Daily Archives: October 2, 2014
BOEM (the ocean destruction agency) targets fishing impacts
The US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has complied ‘best management practices’ (BMPs) to reduce fishing impacts by offshore wind energy development in the Atlantic Ocean. The agency and offshore wind leaseholders will use the recommendations in individual development plans. Read the rest here 20:05
Sen. Wicker goes fishing for information – how the DMR will handle almost $11 million in federal money
U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker went on a fishing expedition Wednesday afternoon, and it wasn’t just to catch blue crabs and shrimp. It was to fish for information. While some tasty crustaceans were landed, his real purpose was to get a sense of how the DMR will handle almost $11 million in federal money to help revive the oyster and blue crab populations. Read the rest here 14:57
MARYLAND – Oyster Season Begins
In a sure sign that fall is here, watermen in Southern Maryland and the Eastern Shore today are kicking off the beginning of the six-month oyster harvest season. Maryland has 1,100 licensed oyster harvesters. For the first month of the season, only hand tonging, patent tonging and diving are permitted. Power dredging season begins on Nov. 1, when harvest activity rises dramatically. Read the rest here 12:55
National Geographic’s ‘Wicked Tuna’ visits Jack’s Waterfront Bar 5 to 9 p.m. Friday – 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday
Jack’s Waterfront Bar on the Morehead City waterfront will host a reception honoring the National Geographic channel show “Wicked Tuna North vs. South”from 5 to 9 p.m. Friday and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. Capt. Reed Meredith of the Wahoo, Capt. Gary Mayer of the Fishin’ Frenzy and Capt. Britton Shackleford of the Doghouse are the commercial fishermen who will make appearances. Read the rest here 11:42
Updated: The Coast Guard plucked four lobstermen from the sea when their lobster boat sank this morning – Video
BOSTON – The Coast Guard plucked four lobstermen from the sea when their lobster boat sank Thursday, about 40 miles south of Block Island, Rhode Island. Coast Guard Sector Southeastern New England received a distress call at about 4:15 a.m. from the four-man crew aboard the Sakonnet Lobster that the 60-foot boat was taking on water. Read the rest here 10:55 Watch Video here 13:16
Green crab shell secret cracked
Because they all seem to moult together, they all spend about 24 hours in a vulnerable but more docile state before the new shells harden. The strategy for fishermen would be to catch the crabs just before moulting. Then processors could manipulate the water temperature to try to trigger moulting, and sort crabs for processing as they cast their hard shells. Read the rest here 10:34
NEFMC fails to tackle cod problem – “We’re losing the rest of that value to protect one stock that is highly romanticized,”
Josh Wiersma, who manages two New Hampshire fishing sectors with 14 fishing vessels, said fishermen get $100 million a year catching groundfish species like cod, haddock and flounders, but only $5 million of that comes from cod. His fishermen, he said, have been able to make a living catching other species like Pollock, redfish and hake. “We don’t think cod is more valuable, but apparently the council is willing to shut down everything we built,” he said. Read the rest here 09:50
Your View: Cod report has no scientific value, by Richard Canastra –
The Gulf of Maine cod fishery faces some big-ticket problems. Warming waters, concerns of overfishing, an economic disaster and stock assessment controversy all threaten this essential coastal industry. The common thread between these varied issues, however, is a troubling pattern of distrust. That pattern continues, unfortunately, with this latest assessment update of Gulf of Maine cod. The process by which the assessment was conducted, and in turn its results, speak to fishermen’s valid concerns for a serious need for greater transparency and cooperation in fisheries management. Read the rest here 09:21
New England Regional Fisheries Council can’t agree on plan to help cod
NOAA Fisheries has the Gulf of Maine cod crisis all to himself after the New England Regional Fisheries Council found no consensus and simply voted to ask him to just do something. The proposal drew heaps of derision, as did NOAA fisheries’ methods, which were variously described as rushed, secretive and riddled with assumptions, the main one being the expectation that cod mortality would be cut in half in two years. Read the rest here 08:52
Emergency plan on cod fishing off of New England sought from federal regulators
The National Marine Fisheries Service expects to implement emergency measures in November aimed at stemming cod fish decline in the Gulf of Maine. The fisheries service is crafting the measures at the request of the New England Fishery Management Council, which asked for them at its meeting in Hyannis, Massachusetts, on Wednesday. The measures will apply to the current fishing year, which ends April 30 Read the rest here 08:43
Young and Dunbar tussle in fisheries debate in Kodiak
In a fiery debut, a young Democratic challenger to U.S. Rep. Don Young asked voters at a fisheries debate in Kodiak to oust the congressman from his long-held seat, saying Young has lost his clout because of a past ethical violation and is no longer effective. Read the rest here 08:28
Tough topic, tough audience for Sullivan in debate with Begich on fisheries issues in Kodiak
A sharp, wide-ranging debate on Alaska fisheries Wednesday evening saw organizers and Democratic U.S. Sen. Mark Begich put Republican challenger Dan Sullivan on the defensive over his pro-development record, with Sullivan delivering some targeted shots of his own to keep Begich from getting too comfortable. Read the rest here 08:21
B.C. Algae kills 280K Marine Harvest Canada farmed fish
The largest salmon farming company in B.C. lost up to 280,000 fish last week to a type of “harmful algae” associated with warm waters known to kill salmon. Marine Harvest Canada communications manager Ian Roberts said on Tuesday the deaths represent up to 4% of the company’s annual production, adding there was 30 times more algae than needed to kill the fish present at a Port Hardy area farm earlier this month. Read the rest here 00:47
