Daily Archives: February 25, 2017
Maine lobstermen’s union votes to buy Hancock County lobster business
The Maine Lobstering Union voted Saturday to buy a wholesale lobster business near Mount Desert Island to help its fishermen net a bigger share of the profit in the booming, $1.5 billion-a-year industry. At a closed-door meeting in Rockport, members voted 63-1 to buy the wholesale side of the Trenton Bridge Lobster Pound, which includes a tank that can hold up to 180,000 pounds of lobster, for $4 million, said Local 207 President Rocky Alley. “We can’t wait to start buying and selling our own lobsters,” Alley said. “Right now, fishermen sell at the dock, and we get what we get, with no control. But there is lots of money made off lobsters after they leave the dock, and some ought to stay with us fishermen.” The vote enables the Maine union to borrow money from a Kansas City bank and to borrow $1.1 million from fellow locals in the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers as far south as Maryland to purchase the Lamoine-based wholesale business. continue reading the story here 21:36
Stunned chopper pilot finds castaways lost at sea on two seperate boats from Kiribati
The pilot, operating the chopper from a trawler off the Marshall Islands, came across the boats by chance last week, leading to the rescue of three fishermen and a teenage boy, the Marshall Islands Journal reported. It said both boats had set off from Kiribati, about 650 kilometres (400 miles) away. The one with three fishermen aboard had been adrift for 28 days, while the lone 14-year-old in the other had been lost for 11 days. Ocean currents had brought both boats within eight kilometres of each other but they were unaware of the other’s existence until they were spotted and rescued. The trawler Kwila888 picked up the drifters and cut short its tuna fishing trip to drop them in the Marshalls’ capital Majuro last weekend, the Journal reported. Link 15:53
Declining worm harvest poses challenge for diggers, scientists
It’s a dirty job, but digging for blood and sand worms along the Maine coast can pay well, particularly in areas of the state where it can be hard to make a living. Maine’s annual harvest of these popular bait worms, however, continues to decline, posing a quandary for marine biologists who cite climate change and predation as possible factors. Wormers, as they’re called, would like to work with marine biologists to ensure a healthy and robust industry.,, Washington County worm diggers have their own theories. “You have biologists that come around, and I’m not taking away from people who go to school, but very few of them say, ‘Well, what do you guys think?’” says Fred Johnson of Steuben, president of the Down East chapter of the Independent Maine Marine Worm Harvesters Association. “They don’t see the changes in that inner benthic zone that we’ve seen over the years,” Bayrd says. Read the story here 14:27
Dream of Offshore U.S. Wind Power May Be Too Ugly for Trump
Offshore wind companies have spent years struggling to convince skeptics that the future of U.S. energy should include giant windmills at sea. Their job just got a lot harder with the election of Donald J. Trump. The Republican president — who champions fossil fuels and called climate change a hoax — has mocked wind farms as ugly, overpriced and deadly to birds. His most virulent criticism targeted an 11-turbine offshore project planned near his Scottish golf resort that he derided as “ monstrous.” Companies trying to build in the U.S., including Dong Energy A/S and Statoil ASA, are hoping to change Trump’s mind. They plan to argue that installing Washington Monument-sized turbines along the Atlantic coast will help the president make good on campaign promises by creating thousands of jobs, boosting domestic manufacturing and restoring U.S. energy independence. continue reading the story here 12:47
Not Guilty – Judge clears Whitby skipper of sinking boat in harbour
A Whitby skipper accused of sinking a boat in the harbour has spoken of his collapse with tears of relief after the case was dropped. A not guilty verdict has been recorded on Trevor Cross, 49, of Mulgrave Place, Whitby, after the prosecution offered no evidence. Mr Cross, known as Gordon, has spoken to the Whitby Gazette about his ordeal. He said: “It’s a weight lifted off my chest. The night I got the phone call from my barrister telling me the case had been dropped, I just broke down in tears. I was in a pub, went outside and collapsed.” He added: “I maintained my innocence all along – I’m so relieved.” continue reading the story here 11:09
Carteret County board blasts MFC “draconian measures,” in resolution
Carteret County will join supporters of the commercial shrimp fishing trade, voicing opposition to the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission’s decision to pursue tougher restrictions for shrimp trawling, accusing the MFC of putting politics ahead of good management. Commissioners passed a resolution Monday during their February meeting, casting a unanimous vote of “no confidence” on the MFC decision. “There’s some significant economic implications for Carteret County and for all of the tidewater (through granting this petition),” Commissioner Jonathan Robinson said in an impassioned speech in the county boardroom. He accused members of the MFC of politicizing the issue, rather than relying on scientific findings for rulemaking. “When you go in the face and eyes of all your advisers and take that kind of authoritative action, they’ve clearly demonstrated they don’t have the objectivity to make sound decision on this issue,” Mr. Robinson said. continue reading the article here 09:20
Shrimp industry grant proposed
The Texas Shrimp Association may be in line for a $300,000 grant from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, which will distribute a portion of the billions of dollars in RESTORE Act money generated by fines paid out by BP stemming from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster. The proposed grant is included in a draft project list of more than 200 Texas projects totaling $1.1 billion that were submitted for RESTORE Act funds. The list will go into creation of a draft “Multi-Year Implementation Plan,” which eventually will be posted in the Texas Register for a 45-day public comment period before a final MIP is developed. That document then will be submitted to the Treasury Department for final approval. In other words, the grant isn’t a done deal, though TSA Executive Director Andrea Hance is keeping her fingers crossed. TSA would use part of the money for marketing and promotion, part of it for consumer education and tourism — including shrimp tours for Winter Texans — and some of it for social media campaigns that market wild-caught Gulf shrimp directly to consumers as opposed to restaurants, she said. Read the article here 08:53
Coast Guard helps dewater, escort troubled fishing vessel off Cape Cod
The Coast Guard is escorting an 83-foot fishing vessel Friday after it started taking on water 50 miles east of Chatham. At about 11:30 a.m., Coast Guard Sector Southeastern New England watchstanders received a radio call from the crew of the Krystle James stating they had six people aboard and were taking on water, reportedly from a hole in the hull. Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod launched an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew and Station Chatham launched their 42-foot Near Shore Lifeboat boat crew. The helicopter crew arrived on scene first and deployed a dewatering pump to the fishing crew. With the pump able to control the flooding, the aircrew stayed on scene until the 42-foot Near Shore Lifeboat boat crew arrived to escort Krystle James toward land. Coast Guard Cutter Tybee was diverted from an offshore patrol, relieved Station Chatham and is escorting the fishing crew safely to New Bedford. Video 08:04
