Monthly Archives: April 2013
An Ocean Champion in the White House – hee hee hee yeah ok!
It should come as no surprise that a president who grew up in Hawaii and has been known to enjoy the occasional vacation on Martha’s Vineyard would prioritize policies that result in the improved management of America’s oceans and coasts. continued
Not all agree Chilean sea bass is OK to eat – controversy among environmentalists
Chilean sea bass, once a forbidden fruit of the sea after illegal fishing threatened the species, can safely be eaten again, according to Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch program. continued
Editorial: Feds need to press Brown to look at all options for a Bay-Delta fix
The Sacramento Bee – If Gov. Jerry Brown had his way, the tunneling machines would be boring right now under the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, carving out space for a pair of 40-foot-wide tunnels to ship Sacramento River water to cities and irrigation districts south of the Delta. But things aren’t going well for Brown’s tunnel project, continued
Cooke Aquaculture to pay $490,000 after illegal pesticides kill lobsters in Canada
A Canadian firm that is a subsidiary of the largest aquaculture operator in Maine pleaded guilty Friday in a Canadian courtroom to using illegal pesticides that killed hundreds of lobsters a little more than a mile from Maine’s border. continued
Gamefish measure sparks commercial fishing industry anger
“It (the bill) is taking fish, which science has proven commercial fishing has little impact to, and gives it to the group that has 90 percent of it,” he said. “They (state legislators) are saying recreational fishermen should be given full control of the fishery.” continued
Another assault on commercial fishermen
I write this letter to say thank you to the editor of the Carteret County News-Times for the truthful and thought provoking editorial, “An obviously bad bill, in the April 24 issue of the paper. My connection to this issue of opposing House Bill 983 is I am the mother of a full time commercial fisherman in Carteret County. From the first day he began to make his living on the water he, and all the rest of the fisherman, have had to battle the weather, increased regulations, sky high fuel costs and licenses both in number and costs. continued
NewHampshire Fishermen collect 35 tons of lobster traps from coast
seacoastonline – RYE — It’s been a harsh winter with many storms ravaging the Seacoast. More than 75 fishermen from Seabrook to Portsmouth and about a dozen community volunteers on Saturday converged on the beaches of Rye and Hampton to clean up nearly 35 tons of lobster traps and fishing gear. “We started at low tide about 7:30 (Saturday) morning,” said Eric Anderson, president of the New Hampshire Commercial Fishermen’s Association. “The cleanup went along quickly with the nice weather. There was a lot more debris this year.” continued
Empty nets in Louisiana three years after the spill
Yscloskey, Louisiana (CNN) – At least he’s got some company. There’s not much else going on at his dock these days. There used to be two or three people working with him; now he’s alone. The catch that’s coming in is light, particularly for crabs. “Guys running five or six hundred traps are coming in with two to three boxes, if that,” said Stander, 26. Out on the water, the chains clatter along the railing of George Barisich’s boat as he and his deckhand haul dredges full of oysters onto the deck. continued
Mine project threatens Bristol Bay salmon fishery: EPA report
The great fishery in Alaska’s Bristol Bay should beware diggers of open pit gold mines, erectors of 685-foot-high tailings dams and builders of haul roads that cross salmon-spawning streams, according to a detailed — and devastating — new federal analysis. continued
Tahoe Lobster Co. Crayfish traps missing from Tahoe – again
Forty traps set by Tahoe Lobster Co. – Lake Tahoe’s first commercial fishing operation in decades – were discovered missing Thursday. That’s in addition to 20 others that vanished March 3 for a total of more than 130 since the first disappeared last August and only a month after the company started operations. continued
WHY WE RALLY – NORTHEAST SEAFOOD COALITION – A PERFECT STORM OF CIRCUMSTANCES
Who are we and why are we rallying? Read it here
1.5 Million Objections to Genetically Engineered Salmon Filed with FDA – Previously undisclosed documents reveal requests by many companies seeking government approval to grow controversial salmon in U.S.
Washington, D.C. – infoZine – Earthjustice, Friends of the Earth, Center for Food Safety, and Food & Water Watch will join nearly 1.5 million people who have raised vehement objections, based on science, policy and law, to a proposal before the Food and Drug Administration to approve genetically engineered salmon, the first-ever GE animal intended for human consumption. The comment period ended Friday, April 26 at midnight. continued
Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary rule groups meet
keysnews.com – Three committees reviewing the rules of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary are closing in on their formal recommendations. continued
Fukushima’s Radiation: BC Health Risk, or Fish Tale?
The debate should be well over in the view of the person entrusted with overseeing public health in British Columbia: public health officer Dr. Perry Kendall. Time and again Kendall has tried to explain that there is, to quote the headline on one of his press releases, “Nothing to fear from radiation in B.C.” continued
Ocean food chains remain elusive
The marine biologist’s cod-food web looks more like the architecture of an acid-tripping spider than a depiction of what cod eat, and get eaten by, on the Scotian Shelf.
Cod eat herring and capelin and sand lance — small eel-like fish that in turn eat cod larvae. Seals eat cod, but they prefer herring and capelin and sand lance. Whales eat everything.
Everything eats everything. And that’s nearly all we know about how the hundreds of species on the Scotian Shelf interact — which is a problem.
