Monthly Archives: January 2019
Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 40′ Beal Repco Lobster Boat, 670HP, 6 Cylinder Cummins
Specifications, information and 7 photos >click here< Vessel is in good condition. Vessel can cruise at 25 knots and 29 knots WOT. To see all the boats in this series, >Click here<20:10
LETTER: Seals to blame
I would like to add my voice to those that disclaim the recent information provided by DFO’s (Department of Fisheries and Oceans) Dr. G. Stenson (In “The cull question: Part I”, published in the Jan. 16 edition of The Central Voice). Seals have destroyed our fisheries in Atlantic Canada and particularly that in Newfoundland and Labrador. The poor condition of harp seals in terms of age, previously measured body mass and survivability of pups, is a direct result of the seal population reaching a threshold capacity level. They are finding it more difficult to find fish (all species) to eat. Thus the recent influx in fresh water river systems — this is not their natural habitat and they are there to consume any fresh water species that might be available (salmon, trout, eels, etc.). We have had a cod moratorium for 26 years,,, Bob Hardy >click to read<
FFAW-Unifor stoops to new low; committee members forced to sign ‘pledge of allegiance’
The Federation of Independent Sea Harvesters of Newfoundland and Labrador (FISH-NL) charges the FFAW-Unifor with stooping to a new low in forcing inshore harvesters to sign a pledge of allegiance to serve on area committees, potentially blocking thousands of dues-payers from taking part. “So much for democracy — the labour situation in the Newfoundland and Labrador fishery is as bad as any communist regime ever was,” says Ryan Cleary, President of FISH-NL. >click to read<14:12
Convicted deputy now suing ‘Codfather’ for $600,000
A trip that was meant to end with Antonio Freitas asking his girlfriend to marry him in France, instead resulted in the former Bristol County deputy getting convicted of a felony and now filing a $600,000 lawsuit against Carlos Rafael. Rafael’s web of crimes entangled Freitas and a captain at the Bristol County Sheriff’s Office, but Freitas is claiming his association with the fishing mogul was far worse than what a jury convicted him of. >click to read<
Fake News, Incomplete/Inaccurate Reporting, Intentional Misdirection and Fishing
Fake news is in the News these days, so what is it? The term is most often used to describe completely fabricated stories, but can also be applied to a broader continuum of news. Many news outlets will exhibit some form of explicit or implicit bias while not falling into the fake news category. Assessing the quality of the content is crucial to understanding whether what you are viewing is true or not. It is up to you to do the legwork to make sure your information is good. To continue, >click to read<Nils E. Stolpe, click to visit >FishNet USA,<19:16
Watermen get say on how to tackle ‘ghost pots’ in the Chesapeake Bay
“Ghost pots” remain a menace in the Chesapeake Bay, but how big a menace and what to do about them is anybody’s guess. That could change now that the 1,056 hard crab fishermen licensed in Virginia are getting a chance to have their say. Researchers at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science are mailing surveys to watermen asking for their ideas on the countless crab pots that, for any number of reasons, end up haunting the bay, trapping and killing crabs and other hapless creatures that crawl or swim inside. >click to read<14:58
N.S. lobster fishing industry delegation heading to Tasmania for study trip
Nova Scotia Fisheries Minister Keith Colwell is leading a fishing industry delegation to Tasmania in February on a trip that will cost taxpayers about $100,000. The purpose of the weeklong trip is to examine marine protected areas, aquaculture and a quality standards program used by Australia’s southern rock lobster industry. The province is contributing $5,000 toward the travel costs of 13 industry representatives plus the expenses of five government officials, including Colwell. >click to read<13:53
South coast Newfoundland fishers angered by short notice on closure of 3Ps cod fishery
Ross Durnford of Fortune has seven deep freezers powered up to keep 1,000 pounds of bait frozen until next cod fishing season, after the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) shut down the cod fishery in his fishing zone. Durnford had 10 tubs of cod fishing gear baited up and ready to drop in the water, but the early closure of the fishery in zone 3Ps — on the south coast of Newfoundland — forced him to cancel his plans. >click to read< 11:19
Thiele Withdraws Support For South Fork Wind Farm
