Daily Archives: October 12, 2016
Marine Accident Investigation Branch: Royal Navy submarine towing trawler endangered fishermen’s lives
A Royal Navy submarine which towed a fishing trawler at speed through the Irish Sea endangered the lives of the crew, inspectors said. The Karen was trailed backwards at seven knots in April 2015 after the sub snagged in its nets 15 miles from Ardglass – one of Northern Ireland’s main fishing ports in the south east. Commanders were unaware of the collision until three hours later after they failed to realise they were passing beneath a fishing vessel with nets rather than a merchant cargo or passenger ship, the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) report said. Steve Clinch, chief inspector of marine accidents, said: “Eighteen months ago, the actions of the command team of a Royal Navy submarine placed the lives of the crew of the trawler Karen in danger. Read the rest here 20:11
The bones in the Smithsonian’s ‘whale warehouse’ are relics of a lost world
The smell hits you first: a nose-wrinkling, fishy stench, cut by the sharp reek of formaldehyde. Then your eyes adjust to the dim fluorescent light, and the sight takes your breath away. The National Museum of Natural History’s whale warehouse, a football field-sized facility in Suitland, Md., resembles a graveyard for giants. There are backbones as long as tennis courts, massive skulls, rib cages that could fit an entire school bus inside. There are fossil remains dating back 40 million years, to a time when whale ancestors, which lived on land, were just beginning their transition to creatures of the sea. A 24-foot pale gray jawbone at the center of the facility, taken from a blue whale slain by whalers 77 years ago, is the largest single skeletal element in any museum collection on Earth. “There are certainly no other museums that have this,” said NMNH fossil marine mammal curator Nick Pyenson, who oversees the collection.,,, Walsh was a young U.S. Coast Guard officer who had been assigned to the Ulysses in accordance with a 1937 international treaty to regulate whaling. His job was to document the factory ship’s catch and ensure that it abided by the new laws. Video, read the article here 18:16
Waldoboro Selectman Emphasizes Importance of Jobs, Commercial Fishing Industry in Run for House
Waldoboro selectman is hoping to parlay his time at the municipal level of government into a role in the Maine State Legislature. Abden Simmons, R-Waldoboro, is looking to represent House District 91, which includes Friendship, part of Union, and Washington in addition to Waldoboro. Simmons, who was elected to the Waldoboro Board of Selectmen in June 2015, said he believes the Legislature needs to create favorable conditions for businesses, which, in turn, will lead to job creation. Another big part of Simmons’ focus is the commercial fishing industry. He believes the commercial fishing industry is an integral part of the state’s economy that deserves to be defended in the Legislature. “I want to make sure commercial fishing doesn’t get interfered with any more than it already is,” Simmons said. Simmons is the executive director of the Maine Elver Fisherman Association, and has spent time on the state’s shellfish advisory council, in addition to taking part in the governor’s task force on the invasive European green crab. Read the story here 16:36
P.E.I. fall lobster season wraps up with high catches, prices
P.E.I. fishermen hauled in as many lobsters this fall as they did last year — more, in some areas — and the P.E.I. Fishermen’s Association is crediting the good weather. The season, which began the first week of August, wrapped up Monday for 225 Island fishermen, who share the waters with nearly 500 from New Brunswick and a handful from Nova Scotia. “The weather this year was unheard of,” PEIFA president Craig Avery enthusiastically told CBC Radio: Mainstreet‘s Angela Walker. “There was only probably a couple of lost fishing days and you know with that, that kind of helped the catches for sure.” Read the rest here 16:01
Coast Guard medevacs man off fishing vessel near Hatteras, NC
The Coast Guard medevaced a man Tuesday off a fishing vessel in the Pamlico Sound near Hatteras. Sector North Carolina watchstanders were notified at approximately 9:15 p.m. Tuesday a man aboard the fishing vessel Jane Carolyn, was reportedly unconscious and would not awaken. A Coast Guard 47-foot Motor Lifeboat crew from Station Hatteras Inlet launched at approximately 10:00 p.m. and arrived on scene at approximately 10:40 p.m. The crew medevaced and transferred the man to Outer Banks Hospital in Nags Head for further medical attention. “We were glad the crew was able to arrive quickly to the fishing vessel,” said Craig Sanders, operations unit controller at Sector North Carolina. “We value the training of our crews to respond quickly to these situations.” Link 12:51
Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 55′ Lash Wood Stern Trawler, Detroit 12-V-71
Specifications, information and 24 photo’s click here To see all the boats in this series, Click here 12:30
Alaska’s Bering Sea snow crab quota down 50 percent
In mixed news for Alaska’s crabbers, the state’s Department of Fish and Game announced the opening of the Bering Sea snow crab season will take place on 15 October, but with an allotted catch that is half that of last season’s. A report released Thursday, 6 October by Fish and Game put the total allowable catch (TAC) for the 2016/17 season at 21.57 million pounds, which would be the fishery’s lowest in 45 years. Around 19.4 million pounds of the TAC will go to the individual fishing quota, with the rest going to the community development quota. “We’ve seen a declining trend since the 2006/7 season,” said Robert J. Foy, the head of NOAA’s “Crab Lab” in Kodiak. Read the rest here 11:44
