Monthly Archives: May 2015
Buyer: Lobster fee deal must involve fishermen
Any belief that a potential lobster marketing fee can move ahead without fishermen from southwestern Nova Scotia was categorically put to rest Monday by a buyer from the region. Terry Zinck was reacting to comments made Thursday by Fisheries Minister Keith Colwell who said any potential agreement on a fee could be reached with buyers only in the province’s largest lobster fishery. Colwell clarified the comment a day later, saying any contribution from lobster buyers and processors would require the support of the entire industry. Read the rest here 10:24
Back to the ways of the past to save the future of our coastal waters – Salvatore Novello
Lets look back into past of fishing ,In 1950s to 1980s ,most of the fishing boats were eastern rigged side trawlers, and were limited to how much wire that could be used in front of their net. Most of the boats used 15 ftms legs, and 15 ftms ground cables before their net. During this time period, fish stocks were good and sustainable. Lets talk about THE WIRE BEFORE THE NET. The wire used before the net makes a mud cloud when it makes contact with the ocean bottom and most fish will not cross this mud cloud. This called fish herding. Read the rest here 09:262 Alaska fisheries council representatives disqualified from voting on halibut bycatch
In a move that throws a curveball into the volatile halibut bycatch issue, two Alaska representatives have been disqualified from voting when the matter comes before the North Pacific Fishery Management Council when it meets June 1-9 in Sitka. Simon Kineen and David Long both must recuse themselves because of their employment by groundfish companies, creating a financial conflict of interest. Ironically, both had voted on the side of halibut small boat fishermen in December. Read the rest here 07:56
Elections fail to be a fisherman’s friend
This is what government looks like to us. Politicians a very long way from the action have or adopt ideas that range from the sensible to the downright idiotic. Without an effective check from an emaciated, austerity-hit civil service, they reach out to “stakeholders” – often organisations with no “stake” at all, such as green activists funded by giant multinationals – who hand them ready-made proposals for new regulations and laws. Once these policies are enacted, the politicians turn to the people and communities most affected and say, Read the rest here 07:37
The Fish Wife Life – What’s the fishing life like for the wives left behind?
A fisherman’s life is a wonderful life, but what about for the fisherman’s wives? Fish Radio asked some of Kodiak’s wive’s what their likes and dislikes are being married to a fisherman. I guess my likes would be you know it’s always nice when the leave and its always nice when the come home. It’s the best of both worlds. It’s hard being a single parent all the time. When you never know when they are coming home and when they come home they still have boat work, it’s not like they come home and don’t have work to do or they are done working. Audio, Read the rest here 16:43
NOAA: $9M for projects to mitigate climate change threats! Nothing for observer coverage though.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is offering $9 million in grants to help coastal communities deal with extreme weather, changing ocean conditions and climate hazards. The NOAA National Ocean Service is providing $5 million through its Regional Coastal Resilience Grant Program and NOAA Fisheries NMFS is providing the rest through the Coastal Ecosystem Resiliency Grants Program. (They sure know how to waste money!) Read the rest here 16:19
DREDGEMASTER: The World First Wireless Monitoring System for Scallop Dredges.
Notus Electronic Ltd. (Notus) has been supplying wireless sensors to the commercial fishing industry for 22 years. Notus has just released the Dredgemaster, a wireless sensor system for monitoring the warp length, pith angle and roll angle of a scallop dredge. The system was developed by working with scallop vessels in the US where increases of 22% were seen in catch rates. Read the rest here 14:03
This should bother you – Antarctica Advisors LLC, We expect that this transaction (Daybrook) will fuel further North American and cross-border consolidation
Read this. Two three times. Let it sink in. Ignacio Kleiman – “This is a great transaction for both our client, Oceana Group, and the sellers. The Oceana management team is world-class and will continue with the long-standing tradition of excellence Daybrook is known for. As for the global Seafood Industry, it is a game changer, due to the transaction size and strategic importance. We expect that this transaction will fuel further North American and cross-border consolidation, and Antarctica’s highly-specialized Seafood Team will continue to play a leading role for the benefit of our clients.” Read the rest here 11:24
Longliner concept hooked state agency for $2 million in 1980s
I cannot remember which Rockland city councilor it was. In exasperation, he said, “All you have to do is to show up with a suit and shiny shoes and you can get money out of anyone in Maine.” A Harvard degree never hurts. Snelling Brainard was one of those. The Harvard-educated investor developed a concept that was going to revolutionize national, then international fishing. His SeaBank Corporation formed in 1986 was to develop “longliners,” a Scandinavian concept which would replace the traditional dragger nets with a 30-mile-long,,, Read the rest here 09:26
