Monthly Archives: October 2014
NOAA Regional Administrator John Bullard concedes Gloucester, Scituate, and Portsmouth faces heavy hit
“We’re trying to follow the cod and that’s going to have a disproportionate impact on these ports,” he said, naming Gloucester, Scituate and Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Bullard said he expects those closures also will preclude groundfishermen from fishing for other, more plentiful species such as gray sole, dabs, haddock and flounder in the closed areas. “It’s almost impossible to protect cod while allowing the fishing of other species,” he said. “That’s one of the real difficulties.” We’re not giving up on cod,” Bullard said. “We believe the cod stock can be rebuilt, but it needs to be protected.” Read the rest here 09:01
Louisiana shrimp catch in September largest since 2003
Louisiana shrimpers caught more shrimp in September than any other September since 2003, according to federal fisheries estimates released this week. Shrimpers caught 7.9 million pounds of shrimp, the largest on record for the month since the 8 million pounds landed in 2003. Read the rest here 20:40
Bristol Bay buyback up for discussion
According to an email from Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association (BBRSDA), 81 percent of drift permit holders responded to a survey last year saying they were interested in learning more about a possible buyback. Now the association is trying to decide whether to study the issue further. Read the rest here 16:30 Photo compliments of Todd Raden, Thank you Todd!
BP’s Politico puff piece wasn’t just shady journalism ethics — it was mostly a lie
BP, with a huge assist from the popular Beltway-insider website Politico, stirred up the muddy waters of the Deepwater Horizon spill aftermath this week when it published a corporate-love-letter-disguised-as-news entitled, “No, BP Didn’t Ruin the Gulf.” Anyone expecting humility from a firm whose court-certified wanton negligence killed 11 people and seriously polluted America’s most precious natural resource clearly hasn’t followed the story lately. Read the rest here 13:10
Gloucester to take brunt of new NOAA fishing hits
The port of Gloucester and its sector-based commercial fishermen could be crushed under emergency measures NOAA Fisheries is considering for Gulf of Maine cod, potentially losing as much as one-quarter of all groundfish revenues, according to a NOAA economic report. The ultimate revenue loss will be contingent on how far NOAA cuts the Gulf of Maine cod quota as part of the emergency measures to combat what the agency has described as the continued decimation of the area’s cod stock. Read the rest here 12:52
Vehicle stolen in Capitola with Aromas Fisherman’s prosthetic arms inside
A fisherman who lost his right arm in a commercial salmon fishing accident at sea last year has lost another arm this month “It’s not easy losing your right arm twice. It’s really been a real kick in the stomach,” Victor Kraft of Aromas said. Kraft parked his dark blue Toyota 4-Runner on the 4200 block of Capitola Road in Capitola on Oct. 14. His wife was taking care of an elderly woman who lived there. Sadly, Read the rest here
P.E.I. tuna fleet nearly fills its allocation
Just 28.9 kilograms, that’s how close the P.E.I. tuna fleet came to filling its 2014 allocation. “The Island has really been good,” said the chairman of the P.E.I. Fishermen Association’s tuna advisory committee, Kenny Drake, in describing the fishery’s adherence to its allocation. . Read the rest here 09:55
Eddie Emery sends this photo from Connecticut – Black Sea bass. Devouring everything they can
Black Sea bass. Devouring everything they can. Every trap of a 10 pot trawl. Too many predators lobsters won’t go near them. All summer long everywhere we fish NY CT Block Island. NY is closed CT 8 fish limit. Been screaming it for 15 yrs. YOU CANNOT OVER PROTECT PREDATORY SPECIES. 09:04
