Daily Archives: May 14, 2017
Gladstone Ports’ $100m pain over dredging class action challenge
The Gladstone Ports Corporation could face at least 200 court claims worth $100 million over its 2011 dredging. Law Essentials and Clyde and Co are working to form a class action for people “negatively impacted” by the Western Basin Dredging and Disposal Project. Law Essentials director and solicitor Chris Thompson said already they have signed 200 people within the seafood and tourism industry who lost money because of dredging operations in Gladstone’s Harbour. He said claims were worth “in excess of $100 million” and now he’s making a plea for anyone else affected to come forward. Of the 200 claimants, he said there were commercial fishermen and seafood suppliers from Gladstone, Hervey Bay, Mackay and as far as Brisbane and Sydney. click here to read the story 17:25
New University of Houston graduate passes milestone without her beloved father
A bubbly personality and positive outlook quickly come across when you meet Sabrina Galloway. The University of Houston senior graduates in just days with a degree in elementary education and is getting married this fall. But many of her classmates may not have known the student beside them is a survivor.,,, In August of 2014, Sabrina was with her father, Ronnie Galloway Jr., on his shrimp boat in Galveston Bay. Her brother Cody and a deckhand were also there when a storm capsized their boat, the Mr. Anthony. Captain Galloway died. Sabrina was trapped in a compartment for hours and thought she was going to die. A charter boat fisherman cut a hole in the boat and stayed with her until she could be pulled out safely. Video, click here to read the story 16:31 a nice photo gallery also.
Pallone Supports Potential Compromise on Summer Flounder Cuts
This week, Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) expressed support for a potential compromise between the State of New Jersey and Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) on Summer Flounder Cuts. ASMFC agreed to consider a proposal by the State for conservationally-equivalent management measures for the 2017 summer flounder fishery, and is expected to reach a decision in the next two weeks. In exchange for a 104-day fishing season and the 3 bag limit, the size limit would be decreased to 18 inches. The Commission postponed a decision on that until the next meeting of the Interstate Fisheries Management Program in two weeks. Pallone and Senator Booker sent a letter to NOAA Fisheries about its proposal to reduce the ABC recreational and commercial quotas for summer flounder in 2017 and 2018. The New Jersey lawmakers requested that NOAA Fisheries postpone any decision on reducing summer flounder quotas until it conducts a new benchmark summer flounder assessment. Click here to read the letter 14:37
That bow…
The first thing you notice is the shape of the bow. Is that a trawler? There are plenty of opinions, both at sea and ashore. It’s variously described as impractical or simply as ugly – something that doesn’t look like a ship. So we talked to the designer to get his side of it and the long history of the inverted bow. Quentin Bates. Alfreð Tulinius at Nautic ehf is the man behind the design of the three HB Grandi trawlers. Nautic works closely with Skipatækni, run by veteran naval architect Bárður Hafsteinsson, responsible for the design of the quartet of new trawlers for currently under construction at Cemre in Turkey. Click here to read the story 11:28
P.E.I. scallop fisherman hooks more than he bargained for
Charles Doull knew his scallop drag hooked on to something big, but even he, a seasoned fisherman, was surprised to discover it was a massive anchor that’s “got to be well over 100 years old.” Doull was about 20 minutes out to sea off Borden-Carleton on Thursday when his drag, a device used to scoop the shellfish from ocean floor, hooked on to something big. At the time, he didn’t know it was an anchor. But he knew it was very, very heavy. “We hoisted it up as much as we could and I could see there was no way, it would just haul the boat down into the water,” he said.,, On Friday, divers from Charlottetown went down to survey the situation. Click here to read the story 09:47
Fishermen’s voices will not fall silent
As we look to the summer ahead, the Bristol Bay commercial fishing fleet again faces a season of uncertainty. To be sure, our fishermen face unknowns every year: be it the price per pound, strength of the run, or the possibility of dangerous weather. For over a decade though, our fleet has been living with an uncertainty more dangerous than them all. After 10 years of actively fighting the prospect of a mine that could end our centuries-old commercial fishery, we go into this fishing season with the proposed Pebble Mine as close as it has ever been to permitting. The issue weighs heavy over the fleet, and there is no denying we are more than a little tired of the fight. But that is what this foreign mining company is waiting for, us to get tired and quit fighting. That’s why I am excited about a new effort; Sustaining Bristol Bay Fisheries (SBBF), founded to represent commercial fishermen in the fight to protect our livelihoods. Click here to read the rest 09:16
1993 – Scallopers See a Livelihood Imperiled
Like the 19th-century whalers who lived and labored here before them, scallopers say they fear they may become the next fallen icons of New England, remembered only in museums, books and the tall barroom tales of fishermen.,,, Tensions soared last month when Federal agents raided 22 scalloping vessels in the Port of New Bedford, seizing $126,220 worth of scallops. The agents, armed and wearing bulletproof vests, charged six boat owners with catching undersized, or baby, scallops and a seventh with unloading a catch outside the 5 A.M.-to-5 P.M. “window” set by Federal officials. ,,, “We’re not drug runners; we’re not murderers; we’re not rapists,” said Bobby Bruno, a 52-year-old scalloper who started as a deckhand 33 years ago and now owns the Alpha & Omega II, a 96-foot scalloping ship. “We’re just fishermen, and we go out and we work hard so we can come home and be with our families and be happy.” Take a look back. Click here to read the story 08:34
