Monthly Archives: January 2015
Interview: John Bullard shut down cod fishing in the region for at least six months. It’s not making him any friends.
You served three terms as mayor of New Bedford, which made you one of the chief advocates for one of the biggest fishing ports in the country. Now, with the cod fishing ban that you ordered, you’re being called the guy who’s killing the fishing industry. When I left City Hall, I was actually hired by the fishing industry. I worked for New Bedford Seafood Co-op for six months,,, Read the rest here 12:34
‘Deadliest Catch’ crabber sues Time Bandit after maiming fireworks explosion
A crab fisherman featured on “Deadliest Catch” after his hand was shattered by an exploding firework has sued his former employers, claiming they’re to blame for his injury. David “Beaver” Zielinski was working as a deckhand aboard the Time Bandit in January 2013 when a mortar-style firework blew up in his hand. Bones in Zielinski’s right hand and forearm were shattered by the explosion. Filing a lawsuit on Tuesday in King County Superior Court at Seattle,,, Read the rest here 11:36
Headline hype – Ocean ‘calamities’ oversold, say researchers
The state of the world’s seas is often painted as verging on catastrophe. But although some challenges are very real, others have been vastly overstated, researchers claim in a review paper. The team writes that scientists, journals and the media have fallen into a mode of groupthink that can damage the credibility of the ocean sciences. The controversial study exposes fault lines in the marine-science community. Read the rest here 10:31
Pine Island: New shrimp farm owner addresses concerns
“Thank you for inviting me here tonight,” Pearl said. “My farm is located about one mile south of here. We started planning about 4 or 5 months before we broke ground last August. Over the last year and a half we’ve built the largest indoor shrimp farm in the United States and probably in the world. More info here Read the rest here 09:52
Three vessels discovered fishing illegally in the Southern Ocean have links to a Spanish company
The vessels are being pursued by HMNZS Wellington, and the Minister reports that the New Zealanders have so far hailed and attempted to board two of the vessels but that their captains both refused to allow boarding. Read the rest here 09:26
Bering Select Opens First Ever Omega-3 Plant in Dutch Harbor
Bering Select, a new manufacturing facility began producing premium quality omega-3 ingredients in Dutch Harbor this week. The plant produces the rich omega-3 oils of locally caught Alaska cod and other fish species. “The Bering Sea cod fisheries are robust and produce vast amounts of a high quality omega-3, a resource not utilized until now.,, Read the rest here 08:12
Fish and Game commissioner candidate list whittled to one – Samuel Cotten
Alaska’s Fisheries Board and Board of Game narrowed a list of four candidates to one this morning, choosing Samuel Cotten as their pick for Alaska’s next 
commissioner. Meeting in Juneau and by teleconference, the two boards voted unanimously to endorse Cotten for the job after interviewing him for about an hour. They chose not to interview the other three candidates. Read the rest here 19:54
Lobster fishermen favour licence stacking proposal
Members of the Western Gulf Fishermen’s Association voted overwhelmingly this week in favour of a proposal that might allow them to hold both a spring and a fall lobster license in the same name. The proposal was put out for secret ballot during the WGFA’s annual meeting Monday at the Western Community Curling Club. Read the rest here 18:54
Fishermen speaking up against proposed logbooks by NC Marine Fisheries
Captains and fishermen in southeastern North Carolina, especially, are upset about the changes that the state is hoping to make. The new 