State Assemblyman Fred Thiele has announced he has withdrawn his support for Deepwater Wind’s South Fork Wind Farm. In a press release issued on January 24, Thiele said two events led to his about-face. The first was the announcement in May that Deepwater had been sold to Orsted, a Danish energy company and a major player in offshore wind. A second factor, Thiele said, was Orsted’s decision to expand the capacity of the wind farm from 90 megawatts to 130 megawatts by building larger turbines. >click to read<, thank you Gary, and thank you Fred Thiele.19:41
Kitzhaber’s Columbia River Reform – Gill-net issue still tangled
The Joint State Columbia River Salmon Policy Review Committee met for the first time on Jan. 17 at the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife headquarters in Salem, Ore. The six-member task force is charged with revising the Columbia River policy C-3620. The policy was implemented in an effort to remove non-tribal gill nets used by the commercial fishing fleets of both states from the mainstem Columbia River after an exhaustive years-long process. It was sought by sport anglers and conservationists who have long objected to commercial fishing on salmon and steelhead stocks that are federally listed as endangered. >click to read<18:39
Coast Guard assists 17 fishermen off Pacific Northwest Coast since Sunday
Coast Guard crews along the Oregon and Washington coasts assisted 17 fisherman in five responses since Sunday. Response efforts included crews from Coast Guard Station Yaquina Bay, Coast Guard Station Cape Disappointment and Coast Guard Air Facility Newport, in coordination with members at Coast Guard Sector Columbia River and Coast Guard Sector North Bend. The two-person crew aboard the commercial fishing vessel Zephyr,,, >click to read<16:51
Lingering N.C. Fisheries Association issues persist into 2019
Captain George’s was the venue for the recent 2019 North Carolina Fisheries Association’s Annual Meeting, which addressed issues that included conflicts with special interest groups, shrimp trawl bans and aquaculture in the sounds. The NCFA is the primary organization promoting, providing education and, in recent years, defending North Carolina’s commercial fishing industry. NCFA board presided over an extensive agenda, discussing,,, >click to read<16:17
North Carolina Fisheries Association Weekly Update for January 25, 2019
>Click here to read the Weekly Update<, to read all the updates >click here<, for older updates listed as NCFA >click here<15:50
It’s been rough in recovery, and theres a long way to go.
To those that have noticed, I’ve made sporadic updates in the past 19 days, as I’ve undergone heart surgery, and have been in recovery. I’ve tried to post along the way, and have had marginal success. Yesterday, I felt totally spent, and as hard as I tried to deliver, I just couldn’t find the strength. I’m feeling better today, abd will post a few articles. I’m anxious to get back at it! Thank you all for your patience, BH15:40
Another Sand Point fisherman is chomped on by a sea lion
A sea lion lunged from the Sand Point harbor and bit a fisherman’s leg in the Aleutian Islands fishing town that’s now experienced three injurious run-ins with the massive marine mammals in two years. “The sea lion came out of the water on the back of the fishing boat Celtic and bit a male fisherman on the right thigh,” said Sand Point police officer David Anderson. Photos, >click to read<22:02
BIG WIN! Supreme Court dismisses FFAW-Unifor appeal of FISH-NL’s union status; ordered to pay legal costs
The province’s Supreme Court has dismissed an FFAW-Unifor appeal of FISH-NL’s status as a properly constituted union, and ordered the FFAW to pay court costs. “The FFAW has used every legal maneuver in the book to try and quash the FISH-NL movement and drown their own members in legal fees, but the highest court in the land has seen through it,” says Ryan Cleary, President of the Federation of Independent Sea Harvesters of Newfoundland and Labrador. “Coming the day before FISH-NL’s convention in Gander, the decision is a huge boost.” >click to read<16:55
Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 55′ RI Marine Day Scalloper, Permit, with 16,500 lbs. of IFQ
Specifications, information and 9 photos >click here< To see all the boats in this series, >Click here<16:02
Marine Resources Committee open for business, sets Keliher confirmation hearing
The Marine Resources Committee has new co-chairs, Sen. Dave Miramant (D-Knox County) and Rep. Joyce McCreight (D-Harpswell), and will hold its first hearings this week. First out of the gate at the Marine Resources Committee is LD 4 — “An Act To Encourage Applied Shellfish Research” — sponsored by Rep. Robert Alley (D-Beals) and scheduled for a hearing at 1 p.m. on Thursday Jan. 24. >click to read<14:46
Vineyard Wind, Con Groups Reach Historic Agreement to Protect Right Whales