N.S. won’t introduce lobster levy right away
A proposed new levy on lobster will not take effect this winter, Fisheries Minister Keith Colwell said Thursday. “We want to consult more with the industry on how the levy will be collected and how it will be dispersed,” Colwell said of a proposal that has divided the industry. Read the rest here 08:39
Digby lobster prices hold at $4.75/pound – Industry has high hopes for demand in Asia
Lobster prices are hovering at about $4.75 per pound at the wharf in the Digby area after a short-lived upward spike last week, an industry observer said Thursday. There were some initial reports the crustacean was fetching between $5.25 and $5.50 per pound in the Bay of Fundy area when that lobster district opened last week. “But that was due to an initial pent-up demand linked to circumstances in the Maine and New England lobster fishery,” Read the rest here 08:32
California fishery managers try to curb spiny lobster hunting, as their value grows around the world
The California lobster fishery stretches only from Monterey Bay to Mexico, but it is one of the state’s most lucrative fisheries because they can be sold for such high prices. In 2013, the commercial fishery landed 772,305 pounds of spiny lobster, according to the Department of Fish and Wildlife. Estimates for the recreational lobster take are more murky,, Read the rest here 07:45
Maine elver fishing quota may be slightly reduced – Department of Marine Resources is advocating for status quo
Maine elver fishermen will oppose the quota cut at the meeting, said Jeffrey Pierce, director of the Maine Elver Fishermen’s Association. “They can’t keep cutting it every year. Our markets need to know there is stability they can count on,” Pierce said. Read the rest here 06:58
Center for Biological Diversity to sue NMFS to Protect Disappearing Pinto Abalone From Ocean Acidification, Climate Change and Poaching
Sustainable. The tax drain of US taxpayers that pay for NMFS, CBD’s tax except status, and for frivolous lawsuits brought forth by the Bender and Bender of Environmental NGO’s. Apparently these nuts believe that NMFS should be sued over Ocean Acidification, Climate Change and Poaching? Read the press release here 21:42
Gulf Council votes 10-7 in favor of Amendment 40 – 75 percent of gulf red snapper fishery would go to private businesses forever
Thursday’s 10-7 vote by the Gulf Council favors a document referred to as Amendment 40, which would create rules for anglers fishing from charter boats that would be separate and different from rules that regulate anglers fishing from private boats for snapper in the Gulf of Mexico. Read the rest here 20:29
From the Cape Cod Hippie – JUDGE: Joe’s Lobster Mart Has 14 Days To Clear Out Its Stock And Shut Down
Ding, Dong, the witch is dead! Or at least its been given 14 days to live… until the appeal… whatever, it’s better than nothing. It looks like the thief’s testimony that this was not a “one time” incident has sealed Joe’s fate, and rightfully so. Read the rest here 18:45
The Squatters are coming! Bay State Making Plans for Ocean Development
In the third of five public hearings on the 2014 draft Massachusetts Ocean Management Plan, Coastal Zone Management (CZM) director Bruce Carlisle opened the Oct. 22 meeting by quoting the original 2004 Ocean Management Task Force” “The ocean can no longer be a place where use is determined on a first-come, first-served basis for competing multiple uses.” Read the rest here 17:39
UPDATED – Not Good: Lobsterman Jailed, Fined Over Illegal Lobsters
A Maine lobsterman who kept undersized and V-notched lobsters has been sentenced to two days in jail and fined $50,000. The Department of Marine Resources is also suspending his license for three years. Read the rest here 17:03
New Zealand Government seizes Korean trawler – owners Taejin Fisheries Co of Busan owe 93 Indonesian crew $4.5 million in wages.