ask for-hire license holders to fill out detailed information on each trip they take, including every fish they touch – catch or release, how many hooks were in the water, how long and what time the trip was, and even how many bait fish they catch in their cast nets. Read the rest here 16:37
Two Crisfield Watermen charged with oyster violations
Using the Maritime Law Enforcement Information Network system of cameras and radar, two officers monitored Paul Franklin Tyler III, 29, and Jeffrey Alan Cuff Jr., 31, at 10 a.m. as they dredged for wild oysters in the buffer zone surrounding the Somerset Oyster Sanctuary near Tangier Sound, police said. Read the rest here 15:57
Trial begins for Ketchikan fisherman charged in diver death
The trial of a 33-year-old Ketchikan commercial fisherman charged with manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide has begun in Ketchikan. Joshua Wodyga is charged in the death on Oct. 8, 2013, of 32-year-old Levi Adams, of Leawood, Kansas, a diver attempting to harvest sea cucumbers. Read the rest here 15:07
Sea lions take a big bite out of returning salmon runs
“When the region is directing more than half a billion dollars a year to fish and wildlife recovery and nearly half of the spring run is being consumed by seals and sea lions, then we definitely have a problem,” a member of the Northwest Power and Planning Council said. Read the rest here 14:40
Crisis Without End: Key moments in the Oregon Inlet saga
It seemed like déjà vu all over again when the Dare Board of Commissioners voted on Jan. 5 to authorize matching funds for “immediate” dredging of Oregon Inlet — the latest chapter in a crisis that has dragged on not for years, but for decades. Observers and activists alike confess astonishment at how long the crisis has continued — and frustration at how little has been done to effectively address it. Read the rest here 14:15
Shell-Shocked
Bay Area residents could enjoy Dungeness crab for half the year, if it weren’t for big businesses squeezing out local fishermen and shipping much of the crab elsewhere. I was here to fish — for Dungeness crab with a small-boat operator who supplies crab for East Bay markets and eateries. The harbor was lined with row after row of commercial fishing boats with names that were, variously, punny and sweetly earnest: Lost Claws. Lulu. The Out Cast. Pro Fishin’t. Stacy Jeanne. Read the rest here 14:01
Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 38′ x 16′ Novi Lobster,2004, Lobster Fiberglass, Mitsubishi
Specifications, and information and 29 photos click here To see all the boats in this series, Click here 11:39
Fishermen’s offer: We’ll catch fewer cod for chance at more haddock
As trades go, this isn’t exactly guns for hostages or Heathcliff Slocumb for Jason Varitek and Derek Lowe. Still it’s pretty interesting. Fishermen in and other sectors, with funding assistance from the Gloucester Fishing Community Preservation Fund (GFCPF), are offering to surrender up to 60 metric tons of their annual cod catch entitlement if NOAA Fisheries will relax some of the emergency measures it instituted in November to protect Gulf of Maine cod. Read the rest here 09:53
F/V Neptune: Home again at Stonington Town Dock
Stonington – Co-captains Alan Chaplaski and Gary Farrell mended and cleaned fishing nets aboard the fishing trawler Neptune Tuesday after two days at sea in search of fluke, squid and whiting. It was very cold yesterday. The task of mending cannot be done wearing gloves. I’ve tried! These are very rugged men, these fishermen from New England. Purchase this photo here. 09:23
Coast Guard medevacs ailing fisherman near Kodiak, Alaska
A Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew medevaced an ailing fisherman from the fishing vessel Irene H in the Shelikof Strait near Kodiak Island Tuesday. The Jayhawk crew rendezvoused with the Irene H, safely hoisted the man aboard the helicopter and transported him to awaiting emergency medical services in Kodiak for further care. Read the rest here 08:45
Does the size of a boat matter?
