Daily Archives: April 13, 2018
Crabbers face fines – Equipment seizure leads to pending charges on numerous violations
Fishery officers have seized more than 300 commercial crab traps in the Powell River area around Savary Island and Harwood Island. Since the beginning of January 2018, Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) officers in Powell River have been conducting an investigation of two commercial crab vessels.,, Charges are expected to be filed in May on numerous counts in violation of the Fisheries Act, according to fishery officer Matt Conley. Owners of the boats face serious fines for failing to comply with conditions of their licenses, he said. >click to read<20:43
New England Fishery Management Council to hear Sector IX’s post-Rafael plans
The New England Fishery Management Council will be updated on the groundfish crisis involving several New Bedford-based fishing sectors when it convenes for three days of meetings next week in Mystic, Connecticut. The groundfish presentation by staff from the Gloucester-based Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office will be the centerpiece of the groundfish report on Wednesday and is designed to provide “an overview of (Northeast Fishing) Sector IX’s steps to address its shortcomings, as well as a summary of Sector IX’s operations plan,” according to the agenda for the meetings. >click to read<19:26
New safety gear needed for P.E.I. lobster fishermen, but supply comes up short
P.E.I. lobster fishermen will have some new safety gear on board when the spring lobster season opens at the end of April. At least, they are supposed to, after new federal safety rules came into effect last July. But the new fishery safety standards affect more than 22,000 Canadian boats and that has left many fishermen scrambling to get the gear they need. Under the new Transport Canada regulations unveiled in 2016, fishing vessels are required to have specific safety gear on board, including a life raft, survival suits and a location signaling device. >click to read< 18:10
North Carolina Fisheries Association Weekly Update for April 13, 2018
>Click here to read the Weekly Update<, to read all the updates >Click here<, for older updates listed as NCFA >click here<17:55
Broken down coast guard ship delays spring science survey; DFO’s mismanagement borders on criminal negligence
The Federation of Independent Sea Harvesters of Newfoundland and Labrador (FISH-NL) says the delay of the 2018 multi-species survey in waters off the province because of a broken down science vessel is yet another example of Ottawa’s ongoing gross mismanagement of the fisheries. “Most commercial stocks off our province are in free fall, and the Government of Canada still can’t get the baseline science right,” says Ryan Cleary, President of FISH-NL. >click to read<12:53
The Business of Lobster
With one of the fastest growing economies, and an exploding middle class that extends onto the mainland, the Chinese have developed a taste for the better things in life – and Florida lobster is surely one of them. For the lobster, this was the culmination of a 9,000 mile journey – a journey that in recent years has transformed the commercial fishing industry in Florida. Before the Chinese started buying their lobsters, the fishermen of the Florida Keys were getting just $3 a pound for their catch. Boat captains from Key West to Miami were struggling to survive. >click to read< 12:24
Bill to restart Fishermen’s Energy offshore wind project goes to governor
A bill to restart the Fishermen’s Energy offshore wind farm project off Atlantic City passed both houses of the state Legislature on Thursday and now goes to the governor. Meanwhile, Fishermen’s Energy has an agreement in principle to sell the company and its project to EDF Renewable Energy, a French company with lots of experience with offshore wind in Europe and whose U.S. headquarters is in San Diego, Chief Operating Officer Paul Gallagher said. >click to read<11:39
Illegal shellfish trafficking ring caught on video
Pierce County prosecutors have charged several men in a seafood trafficking case, including the former Natural Resources Director for the Tulalip Tribes. According to case documents, Joseph Hatch Sr. and his son, Joseph Hatch Jr., poached at least a thousand pounds of Dungeness crab and shrimp, selling the shellfish over several months in 2015. Hatch is a Tulalip tribal member and was serving in his role as head of natural resources while officers monitored his movement over five months. Video, >click to read<10:51
New Bedford City Council Votes for Fishing Crisis Summit; Gomes Calls Out Senators
Concerns of local fisherman have been voiced in recent weeks about the restrictions put on the industry relative to the conviction of “Codfather” Carlos Rafael and the subsequent closing of Sector IX to commercial fishing, which has seen the docking of multiple ground fishing boats and hindered business on the port. On Thursday night, the City Council unanimously passed a motion that will request Mayor Jon Mitchell, Congressman Bill Keating, Senators Edward Markey and Elizabeth Warren, and the local State Legislative Delegation to form and hold an emergency summit in New Bedford to address the concerns of the fishing industry. >click to read<10:05
Search for missing fishermen over as Nancy Glen is recovered
An operation which took all night to complete saw the boat being lifted from the seabed just after 7.30am. Skipper Duncan MacDougall, 46, and crewman Przemek Krawczyk, 38, were still aboard the prawn trawler when it sank on January 18. A barge with a large crane attached raised the boat clear of the water took and took it to nearby Portavadie for salvage work to continue.,,,Following a fundraising campaign by the Clyde Fishermen’s Trust to “Bring Our Boys Home” the Scottish Government agreed to cover the costs of the salvage operation,,, >click to read<09:12
Offshore Wind States Beware
Off of the shore of Block Island on the Rhode Island coast, five wind turbines are operating and supplying power to the island. It took years of state and federal policymaking, environmental impact assessments, and town hall meetings for the 30-megawatt wind farm to come to fruition due to its cost and degradation of vistas. It cost $300 million—$10,000 per kilowatt—about 10 times more than the cost of a new natural gas combined cycle unit. Further, it is 55 percent more costly than what the Energy Information Administration (EIA) expects a first-of-a-kind offshore wind unit to cost—$6,454 per kilowatt. In terms of generation costs, EIA expects a new offshore wind farm to be 3 times more expensive than an onshore wind farm. And now, fishermen >click to read<08:16