Docked in Dunedin’s inner harbour, it was valued a year ago at $1 million, but owners Taejin Fisheries Co of Busan owe 93 Indonesian crew $4.5 million in wages. Taxpayers have paid over $50,000 in berthage fees since its owners gave up on it. It has also paid to clean up the ship which became infested with rats, cockroaches and lice. Read the rest here 16:44
Open letter to John Bullard, Terry Stockwell: Fishermen are the real environmental stewards
This is an open letter to John Bullard, regional administrator for NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service, and Terry Stockwell, chairman of the New England Fishery Management Council. After attending and speaking at the New England Fishery Management Council in Hyannis, I feel compelled to offer the following. The New England fishing industry has a proud and rich history of men and women who did all they could to better their families. Read the rest here 13:03
So God Made A Fisherman
And on the 8th day, God looked down on his planned paradise and said, “I need a provider.” So God made a FISHERMAN. God said, “I need somebody willing to get up before dawn, mend nets, work all day in the Sound or in the Ocean, mend nets again, eat supper and then go to town and stay past midnight at a meeting of the Marine Fisheries board.” So God made a Fisherman. Read the rest here 12:58
Finest At Sea seafood company forfeits catch – no evidence the company was trying to be surreptitious
Finest At Sea has forfeited the proceeds from a $14,000 halibut catch after pleading guilty to contravening the conditions of a commercial fishing licence in March 2012. Court heard the ill health of company owner Bob Fraumeni and a skipper’s inexperience contributed to the company’s failure to apply for a special amendment to the halibut licence on a trip on the Nordic Spirit on March 18 to 20, 2012. Read the rest here 12:30
PEI Lobster fishery soon to be certified sustainable
P.E.I. lobster should be certified environmentally sustainable before fishermen go back out on the water again. The P.E.I. Fishermen’s Association hopes Island lobster will be certified as environmentally sustainable by mid-December, in plenty of time for the opening of the spring fishery in May. The fishery is in the last stage of approval to earn . Read the rest here 12:01
Cute Headline: Fraudulent Fishmonger Hooked In Federal Fluke Conspiracy
A Brooklyn fish dealer was sentenced to four months in prison Wednesday for his part in a conspiracy to steal nearly 250,000 pounds of fluke from the federal government, the Justice Department announced. It all started in 2009, when the dealer, Alan Dresner, learned that one of the fishing boat captains was consistently overharvesting fluke, Read the rest here 11:16
Charter Captains on Red Snapper Regulation
The has been hearing from the public today regarding management issues for red snapper. . The public hearing was held at the Battle House Hotel. Right now, charter companies are held under the same rules and regulations as private recreational fisherman. Video, Read more here 08:04
Kiribati tightens control over fishing waters
Kiribati’s decision to greatly restrict the number of fishing days US vessels has sent shockwaves across the Pacific.Kiribati will provide under a new fisheries treaty, down from thousands of days in previous years. Audio report here 07:42
F/V Merit Rescues Crew From Sunken Tug South of Narragansett Bay, Credits F/V Tradition for assist
Four crew members aboard a 55-foot tugboat towing a barge were rescued when it overturned south of Narragansett Bay Wednesday night said Coast Guard officials. Update: From Sid Smith, the skipper/ owner of F/V Merit: There is a fishing boat in Pt Judith the F/V Tradition he passed the tug on his way in to Pt Judith. When he heard the call he was already tied to the dock. He threw his lines off and went out again to assist. It was blowing 40 to 60 easy. He called me and because he has ais gave me the td numbers which help point me the right way. I feel he deserves some credit. It helped a lot. Capt Arin William F/V Tradiion, Thanks, Sid Video Read the rest here 06:46 updated 11:26
Alberta pushing Fort Chip commercial fishers north to Great Slave Lake
After 57 years of setting his nets on Lake Athabasca, Ray Ladouceur is out of work, a victim of the Alberta government’s decision in August to end commercial fishing across the province. “We’re looking for compensation, but so far, nothing has been offered,” Ladouceur told The Journal last week. Read the rest here 21:59
Bering Sea fleet shrinks in face of catch shares
The Bering Sea crab fleet now stands at 77 vessels, a far cry from the nearly 250 boats that participated in a frenzied race to pull pots before the fishery downsized to catch shares in 2005. Fewer boats means fewer hands on deck, and as with other fisheries, the Bering Sea crabbers are ‘graying’ and need to recruit young entrants to sustain the iconic fisheries. The shareholders have devised a way to give captains and crews a first crack at available crab. Read the rest here 20:12
F/V Southern Skies makes it to safe harbor at Criehaven
As a fall nor’easter brought heavy windswept rain into the state Wednesday morning, the U.S. Coast Guard boat responded to a fishing boat taking on water in high seas off this Penobscot Bay island. The fishing boat was able to make it safely to Criehaven early Wednesday afternoon. Read the rest here 19:22