Do fishermen within the small boat sector get the representation they deserve and do they even want or need that representation? Firstly to share a lovely quote I often use when discussing difficult issues facing fishermen, when it appears that they are not all that interesting in engaging. “If you as a fisherman do not take an interest in your own future, someone else sure as hell will.” That of course applies equally, to the bigger boat sector. Read the rest here 20:55
“Snappy Dresser” Peter MacKay says $280M CETA fisheries fund never meant to be ‘slush fund’
Ottawa and the provincial government have been at odds over the interpretation of the $280-million fisheries fund for 
, with the province claiming the federal government has put new stipulations on the deal. Read the rest here 20:25
South Pacific Tuna Corporation Knuckles Under – Partnership to supply MSC-standard tuna
The company will be working with PNAO/Pacifical, the marketing arm of the eight Pacific Island Nations known as the Parties to the Nauru Agreement (PNA) Pacific Tuna Corporation says that this action underscores its commitment to maintaining the highest sustainability standards while harvesting tuna from PNA island waters. The company oversees management and operations of 14 US Flag tuna vessels owned by ‘The Global Fleets,’ Ocean Global Fisheries LLC, Sea Global Fisheries LLC and Pacific Global LLC. Read the rest here 17:40
Westward is Portland-bound – In Boothbay Harbor, it’s two strikes and you’re out
The F/V Westward, which has been moored in Boothbay Harbor since 2012, appears to be headed to Portland after its latest mishap has left it without a mooring. Early Friday, Jan. 9, the Westward broke loose in high winds from the Boothbay Harbor Shipyard mooring where it has been secured for most of the last two years. It then drifted shoreward and ran aground near the shipyard. Read the rest here 16:38
Adak Fish Plant Seeks Additional Operators
The community of Adak depends on its fish processing plant for jobs and tax revenue. But they’ve struggled to keep the lights on over the years. Now, the plant’s latest operator is looking for new partners to help shoulder the financial burden. Listen, and read the rest here 15:27
Boat captains ordered to stop dredging clams off of Provincetown
For the past month, sea clam vessels have been dredging thousands of shellfish from a 2-square-foot mile area off Herring Cove Beach. But this type of fishing — known as hydraulic dredging — is prohibited without a permit, according to a 2007 Provincetown Conservation Commission regulation. The fishermen don’t have to obey the local regulation because the state Division of Marine Fisheries, which has jurisdiction over fishing, allows it, said Monte Rome, owner of the Tom Slaughter. Read the rest here 13:10
Fishermen want better fish counts for black sea bass – MRIP is not available during January and February???
Fishermen are looking for better management of sea bass by fishery regulators after another winter closure of the fishery. “We have no way of knowing how much fish are being caught. We need to know so we can count them, and when we can’t do that we can’t open the season,” said Moira Kelly, a fishery policy analyst for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Read the rest here 11:29
Lobster industry rebounds with low dollar and high prices – Lobster exports from Nova Scotia are worth $385M
Nova Scotia’s largest lobster fishery is enjoying a banner season thanks in part to low fuel prices and a low Canadian dollar. Jamie Osborne, a lobster fisherman, is one of those enjoying the perfect storm of good news. “Fuel is going down, lobster are going up,” he said. Cheaper fuel is just one factor. The lower Canadian dollar is another factor, for an industry that relies on exports. Lobster exports from Nova Scotia are worth $385 million annually. Read the rest here 09:16
Editorial: Markey, Warren right to stress core issues on fishery
In posing their questions to Sullivan, Warren and Markey targeted the issues at the very core of the current dispute over the latest NOAA regulatory actions. Those are questions over the validity of the science that has led to the new area closures decreed by NOAA northeast administrator John Bullard in November, and the timing and justification for carrying out the unscheduled stock assessment that produced the controversial data in the first place. Read the rest here 08:35
Ottawa, partners to spend $7-million on Arctic fisheries research
Much of the money is to be spent over the next two years on Nunavut’s turbot fishery, which is worth about $65-million a year. Scientists are to consider how existing turbot harvests can be expanded and whether new locations can be added. They will also do surveys to help with managing the stock. Read the rest here 22:31
NOAA disperses final $13M for 2012 king salmon disaster
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced on Jan. 12 the approval of a second round of disaster funds for research and to be distributed to fishermen who were negatively impacted by the chinook salmon fishery disasters in 2012; $13 million of the total $20.8 million will be paid out to a variety of sport and commercial users. Read the rest here 20:04
‘Where have all the cod gone?’ and the sustainability imperative – By Brian J. Rothschild
In “Where Have All the Cod Gone” (New York Times, Jan. 2) history professor W. Jeffrey Bolster claims that the “..recent ban on cod fishing in the Gulf of Maine (GOM) was an important step toward restoration.” ,,,But Bolster’s analysis is an oversimplification and a misunderstanding of this important conservation issue. And in a broader sense, it is symptomatic of how we misunderstand and oversimplify our conservation and sustainability issues, and how this limits our ability to develop efficient and cost-effective solutions. Read the rest here 18:03
