Monthly Archives: March 2016
Carlos Rafael released on $1M bond, puts home and business up for collateral
New Bedford fishing magnate Carlos Rafael will be allowed to return to his Dartmouth home under strict bond conditions and to continue working while facing federal conspiracy and falsification charges, a judge ruled Wednesday. Rafael and his wife agreed to place their home on Tucker Road in North Dartmouth and the Carlos Seafood building, on South Front Street in New Bedford, as collateral for the $1 million bond. Prosecutors said the total value of the two properties is about $900,000. Magistrate Judge David H. Hennessy warned Rafael sternly during his detention hearing in U.S. District Court in Worcester that any violation of his bond could result in a warrant for his arrest and the loss of his home and business property. Read the rest here 16:51Coast Guard Tows Disabled Fishing Boat 200 Miles To Cape Cod Bay
The crew of Coast Guard Cutter Harriet Lane towed the 95-foot fishing vessel Megan Marie after it became disabled Saturday about 200 miles southeast of Cape Cod. Watchstanders at the First Coast Guard District Command Center received notification at approximately 10 p.m. Saturday that the Megan Marie, homeported out of New Bedford, had a fouled propeller and was in need of assistance with five people aboard. At 10:15 p.m. Saturday the Coast Guard Cutter Harriet Lane was diverted to assist. Read the post here 16:21
Winter Crabbers Start Strong Despite New Quota for Norton Sound
Commercial crabbers are on track for another strong harvest on Norton Sound. So far, fishermen are on par with last year’s record-breaking catch, but they stand to make less money because of a new, reduced quota. According to Jim Menard, the area manager for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, the new limit is less than half of last season’s total haul. “Last year, there were 99,000 pounds caught and this year, the quota is just over 41,000 pounds,” he said. “There will be a difference there.” Read the rest here 15:20
Myths that won’t go away – Stories about fisheries sustainability that are simply wrong
The scientific literature, print and e-media are full of stories on fisheries sustainability that are simply wrong – yet keep getting repeated and are widely accepted. This page highlights the most ubiquitous of these myths, and provides a summary of the true situation with respect to the issue addressed. – All Fish Stocks will be Collapsed by 2048 – 70% of the World’s Fish stocks are Overfished – Large Fish of the Ocean were 90% Depleted by 1980 – We are Fishing Down the Food Chain Have you seen one of these fishery myths in recent media? Reach out via email or twitter and let us know! Click here 14:41
Deadliest Catch star Sig Hanson survives heart attack
Capt. Sig Hansen, the chain-smoking, coffee-chugging star of the Discovery Channel’s Deadliest Catch, has survived a brush with his mortality. Hansen’s daughter, Mandy Hansen, shared a photo on Instagram of her father in a hospital bed with a caption reading: “Capt survived the ‘widowmaker’ !! Beating a heart attack ain’t easy. Welcome back boss”. Hansen skippers the F/V Northwestern, which targets king and snow crabs on Alaska’s Bering Sea. Get well soon, Cap. Read the rest here and another here 13:12
Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 35′ H & H Charter/Tuna/Lobster, 6 Cylinder John Deere
Specifications, information and 14 photo’s click here To see all the boats in this series, Click here 12:38
Dan Bacher – Sacramento Salmon Ocean Abundance Forecast Is Half Of Last Year’s
The federal government last week released its data on the projections for the upcoming ocean and river salmon seasons in California and Southern Oregon — and it’s not looking good. Commercial and recreational anglers are bracing for further fishing restrictions this season, based on relatively low abundance estimates for Sacramento River and Klamath River fall-run Chinook salmon, the two drivers of the West Coast fishery. The estimate of Sacramento River salmon that can be found in the ocean in 2016 is less than half of last year’s forecast of 652,000 fish. The Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC), a quasi-governmental body that crafts the seasons and regulations for salmon, groundfish and other fisheries,,, Read the rest here 11:01
Ventura harbor closure takes an economic toll, thanks to strong currents and El Niño conditions
The Small Business Administration declared a state of emergency for the Ventura Harbor businesses on Feb. 26, according to a press release. The declaration enabled the administration to directly assist affected businesses in Ventura County and the surrounding areas. Beginning in late January, a build-up of sand in the harbor created shallow waters that closed the harbor until Feb. 19, according to Brian Pendleton, business operations manager with the Ventura Port District. He said the types of businesses impacted include commercial fishing operations, passenger vessels, marinas and boat yards, among others. Read the rest here 09:59
Feds seize documents from Rafael’s alleged New York buyer
US federal agents are said to have seized documents from a New York City fish company who’s owner is reportedly the buyer named in the affidavit accusing Carlos Rafael of massive illegal fish sales. Two sources said federal agents have seized documents from New York-based South Street Seafood since Carlos Rafael, who owns a fleet of 40 whitefish and scallop vessels and the processing business Carlos Seafood, was arrested on Friday. Rafael and his accountant, Debra Messier, have been charged with conspiracy and submitting falsified records to the government to evade federal fishing quotas. Read the rest here 08:48
California: Thousands of sea lions starving to death as population boom drives food shortage
Booming sea lion populations have depleted their traditional food stocks and are now turning to unhealthy squid and rockfish as their main source of meals. Researchers discovered that this has triggered huge drops in their weight, leading to thousands of sea lion pups starving. In California alone, sea lion populations have increased from 50,000 to 340,000 since 1975. Research published in Royal Society Open Science suggests this population boom has resulted in a massive depletion of sardines and anchovies – the primary food source of sea lions. Read the rest here 08:18
Fishing for answers in Louis Daniel’s resignation
In 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
Click 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?
From 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
Photos 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
