Daily Archives: December 31, 2014
The Alaska Fisheries Report December 31, 2014
Coming up this week, it looks like there’ll be lower harvest limits for Prince William Sound black cod; we hear about cchanges coming up for the groundfish and halibut observer program, and everything that’s old is new again – well, insofar as an ancient mollusk in the Arctic Ocean is concerned. All that and more, coming up on the Alaska Fisheries Report. Listen to the Report here 18:44
Elver fisherman starts serving 90-day jail term for evading $60,000 tax bill
Danny Deraps, 43, who caught more than $700,000 worth of elvers in 2012, was found guilty of theft and three counts of tax evasion after reaching a plea agreement with prosecutors last March. State officials have indicated that Deraps earned more than $700,000 from elver fishing in 2012 and nearly $70,000 more in lobster fishing income that same year. Bernstein declined to disclose Deraps’ income from elver and lobster fishing in 2010 or 2011. Read the rest here 16:37
Wanchese’s Daniels family in agreement on sale to Canadian Cooke Aquaculture – What about the US Quota?
Sources have questioned how Cooke, also family-owned and based in Blacks Harbor, New Brunswick, is going to structure buying some or all of Wanchese, seeing as non-Americans can only own 25% of US fishing quotas. The company owns 11 fishing vessels in the US, catching scallops, fish, and shrimp up and down the East Coast, as well as two operating for sea scallops in Argentina. One source said maybe Glenn Cooke, co-founder and CEO of Cooke, means to keep some of the Daniels family on to be the face of the US entity used to acquire other US quota assets. “Interesting and very tricky,” he said of this. Read the rest here 14:01
Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 55′ Shrimper/Dragger Fiberglass, Cummins, 540HP
Specifications, and information and 28 photos click here To see all the boats in this series, Click here 12:16
Fisherman hopes community supported fisheries program takes off
Under the Ruthie B CSF, shareholders pay $50 for 10-pound shares. Community supported fisheries aren’t Blount’s invention. In Gloucester, the Cape Ann Fresh Catch program offers shareholders access to the fruits of the sea, with pickup locations throughout Greater Boston. Blount appears to be the only one in New Bedford offering a CSF, but he’s convinced it will catch on. Read the rest here 10:23
Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO): Tougher penalties still needed in the offshore: MP
While the number of foreign offshore fishing vessels dropping gear outside Canada’s 200-mile limit has declined significantly since the 1990s, what remains the same is the criticism of the penalties given to vessels that break the rules. Under the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO), which manages the area, vessels cited for have to be dealt with by their home countries — the NAFO contracting parties. Read the rest here 09:48
Big ocean waves give Dungeness Crab Christmas vacation
Like those heady days when salmon are coming in on joyful and full boats, crab season can enliven Noyo Harbor with motion, aromas and noise. And then take it all away, leaving the place silent and with only the faint aroma of the sea. That was the crabby up and downs of the past two weeks. Unlike the salmon, the gyrations of the crab population are not surprising or signs of doom. Biologists predict choppy cycles in crab numbers, even if they don’t entirely understand the causes of them. Read the rest here 09:27
Maine’s Top Fish Cop Col. Joseph Fessenden is retiring as chief of the Maine Marine Patrol
As chief of the Maine Department of Marine Resources law enforcement wing for 20 years, Fessenden developed a reputation as an evenhanded officer and then as a leader able to build trust within an industry filled with fiercely independent operators who are often skeptical of regulators. To many people in the industry he is simply “Joe” or sometimes “Colonel Joe.” Read the rest here 09:03
North Pacific Groundfish and Halibut Observer Program Sees Changes in 2015
Fishermen and NMFS representatives discussed the 
. The overall feeling at the meeting seemed to be discontent with a grain of salt. Many fishermen who attended voiced their frustration with the observer program in general. But, many also said that they understand what its purpose is. That sentiment is nothing new to Martin Lefled. Read the rest here 07:45
