Daily Archives: March 27, 2015
North Carolina Fisheries Association Weekly Update for March 27, 2015
Click here> Weekly Update for March 27, 2015 22:51
Halibut bycatch tough to manage
A lot has changed in Alaska since commercial vessels began fishing for halibut off the coastline in 1888, but in almost 130 years, halibut has remained a staple of the state’s fishing economy and culture. Along with salmon and crab, no species of fish captures the Alaskan imagination and fills Alaskan pocketbooks more than halibut. So it comes as little surprise that the Bering Sea fishery’s estimated 4.5 million pounds of halibut bycatch in 2014 has lot of people concerned. Read the rest here 18:18
Fur Seals Caught Preying on Sharks Off South Africa – The seals only consume the viscera
The seal’s picky consumption of only the viscera, the most energy-dense part of the shark, is also noteworthy. Although fishers have noted for years that seals sometimes eat the viscera of large fish trapped in their nets, this type of predation has rarely been documented properly in free-swimming prey that fall victim to marine mammals. The fact that the seal discarded the rest of its catch shows that it had the option to be picky and is probably not at a loss for food. Read the rest here 17:13
Crabbers Want In on Federal Plan to Trace Illegal Seafood
Alaska’s crab fleet catches many of the same species as their counterparts in Russia — from red, blue and brown king crab, to snow and tanner crab. But illegal fishing in Russia is thought to account for a large part of the crab that finds its way to American consumers. Studies suggest that’s cost Alaska $600 million since 2000. “There’s no fishing boats docking in the United States with illegal crab on board,” Jacobsen says. “It all comes after being laundered through Korea and China.” Read the rest here 15:16
Bi Partisan Amendment to Support Monitoring of New England Fisheries
United States Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Angus King (I-Maine), and Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) introduced a bipartisan budget amendment to support at-sea and dockside monitoring for fisheries that have received economic disaster assistance on Thursday, March 26. A fishery disaster declaration was declared in 2012 for the Northeast. Read the amendment here Read the rest here 15:06
Heiltsuk will risk arrest to blockade herring boats, warns chief councillor
The herring battle on the central B.C. coast heated up Thursday with warnings from Heiltsuk tribal leaders that further commercial herring boats will be physically blockaded if the Department of Fisheries and Oceans re-opens the catch further. “We have a small fleet of boats getting ready to go out on to the water if the [herring] fishery is opened by DFO,” said Chief Councillor Marilyn Slett with the Heiltsuk Tribal Council. “We are putting DFO on notice,,, Read the rest here 13:21
Bill to ax Alaska fish commission passes out of committee
The House Fisheries Committee on Thursday passed a bill that would eliminate the Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission and move its duties to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game
. The unanimous vote came despite fishermen’s objections that the bill upends the separation of power between the commission that oversees Alaska’s limited-entry fisheries like salmon and the agency that regulates commercial fishing. Read the rest here 13:02
COMFISH 2015 Is coming to Kodiak! April 2nd thru the 4th
Comfish 2015, coming to Kodiak April 2-4, will feature presentations on safety and research, plus updates on state and federal fisheries issues, environmental films, and a lively fish filleting competition with challengers from shoreside processors. The annual fisheries forum and trade show kicks off at the Best Western Kodiak Inn on April 2 with forums on man overboard safety at sea, new vessel safety compliance programs and lessons from fishing vessel energy audits. Read the rest here http://comfishalaska.com/ 10:46
NMFS Accepts Two Petitions to List Porbeagle Sharks under the Endangered Species Act
Today, we announce that we have made a positive 90-day finding on two petitions (Wild Earth Guardians, and Humane Society US) submitted to us to consider listing porbeagle sharks (Lamna nasus) under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). This action is being taken in response to a recent court order concerning the negative 90-day finding we published in 2010, and in response to new information we have on porbeagle sharks. Read the rest here 10:06
Canadian Cod: The more things change, the more they stay the same.
I write this in response to some recent comments by a fisheries research scientist, Dr. George Rose, about the status of Northern Cod. Specifically, he said that we are a decade or so away from anything that would be a recovery. Let’s turn the clock back to the mid-1980s. Inshore fish harvesters were telling fisheries scientists and managers and politicians that all was not well with the Northern Cod stock. Large cod were disappearing, historical migrations patterns,,, Read the rest here 09:23
$244M economic impact shows importance of Lake Erie commercial fishery
Lake Erie’s commercial fishing and processing industry has an economic impact of more than $244 million and includes the world’s largest freshwater commercial fishing industry in Wheatley. Yet few realize that, industry leaders say. “Most people in Windsor don’t even know there’s a fishing industry here in Lake Erie,” Tony Giacalone, president of fish processor La Nassa Foods in Kingsville, said Wednesday. “There is a lot of politicians who don’t even know we exist.” Read the rest here 07:54
