Daily Archives: July 11, 2015
Summer at Graveyard Point – In a seemingly abandoned corner of Bristol Bay, a new economic model emerges and a family adapts
Last summer, after all the other fishermen had home at the end of the Bristol Bay salmon season, Corey Arnold stuck around Graveyard Point. A photographer and commercial fisherman, Arnold described the scene at the old cannery as eerie and empty. When the people went home, grizzly bears showed up, a sure sign that it was time for Arnold to leave. The bears just added to the run down, barren feel of Graveyard Point, the abandoned salmon cannery that serves as home base for about 120 fishermen for six short weeks each summer. They spend six long weeks catching hundreds of sockeye, or red, salmon near the banks. Read the rest here 16:48
Summer flounder won’t stand up and be counted – Fighting for fluke
Save the Summer Flounder Fishery Fund is working with scientists from Cornell, Rutgers and other universities, along with the National Marine Fisheries Service, to develop a more comprehensive summer flounder model that more accurately portrays the size and composition of the fishery,,, more females are caught in the recreational fishery as opposed to the commercial side. It might have to do with where commercial fishing is done or “it might be that females are more willing to bite bait,” said Munroe. “There could be all kinds of reasons.” Read the rest here 12:01
British Columbia approves reopening of Mount Polley mine after tailings spill; may threaten downstream Alaska watershed
The provincial government on Thursday approved a restart of Imperial Metal’s Mount Polley mine, which has been closed since its waste dam failed last August and released 6.6 billion gallons of toxic tailings including arsenic, lead and nickel into salmon-producing lakes and streams of the Fraser River watershed. Residents of southeastern Alaska, many of whom depend on fishing and tourism for their livelihoods, expressed concern at the announcement. Read the rest here 10:57
Rutgers University Seismic testing ends off the New Jersey Shore
Seismic testing that involved blasting the ocean floor off the New Jersey Shore with sound waves has been completed, and a lawsuit brought against it by fishing groups has been dismissed. Five fishing groups had sued to stop the research, led by Rutgers University and involving the National Science Foundation and the University of Texas, claiming it disturbs and possibly harms marine life such as dolphins, whales, turtles, and many fish species. Read the rest here 09:14Pledge to dredge will likely keep Oregon Inlet open in North Carolina
Dare County commissioners agreed Thursday to dedicate $1 million to pay the Army Corps of Engineers to dredge the inlet. The move all but assures for the first time that the inlet remains open, said Dare County Commissioner Beverly Boswell. “We’ll have a dredge here when it’s needed,” she said after the vote. Oregon Inlet proponent and boat captain Harry Schiffman and others have pleaded with the county to pay for dredging for more than 20 years. Read the rest here 08:46
Canada appears poised to sign international Arctic fish deal
“We can confirm that we are planning to attend a meeting in Norway with other 
coastal states to discuss further measures against unregulated high-seas fishing in the central Arctic Ocean,” Carole Saindon wrote in an email.”Details of the results of those discussions will be released at the conclusion of the meeting.”Canada, the United States, Russia, Denmark and Norway reached an interim agreement in February 2014 to work toward protecting Arctic waters beyond the 200-kilometre territorial limit of their respective shores, an area the size of the Mediterranean Sea. Read the rest here 08:11
