Category Archives: South Atlantic
South Atlantic Fishery Management Council meeting in Kitty Hawk, December 3-7, 2018
The public is invited to attend the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council to be held at the Hilton Garden Inn/Outer Banks, 5353 N. Virginia Dare Trail, Kitty Hawk, NC 27949. Complete Agenda >click here< for details Webinar Registration: >Listen Live, Click here< To visit the SAFMC >click here<12:53
South Carolina: Local organization speaks out against seismic testing
Friday, seismic testing was given the go-ahead by the National Marine Fisheries Services, which is a part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Last year, the U.S. Department of Interior denied the seismic permits. They said the damage caused to marine animals and the fishing industry was not worth it.It is now a go, and Lowcountry organizations are upset because seismic testing is the first step to potentially allowing offshore drilling. “We are extremely against seismic air gun blasts,” Peg Howell, spokesperson for Stop Offshore Drilling in the Atlantic, said. >click to read<20:50
North Carolina Fisheries Association Weekly Update for November 30, 2018
>Click here to read the Weekly Update<, to read all the updates >click here<, for older updates listed as NCFA >click here<15:50
Trump administration readies to lease Atlantic offshore for oil exploration
The Trump administration Friday authorized five companies to conduct seismic testing for oil and gas off the East Coast from Delaware to central Florida, prompting protests from environmental groups. Opponents argued sound waves from seismic blasts not only would harm ocean species, including a declining right whale population, but would represent a first step toward offshore drilling in the Atlantic Ocean for the first time in 30 years.,, The governors of Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia have taken stands against testing and drilling. In Georgia, Gov. Nathan Deal has expressed concerns but hasn’t taken a formal position. >click to read<
Florida Shrimp Boat Deck-Hand Arrested For Undersized Lobster Tails
According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, officers boarded the commercial shrimp boat Three Princess off Key West on November 28. While onboard, the officers found three large sacks of spiny lobster hidden beneath sacks of shrimp in the below-deck freezer. In total, there were 101 spiny lobster, and 33 of them were undersized. A deck-hand admitted to harvesting all of the lobster, without the other deck-hands knowledge. The crewmember was arrested and booked into the Monroe County Detention facility on numerous misdemeanor charges. >click to read<09:29
Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 79′ Master Marine Steel Stern Trawler, CAT 3508, Federal and State permits
Specifications, information and 12 photos >click here< John Deere – 65 KW Genset, Detriot 2-71 – 20 K Genset, This vessel has good towing power as the 59 1/2″ x 63″ propeller turns 400 RPM inside the 60″ nozzle. To see all the boats in this series, >click here<14:25
Falling overboard is the second biggest killer of U.S. fishermen, second only to vessel sinkings.
From 2000 through 2016, 204 fishermen died after falling overboard. Nearly 60 percent were not witnessed and nearly 90 percent were never found. In every case, not one fisherman was wearing a life jacket. “I think there is a social stigma against it. It doesn’t look cool, it’s a sort of macho thing. I also think there is a lack of awareness of the fact that there are really comfortable, wearable PFDs.” Jerry Dzugan is director of the Alaska Marine Safety Education Association. >audio report, click to read<16:32
North Carolina Fisheries Association Weekly Update for Nov. 16, 2018
>Click here to read the Weekly Update<, to read all the updates >click here<, for older updates listed as NCFA >click here<16:12
Shem Creek dock partnership in the works for Mount Pleasant
The town is opening negotiations to take a role in saving one of the last shrimp boat docks on Shem Creek, the picturesque tourism hub. Mount Pleasant Town Council this week voted unanimously for staff to move ahead “with due diligence” after receiving legal advice on the sought-after shrimp boat dock on Shem Creek. The discussion was held in an executive session, a meeting out of the public eye. >click to read<20:02
North Carolina: News for and about commercial fishermen
Governor Roy Cooper has appointed fish dealer/processor and owner of Pamlico Packing Doug Cross of Pamlico County and commercial fisherman and co-owner of Seaview Crab Company, Sam Romano of Wilmington to the Marine Fisheries Commission. They will fill the seats left vacant when former MFC Chairman Sammy Corbett, a commercial fishing dealer, and Alison Willis, wife of a commercial fisherman, resigned from the board just days before the last meeting thus leaving just one of the,,, >click to read< 11:01
North Carolina Fisheries Association Weekly Update for November 2, 2018
>Click here to read the Weekly Update<, to read all the updates >click here<, for older updates listed as NCFA >click here<15:10
To our valued readers here at Fishery Nation.
To our valued readers here at Fishery Nation. You have probably noticed recently there have been no postings on our website. I’m sorry to say that I have recently taken ill and have been hospitalized for the past week in the intensive care unit of my local hospital.
