Daily Archives: July 23, 2016
Is the Japanese eel industry on the slippery slope to extinction?
“Eel has been loved in Japan for millennia,” Murakami says. “It’s crucial that we continue this ancient Japanese food culture.” The eating of freshwater eel — or unagi — is a culinary romance that has lasted more than 5,000 years. Indeed, eel bones have been found in shell mounds dating back to the Jomon Period, which lasted from around 10,000 B.C. to 200 B.C.,, Consequently, the majority of eel that makes it onto dining tables nationwide has been imported from China and Taiwan since the 1990s. According to the 2015 fisheries ministry survey, eel imports now account for approximately 60 percent of the domestic eel supply, with a large quantity of the fish being processed into kabayaki in China and shipped to Japan in a ready-to-cook form. According to another survey released this month by the fisheries ministry, the market price of baby eel — also known as elvers or glass eels — is currently ¥1,820,000 ($17,142 usd) per kilogram. By contrast, the market price of baby eel was ¥160,000 per kilogram In 2003, less than 10 percent of the existing price. Interesting article, read the rest here 17:29
Confusion, rancor, and yes, fear, after LIPA wind farm meeting postponed
New York State’s decision to postpone LIPA’s consideration of an offshore wind farm that is popular with environmentalists prompted confusion and rancor in its aftermath, as the Cuomo administration works on a wind-energy blueprint that could include other areas directly off Long Island. LIPA trustees had been scheduled to vote last Wednesday on a 90-megawatt wind-farm proposal by developer Deepwater Wind in the federal Rhode Island wind-energy area 30 miles from Montauk Point. But a late-night decision by NYSERDA prompted cancellation of the board meeting, an unprecedented move, and postponement of the vote. The state’s decision to postpone the trustee vote disappointed Long Island environmentalists and at least one East End official, who have expressed frustration for years about LIPA’s on-again, off-again wind ambitions. One group was rumored to have bought Champagne for the board meeting. “It’s awful, pulling a major meeting like this at the last minute,” said Gordian Raacke, executive director of Renewable Energy Long Island and a longtime advocate for solar and wind power. “It causes a lot of uncertainty and it scares people. lol! ok! “Those [potential] wind-energy areas would destroy multiple fisheries,” said Meghan Lapp, fisheries liaison for Seafreeze Ltd., a Rhode Island commercial fishing group. Added Drew Minkiewicz, an attorney for the Fisheries Survival Fund, representing commercial scallopers, “All of them [wind-energy areas] are right smack dab in the middle of scallop grounds.” Now, that’s scary. Read the rest here 15:29
On the verge of a premature Commercial bluefish shutdown, Senator Schumer fires off a letter!
The decision, which could be made any day now, is based on data from the Marine Recreation Information Program, which is the program NOAA uses to record all of its recreational fishing data. Recent data shows a high number of bluefish were caught last year by recreational fishers. The DEC, however, has argued in a letter sent to NOAA that it finds the data “troubling” and is urging officials to reevaluate the findings. On Monday, Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) also called on NOAA to take a second look, writing in a letter to the organization that “any decision on bluefish fishing season must be based on up-to-date science, period.” Mr. Schumer’s request follows a letter sent to NOAA last Tuesday by DEC commissioner Basil Seggos, who expressed concern that a mid-season closure would be a “devastating blow to our commercial fisheries.” Bonnie Brady of the Long Island Commercial Fishing Association said that while ending the bluefish season this early would have some impact on related East End businesses, it’s a major blow to commercial fishermen. Read the article here 14:35
‘Oyster wars:’ Watermen aim to take back oyster bars as state panel reviews shellfish sanctuaries
Shells carrying millions of lab-grown baby oysters tumbled down the sides of a green-hulled boat named Robert Lee, and the $35,000 investment sunk into the Choptank River where it widens to meet the Chesapeake. The oysters, planted this past week, will grow there for two or three years before watermen scoop them back up and restaurants serve them fried or on ice. Nearby, other oyster reefs are restocked in the same manner but are off-limits to harvesting. These sanctuaries across bay tributaries help the shellfish recover from decades of disease outbreaks, and overfishing before that, and have been expanded in recent years to cover nearly a quarter of the bay’s 36,000 acres of oyster bars. Watermen could soon reclaim some of that territory. Read the rest here 12:01
Opinion: Governor should recognize value of Alaska groundfish industry – Al Burch
Something remarkable happened in my hometown of Kodiak recently. Roughly 1,000 people turned out to celebrate our groundfish trawl fishery. It was a family affair, with processing workers and their kids, fishing families, support businesses and local officials all participating in the parade and the barbecue picnic that followed. More than 2,000 meals were served and $17,000 was raised for the local Brother Francis Shelter. For me this was very special. My brother and I were some of the pioneers of the trawl fishery here in Kodiak. We started from scratch when the United States claimed a 200-mile zone. I remember the foreign fleets off our shores, and once they were replaced by U.S. vessels like ours,,, Read the rest here 11:06
‘Deadliest Catch’ crew joins Fish for Kids program in Bristol Bay
Leave it to the crew of “Deadliest Catch to liven things up, even when it comes to a philanthropic effort by fishermen and Peter Pan Seafoods to provide salmon meals to local school children and raise funds for fisheries education. The salmon tender Cornelia Marie and its crew combined efforts recently to support the Fish for Kids effort, which for the past decade has accepted donations of fish from fishermen in the Bristol Bay region in an effort to bring top-quality local salmon to school children in the region. This year, some 12,000 pounds were donated to Fish for Kids. The crew of the Cornelia Marie offered a 10-cent bonus for every pound of fish donated to the program. Read the rest here 10:07
Fish crime does not pay: Freeport fisherman Beau Gillis speaks about his heavy sentence
“It’s totally not worth it, fish crime does not pay,” said the Freeport fisherman. Gillis was recently sentenced to about $70,000 in penalties for not claiming 1,100 pounds of halibut he caught on June 10, 2015. “It was a great day … until it wasn’t,” said Gillis. “I got greedy. I did it. I pled guilty. “I do find it’s excessive but I’m a warning to others not to do this. It’s a conservation measure to protect a good fishery, it’s a laudable goal.” Fishery Officers found about 800 pounds of halibut on the truck Gillis was driving when they pulled him over and the rest they found aboard Gillis’ boat. Gillis received $10,000 in fines from the judge at sentencing on July 11. The judge also imposed a five-month suspension from ground fishing to be served in 2017, which will mean missing the whole season. (It gets real expensive as the story continues.) Read the rest here 09:47
Coast Guard rescues 8 from burning fishing vessel off Oahu
The Coast Guard rescued eight crewmembers from a burning ship two miles offshore Oahu, Thursday. Eight people are safe after a rescue and assist team from USCGC Galveston Island (WPB-1349) fought and extinguished an engineroom fire aboard commercial fishing vessel Lady Anna two miles south of Honolulu Harbor. “We were in the right place at the right time,” said Lt. Ryan Ball, commanding officer of USCGC Galveston Island. “This was a combined effort between the Galveston Island crew, the watchstanders at Sector Honolulu and rescue boat crews from Station Honolulu and Honolulu Fire Department. Watchstanders at Sector Honolulu Command Center overheard a transmission on VHF channel 16 at 4:30 p.m. regarding a fire aboard the 78-foot fishing vessel Lady Anna. Watchstanders established communication with the vessel, directed the launch of a 45-foot Response Boat-Medium crew from Station Honolulu and diverted the nearby Galveston Island crew to assist. Read the story here 07:59
