Monthly Archives: April 2018
1996: Calving of right whales faces new threats – Today: Lobstermen fear Right whale extinction threat is being overstated
The math of protecting right whales from extinction is scary stuff: The stakes are high, scientific opinion varies and some rescue plans could make it impossible for lobstermen to earn a living. Getting that math right matters when the futures of right whales and Maine’s lobster industry are so closely intertwined. Right whale numbers have dwindled to about 450 because of deadly ship strikes, fishing gear entanglements and low birth rates, while Maine’s lobster industry is the backbone of the state’s coastal economy, raking in about $434 million from landings in 2017 and generating another $1 billion for Maine in post-dock revenues. >click to read<08:56
1996: Calving of right whales faces new threats -,,, Scientists have sighted 20 calves, a record after years of falling counts. Only 320 or so of the behemoths now ply the North Atlantic.,,,at times getting hit. Other whales get entangled in fishing gear. But scientists say the roots of the problem go beyond such incidents and are increasingly a grim mystery, prompting a redoubling of protective efforts and detective work. >click to read<
‘Wicked Tuna’ captain schools U.S Senate candidate Geoff Diehl on fishing issues
Diehl, who rolled into town in a gigantic recreational vehicle plastered with his image and campaign slogans, had a bunch of meet-and-greets — the last with Capt. Dave Marciano of “Wicked Tuna” fame. Diehl (and his campaign film crew) met with Marciano on the captain’s newest boat, Falcon, which is moored at the Pier 7 Marina, for a celebrity photo op and a quick tutorial on the state of commercial fishing in America’s oldest seaport.,,, As Diehl sat in the captain’s chair in the pilot house, Marciano just unloaded on sectors, catch shares, the permitting process, the council system and just about everything else involved with current fishery management practices. The only ones to avoid the barrage were the fishermen themselves., >click to read< 18:52
Fishing quotas on black sea bass draw lawmakers’ ire
New York lawmakers on Sunday pushed back against federal fishery quotas and regulations that reduce the amount of black sea bass fishermen can catch in the upcoming season. “New York State needs to take an immediate stand against the unfair black sea bass allocation coming out of the ASMFC [Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission] by issuing its own fair and equitable quota and going into what is formally known as noncompliance,” Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-Shirley) said Sunday at a news conference with fishermen in Patchogue. “Going into noncompliance is never the first option, but at this late hour it may be the only one.”>click here to read< 18:09
President Trump to make decision on monuments by April 16
President Donald Trump has until April 16th to either follow his Interior secretary’s recommendations to relax fishing restrictions in marine monuments key for American Samoa and Atlantic coast fishermen or let a court challenge to the monuments proceed. A federal court has agreed to allow Atlantic fishermen and lobstermen to proceed with a lawsuit that seeks to reverse Obama-era protections for the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts National Monument off the New England coast. But the case could have a direct bearing on when or how American Samoa’s tuna industry gets relief from fishing restrictions in the Pacific Remote Islands and Rose Atoll marine monuments. >click to read<16:02
Fishermen hope for long-term solution to At-Sea Monitoring costs
The federal budget bill approved last month includes millions of dollars to pay for workers who are required to join fishing trips off New England’s shores. But it’s a temporary fix. And for the few groundfishermen left, the cost could be too much to take on themselves. David Goethel has been groundfishing off Hampton’s coast for 51 years and says a lot has changed. “We’ve lost in New Hampshire about 95 percent of our active fishermen in the last 17 years,”,, >click to read<11:24
‘It’s not just commercial fishing’ Farage exposes the scale of Brexit ‘DEATH SENTENCE’
Former Ukip leader Nigel Farage told listeners of his LBC radio show this morning that the scale of fishing betrayal goes beyond Britain’s commercial fisheries. The Brexiteer MEP revealed that even British anglers are have been betrayed by the Brexit transition deal agreed with the EU. Mr Farage’s furious remarks came as angry fishermen across the country staged a series of protests against the deal in six different locations. More than 200 fishing boats took to UK waters this afternoon to rage against the deal that will leave the UK’s fishing industry at the mercy of the EU after March 2019. >click to read<11:03
Omega Protein launches largest vessel in Louisiana, F/V Vermilion
Omega Protein is pleased to announce the launch of its newest and largest fishing vessel operating in Louisiana, the F/V Vermilion, to start the 2018 Gulf of Mexico fishing season. The Vermilion marks a significant upgrade to the company’s fleet with state-of-the-art technology and safety features that will improve worker safety and increase efficiency. It is the latest investment made by the company in its gulf fishing communities. >click to read<09:22
New Bedford: Industry on the Brink
Two computer screens lit Richie Canastra’s windowless office. The co-owner of BASE (Buyers and Sellers Seafood Exchange) seafood auction scrolled through scores of financial data associated with commercial fishing landings at 62 Hassey St. The numbers that starred back since NOAA implemented a groundfishing ban last November tell a dark story in an industry already struggling to survive. “With the ban, if we’re not up and fishing by May 1, you might as well just call (groundfishing in New Bedford) over,” Canastra said. >click to read<22:52
Where are the friends of fishing?
