Daily Archives: June 7, 2017
Pacific Fishery Management Council meeting in Spokane, Washington June 7‐14, 2017
The Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) and its advisory bodies will meet June 7‐14, 2017 in Spokane, Washington to address issues related to groundfish, coastal pelagic species (CPS), highly migratory species (HMS), Pacific halibut, and habitat matters. For agenda item topics, please click to see the June 7-14, 2017 Meeting Notice WITH Detailed Agenda The Council meeting will be live‐streamed. Click here to Listen to the Live Audio Stream. Enter the Webinar ID The April 2017Â Webinar ID is: 897-986-459 Please enter your email address (required) The meeting will be broadcast live starting at approximately 9 am Pacific Time on Friday, June 9, 2017 For more info, click here 18:32
Fundraiser for Fernando Diaz – Lobster business was destroyed by the Vaca Key Marina fire
I want to thank everyone for taking time to view this page. In the early morning hours of June 5, 2017 there was a massive fire at Vaca Key Marina in Marathon, FL. The fire consumed upwards of 200,000 lobster and crap traps and destroyed 3 fishing boats, and gear. Over 1 million dollars in damage. My father, Fernando Diaz has been harvesting lobsters and crabs for almost 36 years in the lower keys area. Unfortunately my father’s boat, and gear were burnt to ashes. His whole life came burning down in a matter of hours. Even at his age of 64, he has thoughts of rebuilding. With the fishing season around the corner (August 2017), any donations will be used to help rebuild and get back on the water to provide for his family. Thank you all very much. click here to visit the fundraiser page. 16:26
FISH-NL questions whether FFAW ‘bought and paid for’ by offshore oil industry
The Federation of Independent Sea Harvesters of Newfoundland and Labrador (FISH-NL) is calling on the FFAW to reveal details of its financial arrangements with the offshore oil industry to address questions of conflict of interest. “It’s time for the FFAW to reveal how much money the union is collecting from the oil industry,” says Ryan Cleary, President of FISH-NL. “Oil and fish don’t mix, but you’d never say that from the union’s cozy relationship with the offshore.” The media has described the amount of seismic activity set to take place off Newfoundland and Labrador this year as “super-sized.” Seismic activity uses high energy, low frequency sound waves that can penetrate thousands of metres below the sea floor, and while the impact on fish stocks and the marine environment is debatable, the FFAW hasn’t whispered a word of concern. click here to read the press release Read the related article – Super-sized seismic activity planned for Newfoundland’s offshore this year click here 13:57
Crew airlifted from stuck fishing vessel Avalon Princess, taking on water near La Scie
Crew on a fishing vessel stuck in sea ice off Newfoundland’s Baie Verte Peninsula have been airlifted off a ship that is taking on water, CBC News has learned. Thick sea ice is keeping coast guard officials from reaching that ship — as well as three others. Jamie Matthews owns one of the stuck boats, and said he heard a mayday call that said one of the boats, the Avalon Princess, was taking on water and the crew had to be airlifted to safety by a Cormorant helicopter Wednesday afternoon.,, Matthews said it may seem foolish to venture out amidst that kind of ice, but after two months of not earning any money, he said he and his four crew were willing to take the risk. click here to read the story 13:35
Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 50′ Stern Dragger, Detroit 8-71, Federal Permits
Specifications, information and 5 photos click here To see all the boats in this series, Click here Nice vessel/permits package for a reasonable price. 12:56
The Elson decision – Ruling that prevents corporate takeover of inshore fishery faces appeal
The Newfoundland and Labrador seafood industry is behind an appeal of a recent Federal Court of Canada decision that upheld Ottawa’s right to prevent the corporate takeover of inshore fisheries in Atlantic Canada and Quebec. The June 5 appeal was filed at the 30-day deadline. No court date has yet been set to hear the appeal. Last month, Justice Cecily Strickland ruled the federal fisheries minister was entitled to strip fishing licences from Labrador fisherman Kirby Elson. Elson was a placeholder on a snow crab licence controlled by two related Newfoundland processing companies. The Elson decision was hailed as a victory by some inshore fisheries organizations and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. They argue controlling agreements are used by companies to get around longstanding policies that local fishermen control inshore licenses and the profits that come from them. click here to read the story 11:46
Beaufort County residents step in to raise money for damaged F/V Gracie Belle
The 80-foot shrimping trawler “Gracie Belle” still sits at a dock on Saint Helena Island, despite the fact that it was meant to be out catching Beaufort County’s food. Owner Craig Reaves said the vessel was heavily damaged after getting caught in severe weather two weeks ago on opening day of the season. “I called the captain on the phone and he said that the mast had broke and there was an outrigger down. Basically, you know, he panicked,” Reaves said. Reaves said this all happened around 3 a.m. off of Pritchards Island. He said his crew felt in danger, and called the U.S. Coast Guard to be rescued. The crew had to leave “Gracie Belle” at sea. When Reaves went to recover his vessel Wednesday morning, the damage was worse than he was originally told. click here to read the story, and click here for the fundraiser Save Gracie Belle 10:00
Income bridging desperately needed for harvesters and plant workers without income due to ice
Harvesters and plant workers are struggling to feed their children and pay their bills, with some having been without income for over two months due to severe ice conditions that prevents the fishery from starting in many parts of the province. The situation has gone from bad to dire, and action in the form of income bridging from the federal government is long overdue. Having gone without any income for over two months, many harvesters feel they are left with no other option than to risk their gear and their own personal safety in order to go fishing through pack ice conditions. click here to read the press release 09:10
Scandinavian biologists see threat in crossbreeding by American, European lobsters
Scandinavian biologists say American and European lobsters are crossbreeding and their offspring can survive in European waters, but it is too early to tell if the hybrids can reproduce. Susanne Eriksson of the University of Gothenberg in Sweden and Ann-Lisbeth Agnalt of the Institute of Marine Research in Norway presented their findings on the threat that American lobsters found in the northeast Atlantic Ocean pose to their smaller European cousins Tuesday during the second day of the International Conference and Workshop on Lobster Biology & Management in Portland.,,, The EU said it might one day explore other protective measures that would not be so disruptive to trade if Sweden returns with further proof of an invasion. click here to read the story 08:38
Seafood supplier tries to make inroads with local eateries for Gloucester-landed fish
Frank Ragusa is making a point, leaning forward in his chair and punctuating each sentence by banging his hand on the conference table, producing thumps so loud they later sound like explosions on the recording of the conversation. In between bursts of percussion, the chief executive officer and partner in Gloucester’s Finest Seafood makes the same impassioned point he has been making since he returned to Cape Ann two years ago from Seattle as the director of fresh seafood at Gloucester Seafood Processing. The point is this: The Gloucester story still plays in the farthest reaches of the nation. The saga of America’s oldest commercial fishing port, of slicker-clad, fishermen wrestling fresh marine life out of the cold waters of the Atlantic, still strikes a chord. Out there. click here to read the story 08:06
