Daily Archives: January 25, 2015
From: Tom Nies,Executive Director, NEFMC – Sunday, January 25, 2015 4:34 PM
To All – Due to the expected blizzard conditions that will develop in New England late Monday night and extend into Tuesday, the first day of the Council meeting, Tuesday, January 27, 2015 is cancelled. The meeting will tentatively begin Wednesday afternoon (time TBD) but I will publish a revised agenda tomorrow morning after checking the weather forecast again. Please contact me with your questions. Tom Nies Executive Director New England Fishery Management Council [email protected] 978-465-0492 ext 113 18:57
Subsistence gillnets on Alaska’s Kenai, Kasilof rivers get go-ahead
Anglers on the most heavily used river in the state will be joined by another group of fishermen this year after the Federal Subsistence Board voted to allow subsistence gillnetting on the Kenai and Kasilof rivers. Tension between state management and federal management caused frustration among state biologists at the meeting. Read the rest here 18:37
Greenpeace comes to the aid of Britain’s small fishing vessels – Lucky bastards!
There may be plenty more fish in the sea according to some, but local fishermen are banned from catching them. The UK is sending many fishermen into bankruptcy by only offering them a fraction of the nation’s fishing quota, according to Greenpeace who on Friday, launched legal action against the government at the High Court. Sarah North, Greenpeace Head of Oceans campaign, Read the rest here 17:18
Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council Meeting January 26 – 29, 2015, Point Clear, AL
Agenda and Summary Documents, Commitees Agenda can be found here Register for the meeting webinar here, and listen live. 15:55
As the scallop fishery rebounds, divers hope for a break
These are tough guys (and at this point, no women hold commercial licenses to scallop dive). There are a lot of ways one could explain that: the plunge into wintry waters of, say, 37 degrees, the even colder temperatures on deck, the solitary nature of this form of fishing. But Sewell? If ever there were a way to take the measure of a man’s toughness, it would be Sewell. He was in a snowmobile accident in 2009, and it cost him dearly. Read the rest here 14:25
Crews receive honors Friday for saving fishermen’s lives
A special recognition ceremony Friday honored those involved in a rescue mission along Carteret County’s coast in mid-December of last year. According to U.S. Coast Guard Marine Inspector and Investigator Chief Warrant Officer 3 Bobby L. Conners, about midday on Dec. 16, 2014, Dunnie L. Smith of Beaufort, owner and captain of the fishing boat Shelly, left Homer Smith Seafood’s docks in Beaufort for a day trip to fish for tuna. Read the rest here 13:38
New Website Bridges Gap Between Local Seafood, Consumers
Coastal Enterprises Inc., or CEI — which works to spur small business development — says the idea is to do for seafood what the locavore and “buy local” movements are doing for Maine agriculture. From an office overlooking Portland’s working waterfront, Hugh Cowperthwaite sits hunched over his computer. At his fingertips, he says, is a wealth of information about Maine seafood — all in one place. Cowperthwaite is the fisheries project director for CEI, which has just launched a website to integrate Maine’s lucrative seafood industry into the local food movement. Read the rest here
Rhode Island Fishermen’s Alliance Weekly Update, January 25, 2015
The Rhode Island Fishermen’s Alliance is dedicated to its mission of continuing to help create sustainable fisheries without putting licensed fishermen out of business.” Read the update here To read all the updates, click here 10:51
Three Lower Keys brothers accused of harvesting lobster from illegal artificial habitats – expected to plead guilty
Charles, Ryan and Tyson Veach face allegations of harvesting spiny lobsters from casitas, catching more than their daily commercial bag limit and falsifying commercial fishing reports to conceal their take. Each was indicted on charges of conspiracy and violating the Lacey Act, which makes it a federal offense to import, export, transport, sell or purchase in interstate commerce any wildlife protected at the state level. Read the rest here 10:10
Federal restrictions hit recreational fishermen
John Bullard, Northeast regional administrator at NOAA, said he believes the scientists working with NOAA and who came to the recent conclusions about cod should be fairly acknowledged by the fishermen. Their studies are peer reviewed, he said, meaning they’ve been examined and approved by scientists familiar with the subject not involved with the study directly. He said he sympathizes with the fishermen and others impacted by the economic hit the regulations are causing, but he believes the restrictions are necessary. Read the rest here 09:34
Upping their groundfish game
Despite more than thirty years of fishing around Alaska, Kasilof fisherman Rob Nelson had never let out a net hoping to catch pollock before December. But the long-time seiner has been learning how to catch the groundfish in Kachemak Bay as part of an experimental fishery this winter. In most of Alaska, pollock are caught by trawlers. But Nelson and other fishermen are hoping that seines could provide a way to safely catch the fish, without worrying about bycatch. Read the rest here 08:39