British fishing has long been neglected for two reasons. First Ted Heath sold it out by accepting the Common Fisheries Policy in his desperate desire to get into the Common Market.,, Second, fishing has strong emotional support but a weak political punch.,, Now when the country has voted to be free of the EU and fishing is one of the few powerful cards we have to play, we have the chance to redeem. Moreover the Common Fisheries Policy has so comprehensively failed,,, >click to read<20:17
Scallop boat skipper and owner fined for breaching Isle of Man fisher regulations
A Kirkcudbright scallop boat skipper and its owner have been fined for breaching Isle of Man fishery regulations. Anthony True was caught fishing for king scallops in the 21-metre Kingfisher within three nautical miles of the island without a permit. Manx rules only allow vessels of 15 metres or less to fish for scallops inside the three-mile limit. Mr True and owner John King, of West Coast Sea Products Ltd, pleaded guilty when they appeared before the Deputy High Bailiff in Douglas. >click to read<19:39
Harvest of clams continues to dwindle in New England
The clam fishery is coping with a declining number of fishermen, a warming ocean, harmful algal blooms in the marine environment and growing populations of predator species, said regulators and scientists who study the fishery. It leaves clammers like Chad Coffin, of Freeport, Maine, concerned the harvest will decline to the point it will be difficult to make a living. “It has been a gradual decline, and it’s getting to the point where there’s a tremendous amount of acreage that’s not producing anymore,” Coffin said. “It should drop significantly more over the next two years.” >click to read<18:38
Ukraine and Russia Face Off Over Fishing Boat
On Sunday, Ukrainian border forces detained the Russian-flagged, Crimean-registered fishing vessel Nord in the Sea of Azov, along with her crew of 10 fishermen. The Ukrainian authorities charge that the Nord illegally crossed Ukraine’s maritime borders. In response to the arrest, Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) said Wednesday that Ukraine’s State Border Guard Service had “hijacked” the Nord. The shipowner, a collective named “First of May,” has appealed directly to the Russian Foreign Ministry for diplomatic intervention. >click to read<15:37
‘Protected’ marine area open to oil, gas exploration
Newfoundland and Labrador’s offshore oil and gas regulator is taking bids for exploration off the island’s east coast, in an area the federal government recently listed as a marine-protected area. While the area is closed to fishing, it remains open to the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board (C-NLOPB) — and that’s not sitting well with the president of the fisheries union. “We cannot ask fish harvesters to accept the closure of an area to fishing activity in the name of conservation while continuing to allow oil and gas exploration in that same area,” said Fish, Food and Allied Workers president Keith Sullivan in a news release.>click to read<13:39
Eel smugglers halted in sting led by Europol
Spanish and Portuguese authorities announced Friday that they have taken down a criminal network that has been making large profits by smuggling glass eels to Asia. Authorities across the continent have been trying to tackle the smugglers, who take European glass eels to Asian countries, where they are raised into adults and their meat commands high prices for local delicacies. In the latest operation against the traffickers, four Chinese citizens, three Spaniards and three Moroccans were arrested in Spain in an operation coordinated by the European Union’s police body, Europol. >click to read<10:48
Northern cod an icon for fisheries mismanagement
I wish to respond to the March 31 letter to the editor (“Northern cod numbers no reason to panic: FFAW”) by Keith Sullivan, President of the FFAW-Unifor. Sullivan is correct — the latest scientific information on the health of the Northern Cod stock isn’t reason to “panic.” Indeed, the news from DFO science of a 30 per cent decline in the iconic resource that was already deep in the “critical” zone is reason for inshore harvesters to riot in the streets, or, at the very least, burn the few union cards left. The news is also reason to demand an independent investigation of the management practices of the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) in the Newfoundland and Labrador region. >click to read<10:13
‘This Is It For Us’ – Harvesters Gather At Confederation Building
