Daily Archives: March 1, 2016

Fishing for answers in Louis Daniel’s resignation

bildeIn late August in a Raleigh hotel convention room, N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries Director Louis Daniel welcomed a state representative to the podium. Daniel had invited Bob Steinberg, a Republican representing the state’s northern coastal counties, to speak at a Marine Fisheries Commission meeting about his work on an East Coast fisheries board. But when Steinberg took the microphone, he abruptly raised a topic that had broiled on the commission for months — restrictions on flounder fishing. He told commissioners that legislators were watching how they voted. One member asked if he was threatening them. The moment captured the drama that defined North Carolina fisheries management in 2015,.. Read the rest here 21:16

Alaska Gov. Bill Walker orders mariculture task force for shellfish and sea plants

Walker’s order responds to both economic and ecological concerns. The release touts the potential economic benefits to coastal communities and the Alaska fishing industry. Further, as ocean acidification continues to impact shellfish, Walker said the stocks need all the help they can get in recovering. “Mariculture represents a tremendous opportunity to diversify our economy, strengthen our coastal communities, and provide healthy food to the world by using sustainable practices that are a foundation of our current fishery resources,” said Walker in a release. “The goal of this task force is to bring key stakeholders together and determine how the state can help this industry prosper with Alaska-grown products.” Read the rest here 17:03

North Carolina Fisheries Association Weekly Update for Feb 29, 2016

ncfa 3 finishedClick here to read the Weekly Update, to read all the updates, Click here 15:48

Oregon eyes Cathlamet Channel as gillnet site

State officials are hopeful they can open a second lower Columbia River off-channel commercial fishing location in 2016, this one in Cathlamet Channel of Wahkiakum County. Establishing additional off-channel commercial fishing areas, where gillnets can be used, is a key component of the Columbia River fishing reforms adopted by the Washington and Oregon fish and wildlife commission in 2013. Oregon has off-channel sites in Youngs Bay, Blind Slough-Knappa Slough and Tongue Point-South Channel, while Washington’s only site is in Deep River, a location which works for coho, but not well for chinook. Read the rest here 15:07

Killing to Conserve – Is it effective, or ethical, to cull one protected species to help another?

cormorantFrom a population reduced to about 10,000 in the 1950s, California sea lion numbers have grown to nearly 390,000 since they were protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, which made it illegal to kill, or “take,” them without a permit. While most of the animals wintering on the Oregon coast stick to offshore habitat, bays, and estuaries, since 2000 a small number of sea lions, 100 or so, have been swimming 145 miles up the Columbia River, from its mouth at Astoria to Bonneville Dam, to eat upstream migrating salmon that stack up at the base of the dam and fish ladders. Some of the fish they devour are upriver spring Chinook salmon, which are listed as endangered under the Read the article here 11:25

Sudden ban on fish discards could harm ecosystems – researchers

Sea birds, dolphins, crabs and sharks are among the species that could suffer if commercial fishers abruptly stopped discarding their unwanted catches, research shows. An international study led by The University of Queensland has found that a gradual reduction – over two decades or more – in the practice is the best way to allow a marine ecosystem to recover its natural balance. Esther Fondo, a PhD student and the study’s lead author, said a range of predator species were reliant on discarded fish – dead and alive – as a food source. Read the rest here 10:33

Inside the F/V Saputi: Crew member’s video shows waterlogged vessel

jonathon-larkhamPhotos and video from a man rescued from the fishing vessel Saputi show the extent of the damage inside the ship and the dire situation that the crew had faced in the Davis Strait last week. While fishing for turbot and shrimp on Feb. 23, the Saputi began taking on water after striking ice, causing the hull to open up. A Hercules aircraft from 413 squadron dropped off four extra pumps to remove water from the vessel, while another Hercules monitored the Saputi as it travelled to Greenland. Watch the video, Read the rest here 08:53

CETA breakthrough revives discussion over contentious fisheries renewal fund

Newfoundland and Labrador’s representative in the federal cabinet says talks are underway about how the province might be compensated for losses incurred once a Canada-European Union trade deal is implemented. Public Services and Procurement Minister Judy Foote was in St. John’s Monday to speak to a business audience, but fisheries issues garnered most of the attention when she met later with reporters. The federal government announced Monday that a legal review of the English text of the Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) is now complete. Read the rest here 08:43

Mayor Jon Mitchell: Rafael arrest not the end of New Bedford fishing industry

Mayor Jon Mitchell said he does not believe that Carlos Rafael’s arrest for conspiracy and falsifying records to skirt federal fishing quotas will result in the demise of New Bedford’s fishing industry. “I’ve heard a lot of talk that this is the death of fishing in New Bedford but I think that is wildly speculative and way overstated,” Mitchell said Monday. “This is not going to shake out in weeks, but years.” Mitchell said that the fate of New Bedford’s fishing industry will be in fuller focus after the criminal case against Rafael is decided. Former Mayor Scott Lang said that Rafael’s practices are not at all reflective of the many smaller fishing operations in the area and praised the efforts the region’s fishermen who have complied with what he described as two decades of challenging regulations. Read the rest here 08:19

Is Gloucester hooked to New Bedford fish fraud case?

The stunning arrest of New Bedford fishing mogul Carlos Rafael last Friday on federal conspiracy and fraud charges may have a Gloucester connection. The affidavit submitted in support of the federal criminal complaint against Rafael and bookkeeper Debra Messier by Internal Revenue Service Special Agent Ronald Mullett, one of the undercover operatives involved in stinging Rafael, includes an oblique reference to Gloucester. The reference takes place in a quote attributed to a New York man that federal investigators allege to be the wholesale buyer of Rafael’s illicit, off-the-books fish. The man initially is referred to only as “Michael,” but later in the affidavit also is called “Perretti.” Read the rest here 07:42