Monthly Archives: May 2015
Icy strait sinks Arisaig lobster event – older fishermen say ice hasn’t delayed the fishery like this since 1967
The ice still blocking the fishing harbours of Northumberland Strait has forced the cancellation of the Arisaig Mother’s Day Lobster Dinner. For the first time in over 30 years, the fundraiser that draws 1,000 annually to the Arisaig Parish Community Centre will be cancelled. On Monday, Fisheries and Oceans Canada announced that the Northumberland Strait lobster season that usually begins May 1 will continue to be delayed until ice conditions improve. Read the rest here 11:33
New Hampshire’s Yankee Co-op to use federal funds for equipment, repairs
According to Seabrook Yankee Fisherman’s Cooperative manager Peter Kendall, the Granite State’s portion of that is $1,136,400, with $267,200 headed to the Co-op for much-needed equipment and repairs. “The money for this was distributed based on the level of impact the fishing regulations of the past few years had on the states’ fishing industries,” Kendall said yesterday. “New Hampshire was impacted very hard, among the worst.” Read the rest here 11:09
Seal flippers sell out amid tight supply
A company that has made tradition of selling seal flippers by the St. John’s waterfront wrapped up this year’s activity in no time at all. “Sales were really good [but] It was too short,” said Heidi Reid, who directs sales for Taylor’s Fish, Fruit and Vegetable Market. The seal hunt was largely a bust this year, with many fishermen staying ashore over depressed international markets. About 30,000 seals were expected to be killed in this year’s hunt off Newfoundland. The total allowable catch for eastern Canada is set at 400,000. Read the rest here 09:15
VANASSE: Menhaden oped full of fish tales
The Asbury Park Press has been a source of accurate information regarding the menhaden fishery, thanks in large part to the solid reporting done by reporter Dan Radel. Unfortunately, an April 30 opinion piece by Paul Eidman, “Don’t increase menhaden catch limits,” contained a number of misleading and inaccurate statements. Eidman asserted that the current menhaden assessment “is based on a ‘single species’ model that does not take into account,,, Read the rest here 08:43
H.R. 2168 – West Coast Crab Industry applauds move toward permanent tri-state pact
A bipartisan bill introduced April 30 would permanently extend a 17-year fishery management agreement for the West Coast’s valuable Dungeness crab fishery. Currently, Washington, Oregon and California cooperatively manage the West Coast crab fishery under a tri-state agreement first authorized by Congress in 1996. Under the agreement, the states work with the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission to manage stocks and conduct fishery science. The plan has to be regularly extended and is set to expire in 2016. Read the rest here 08:19
OUR VIEW: Let’s make waves with fishing regulations
Just when it seems life can’t get harder for local fishermen, the state Division of Marine Fisheries releases another statement. The state division recently announced that the federal regulations implemented in November to restrict will remain in place for at least another year. Looks like another year of eating haddock for us. Looks like another year of hardship for the people in the fishing industry. Read the rest here 07:40
Texas Rep Sponsors Bill to Stop Foreign and Illegal Fishing in US Waters by Mexican Boats
A critical vote in a House Committee on Thursday unanimously passed H.R. 774, the “Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated Fishing Enforcement Act of 2015.” Its goal is to stop foreign and illegal fishing in US waters. The bill provides for increased enforcement activity by the Coast Guard, which stops, seizes, arrests and fines Mexican fishermen poaching in Texas and U.S. waters. Such activity is almost a daily event at Coast Guard bases in South Padre Island, Port Aransas and Port O-Conner. Read the rest here 16:12
UPDATED: Coast Guard suspends search for Captain Kenneth Martin of Fishing Vessel Sea Beast
The captain of a Neah Bay fishing vessel missing since his boat capsized Sunday has been identified by his family. The Coast Guard search for Kenneth Martin was suspended at 9:30 p.m. Sunday after a 17-hour search. Martin, skipper of the Sea Beast, was not seen after his crew got off the 52-foot commercial fishing vessel before it overturned in the Pacific Ocean about 14 miles west of LaPush early Sunday morning. Read the rest here 15:35
Breaking News – Gulf of Alaska Groundfish Closure
Published on May 4, 2015 Today we have some breaking news out of the Gulf of Alaska. NMFS closed directed fishing for groundfish in the Gulf of Alaska on Sunday by Non-Rockfish program catcher trawl vessels. Watch the video here 15:13Alaska turns up the heat on proposed B.C. mines, Lt. Gov. Mallott to meet with cabinet ministers, business and First Nations leaders