“A lot of people are going to be hurting” that’s the assessment of at least one crab harvester as those involved in the fishery gathered at Confederation Building today to protest the price set for snow crab this year. The event was organized by FISH-NL. The price set by the Fish Price Setting Panel is $4.55 cents a pound. That’s below the recommendation made by the FFAW. The price set for harvesters in the Maritimes is more than $5.00 a pound. Harvesters are concerned that with declining stocks they won’t be able to make a go of it. Watch video. >click to read<23:08
Newfoundland fish harvesters fed up with ‘bad news’ – >click to read<
New fishery rules could protect deep sea corals in California
The Pacific Fishery Management Council will decide Monday what happens to the underwater areas as part of an update to essential fish habitat for West Coast groundfish. “The Pacific Fishery Management Council will be making a decision on changing the areas that are opened or closed to West Coast groundfish bottom trawling,” said Kerry Griffin, a staff officer to the council, which regulates fisheries in federal waters from the Mexican border to the Canadian border, from three miles to 200 miles off shore. The proposal, scheduled for a vote Monday, >click to read<20:31
Zinke acknowledges opposition to oil, Feds seek offshore wind off NY/ NJ, 2 areas off Mass available
The federal agency in charge of leasing land for alternative energy in the ocean is looking for companies interested in building wind turbines in shallow waters between Long Island and the New Jersey coast. >click to read< The Department of the Interior has announced that two additional areas located off Massachusetts are now available for commercial wind energy development. >click to read< On the same day his agency announced two additional areas located off Massachusetts are now available for commercial wind energy development, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke acknowledged there is “a lot of opposition” to President Donald Trump’s plan to open most of the nation’s coastline to oil and gas drilling. >click to read<20:03
Podcast: “F/V Destination, Do You Copy?”
It was the kind of disaster that wasn’t supposed to happen anymore. On February 11, 2017, the fishing vessel Destination disappeared in the Bering Sea on its way to the crab grounds. The boat went missing with an experienced crew, in unremarkable weather conditions, yet there was no mayday and rescue crews could find no life raft or survivors. For the past year, reporter Stephanie May Joyce has been following the investigation into what went wrong, and how this mysterious tragedy has changed Alaskan fishing. >click to listen<18:01
BP rig on Route to Offshore drill Nova Scotia: Are we the next Gulf Coast Disaster?
Nova Scotians are expressing alarm at news that BP commissioned rig West Aquarius is now en route to drill offshore, despite not having final approval from the Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Board (CNSOPB). “This is the height of regulatory capture,” says John Davis, Director of Clean Ocean Action Committee. “It is costing BP $260,000 a day to move this rig, why would they do that unless they are sure the Board is ready to give the green light.” “Our economic livelihood is completely wrapped up in fishing. Any danger to that is not worth the risk,” says David Levy, Deputy Warden of the Municipality of the District of Shelburne. >click to read<17:022
North Carolina Fisheries Association Weekly Update for April 6, 2018
>Click here to read the Weekly Update<, to read all the updates >Click here<, for older updates listed as NCFA >click here<13:37
Puget Sound salmon do drugs, which may hurt their survival
Anti-depressants. Diabetes drugs. High-blood-pressure medication. Puget Sound chinook are doing our drugs, and it may be hurting them, new research shows. The metabolic disturbance evident in the fish from human drugs was severe enough that it may result not only in failure to thrive but early mortality and an inability to compete for food and habitat. The research built on earlier work, published in 2016, that showed juvenile Puget Sound chinook and Pacific staghorn sculpin are packing drugs including Prozac, Advil, Benadryl, and Lipitor among dozens of other drugs present in tainted wastewater discharge. >click to read<12:50
The Sierra Club’s Grassroots Deception
