Daily Archives: December 19, 2015
Ilwaco tuna fisherman Richard ‘Pat’ Patana – A man of the sea
Richard “Pat” Patana is a man who seems comfortable with himself. A rangy man with a quick laugh, he’s been on the water, one way or another, most of his life. “My family were fishermen around here on both sides,” he says. “I didn’t have much choice.” Not that he’s always gone about things the way others might. Take, for example, his boat, Summer Breeze, which stands out from the other commercial fishing boats moored in the Ilwaco, Washington, harbor. Summer’s a pretty 54-foot motor sailboat and could pass for somebody’s yacht except for it businesslike looks. Read the article here 13:12ADF&G Releases Yukon Salmon Season Report
There were a total of 44 commercial fishing openers for coho and chum in the Yukon River, most of which were held in the lower river districts. Commercial fisherman harvested approximately 190,00 chum and a record breaking almost 130,000 coho salmon, raking in a total of almost $1.5 million. That was part of the findings by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game who just released the 2015 season summary for the Yukon River salmon fishery. Read the rest here 12:04
Lobster pots destroyed
Norman Bonnell has no idea who would do such a thing. The Forrester’s Point fisherman had over 400 lobster pots placed near Eddies Cove West. When he checked them on Monday December 14, he found 52 of them severely damaged. He says they were “smashed in”. To say the least, he is not happy. “Who would be crazy enough to do something like that?” he asked. “And nobody else’s traps were touched.” Bonnell brought the matter to the RCMP immediately. Read the article here 10:23
U.S. company pitches man-made island for oil drilling in Alaska
An American company is proposing to build an artificial island to drill for oil off Alaska’s coast — something that’s been done before and could be considered on the Canadian side of the Beaufort Sea as a safer alternative to offshore drilling, according to one analyst. Hilcorp Alaska, a subsidiary of Texas oil company Hilcorp Energy, wants to build its Liberty Project — a gravel island as an offshore oil platform — in the Beaufort Sea on the Alaskan side. U.S. drilling regulators are currently deciding how to assess the environmental impact of the plan. Read the article here 09:37
Lack of crab ripples through Pillar Point Harbor
Instead of the hustle and bustle enlivening the docks at Pillar Point Harbor this time of year, little action is afoot with hundreds of crab pots sitting idle as fishermen ponder how to supplement their income while the popular season remains closed. “I told my crew: ‘Guys, if you can find some other work, pick it up. Because it’ll probably be at least a month before we go fishing.’ If I can find other work, I’ll try it too,” said Porter McHenry, a local captain and president of the Half Moon Bay Seafood Marketing Association. “You try and stay in high spirits,,, Read the article here 08:59
Shrimpers wanted for Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission research program
The commission, which hopes to begin the test-tow portion of the the program in mid-January and the trap portion about a month after that, is looking for a total of four trawl vessels and two trap vessels from New Hampshire, Maine or Massachusetts. The $10,000 program is designed to catch the northern shrimp, Pandalus borealis, while they are in inshore waters to collect data on the timing of the egg hatch, as well as the size, gender and development stages of the shrimp. Read the article here 07:44
