Daily Archives: November 27, 2012
Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell proposes king salmon research
Alaska Gov. Sean Parnellsays he will propose $30 million over five years to study king salmon abundance. Parnell says the first installment will be $10 million in the fiscal year 2014 budget. Low chinook salmon returns this year resulted in fishing closures or limits. State commerce officials estimate commercial fishermen lost $16.8 million in direct revenue. Subsistence fishermen and the sport fishing industry also saw losses. http://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/index.ssf/2012/11/alaska_gov_sean_parnell_propos.html
Editorial: NOAA chief’s stand to cut tuna limit must be last straw. Lubchenco has now shown her own disdain for fishery science itself.
They should also not be any surprise. She has, after all, ignored several calls for action from congressional leaders ranging from Congressman John Tierney to Sens. Scott Brown and John Kerry. And she has run her agency against the grain of the president’s own position, figuratively scoffing at his campaign promise to promote “jobs, jobs, jobs” by holding to her job-killing catch share management system that has produced a government-recognized “economic disaster” in New England and across the waterfronts of the Northeast.http://www.gloucestertimes.com/opinion/x1839361256/Editorial-NOAA-chiefs-stand-to-cut-tuna-limit-must-be-last-straw
Gillnet fishermen work to reduce porpoise bycatch, are continuing to make concerted, proactive choices
Preliminary data from October indicates that delaying the consequence closure of the gillnet fishery did not have a negative impact on harbor porpoises. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration planned to impose a consequence closure on the gillnet fishery for October and November because fishermen failed to comply with a section of the Marine Mammal Protection Act that restricts bycatch of harbor porpoises. Gillnetters use stationary nets anchored by weights to catch groundfish such as cod and flounder, and bycatch occurs when harbor porpoises or other marine animals are inadvertently caught. http://www.seacoastonline.com/articles/20121127-NEWS-211270352
Fishermen hope legislation benefits industry. Charlston Huckster wearing a cheap rug strokes’ em with Pew Lotion!
Locals in the fishing industry, including Baumann, hope the research could lead to further regulatory change to the Magnuson-Stevens Act which sets catch limits designed to prevent overfishing, but also has fishermen stuck at the docks.J. Dean Foster, with Foster Associates, a marketing group based in Charleston, said the congressional committee likely will debate the bill early next year. Foster is working with Pew Environment Group to drum up support for the bill http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/2012/11/26/3190554/fishermen-hope-legislation-benefits.html
or the bill http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/2012/11/26/3190554/fishermen-hope-legislation-benefits.html
Seafood processors fined for releasing millions of lb of seafood waste into the Bering Sea, Gulf of Alaska and North Pacific Ocean
Three seafood processors agreed to settle federal Clean Water Act violations for their vessels’ seafood waste discharges off Alaska’s coast with the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and pay fines. Aleutian Spray Fisheries, Inc, United States Seafoods, LLC and Ocean Peace Inc, and their vessels are responsible for releasing millions of lb of seafood waste into the Bering Sea, Gulf of Alaska and North Pacific Ocean every year. http://fis.com/fis/worldnews/worldnews.asp?l=e&ndb=1&id=57136
NOAA / NMFS Reopens public comment period. Proposed Rule to Expand Exempted Redfish Fishery for Groundfish Sectors
ACTION: Proposed rule; reopening of comment period.
SUMMARY: This action reopens the comment period for an Acadian redfish proposed rule that published on November 8, 2012. The original comment period closed on November 23, 2012; the comment period is being reopened to provide additional opportunity for public comment through December 31, 2012. http://www.nero.noaa.gov/mediacenter/2012/11/redfish_extension.pdf
GEARNET Northeast Groundfish Gear Conservation Engineering & Demonstration Network- Proposals are due December 31, 2012
Northeast Groundfish Gear Conservation Engineering & Demonstration Network FINAL CALL FOR PROPOSALS –GEARNET is currently scheduling port and sector meetings for December to develop your ideas for a second round of proposals. Our goal is to address your gear needs through pilot ‐scale projects funded by NOAA’s Northeast Fisheries Science Center Cooperative Research Program. Proposals are due December 31st, 2012.
Why should you get involved?
Are you struggling to catch your allocation because you run into fish for which you have no allocation?
Are you interested in improving fuel efficiency and lowering your operating costs?
Would you like to try sensors to measure door spread or indicate when your codend is full?
Do you have ideas for improving your gear’s selectivity but cannot afford to make the changes?
Would you like to try a topless trawl or raised footrope gillnet? Or other fishing gear that you’ve heard about but don’t have access to?
For more information about GEARNET and current projects please visit us at www.gearnet.org. http://www.gearnet.org/about.html
Friends of Captain Jean Frottier devastated by loss of fisherman
Frottier’s friends and fellow fishermen, many of whom have spent much of their lives at MacMillan Pier by his side, said they are devastated by the loss of a man who served as an emblem for so much of what is special about their lifestyle.