An organization that won’t describe itself accurately cannot be trusted. On its Internet homepage, America’s Sierra Club calls itself “the nation’s most influential grassroots environmental organization.” Repeating this claim, the page further urges visitors to become members of its “grassroots movement” (italics added – see screenshot here).,, Grassroots involves ordinary people knocking on doors in their own neighbourhoods and organizing events in their own communities. Founded in 1892, the Sierra Club may have been grassroots once, but those days are long gone. In 2016, its revenues were $77 million. In 2015, they were $88 million. >click to read<11:05
A 28-year-old fisherman from outside Ho Chi Minh City saved lives as F/V Princess Hawaii sank
Khanh Huynh has been a commercial fisherman since he was 12 years old. For the past six years, he’s been living on a fishing boat in Hawaii, catching premium ahi tuna for some of the world’s most discerning consumers. The 28-year-old fisherman from outside Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, recently saved the lives of two Americans and helped rescue five others after the fishing vessel he was working on sank hundreds of miles off Hawaii’s Big Island. But Huynh isn’t the captain. A federal observer who was one of eight people on the boat said the Vietnamese worker was in charge of the vessel from the time it left port to when it sank. >click to read<09:56
Ex-Fishing Boat Captain Guilty of Dumping Oily Waste Into Pacific
A former fishing boat captain is facing up to six years in prison for deliberately dumping oily slops into the Pacific Ocean. A jury in Seattle convicted Randall Fox on Thursday of violating the federal Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships. He also faces a $250,000 fine when he is sentenced.,, A Native Sun crewmember videotaped Fox dumping waste and turned the tape over to prosecutors.,, The Justice Department says Fox’s father, who had also been a captain of the Native Sun, was also convicted of a pollution-related crime last year. >click to read<09:01
California Wetfish Producers Association: Sardine Fishery Collapse Latest Fake News
This Sunday, April 8, the Pacific Fishery Management Council is meeting in Portland to debate the fate of the West Coast sardine fishery, after the 2018 sardine stock assessment estimated the biomass has declined by 97 percent since 2006. According to the California Wetfish Producers Association, the only problem with that finding is it belies reality. “Fishermen are seeing more sardines, not less, especially in nearshore waters. And they’ve been seeing this population spike for several years now,” said Diane Pleschner-Steele, executive director of the California Wetfish Producers Association (CWPA). “This stock assessment was an update that was not allowed to include any new methods and was based primarily on a single acoustic survey,,, >click to read<21:15
Bitter Denunciations at Marathon Meeting on Wind Farm
Opponents and advocates of the proposed South Fork Wind Farm, a 15-turbine, 90-megawatt installation planned approximately 30 miles east of Montauk, spoke for more than three hours at Tuesday’s meeting of the East Hampton Town Board, as commercial fishermen and their supporters railed at a project they fear would result in making fertile fishing grounds off limits.,,, “As a commercial fisherman, we are looking at the industrialization of our oceans,” said Dan Farnham Jr. of Montauk, referring to the hundreds or even thousands of turbines he expects to follow the South Fork Wind Farm. >click to read<20:19
FISH-NL schedules Friday protest at Confederation Building in St. John’s
The Federation of Independent Sea Harvesters of Newfoundland and Labrador (FISH-NL) has scheduled a demonstration for 1 p.m. Friday, April 6, on the front steps of Confederation Building in St. John’s. The event is being organized to protest the desperate state of the commercial fisheries in Newfoundland and Labrador, including gross government and industry mismanagement, and the absence of labour rights in the fishery. Ryan Cleary-President of FISH-NL 18:34
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Skeptical fishermen briefed on proposed Eastern Shore MPA, ‘could take us out of our livelihood,’
Nova Scotia’s lobster season opens on the Eastern Shore in days, but dozens of fishermen stopped prepping for it Thursday to learn about a massive marine protected area proposed for their fishing grounds. The Eastern Shore Islands, as it’s being called, has been declared an area of interest for conservation by the Trudeau government. It would be the first marine protected area along the Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia and includes inshore and coastal waters. It would protect hundreds of islands that create an archipelago running from Clam Harbour to Liscomb. >click to read< 16:37