‘Now I’m at half what I’d normally be at.’ Cod restriction’s rip the charter fleet
It isn’t just the Northeast commercial groundfishing fleet that is struggling under the weight of the more restrictive federal fishing regulations that have completely taken cod off the table in the Gulf of Maine. The tendrils of those new regulations have reached the charter and for-hire fishing operators, who now try to combat both the reality — no cod — and the perception — no other groundfish species is worth the time and expense of a charter trip that have been generated by increasingly restrictive regulations instituted for the 2015 fishing season. Read the rest here 08:50
The Sea Level Scam
Measuring sea level is more complicated than pounding a stake into a beach. Sea level and the rate of rise or fall are subject to daily and seasonal variations, storm surges, and effects from decadal to multi-decadal oscillations such as El Niño. For instance, the west-blowing equatorial trade winds can pile up an extra foot of water in the western Pacific compared to the eastern Pacific. There are also tectonic events: is the ocean rising or is the land sinking? Pumping groundwater causes soil compaction and hence sinking land. Another complication: isostatic rebound of North America is tipping the northeast coast into the sea. Read the rest here 13:24
Man will bring fake orca to Astoria to try to scare off sea lions on docks, “I just put two and two together”
A fake orca is headed for the Port of Astoria next month — in yet another attempt to scare off hundreds of sea lions that have been lounging on the docks, preventing boaters from using them. The 32-foot-long fiberglass orca was suggested as a deterrent worth trying by its owner, Terry Buzzard of Bellingham, Washington. The 73-year-old built the fake killer whale about 12 years ago to pull along in parades to promote his business, Island Mariner Whale Watching Cruises. But when a friend recently shared photos of the California sea lions,,, Read the rest here 11:54
Fishermen and farmers fight over water in California
Farmers are preparing for state-ordered cuts in water use to take effect this week. They are expected to affect agriculture and people in the watershed of the San Joaquin River, which runs from the Sierra Nevada Mountains to San Francisco Bay. It’s a primary source for farms and communities. There are already battles over who’s using too much water. PAUL SOLMAN: California salmon are under siege these days, and not just from bears hungry for heart-healthy fatty acids. MIKE HUDSON, Small Boat Commercial Salmon Fishermen’s Association: Last year, all our wild spawning salmon have died. Video, read the rest here 10:53
Rhode Island Fishermen’s Alliance Weekly Update, May 24, 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 09:49
Seismic testing off NJ coast close to start despite opposition
A Rutgers University professor is going full speed ahead with a seismic study of the ocean floor, despite flags raised by oppositional legislatures, a state agency and environmentalists. Legislatures went above him Friday and appealed to Rutgers University President Robert Barch urging him to stop the study that could begin in June. “I don’t understand the rancor that has developed. I’m doing basic research of sea level history. We’re trying to preserve our coastline by understanding how it behaves during sea level rise,” Mountain said. Read the rest here 09:27
A great migration is under way – Spring brings fish by the millions to Chesapeake Bay
Tourists aren’t the only ones flocking to our waters this time of year. A great migration is under way beneath the surface, too. Triggered by warming seas, hidden by tea-colored waves, propelled by the hunt for food and sheltered nursery grounds, all sorts of creatures are swimming or crawling their way up from the south. Their destination: the Chesapeake Bay. In the winter, only 30 or so aquatic species ply the bay. In the summer, that number explodes beyond 250.The catch flooding into the Lynnhaven Fishing Company tells the tale of the seasonal commute, Read the rest here 08:56
A setnetting family on Amook Island – the seasonal migration
Peter’s parents have spent the last 43 seasons salmon fishing here. In a doorway of the old cabin at their site, I can trace Peter’s penciled growth through all the summers of his childhood. Going back to the cabin each May is a way of marking time. For 35 years, Jan and Pete senior shared a 24’x24’ cabin and an outhouse with the crew. Now they have a house, with indoor plumbing. Solar panels have quieted the droning of generators running for hours. Read the rest here 08:41
Susanne Altenburger — The only way out that’s left, Combining groundfish ecology with fleet economics
You’d figure that this is just another colorful waterfront tale, here of improbable schemes hatched by folks of grand ambitions fiercely pursuing 50 percent visions — to never quite succeed, despite rich claims of “institutional authority,” “legitimate interest-representation,” defining “industrial policies” under whatever fractured grasp of “ecology.” And it would be a fine yarn, indeed — had not our Resource-Ecology and our Fleet-&-Port Economics been damaged to the great cost to businesses, too many families, our communities. Read the rest here 08:18