“If cod came back, we’d have no idea why, because we don’t know what the interactions are,” Iverson said. We’ve had stock assessments — educated guesses made by scientists on how many of a particular species are out there, based on sample trawls and fishermen’s landings. continued
‘All the predator fish are gone’
Chronical Herald -“All the predator fish are gone — the cod, the pollock, the haddock — but there’s more lobster and more seals. Something’s changed.” The next morning at 7 a.m., d’Entremont was at the Dennis Point Café drinking coffee with Pubnico’s fleet of aging captains. Outside the café that looks over one of the busiest fishing harbours in Atlantic Canada, young crew members smoked cigarettes and talked about women, trucks and landings in their mixture of French and English. Inside, d’Entremont and the other captains talked of the offshore banks as we all speak of the places where we were once young. continued
Cod aren’t coming back — yet
Chronical Herald – The baldheaded buffoon of the popular cartoon (The Simpsons) could have been talking about the Northwest Atlantic. The accusations that followed the destruction of the world’s greatest wild food resource were on land. Some blamed foreign draggers for the 1993 cod moratorium, others blamed politicians, some blamed scientists and a few took a long hard look at ourselves. Popular predictions that cod would rebound without fishing pressure turned out to be wrong. Replacing cod as a dominant species have been seals and bottom feeders — Homer’s tasty crustaceans. Populations of commercially valuable lobster and crab have skyrocketed. continued
Fishing group set to rally in Boston
With fishermen in Gloucester and elsewhere in New England staring at extreme and nearly across-the-board federally mandated cuts in landings of groundfish, the Northeast Seafood Coalition, the region’s largest industry group, is leading a major rally for the industry Monday on the Boston Fish Pier beginning at 11 a.m. The rally will feature U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Attorney General Martha Coakley and Congressman John Tierney among the speakers, all of whom are Democrats, but have failed, like their fellow partisans, to reach President Obama to change administration policy. continued
Mass. Gov. Deval Patrick makes last-ditch appeal for fishermen
With one week to go before severe quota cutbacks descend on the Northeast groundfishery, Gov. Deval Patrick has written to interim Commerce Secretary Rebecca Blank and Congress imploring them to step in, ease the restrictions and send disaster relief for the industry. May 1 marks the start of the 2013 groundfishing year, bringing with it sharp reductions in cod and yellowtail flounder quota that many fishermen say will make it financially impossible to fish. continued
Aquaculture company ordered to pay $500K for pesticide use – Kelly Cove Salmon pleaded guilty to 2 charges related to deaths of lobsters in Bay of Fundy
A New Brunswick aquaculture company has been ordered to pay $500,000 after pleading guilty to two charges in connection with the deaths of hundreds of lobsters in the Bay of Fundy from an illegal pesticide about three years ago. continued
Simulator recreates sea conditions in controlled environment
A state of the art facility at Memorial University is attracting researchers and businesses from around the globe. The $4 million-Virtual Environments for Knowledge Mobilization project recreates dangerous sea conditions in a controlled environment. Memorial is developing simulator technologies and virtual environments to train those who work in the offshore industry with the ultimate goal of improving safety of life at sea. continued
Protest delays potential ship build by Burger Boat – U.S. Geological Survey awards contract but losing bidder objects
MANITOWOC — Earlier this month, the U.S. Geological Survey awarded a $5.59 million contract for construction of a large research vessel to Burger Boat Co. But, now, it’s not a done deal as late protests filed with federal officials by one or more losing bidders have prompted an adjudication process, said Russell Strach, director of the USGS Great Lake Science Center. continued
Drought won’t help migrating baby salmon
The Golden Gate Salmon Association had asked the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to release more water into the river from Shasta and Keswick dams to help the young salmon make it safely out to the ocean. The fish swim out to the Sacramento River and then down to the Pacific Ocean, where they live for two or three years before migrating back upstream to spawn and die. continued
Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council Proposed Management Measures for the 2013 Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Recreational Fisheries
Based on recommendations of the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council, NOAA Fisheries is proposing to increase the overall catch limits for the 2013 and 2014 black sea bass fishery by approximately 1 million pounds.This results in an increase of approximately 0.41 million pounds for the recreational black sea bass fishery, and a 0.39 million pound increase for the commercial fishery. summer flounder, scup recreational, continued
Sea Surface Temperatures Reach Highest Level in 150 Years on Northeast Continental Shelf from Cape Hatteras, N.C. to the Gulf of Maine
Sea surface temperatures in the Northeast Shelf Large Marine Ecosystem during 2012 were the highest recorded in 150 years, according to the latest Ecosystem Advisory issued by NOAA’s Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC). continued
52-year-old Fisherman medevaced from F/V Katie Ann in Bering Sea – reportedly suffering from symptoms of intestinal bleeding
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — A Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew medevaced a fisherman reportedly suffering from symptoms of intestinal bleeding more than 110 miles northwest of Cold Bay Thursday. con
tinued
Should Alaska’s largest salmon fleet look into downsizing? Alaska Fish Radio
That’s the question fishermen are posing in an informal buyback poll mailed to Bristol Bay’s 18-hundred plus driftnet permit holders. continued
Alaska Fish Radio is a 2 1/2 minute program that airs weekdays on 30 radio stations and web sites. Its focus is Alaska’s seafood industry.
Friday Must Reads: Brown Admin. Official Admits Water Tunnels Won’t Save Delta; Brown Urges Feds to Fast-Track Tunnels Despite Concerns They Will Harm Fish
1. A top official in the Brown administration has admitted that the governor’s controversial plan to build two giant water tunnels in the Sacramento area won’t help save the collapsing Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, the LA Times$ reports. Congressional Democrats, who strongly question the multi-billion-dollar tunnel plan, have responded to the comments made by,,,continued
The New Lobster Frontier! From Britain – This is why you’ll probably be eating American lobster soon.
The last year’s Scottish lobster catch was 90 per cent down year-on year, he says, and the ponds and vats in which the Autumn catch was stockpiled for distribution over the Christmas period are now long empty.
