Daily Archives: December 9, 2016
Marathon fisherman pinched for untagged lobster traps, bad bouy charges
A Marathon commercial fisherman faces more than 130 conservation counts after being charged with fishing illegal lobster traps. Franklin Garcia Jimenez, 40, was arrested before dawn Tuesday as part of a trap-tag case filed by Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers. Garcia is charged with “fishing more than 50 working, untagged traps,” agency information Officer Bobby Dube said. FWC Investigator Danielle Munkelt and Officer Adam Garrison also filed counts accusing Garcia of using buoys that were painted with the wrong colors and buoys that do not meet legal size requirements. All of the 136 counts are misdemeanors. Garcia posted a $68,000 bond and was released from the Monroe County jail Thursday. Read the rest here 20:45
Fukushima radiation has reached U.S. shores – Poses no danger to humans or the environment, they say.
For the first time, seaborne radiation from Japan’s Fukushima nuclear disaster has been detected on the West Coast of the United States. Cesium-134, the so-called fingerprint of Fukushima, was measured in seawater samples taken from Tillamook Bay and Gold Beach in Oregon, researchers from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution are reporting. Because of its short half-life, cesium-134 can only have come from Fukushima. Also for the first time, cesium-134 has been detected in a Canadian salmon, the Fukushima InFORM project, led by University of Victoria chemical oceanographer Jay Cullen, is reporting. In both cases, levels are extremely low, the researchers said, and don’t pose a danger to humans or the environment. Read the rest here 16:53
Accusations fly at hearing into Alaska Juris sinking
A Coast Guard hearing into the July sinking of the Alaska Juris took a volatile turn on Thursday as a marine contractor once charged with shore repairs alleged that misconduct by some Japanese crew contributed to safety problems. Herb Roeser, owner of Seattle-based Trans-Marine Propulsion Systems, alleged in his testimony that Masashi Yamada, a Japanese entrepreneur with wide-ranging business holdings, wielded behind-the-scenes control of the factory ship’s owner, Renton-based Fishing Company of Alaska. Roeser said Japanese crews working for one of Yamada’s businesses, Anyo Fisheries, “basically ran” the Alaska Juris. Over the years, Roeser said, the Alaska Juris had been weakened by not only age but also improper modifications ordered by Japanese crew and their rough fishing tactics that slammed metal trawl gear — known as doors — against the stern of the vessel and contributed to cracks. Roeser testified that when he stopped working for the company in 2011, he told the U.S. owner, the late Karena Adler, that “you need to put that ship in the scrap yard because nothing good is going to come of it.” Read the rest here 16:11
Executive Order — Northern Bering Sea Climate Resilience (includes typo’s!)
By the authority vested in me as the President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, 43 U.S.C. 1331 et seq., it is hereby ordered as follows: Section 1. Purpose. As recognized in Executive Order 13689 of January 21, 2015, (Enhancing Coordination of National Efforts in the Arctic), Arctic environmental stewardship is in the national interest. In furtherance of this principle, and as articulated in the March 10, 2016, U.S.-Canada Joint Statement on Climate, Energy, and Arctic Leadership, the United States has resolved to confront the challenges of a changing Arctic by working to conserve Arctic biodiversity; support and engage Alaska Native tribes; incorporate traditional knowledge into decisionmaking; and build a sustainable Arctic economy that relies on the highest safety and environmental standards, including adherence to national climate goals. The United States is committed to achieving these goals in partnership with indigenous communities and through science-based decisionmaking. This order carries forth that vision in the northern Bering Sea region. Read the rest here 14:56
Federal judge tosses another fisheries management rule
