Daily Archives: March 17, 2016
Time to discard top-down regulation of Scotland’s fishing
Brussels is not working for any but the bureaucrats, argues Simon Collins At a time when the health of our seas has become a serious and global concern, attention has focused on the fishing industry and the way our wild fish stocks are managed. This is not only understandable but perfectly reasonable. Fishing is by no means the only human activity that affects the sea. It’s probably not even the most important one – pollution and greenhouse gas emissions are obvious candidates – but it has to be regulated somewhere. For somewhere like Shetland, where fishing and aquaculture together account for a third of economic activity, the consequences of a free-for-all would be unthinkable. Read the rest here 21:11
Tuna Recall: ‘Life-Threatening’ Contamination Fear Forces Bumble Bee, Chicken of the Sea into Recall
A nationwide tuna recall for potential “life-threatening” contamination includes the popular Bumble Bee and Chicken of the Sea brands, the FDA reports today. Deviations from the standard commercial sterilization process that occurred in a co-pack facility in California not owned or operated by the tuna companies forced the recall. These deviations could result in contamination by spoilage organisms or pathogens, which could lead to “life-threatening illness if consumed,” according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. A total of 31,579 Bumble Bee cases (six cans per case) produced in February 2016 and distributed nationally are included in the recall. Read the rest here, and spread it around 15:48
Victors in suit against NMFS want hired skipper rule scrapped
The victorious plaintiffs in a case challenging a federal rule over hired skippers in the sablefish and halibut fisheries filed a motion Feb. 24 to vacate the National Marine Fisheries Service action. Fairweather Fish Inc. and Ray Welsh filed suit against the National Marine Fisheries Service, or NMFS, in 2014, following the finalization of a regulation that prohibited the use of hired skippers to harvest halibut and sablefish quota acquired after Feb. 12, 2010. A U.S. District Court judge in the Western Washington District ruled in their favor on Jan. 13, finding that the regulation didn’t meet legal muster. The court ruled that NMFS violated the Administrative Procedures Act, and failed to ensure the new rule complied with National Standards 9 and 10 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act. Read the rest here 14:40
Pacific Salmon Foundation – Health of salmon not determined by catch counts
B.C. fishermen may have to console themselves with limited harvest of salmon in the coming years, but the long-term prospects for wild Pacific salmon are not as dire as some critics claim, the head of the Pacific Salmon Foundation told members of the Qualicum Beach Streamkeepers during their annual general meeting Saturday at St. Stephen’s United Church. “If you’re interested in the future of salmon, it’s better than indicated by what people talk about in the media,” said Brian Riddell, CEO and president of the PSF and a former staffer with Fisheries and Oceans Canada. “In the past, people have been fixated on catch as the measure of abundance and health of salmon. But the health of salmon is not determined by the catch. It’s determined by the amount of fish that come back and spawn after the catch.” Read the rest here 13:31
Alaska trawlers furious about Walker’s North Pacific Fishery Management Council nominations
Two months after a heated meeting, trawlers are again accusing Alaska Department of Fish and Game Commissioner Sam Cotten of short-changing their industry. Gov. Bill Walker submitted nominations to fill two seats of the North Pacific Fishery Management Council on March 9, sending waves of dissatisfaction throughout an industry segment that claims Walker’s administration is forcing it out of the process at the worst time possible. Walker nominated Buck Laukitis of Homer and Theresa Peterson of Kodiak to replace Duncan Fields and David Long among the 11 voting members of the council, one of eight regional councils established by the 1976 Magnuson-Stevens Act to oversee federal fisheries from three to 200 miles off the coast. Read the rest here 09:28
Board of Fish adjusts Bristol Bay set net boundaries
Months after the issue was first raised, the state Board of Fisheries made a decision on set net sites affected by erosion. In December, Bristol Bay set-netters went to the board looking for help after erosion had taken its toll on boundaries at their commercial fishing sites. And on March 11, at its statewide meeting and the final regular meeting for board members Fritz Johnson, Tom Kluberton and Bob Mumford, the board agreed to adjust the lines as requested by the affected fishermen, with some modifications. Read the rest here 08:55
Sandy Hook Bay National Marine Sanctuary proposal pounded by wave after wave of criticism
The main proponent of a “marine sanctuary” that would include some 12,500 acres of northeastern Monmouth County waters found himself pounded by wave after wave of criticism Wednesday night. With 75 or so commercial and recreational fishermen, clammers, hunters and others packed into a basement meeting room at the Red Bank Public Library, and a comparable number turned away due to crowding, maritime historian Rik Van Hemmen got a cold reception for his proposal for a Sandy Hook Bay National Marine Sanctuary, which he hopes will win federal approval. Read the rest here 08:17
Dog presumed lost at sea from a commercial fishing boat reunited with family
Luna, a 1½-year-old, blue-eyed German Shepherd, was presumed to have died after falling overboard from a commercial fishing boat near San Clemente Island on February 20, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported. After five days, the dog was presumed dead. Luna’s owner Nick thought he had lost her. Then on Tuesday, five weeks after Luna went missing, Navy biologist Melissa Booker called him to tell him she had found Luna. Read the story here 07:33
