime workers. One of the potential hazards in a fishing vessel is the spread of communicable diseases because of poor hygiene or an unsanitary environment. These medical emergencies can be avoided with “medical survival skills”. Here is a list of things that should be done onboard to prevent the spread of disease:,, Who is liable for the spread of preventable disease on a commercial fishing vessel? The skipper has a responsibility to create a clean and healthy work environment. >click to read < 16:38
Crab season continues as whale entanglement risk remains low
From a California Department of Fish and Wildlife release: The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) is providing the following important update on the status of the commercial California Dungeness crab fishery which includes the Northern Management Area (Fish and Game Districts 6, 7, 8 and 9) and Central Management Area (Fish and Game Districts 10 and south). more, >click to read< 09:42
Coronavirus: International turmoil keeps the lobster at home
Commercial fishing is a notoriously condition-dependent occupation. As of early February, however, in addition to the changeable sea and the here-today, gone-tomorrow nature of the work—as well as ongoing tariffs—local lobster fishermen like Brian Aresco of Carpinteria also had to contend with a ban on seafood imports due to the COVID-19 outbreak in their best market, China. Aresco said the price for lobster went from $16 a pound to $8 overnight. After expenses, he would be left with about $100 for 16-hours of work. more>click to read< 18:18
“Everybody is getting paid but us,” Crabbers struggling after Jessie’s Ilwaco Fish Company failure
More than a week after Jessie’s filed paperwork to enter receivership, fishermen such as Teall are feeling the fallout. Teall is a crew member of the F/V Beachcomer, owned by Jim Kary, and has worked for Kary for about 15 to 18 years. Receivership documents filed by Jessie’s show the boat was owed more than $30,000 before the company closed its doors. Teall would have made about $4,500 from that last load of crab, he said. “Other than not getting paid, it’s the best season I’ve had since working for Jim,” Teall said. more, >click to read< 07:46
Fukushima Fishermen Aim to Expand Catches for Survival
Fishery operators in Fukushima Prefecture, home to the disaster-crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant, are set to expand their catches, aiming to shore up a local fishing industry that has struggled with unfounded rumors about radiation contamination. There are concerns that an expansion of catches may trigger a price collapse but fears of a possible decline of the industry are seen outweighing such considerations. photo’s, more>click to read< 14:53
PFMC releases alternatives for 2020 West Coast Ocean Salmon Fisheries
The Pacific Fishery Management Council has adopted three alternatives for 2020 ocean salmon fisheries off of Washington, Oregon and California for public review. The Council will make a final decision on salmon seasons at its meeting in Vancouver, Washington, on April 5-10.,, Forecasts for many Chinook and coho stocks are lower than last year. In addition, the Council is constrained by requirements to conserve Fraser River (Canada) coho and other natural coho runs; to conserve lower Columbia River natural tule fall Chinook; and to protect Sacramento River winter Chinook and Klamath River fall Chinook. more, >click to read< 08:44
Big Bar Landslide blasting resumes, In-river drilling and excavation underway.
The huge remediation project is jointly managed by Fisheries and Oceans Canada, the B.C. government and B.C. First Nations, who are guided by an Indigenous leadership panel. It involves equipment operators for excavators and rock trucks, drillers and blasters, rock scalers, emergency medical, river rescue and helicopter evaluation crews, environmental specialists and archeologists. “Blasting in waterways is not uncommon and the methods the contractor is using to drill and blast rock near and in-water are well understood,” the department said. more, >click to read< 12:02
A living link to the past
This year, Josephson’s Smokehouse celebrates its 100th year of smoking fish. Store owner Mike Josephson is the fourth generation of his family to lead the store. Throughout the smokehouse’s duration, Josephson and his family have adapted through changing times and conditions to continue the family’s tradition of welcoming visitors into the historic shop. Josephson’s great grandfather, Jacob Baker, fished in the lower Columbia River during the 1870s. In the 1880s, one-fifth of Astorians were fishers, according to the U.S. Census. At the time, there were over 39 canneries along the lower Columbia River. more, >click to read< 11:22
Glum outlook scares salmon fishing industry – Wednesday, an expedition leaves for the Gulf of Alaska to try to help crack the puzzle
This year’s preliminary salmon outlook from Fisheries and Oceans Canada says overall expectations for salmon returns are generally low and similar to those in 2019. In many cases, expectations have even declined, it said, noting that the picture is brighter in “very few cases.”,, On Wednesday, a B.C.-based expedition leaves Victoria for the Gulf of Alaska to try to help crack the puzzle of plummeting stocks. Scientists from Canada, Russia and the U.S. will be on the chartered 37-metre commercial trawler Pacific Legacy No. 1. It returns April 4. more, >click to read< 10:00
Pacific Legal Foundation: Lawsuits filed to preserve swordfish industry and livelihoods
Swordfish is one of the most popular types of seafood. It is also a primary source of income for Chris and Dania Williams and a way of life for their entire family. Chris has been a swordfisherman for decades, and husband and wife have been selling their fresh catch at their Ventura market for nearly a decade. Chris is among approximately 20 active swordfish permit-holders in the state, many of whom also have run small, family-owned businesses,, California recently passed a law to phase out the remaining permits for swordfish, or drift gillnets, which are the only viable method for commercial swordfishing. This would end swordfishing in the state, even though federal regulations clearly allow the practice. more >click to read< 14:12
Dungeness crab: Central California numbers rise to average of five times that of past decades