Father passes down the fishing tradition
Keith Bruno loves commercial fishing and crabbing, but he hesitates when it comes to suggesting the same occupation to his sons, Zach and Ben. “It’s certainly not for everybody and being harder every day and more regulation all the time, I probably hope that they don’t get into this,” said Bruno, owner of Endurance Seafood at Oriental. “I fish because I love it and at this point in my life I really don’t know what else I can do.” Read the rest here 21:41
Congressman Schrader to host town hall meeting on sea lions
Oregon Congressman Kurt Schrader will host a town hall meeting at noon Saturday, May 30, in Clackamette Park, Oregon City. Schrader is a co-sponsor of a bill in Congress to relax controls on marine mammals and address the growing threat to salmon, steelhead and sturgeon. While many of the thousands assembled in the Columbia River estuary in Astoria have departed, thousands remain. Read the rest here 16:19
Coast Guard assists sinking fishing vessel 130 miles east of Nantucket
The Coast Guard is responding to a fishing boat taking on water 130 miles east of Nantucket, Massachusetts, Saturday. At about 12:45 a.m., the fishing vessel Athena’s crew reported to Coast Guard Sector Southeastern New England watchstanders in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, that the Miss Shauna, a 51-foot fishing boat with seven people aboard, was taking on water through a hole in the boat’s engine room. Read the rest here 13:53
California oil spill harder to clean up in choppy waters
A 10-square-mile oil slick off the California coast is thinner than a coat of paint and it’s becoming harder to skim from choppy waters, officials said as more dead animals were discovered. The combination of sunlight and waves Friday helped evaporate and dissolve some of the oil that blackened beaches and covered wildlife in thick goo after a pipeline on shore leaked up to 105,000 gallons on the Santa Barbara coast Tuesday. Photo’s, Read the rest here 11:02
Hibernia faces charges following oil leak from offshore platform
ST. JOHN’S, N.L. – Newfoundland and Labrador’s offshore energy regulator announced Friday that it has laid charges in connection to a 2013 crude oil spill from the Hibernia platform. The Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board says the Hibernia Management and Development Company faces four charges in relation to the spill. At the time, the company said no wildlife was seen in the affected area. not mentioning its the bottom of the ocean! Read the rest here 10:17
Getting Screwed – Fish plant workers wonder if OCI can live up to employment promises
Northeast fishermen call for outside review of fish stock assessments
The battle over the validity of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration fish stock assessments that continually have led to slashed groundfish quotas has reached a higher pitch, with mounting calls for a third-party assessment of the manner NOAA assesses fish stocks. Under questioning by Sen. Kelly Ayotte, R-New Hampshire, on Wednesday, NOAA administrator Kathryn Sullivan defended the accuracy of the agency’s fish stock assessments,,, (laughing now!) Read the rest here 09:06
Brains vs prawn: the trawlers who put the shrimps on our barbies
ON A BALMY moonless night, prawn fisherman Kim Justice, 61, pilots the Coral J from Wallaroo to the night’s fishing grounds in Spencer Gulf. As the crew readies the boat, floodlights from other trawlers in the fleet twinkle brightly on the water. Dolphins cavort in the sea as squadrons of seagulls fly doggedly alongside the boat, waiting and hoping for a feed. When the official 8.30pm start time ticks over, the skipper signals go and the crew cast their prawn nets into the darkened water. Silently, the two funnel shaped nets,,, Read the rest here 08:32
Ottawa to upgrade its three fisheries research centres in B.C.
The Conservatives, capping a weeklong string of funding announcements in B.C. in advance of a summer devoted to electioneering, announced Friday more money for the federal fisheries research centres in B.C. Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s Tories announced “up to” $18 million in funding for the Centre for Aquaculture and Environmental Research in West Vancouver, the Institute of Ocean Sciences in Sidney and the Pacific Biological Station in Nanaimo. Read the rest here 20:33
Louisiana crab catch rose in 2014, preliminary state numbers show
Louisiana blue crab landings and price rose in 2014 compared to the 2013 catch, according to preliminary state numbers., according to preliminary state numbers. Catch rose about 8 percent and fishers garnered about 20 percent more money for that catch. Fishers in the state caught nearly 42 million pounds of crab in 2014 and brought in a new state record high $62 million for that catch, according to those preliminary number, released this month in the Lagniappe newsletter, a joint publication of Louisiana Sea Grant and LSU AgCenter. Read the rest here 19:41
North Carolina Fisheries Association Weekly Update for May 22, 2015
Click to read the Weekly Update for May 22, 2015 as a PDF To read all the updates, click here 17:24
Clearwater Seafoods Launches New Argentine Scallop Harvesting Vessel
