Daily Archives: April 3, 2016

Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council meeting in Austin, TX. April 4 – 7, 2016 Listen Live

GMFMC SidebarThe Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council will meet in Austin at the Doubletree by Hilton Austin April 4 – 7, 2016. Read the Committee and Council Agenda, Click here Read the briefing material, Click here, Register here to listen live http://gulfcouncil.org/index.php 16:12

North Pacific Fishery Management Council meeting in Anchorage, April 4 thru 12, 2016 – Listen Live

Blue NPFMC SidebarThe Council will meet the week of April 4, 2016 at the Hilton Hotel, Anchorage. Alaska Air is offering travel discounts. The AGENDA and SCHEDULE are available and will be updated as documents become available. The Council’s meeting will be broadcast live beginning their first day via Adobe Connect HERE. Motions will be posted following the meeting. http://www.npfmc.org/  15:40

SCORE: Protecting your downside: Insurance for small businesses

tn-directory_clients1540383426promo_pictureEntrepreneurs and small business owners need at least some insurance. Below are some common types of insurance with a description of each. Some are necessary or required by law; others help with attracting and retaining employees and other situations. Many of these types of insurance can be bundled together into an “umbrella” policy or purchased separately. Talk to a licensed insurance agent with expertise and experience with the type of insurance you are searching for to determine appropriate coverage for your situation and get at least three comparable quotes before making any decisions. Read the article, Click here  12:50

Coastal Conservation Association Mississippi spokesman attacks Gulf Menhaden Fishery

F.J. Eicke, spokesman for the Coastal Conservation Association MississippiThe menhaden fishery is a bit of an enigma to the public, but the activity of the purse seine boats is well-known to many recreational anglers, conservationists and charter fishermen. The pogie boats set their nets after an aircraft survey and direct the boats to schools of menhaden so that these vital forage fish can be removed in massive amounts from our waters. The catch data is not widely known but reaches 83,439.2 metric tons (183,949,994 pounds) in landings at the Moss Point plant for the 2014 season, as reported by the National Marine Fisheries Service. Read the article, Click here  10:54

Ocean planning meetings at village level urged – Locals push back

listening%20session%20JohnThere should be opportunity for traditional leaders and fisher men and women in the villages to provide their comments on how coastal and ocean resources of American Samoa should be managed. That’s one of the recommendations made by participants at a meeting convened by the Pacific Regional Planning Group, a federal group appointed under presidential executive order, to gather input form local communities to develop a plan for the balances and sustainable management of American Samoa’s seas and coasts. There was resistance from some in the audience in having federal officials convene a meeting in the territory, with no visible involvement and presence of local government and traditional leaders at the gathering last night. Read the rest, Click here 10:05

Contentious – Fishermen look to replace human monitors with cameras

160326observers0121-U821533435080B4C-U822491753897tIF-300x225@BostonGlobe.comThe relationship between the region’s fishermen and the government observers who monitor their catch has long been uneasy, and that tension has only intensified since federal officials in March began requiring fishermen to pay hundreds of dollars every time an observer accompanies them to sea. But in the coming weeks, fishermen and federal regulators are poised to launch an experimental new program that could go a long way toward ending the conflict, while also potentially curbing costs and allowing broader oversight. With the help of private grants and the government’s blessing, fishermen from Cape Cod to Maine will rig their boats with an expensive suite of cameras, computers, and sensors to monitor their catch, replacing the on-board observers. Read the article, Click here  08:09

Drug testing a touchy issue on New Bedford’s waterfront

EP-160409847.jpg&MaxW=650&MaxH=650Local scallop captain Rick Lynch, 44, gave a compelling interview last October to Don Cuddy, program director for the New Bedford-based Center for Sustainable Fisheries. Cuddy is a former reporter and current freelancer for The Standard-Times. The recorded interview was aboard one of the two boats Lynch captains. Lynch declined to name those boats publicly, not wanting to involve ownership. Lynch also declined to have his photo taken for this story. But he consented to the use of his name, and use of the interview’s audio recording.  Cuddy recently played the interview for Major Patrick Moran of the Massachusetts Environmental Police, following March drug arrests on the waterfront. Lynch gives very personal recollections of his own struggles with drugs, and current observations of drug use and addiction on the docks. In an email to The Standard-Times, Moran called the interview credible and eye-opening. Read the article, Click here 07:31