In a visit that coincides with mining week in B.C., Mallott will meet with B.C. Energy and Mines Minister Bill Bennett, Environment Minister Mary Polak, industry representatives and First Nation leaders. The Alaskan fishing, conservation and aboriginal representatives are in B.C. to build alliances in their push for more scrutiny of the potential effects on Alaska waters that support a multi-billion-dollar fishery. Read the rest here 14:12
P.E.I. lobster fishermen tied to dock while Mother’s Day lobster exports drift away
P.E.I. lobster fishermen will lose out on some of the biggest days for lobster sales with the delayed start to the season. Fisheries and Oceans will update fishermen in the Gulf Region on Monday. So far, the earliest lobster fishermen will be able to set traps is Thursday. Traditionally Island fishermen see brisk sales on Mother’s Day. However, it takes two days to ship lobster to off-Island markets. Read the rest here 13:44
Rep. John Fleming: Congress not going to gut red-snapper management for benefit of recreational anglers
Freshman Rep. Garret Graves (R-La.) proposed an amendment in a House Natural Resources Committee meeting last week that would have transferred red-snapper management authority from the federal government to the states. Rep. John Fleming, Louisiana’s only other representative on the committee, abstained from voting on Graves’ amendment, which drew the ire of recreational fishing-industry leaders. In an interview with NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune, he explained his reasons for not voting: Read the rest here 12:12
Special interest group continues effort to get setnet ban on 2016 ballot
A proposed voter initiative to ban setnets in urban parts of Alaska is making its way toward the ballot, while a lawsuit over its legality continues. The Alaska Fisheries Conservation Alliance has been collecting signatures throughout the state to put the proposed ban on the August 2016 ballot. President Joe Connors said in an emailed statement that the signature-collecting is going well. “We are confident we will reach our goal,” he wrote. Read the rest here 11:24
Maine legislators reject (alewive) gaspereau-blocking bill – Canadian delegation credited for helping convince Maine committee
A legislative committee in Maine has unanimously rejected a bill that would have blocked the gaspereau migration in the St. Croix River. Last week, Canada was represented at public hearings by Frank Ruddock, acting consul general in Boston and Harvey Millar, the area manager for the Fisheries and Oceans Canada. Among other things, they reminded the committee of Canada’s shared interests in the St. Croix River and emphasized the importance of the restoration of the gaspereau population. Read the rest here 10:43
Diversion! EDF and “Partners” Pay For Full Page Add to Squash Fishing Communities in Louisiana
Andy Nyman, a wetland scientist at LSU, said scientists discussed the need to counter (what they call) misinformation being spread about future sediment diversions. When nonprofit coastal groups offered to pay for the advertising space, Nyman and Mike Carloss, a retired official with the state Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, started working on a draft. The advertisement was paid for by the Restore the Mississippi River Delta Coalition which is made up of the Environmental Defense Fund, National Wildlife Federation, National Audubon Society, Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation and the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana. Read the rest here 08:46
Two environmental groups say European Union nations continue to overfish their Atlantic waters
The Pew Charitable Trusts said that in many cases the EU’s Atlantic nations set fishing limits “contrary” to the recent reform of the Common Fisheries Policy and continue to overfish for dinnertime favourites such as North Sea cod and hake. In its report Turning the Tide, Pew also said catches of North Sea cod, an iconic species in Europe, has slumped from 300,000 tons in the early 1970s to less than 30,000 tons recently. Read the rest here 08:03
Skipper missing, 3 rescued as fishing boat from Neah Bay overturned before dawn off LaPush
Three fishermen were rescued and one remained missing Sunday afternoon after a Neah Bay-registered commercial fishing vessel overturned before dawn in the ocean 14 miles off LaPush. Coast Guard boat and air crews continued searching Sunday evening for the unidentified master of the 52-foot commercial fishing boat Sea Beast, which capsized after 3 a.m. Sunday, said Petty Officer Jonathan Klingenberg, spokesman for the Coast Guard in Seattle. Read the rest here 22:35
ASMFC Spring Meeting – May 4-7, 2015 Alexandria, Virginia
Board/Section meeting proceedings will be broadcast daily via webinar beginning at 12:45 PM on May 4th, continuing daily until the conclusion of the meeting (expected to be Noon) on May 7th. Read the Agenda and all information here Register for the webinar here to listen live! 16:48
NOAA, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service – Guam Green Sea Turtles may need more protection.
