Daily Archives: February 16, 2018
Fishing reforms set to proceed after NSW fisherman loses battle in Supreme Court
Mud crab fisherman Dean Elliott has lost his case against the New South Wales Government in a David and Goliath battle over reforms in the fishing industry. Mr Elliott, a commercial fisherman on the state’s mid-north coast, claimed the reforms were “unreasonable” and “capricious” and had left him without an occupation, and facing a loss of up to half a million dollars.,,, critical changes came into effect last year that will force many of them out of the industry.,, But Justice Stephen Rothman dismissed the case in the NSW Supreme Court today,,, >click to read< 19:31
Only room for one fleet; FISH-NL advises Ottawa to reserve northern shrimp in SFA 6 for the inshore
The Federation of Independent Sea Harvesters of Newfoundland and Labrador (FISH-NL) is calling for an immediate halt to the fishing of northern shrimp by factory-freezer trawlers in waters off Newfoundland’s northeast coast and southern Labrador until stocks rebound. In light of more scientific bad news today on the state of northern shrimp in that area, which is known as Shrimp Fishing Area (SFA) 6, FISH-NL calls on the federal government to reserve the limited quota solely for the inshore fleet, and ban fishing altogether when shrimp are spawning. Further, FISH-NL requests that Ottawa assign a quota of northern shrimp to the inshore fleet further north off Labrador in SFA 5. >click to read<17:43
Key northern shrimp stock off N.L. down again
Details of the latest northern shrimp stock assessment were released Friday with key Shrimp Fishing Area (SFA) 6 off the province’s northeast coast looking pretty grim. Fishable biomass is down 16 per cent and spawning stock biomass is down 19 per cent in SFA 6, thus leaving shrimp in that area in the critical zone of the precautionary approach framework employed by Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) science. That will likely translate into another drop in the Total Allowable Catch (TAC) for the area,,, >click to read< 16:34
North Carolina Fisheries Association Weekly Update for February 16, 2018
Click here to read the Weekly Update, to read all the updates Click here, for older updates listed as NCFA click here 14:23
Puget Sound fishing firms tussle in Congress over new ship that ran afoul of federal law
By now, the $75 million America’s Finest should be deep into its first winter harvest season, catching and processing yellowfin sole and other fish in the Bering Sea. Instead, the 264-foot vessel — the largest trawler built in the Pacific Northwest in recent decades — is still unfinished. It sits moored at a dock at Dakota Creek Industries in Anacortes, and the shipyard has laid off more than 130 employees. Fishermen’s Finest wants the Washington and Alaska congressional delegations to back a straightforward waiver to the century-old Jones Act, which requires vessels transporting cargo and people between U.S. ports to have a hull largely made of American materials. >click to read< 13:46 
North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission approves new rules for fishing licenses – Critics angered by vote
By a 5-4 vote on Feb. 15, the North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission (MFC) redefined the qualifications for a commercial fishing license with rules that did not include specific fishing income requirements, but did contain provisions that angered some critics. Before the two-day MFC meeting in Wrightsville Beach on Feb. 14 and 15, much of the criticism was focused on a proposal that to qualify as a “commercial fisherman,” an applicant must have 50% of all earned income from fishing and have three dozen trip tickets per year. >click to read< 12:43
The UK’s offshore wind boom is great for the climate.(is it?) But what about the fish?
On the deck of the Razorbill, docked in the English port of Ramsgate, Steve Barratt runs thousands of feet of nets through a squeaky pulley, getting ready for another long night of fishing in the North Sea.,, Barratt will head out this night in search of more sole and other fish and on his way, he’ll pass right through a relatively new feature on the water here — the Thanet Wind Farm,,, But he won’t stop and set his nets there.“For some reason — I don’t know if it’s the sound, the humming, the motors — I don’t know what it is, but the fish are not in the wind farm,” he says. “It’s virtually barren apart from a few whelks and a few lobsters.” >click to read< 11:32
Louisiana’s commercial fishing industry could be at risk due to proposed diversion project
Louisiana’s commercial fishing industry could be in jeopardy due to the state’s Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion Project, a fifty billion dollar initiative supported by Governor John Bel Edwards. “I used to fish out here with my dad in High School and we used to catch loads and loads of oysters and that was the biggest sea plant in Louisiana,” says commercial fisherman Shane Shelley. Shelley is talking about an area known as “Mardi Gras Pass”,,, “It’s going to change the mixture of water which oysters don’t survive in, crabs or shrimp. This could change everything,” >click to read< 10:48
FISH-NL: DFO outreach meetings prove FFAW-Unifor no longer voice of inshore harvesters
The Federation of Independent Sea Harvesters of Newfoundland and Labrador (FISH-NL) says the most common issue during a recent series of outreach meetings held around the province by the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans is that the FFAW-Unifor is no longer the voice of inshore harvesters. “That sentiment was expressed at every single meeting — without exception — and with union representatives front and centre in the room,” says Ryan Cleary, President of FISH-NL. “The FFAW-Unifor no longer speaks for most harvesters, and that message should be loud, clear, and obvious to the entire fishing industry, including federal Minister Dominic LeBlanc.” >click to read< 09:27
Wind farm company says no fishing vessel damage – claims by local fishermen are a “complete fabrication”
The head of a company that built the nation’s first wind farm says it hasn’t received any reports of damage to fishing vessels in the area, off the coast of Rhode Island. Deepwater Wind CEO Jeff Grybowski said Thursday he believes any claims by local fishermen are a “complete fabrication.” The Providence-based company and the American Wind Energy Association industry trade group are touting new undersea footage suggesting a vibrant marine habitat growing around the five-turbine wind farm. >click to read< 09:05 
4 men rescued from sinking F/V Sea Star speak out
Four people were rescued from a sinking boat about 18 miles off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard Wednesday night, according to the Coast Guard. A Coast Guard aircrew airlifted four fishermen into a helicopter around 6:20 p.m. Captain Andrew Arnett told NBC 10 News he was sleeping when his crew members awoke him to news that the boat was about to sink. “No longer than 30 seconds after I got up, we’d taken a wave over the stern,” Arnett said. The four fishermen — Arnett, Roberto Fredette, Brandon McCrave and Breck Holdredge — were returning from a five-day trip crab fishing when the boat began taking on water. >click to read< 08:07
‘Conserve Your Flares’: Coast Guard Saves Four New Bedford Fishermen >Video, click to read<
