Daily Archives: February 29, 2016
Devastated salmon population likely to result in fishing restrictions
Northern California’s commercial anglers are bracing for restrictions on the upcoming salmon-fishing season after federal regulators projected there are half as many in the ocean compared to this time last year. Last week, the Pacific Fisheries Management Council released its annual population estimates for Chinook off the Pacific Coast. The council estimates about 300,000 adult fall-run salmon from the Sacramento River system are swimming off the coast this year. For the past several years, the forecasts have predicted more than 600,000 salmon. “It’s a 1-2-3 punch,” said Tim Sloane, executive director of the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations. Read the rest here 21:43
Louis Daniel, executive director of the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries, Resigns
The executive director of the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries abruptly stepped down from his job on Monday. Louis Daniel has led the agency since January 2014, through an occasionally tumultuous period that saw recreational and commercial fishing interests fighting. Last year Daniel was caught in the cross-fire over what steps should be taken to preserve the Southern Flounder. The announcement was made in an email from the Department of Environmental Resources general counsel to all employees. Counsel John Evans said in the email that Col. Jim Kelley will serve as acting director. Read the rest here 19:10
Zappa 1 tuna fishermen handed five-year suspension after guilty pleas
Three men who fished out of the Antigonish area are banned from the catch-and-release bluefin tuna fishery for five years after pleading guilty to a total of 27 charges of illegal fishing. George Boyle, the license holder and owner of the Zappa 1, along with crew members Dale Trenholm and Evan McDormand are prohibited from taking part in the commercial bluefin tuna fishery for two years as well. Boyle, Trenholm and McDormand used gaffs and rope to remove a bluefin tuna from the water during a catch-and-release trip on October 7, 2014, according to an agreed statement of facts submitted in court on Monday. Read the rest here 18:36
Open-net pen salmon farms ending in Norway?
Norway’s salmon-farming industry is hitting a wall. Because salmon farming began earlier there than in B.C., I wanted to get a glimpse of where we might be headed if our industry continues on its current path. This is the reason I organized the Wild Salmon Delegation to Norway, which spent two weeks there this month. What we found is an industry beset by problems such as disease outbreaks, sea-lice infestations and farmed-salmon escapes. The situation in Norway is dire — one headline we saw read: “Five years left to save wild salmon.” Read the rest here 15:58
Environmental Defense Fund – New Bedford fish fraud case underscores need for greater NOAA monitoring
From the article: The Environmental Defense Fund in a statement on Friday said the arrest points to the need for greater monitoring by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which oversees fishing within 200 nautical miles of the U.S. through the National Marine Fisheries Service. “This arrest and these allegations make it clear that NOAA must start an effective fishery monitoring system, not continue the underfunded program it has had in place for years,” said Joshua Wiersma, northeast fisheries manager for the Environmental Defense Fund. Read the rest here Who is Joshua Wiersma? Read about him here 15:38
Fishermen plead guilty after finning 518 sharks
When Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries agents bust you with 496 fish over your daily limit, you can bet the penalty is going to be severe. It was for two men caught in April 2012 with 11 whole sharks and 2,073 shark fins, taken from another 518 fish. Rick Nguyen, 37, of Buras, and Hung Anh Tiet, 29, of Dallas, Texas, pled guilty last week to shark finning and harvesting more than their limit of sharks. Shark finning is an illegal practice of removing the fins, the most profitable part of the shark, and discarding the rest of the body overboard. Read the rest here 13:03
Maine Operation Game Thief – $11,000 Reward Offered for Jeffery’s Ledge trap molestation caper
Maine Operation Game Thief is offering a reward of $11,000 for information that helps authorities bring the person or people responsible for a major lobster trap molesting case near Jeffrey’s Ledge to justice. A Maine Marine Patrol investigation, which began Monday, February 22, revealed that approximately 200 lobster traps had been hauled by someone other than the license holders, the lobsters stolen, and the traps lowered to the bottom, some of which were not retrievable. Read the rest here 11:01
Prince Edward Island fishermen want dedicated cabinet minister
A dedicated minister and department of fisheries should be created to tackle the issues and challenges facing the second most important primary industry in the province, say Island fishermen. The call for separating the provincial Department of Agriculture and Fisheries was delivered during the annual meeting of the Friday in the P.E.I Convention Centre in Charlottetown. “We definitely need our own minister because things move too fast in this industry and there are too many issues to deal with for a department that has two portfolios,” said president Craig Avery. “We have no problem with the current minister or deputy who are great people, but we need our own.” Read the rest here 10:17
‘Questioning our Changing Oceans’ panel discussion at the Maine Fishermen’s Forum
The Maine Fishermen’s Forum will be hosting a fishermen led event focused on fostering a salty discussion around climate change in fisheries. Headlined by Capt. Keith Coburn of the hit show Deadliest Catch and Capt. Buddy Guindon of the new breakout hit Big Fish, Texas, fishermen from around the world have been collected to talk about their experiences on the water and bring to light the issues Maine fishermen need to be thinking about when it comes to a shifting Gulf of Maine ecosystem. The Questioning our Changing Oceans event is sponsored in part by The Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association, The Environmental Defense Fund, The Island Institute, and The Nature Conservancy. Read the rest here 09:57
Monitor costs shift to fishermen Tuesday, fall out from Carlos Seafood, and EDF opportunists.
Cape Ann lawmakers Bruce Tarr and Ann-Margaret Ferrante walked a thin line last week when they sat down and penned a letter to state Attorney General Maura Healey on the issue of at-sea monitoring. While the fishermen’s lawsuit has drawn the most attention, there is another that could prove equally as troubling to NOAA and the fishing industry: maritime environmental group Oceana’s lawsuit challenging NOAA Fisheries’ bycatch rule. The issue of monitoring burst back into the public arena on Friday, when federal agents — including those from NOAA Law Enforcement and the Internal Revenue Service — raided the operations of Carlos Seafood,,, The arrests prompted a quick response from environmental groups seeking expanded monitor coverage for the groundfish fishery. Read the rest here 07:22