When Peter Perez, 55, was a child, he used to swim with sea turtles. His father, and grandfather, he said, used to eat sea turtles before they became a threatened species, protected by federal law. Perez questioned the rationale for changing the status of the green sea turtle, saying people have reported seeing plenty of turtles around Guam. He also disagrees with the decision by the federal government to hold a public hearing for the proposal in Hawaii and not in this region. Read the rest here 16:03
Russia furthers Arctic dreams while America sleeps
Murkowski’s starting point in her presentation was that the United States should have prepared for assuming the chairmanship of the Arctic Council but did not. The United States took over the two-year position from Canada last Friday. Obama and, I imagine, his predecessors would never admit any such failure. Why, last Friday, Secretary of State John Kerry, the Arctic Council’s new chairman, stated the president’s Arctic policy. It is coping with climate change, period. Read the rest here 13:35
Looming cost of at-sea monitors could put N.E. fishermen out of business
Officials with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service said the money it had been using to pay for the monitors — trained workers who collect data on fishing trips — will be needed for other obligations. That means groundfishermen who catch fish like cod, haddock and pollock in New England waters will likely have to start paying the cost around August. The new expense is coming at a time when it could cripple the fishery, fishermen said. Read the rest here 13:08
Mr. Governor, Don’t Build That Wall
Governor Lepage joined a coalition of governors in February who support offshore oil drilling. Lepage became the first Northeast governor to join the Outer Continental Shelf Governors Coalition. The coalition is funded by the Consumer Energy Alliance, a non-profit based in Houston. The CEA represents corporate interests including Shell and BP, and its funding is supplied by petroleum and petrochemical manufacturers associations. “A governor saying yes to drilling is rolling out the red carpet in the eyes of congress,”Read the rest here 11:43
Rhode Island Fishermen’s Alliance Weekly Update, May 3, 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 11:17
Farmed Atlantic salmon for sale in Juneau – what’s up with that?
Costco Wholesale Corporation is an important part of the business community in Juneau. Thanks to their efforts, many families and restaurants in Juneau, not to mention the visitors to our community, have access to high-quality food and goods at reasonable prices. The company, based out of Kirkland, Washington, is also a responsible employer providing a living wage for many in our community. However, we are left scratching our heads after Costco management has chosen (once again) to stock frozen farmed Atlantic salmon on freezer shelves in the Juneau store. Read the rest here 10:10
Mathematicians and Blue Crabs
Scientists in the Chesapeake Bay area have been playing a real-life version of Valentine’s game, with blue crabs instead of grouse. Each spring, they wait for the results of the baywide Blue Crab Winter Dredge Survey, the most recent of which were announced Monday. The estimate of the crab population gives scientists another data point to work with, and anxious watermen a sense of whether this will be a good or bad year for the most valuable commodity in the Chesapeake. Read the rest here 09:29
West Coast sardine decline: Science vs. politics, By D.B. Pleschner
The federal Pacific Fishery Management Council has shut down the remainder of the current sardine season and has canceled the 2015-16 fishing season altogether. Fishermen supported this action. Why the closure? According to environmental groups like Oceana, it was to stop overfishing and save starving sea lions deprived of essential sardines. Neither reason is true, but many in the media have trumpeted this hyperbole put forth by groups whose political agenda is to shut down fishing completely. Read the rest here 08:40
Warming waters pose dangers to Arctic cod, research finds – saffron cod, pollock and Pacific cod could thrive!
A research project being conducted by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration scientists has found that even a moderate warming of waters could spell dire consequences for the Arctic cod, a high-fat fish important to the food web. But other fish with lower fat content — pollock, Pacific cod and saffron cod — can survive and even thrive in warming waters, the research finds. Meanwhile, another NOAA-led study found that larvae of northern rock fish appear to be resilient to increased levels of acidity in marine waters. Read the rest here 19:14
Bellingham Washington selects seafood festival as its newest signature event
A committee has chosen what it hopes will be the city’s new signature event, and it’s about celebrating a longtime industry that continues to play a big role in the local economy. The festival will focus on showcasing Bellingham’s maritime and commercial fishing sector through plenty of different events, including fish filleting and oyster shucking contests, boat cruises, survivor suit races, children’s activities and cooking demonstrations. Read the rest here 18:00
Lobster levy to get review after Lobster Council of Canada criticism
Provincial governments in the Maritimes want a review of the publicly funded industry group pushing for a lobster levy to help promote the industry. The review will be carried out this spring and summer and follows criticism of the Lobster Council of Canada, primarily from fishermen in southwest Nova Scotia. Plans for a one cent per pound levy to promote Canadian lobster next year are moving ahead in New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island, but in Nova Scotia there is resistance. Read the rest here 16:55
Coast Guard orders second fishing vessel in 2 days into Port Angeles Harbor because of safety concerns
The Coast Guard patrol boat Sea Lion ordered a second fishing vessel into Port Angeles Harbor this week after it was found to have inadequate safety gear. The 34-foot Equalizer, whose 3-member crew had been harvesting geoducks, was stopped and boarded east of Port Angeles on Thursday. The vessel was ordered to remain in the harbor until its crew “fixed the especially hazardous safety condition of lacking a sufficient number of personal floatation devices also known as lifejackets and having expired flares,” the Coast Guard said. Read the rest here 11:32