As you know, I’ve made it a priority in my life to keep you all informed on the goings on in our commercial fisheries here in the US and also abroad with stories and information that we feel is important to you, and also stories of interest. For the past seven years we have fulfilled this goal 365 days a year, every single day!
Please bear with me as we get through this situation and I am able to get back on my feet and continue what has become my passion, and mission in life, to keep the commercial fishermen informed and up to date as to the goings on in your industry.
If all goes well this will be a short period of time and I’ll soon be on my feet and able to get back at it.
Thank you one and all for your support and understanding. God bless you all, stay safe out there and please stay in touch with us.
Sincerely,
Borehead
North Carolina Fisheries Association Weekly Update for 10/26/2018
>Click here to read the Weekly Update<, to read all the updates >click here<, for older updates listed as NCFA >click here<10:50
F/V A.M.G – Beached Shrimp boat at Ormond turns around as crew works to move it
The shrimp boat beached for more than a week has spun away from shore as crew members Thursday morning were running the engines and appeared to be trying to drive the vessel away. After 7 a.m., the 77-foot boat beached near Cardinal Drive, was facing east instead of the position it has been stalled in since Oct. 15. It also moved south. Coast Guard officials reached Thursday morning said they did not know of the efforts to move the boat. Video >click to read<11:46
North Carolina Fisheries Association Weekly Update for October 19, 2018
>Click here to read the Weekly Update<, to read all the updates >click here<, for older updates listed as NCFA >click here<12:45
F/V AMG: ‘No safety issues’ found on shrimp boat beached in Ormond
The U.S. Coast Guard boarded a 77-foot shrimping boat on Wednesday which remained grounded on Ormond Beach as curious people continued snapping pictures and selfies of the 150-ton vessel.,,, The Coast Guard boarded the boat on Wednesday to see if it could be safely pulled out to sea, said U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer 3rd Class Ryan Dickinson on Wednesday morning. “They found no safety issues or water intrusion,” Dickinson said. >click to read<15:38
Harry Schiffman honored for decades of fighting for Dare’s watermen
On the cusp of a long-awaited breakthrough in securing the navigability of Oregon and Hatteras Inlets, Wanchese resident Harry Schiffman pondered the decades-long quest to achieve that goal. “People who aren’t on the water in our inlets don’t understand what a miraculous opportunity we have set before us,” he told the Sentinel. “It’s a gigantic step in the right direction, but we’re not done yet.” The breakthrough came in May when the state legislature earmarked $15 million for the purchase of a shallow draft hopper dredge that will be based and primarily used in Dare County. >click to read<10:43
Shrimper runs aground on Ormond Beach
A 77-foot commercial shrimping boat out of Key West ran aground on Ormond Beach, giving beachgoers a close-up gaze at the 150-ton vessel Tuesday morning as the U.S. Coast Guard worked to get it pulled back out of the sand.
The boat named the AMG was reported taking on water and aground just north of the Cardinal Drive beach approach about 8:23 p.m. Monday, according to the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office. It was believed to be a shrimping boat. >click to read<12:49
Stone crab season off to promising start in Florida Keys
The state’s stone crab fishery should expect to take a hit this season from the red tide algae bloom that’s been plaguing Florida’s west coast for months, but the Keys, which accounts for 65 percent of the harvest of the sought-after claws, does not appear to be affected. The eight-month commercial season began Monday, with fishermen pulling traps that have been soaking for the past 10 days. Monday afternoon, boats were still coming back from the water, but Bill Kelly, executive director of the Florida Keys Commercial Fishing Association, said captains were reporting a promising first day. >click to read<20:58
North Carolina Fisheries Association Weekly Update for October 12, 2018
>Click here to read the Weekly Update<, to read all the updates >click here<, for older updates listed as NCFA >click here<14:24
How Did North Carolina’s Commerical Fishing Industry Fare In Hurricane Florence?