Fishermen from California to Washington caught almost all the available legal-size male Dungeness crab each year in the last few decades. However, the crab population has either remained stable or continued to increase, according to the first thorough population estimate of the West Coast Dungeness stocks. “The catches and abundance in Central California especially are increasing, which is pretty remarkable to see year after year,” The secret to the success of the Dungeness crab fishery may be the way fishing regulations protect the crab populations’ reproductive potential. >click to read< 14:34
92nd Annual Blessing of the Fleet is this Sunday
This weekend, Seattle’s fishing fleet will be honored in the 92nd annual Blessing of Fleet to mark the start of the 2020 fishing season. The event, happening Sunday, March 8 at Fishermen’s Terminal, will bring together crews, friends, family, and the greater community to send the fishing fleet off with a ceremony and blessing from Pastor Elise Scot of Ballard First Lutheran Church. >click to read< 19:33
Enviro group says it may sue NMFS and Coast Guard to prevent whale deaths from ship strikes
The Center for Biological Diversity, which has an office in Los Angeles, alleges that the government agencies are ignoring the requirements of the Endangered Species Act in agency consultations, studies and actions such as speed limits in shipping lanes or protecting critical habitat areas. Ship strikes are a leading cause of death and injuries to whales migrating along California’s coast and are more lethal than previously understood >click to read< 16:22
“With a bit of prodding by some valued colleagues”, we will be launching a series “Looking Back”
A few of us were conversing, and the topic of resurrecting’s some of the posts, pages, and information of the past to gauge the changes and improvement’s achieved though the past few decades of fishery management and sacrifice, or if there have been any improvements at all! Nils Stolpe, Jim Lovgren, and I thought perhaps these various posts and articles would give an indication of how the domestic fishing is doing! Both of these gentlemen are exceptional writers, with exceptional knowledge of the domestic fishing industry and they have been featured here many times. We hope people revisit these articles, and for many of the newer fishermen in the industry today, this may be the first exposure to this interesting, and valuable info, and other stories. We’ll kick it off with “With a bit of prodding by some valued colleagues,” >click to read< 13:07
Feds reject removal of 4 US Northwest dams
The four dams on the lower Snake River are part of a vast and complex hydroelectric power system operated by the federal government in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana. The massive dams, built in eastern Washington between 1961 and 1975, are at the center of a years-long battle that pits the fate of two iconic Pacific Northwest species — the salmon and the killer whale — against the need for plentiful, carbon-free power for the booming region.,, Snake River sockeye were the first species in the Columbia River Basin listed under the Endangered Species Act in 1991. Now, 13 salmon runs are listed as federally endangered or threatened. Four of those runs return to the Snake River. >click to read< 08:17
A night with Dave and Bear at Happy Jacks Saloon: The Last Morro Bay Fisherman’s Dive
Dave hated me. Wanted to fight me. Wanted to kick my ass. Felt I upstaged and up-ended him in every way. He was the unofficial leader of the “Brew Crew,” a notorious pack of young fishermen and deck hands who, when they were in town, terrorized Happy Jack’s like wild west cowboys treeing a saloon after a long cattle drive.,,, Nobody else was saying anything. Fishermen love to see a good fight. So, as Dave bristled and continued challenging, berating and threatening me, I spied his at-least-100-pound Rottweiler, Bear,,, >click to read< 08:15
The body of a missing commercial fisherman has been recovered from Yaquina Bay
A body found in Yaquina Bay has been identified as that of a fisherman who has been missing for nearly three weeks, the Newport Police Department said Thursday. Norman Grant was reported missing on Feb. 9 and hadn’t been seen since the evening of Feb. 8, Chief Jason Malloy said in a statement. Cell phone records and video from local surveillance cameras put Grant’s last known location near a fishing boat that he worked on called the F/V Prolifik. The boat was moored at Hallmark Fisheries. >click to read< 09:18
Managing A Lucrative Resource In The Face Of Climate Change
Conservationists and commercial fishing industry leaders came together on the need to restructure the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act to adequately consider climate impacts during a panel discussion in Honolulu. But that was about it for the common ground they found during the last stop on U.S. Rep. Jared Huffman’s nationwide “listening tour” on reforming the MSA. The panelists, which also included state and federal officials, had diverging views on the effectiveness of marine national monuments like Papahanaumokuakea and whether the eight regional councils that the law set up to manage fishery resources nationally should have designated seats to ensure representation from environmental, indigenous and scientific interests as well as the commercial fishing industry. >click to read< 10:38
What ever happened to HR-200? I have no interest in these people reauthorizing anything.
‘Codfish Fever’ – Hungry Gold Miners Craved the Salted Fish, so a Ragtag Fleet Set Off for Alaska
Codfish fever got its start in the years following the discovery of gold in central California in 1848, when San Francisco grew quickly from a sleepy hamlet into a thriving commercial center. Many of those who migrated to California during the Gold Rush were from western Europe. For them, salted cod was a dietary staple.,, Initially, East Coast merchants supplied Californians with salted Atlantic cod shipped via the Isthmus of Panama or Cape Horn. But this was a long, expensive journey for the fish, and California entrepreneurs recognized an opportunity to replace Atlantic cod with Pacific cod. It was one Captain Mathew Turner, an opportunistic merchant, who pioneered the U.S. Pacific cod fishery. >click to read< 08:43
California water debate heads to court after Trump joins discussion
After years on the sidelines, the Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner Brenda Burman says new federal plans to divert water from the delta region in Northern California to farms in the southern part of the state will bring water where it’s needed most. “It is meant to balance all of the factors. More for people, more reliable for some of the best farmland in the world, more reliable for fish as well,” Burman said. But for decades, environmentalists and the fishing industry argued pumping threatens endangered fish species. Video, >click to read< 09:37