Port Clyde Community behind him, Liberty owner vows to carry on
Whoever has been sinking Tony Hooper’s lobster boat is still out there. They have brazenly sunk his vessel, Liberty, three times since Aug. 17, with no apparent fear of getting caught. The first time, they sent the boat 30 feet underwater. Hooper hauled it out of the water, did the necessary repairs, and got back to work. Six weeks later, they cut the boat’s hoses and bilge wires and set it adrift, to be found beached on Raspberry Island. And just days after that, they did the same thing again, leaving the Liberty to wash up, after having been submerged, on another nearby island. Each time, Hooper, 37, of Port Clyde, has wasted little time repairing the boat and readying it for the work that supports his three young children and their mother. “This person ain’t going to get the best of me,” he said Read the story here 11:23
Coast Guard, NOAA Discuss Safety Requirements For Vessels Chartered To Support Scientific Research
Commercial vessels, in particular commercial fishing vessels, are often chartered by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to engage in scientific research. There is a long-standing agreement between the Coast Guard and NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) dating back to 1980, which requires NOAA to notify the Coast Guard prior to a commercial vessel being contracted. When that notification is made, the Coast Guard coordinates an inspection, if necessary, to ensure the vessel is in compliance with applicable safety requirements. Further, some vessels may be authorized to operate as research vessels; this also involves a Coast Guard inspection and the issuance of “letter of designation” as a research vessel. Read the rest here 10:06
Judge blocks closure of southern flounder fishing. Will it be appealed?
A Wake County Superior Court judge has issued an injunction preventing the 
N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission from closing the entire southern flounder fishery from October 16 through January 1. During its November 2015 meeting at Jeanette’s Pier, the commission voted 6-3 to shut down both the commercial and recreational fisheries for southern flounder during the fourth quarter of 2016. A lawsuit was filed by the New Bern-based North Carolina Fisheries Association, the Carteret County Fishermen’s Association, as well as Dare, Hyde and Carteret counties, against the commission’s action, and resulted in a temporary restraining order being issued on Sept. 28. After two hours of testimony on Oct. 6 from attorneys representing the NCFA and the state, Superior Court Judge John Jolly, Jr. issued an order preventing the Division of Marine Fisheries from instituting the October 16 closure. When the MFC voted for the closure last year, interest groups from the commercial fishing industry, which were opposed to the ban, lined up against the recreation-oriented Coastal Conservation Association and Recreational Fishing Alliance. Read the story here 09:39
Sustainable Shark Alliance register’s to lobby with the sole goal of defeating the Shark Fin Trade Elimination Act
The bill, sponsored by Sen. -Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Del. Gregorio Sablan (D-Northern Mariana Islands), seeks to expand on Congress’s ban on shark finning, in which fishermen cut off the fish’s fin and return it to the ocean, usually to die. Supporters say finning is cruel and has decimated populations of shark species, including endangered ones. The bill has dozens of co-sponsors, including House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-Calif.) and Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chairwoman Lisa Murkowski. It was introduced at a news conference with actor Morgan Freeman. But the shark industry, which supports the ban on finning, says the bill would shut down much of the industry. Domestic fisherman use more than just the fin, but the fin — usually exported to China for use in soup and other culinary purposes — represents about half the monetary value of the fish, said Shaun Gehan, the lobbyist for the ad-hoc coalition. “This bill simply takes the U.S. fisherman and pretty much puts him out of business, only to reward our small portion of the international market to the bad actors,” said Shaun Gehan, who estimated that U.S. fishermen fulfill about 3 percent of the international market for shark fins. Read the story here 09:04
Millions for harbor infrastructure improvements in West Nova
“As you know, commercial fishing is the cornerstone of many coastal communities across the province and the country,” Fraser said. “In 2015 commercial fishing contributed $6 billion to the Canadian economy. That figure represents a $1 billion increase over the previous year.” Fraser said the industry employs 76,000 Canadians and that fish and seafood is now the country’s second largest food exporter after wheat. “One of the pillars of this industry is our national network of small craft harbours,” said Fraser. “Our government supports over 1,000 of these harbours across Canada in communities such as yours. Keeping each of them safe, accessible, and in good repair requires considerable time, effort, and money.” The Projects – Camp Cove (Lower Argyle), Cape St. Mary’s, Parker’s Cove, Pinkney’s Point, Wedge Point (Wedgeport), Yarmouth Bar Read the story here 08:14:50