While cleanup crews are getting a good idea of how much the damage Hurricane Florence will cost, it’s not yet clear what the storm might have done to North Carolina’s fishing industry. Farmers on land lost more than $1 billion worth of crops in the floodwaters from the hurricane. Jerry Schill of the North Carolina Fisheries Association says, in a way, commercial fishermen lost crops of their own. “The fish stocks that they normally fish for in the fall, those fish stocks are displaced,” he said. Schill was speaking to a committee in the Legislature this week, one of many considering Hurricane Florence relief measures. >click to read<08:29
Coast Guard assists fishing vessel taking on water near Oregon Inlet
Members of the Coast Guard helped a boat called the Captain Potter that was taking on water around 4 p.m. on Sunday. The Captain Potter was around seven miles away from the Oregon Inlet Sea Bouy when the Coast Guard responded with the Cutter Dolphin and used two dewatering pumps to help stabilize the boat. The Coast Guard towed the Captain Potter to safe harbor and all personel and equipment were transported safely as well. >link<15:00
‘Pirate’ fishing charters make money with no license. A recent attempt to stop them failed
Pirates, they call them — people taking anglers out for money without the effort or expense of getting properly outfitted and licensed.,,The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council looked at one answer last week — a moratorium, a temporary stop on issuing new charter permits — as a way to regulate the desirable catch of sought-after snapper and grouper fish. It also could cut down the number of illegally operating captains, some council members said. Others, though, said it wouldn’t. The council voted the moratorium down. It might not have been the best answer anyway. The council’s bigger problem remains unanswered: How to get those fish counted by recreational anglers at sea. >click to read<19:19
North Carolina Fisheries Association Weekly Update for October 5, 2018
North Carolina Fisheries Association is trying to compile an assessment of damages sustained to our industry during Hurricane Florence. If you are a commercial fisherman, fish house owner or dealer processer, please email estimated damages and photos to Aundrea O’Neal at [email protected]. It is imperative that we get this information as soon as possible so that we can let our legislators know the needs as a result >Click here to read the Weekly Update<, to read all the updates >click here<, for older updates listed as NCFA >click here<14:30
Red tide hurting commercial fishing industry
The red tide has decimated the commercial fishing industry off the coast in southern Florida, bringing it to a halt for those who fish the surf. Rich Vidulich’s sanctuary has turned into a toxic, deserted wasteland, choking out life as he knows it. “It’s 100% deterrent. You don’t catch pompano in this,” he said. It’s a depressant. It really is. It famishes you mentally.” Catching pompano is his identity. Video, >click to read<12:05
Dare County leaders reviving Working Watermen Commission
A group focused on guiding Dare County leaders about issues surrounding the fishing industry is being revived after laying dormant for almost six years, and will hold its first meeting next week. The Dare County Commission for Working Watermen was originally formed in May of 2008, but held it’s last meeting in December 2012, according to District 3 County Commissioner Steve House who has been chosen to spearhead the panel. “Many of its members over the years spun off to Outer Banks Catch, N.C. Watermen United and others,” House said. The commission is designed to monitor and advise the Dare County Board of Commissioners regarding pending and proposed laws, rules, regulations, fisheries management plans and coastal habitat plans. >click to read<14:11
A life at sea – A swordfishing pioneer remembered
Legendary swordfish and tuna boat captain Warren Cannon passed away recently after a body surfing accident in St. Augustine. On Saturday, Sept. 29, Cannon’s ashes were scattered in the water off Longboat Pass and his adventurous life was then celebrated at the Swordfish Grill in Cortez.,,, “My dad started when he was about 17 in Cortez with Walter Bell, who gave him his first break running the Rachel Belle. He met my mother when he was 29. They started their swordfish empire, and he quickly became, arguably, the best swordfish captain everPhoto’s,>click to read<08:51 
Legendary swordfish captain remembered – “I needed to remind him all the time that we won the Civil War,” Tom Ring said. “But I’ve always said that if I was flat broke and needed to make a trip to earn some money, he’d be the guy. He just had the feel for it. He’d stick his nose out the window and sniff. A half mile later, he’d sniff again and maybe make a correction. It was like he could smell it.” >click to read< 10/4/2016 09:36
Shrimper hoping to salvage harvest season plagued by Hurricane Florence
Stanley Hall normally welcomes hurricane season, not because of its potentially negative impacts, but because it’s harvest season for shrimping. “This is the height of the season. This is when it normally gets good,” said Hall. “We got to make it right now because shrimping won’t start back until July.” For shrimpers like Hall, who operates his 40-foot vessel, Seabrook, out of Varnamtown, right now is not so good. “All the rain from Hurricane Florence has sent the shrimp out of the river prematurely, so they had no time to grow,” >click to read<18:26
RESCHEDULED: South Atlantic Fishery Management Council meeting in Charleston, September 30 – October 5, 2018
The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council will postpone its quarterly meeting originally scheduled for September 16 – 21, 2018 in Charleston, SC due to the threat of Hurricane Florence. The rescheduled Council meeting will be held September 30 – October 5, 2018 at the originally planned location: Town and Country Inn at 2008 Savannah Highway, Charleston, SC. Complete Agenda >click here< for details. Webinar Registration: >Listen Live, Click here< To visit the SAFMC >click here<17:47
North Carolina Fisheries Association Weekly Update for September 28, 2018
>Click here to read the Weekly Update<, to read all the updates >click here<, for older updates listed as NCFA >click here<12:24