Federal judges keep smacking down the North Pacific Fishery Management Council’s decisions. For the second time in the last three months, a federal court has overturned a management decision made by the North Pacific council and enacted by the National Marine Fisheries Service, or NMFS. The United States District Court of Washington overturned a 2011 decision relating to halibut quota shares harvested by hired skippers on Nov. 16. Federal courts have overturned several council decisions in recent years. In September, a the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals overturned the council’s 2011 decision to remove Cook Inlet, Prince William Sound and Alaska Peninsula salmon fisheries from federal oversight. In this case, the North Pacific council made a decision in 2011 regarding which halibut quota holders can use a hired skipper instead of being required to be on board the vessel. Read the story here 14:09
FISH-NL announces Crowd Funding Campaign; all hands on deck
The Federation of Independent Sea Harvesters of Newfoundland and Labrador (FISH-NL) is launching a crowd funding campaign today to raise $16,000 to fund the conclusion of the breakaway union’s membership drive. “If you want to see a prosperous fishing industry in Newfoundland and Labrador, we urge you to support the cause,” says Ryan Cleary, president of FISH-NL.“This battle has been compared to David vs. Goliath, but while the FFAW has unlimited funds at its disposal — as well as a definitive list of all fish harvesters in the province — FISH-NL has overwhelming momentum fueled by hundreds of volunteers.” It’s not just fish harvesters who are urged to contribute to the cause, but all Newfoundlanders and Labradorians concerned about the future of rural communities and their sputtering economic engine — the fishery. The funds raised will be used to purchase media advertising, hire staff to oversee the conclusion of the membership drive, and travel/office expenses. “The will for change is unstoppable,” says Cleary, “but only if all hands are on deck.” PLEASE NOTE: FISH-NL operates based on fairness for all harvesters — donations do not translate to influence within FISH-NL. To fish processing companies and the offshore sector — keep your money, FISH-NL is for inshore harvesters only. For more information, contact Ron Woodman 697-6026 Click here for gofundme page.
Crab Fishermen Rescue Entangled Whale Near Bodega Bay
Three fishermen on the boat, Legacy, risked their lives to save a whale entangled in crab pots near Bodega Bay. They didn’t have time to call for help, it was an emergency situation. Legacy crewman Valentine Parnell described the initial encounter with the whale. “Mark comes along side it and we notice that its blowhole was spouting off…it’s trapped. Absolutely trapped,” Parnell said. Legacy deck boss Ken Garliepp said, “I mean it was cutting into him to where he was bleeding, so I don’t know how long it would have been til he’s getting ripped apart by sharks. He definitely needed help.” Using boat hooks, the men snagged lines and started cutting. Piece by piece the old lines slowly came off. At first the whale resisted, but then something miraculous happened. Video, read the story here 10:22
Sister of missing Night Raider fisherman wants answers, asks why search didn’t start sooner
The prawn trawler departed Urangan, at Hervey Bay, on November 11 and headed east before the trawler’s Vessel Monitoring System, a mandatory system that provides hourly updates on the location of all trawlers in Queensland waters to Fisheries, stopped responding on November 12. Leigh Ann Hunt said that is when a search should have started to find her little brother, 38-year-old Douglas Hunt, along with the two other men aboard, aged 24 and 60, who remain missing. A Fisheries Queensland spokeswoman said while the VMS was not an at-sea safety system, it could be used in search and rescue operations by providing the last known position of a vessel. For the next six days, Fisheries Queensland attempted to make contact with the Night Raider and notified other vessels in the area along with the family of the vessel’s owner. Read the rest here 09:10
Stranded Dragger Aground in Montauk is Freed
The 55-foot steel-hulled dragger that ran aground in Montauk on the morning of Nov. 27 was finally pulled free Tuesday by the tugboat Judy M., the hole in her hull having been patched by an underwater diver the day before. The vessel, the Miss Scarlett, was towed across Long Island Sound to a boatyard in North Kingston, R.I., where she will be refurbished. Before the towing could begin, though, she received an inspection from two Coast Guard officers, who spent over an hour on board. “The state of the main engine is going to determine what happens next,” Rob Morsch, one of the boat’s owners, said as he watched the Miss Scarlett being pulled free. Much will depend on how much water got into the cylinders. “Air compresses, water doesn’t.” An insurance adjuster was on hand for the entire operation Tuesday. Read the story here 08:17