Vineyard Wind and the Natural Resources Defense Council, the National Wildlife Federation, and Conservation Law Foundation today entered into an unprecedented agreement to protect critically endangered North Atlantic right whales. Under the historic agreement, Vineyard Wind will institute a variety of protective measures to keep right whales safe while installing and operating turbines at its proposed 84-turbine project off the coast of Massachusetts. Harnessing offshore wind is a key step in transitioning the nation away from dirty, polluting fossil fuels to a clean energy economy. (Plenty of Fraudsters here!) >click to read<13:55
Survey results released- Majority of P.E.I. fall lobster fishermen favour fishing curfew
Prince Edward Island’s fall lobster fishermen have voted in favour of supporting the Maritime Fishermen’s Union proposal to have the Department of Fisheries and Oceans enforce a curfew in the Lobster Fishing Area the two organizations share. The result of the mail-in vote was announced at the Prince County Fishermen Association’s annual meeting Tuesday, Jan. 22 in O’Leary. Of the 149 fishermen who returned surveys, 78 of them, or,,, >click to read<13:17
2018 Dungeness crab fisheries in Southeast Alaska best in years
The commercial fishery for Dungeness crab in Southeast Alaska was cut short in 2017 because harvests were low. 2018, however, has proven to be one of the best years in the last decade. It takes a while to compile all the data from Southeast’s Dungeness crab fishery. The fall fishery closed November 30 for the most part but a few areas remain open and data is still coming in.But the major areas were fished for two months and preliminary results are pretty positive. >click to read<21:33
There’s Something Fishy About Our Fish
Charlie the Tuna does plenty of business in these parts. That’s because a lot of what we think is grade A tuna is anything but. The same goes for wild salmon, lemon sole, red snapper, and a dozen other species of premium priced fish.,, A recent study by the New York State Office of the Attorney General found that fraud is much more widespread than originally realized — it costs consumers and fishermen millions of dollars a year. >click to read<
The last colony
News Analysis-The United Fishermen of Alaska (UFA) has issued its annual report on who got the fish of the 49th state, and the winner is? Outside fishing interests. Of the 6.4 billion pounds of seafood harvested in Alaska in 2017, UFA’s 2018 Alaska Commercial Fishing and Seafood Processing report lists 4.6 billion pounds – almost two-thirds – harvested by permit holders from Washington, Oregon or California. Alaska became a state in large part to break the chokehold Seattle-based interests held on state fisheries. The late George Rogers,,, >click to read<17:45
Which Side Are You On? FISH-NL launches inaugural “netcast” leading up to Thursday’s Gander convention
The Federation of Independent Sea Harvesters of Newfoundland and Labrador (FISH-NL) has released its inaugural podcast episode, featuring an overview of the “cesspool of corruption” that is today’s fishery, and a local rewrite of the iconic labour song — Which Side Are You On? Which Side Are You On was written in 1931 by Florence Reece, the wife of a Kentucky miner, during a bitter strike. >click to read, listen to podcast<13:39
“Fill Our Xtratuffs” Saturday to benefit Westport Coast Guard families
A Westport nonprofit is collecting donations to help keep unpaid local Coast Guard members and their families afloat during the government shutdown. “WeFish is a nonprofit organization here in Westport formed to support the commercial fishing industry,” said board member Adrienne Jones. “We support the fishermen, the Coast Guard supports us, so we want to make sure their families are taken care of in this time of need, while they are missing their paychecks.” >click to read<13:03
Crab fleet gearing up for season
Crab fishermen began setting their pots today in preparation for opening day of the 2019 commercial Dungeness season. Following a delay of about six weeks due to concerns about quality and domoic acid, the commercial Dungeness season between Patrick’s Point and the Oregon border opens at 12:01 a.m. Friday, according to a press release from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. The commercial fleet could begin setting their gear at 8:01 a.m. today, according to the release. >click to read<11:41
Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 77.6′ Steel Shrimper, 525HP, CAT 3412 Diesel
Specifications, information and 9 photos >click here< To see all the boats in this series, >Click here<16:06
Lobster firm to invest in Gouldsboro plant after closure of Connecticut facility
A seafood distribution and processing firm says it plans to increase production at its plant in Gouldsboro after closing a shipping facility in Connecticut. Garbo Lobster, a subsidiary of East Coast Seafood Group, announced this week that it plans to shut down the Groton live lobster packing facility on Thursday, Jan. 17. <click to read>
Fishermen: Rhode Island Governor Raimondo sidelined us from wind-power talks
Rhode Island fishermen are accusing Gov. Gina Raimondo of cutting them out of talks with Vineyard Wind about compensation for lost access to ocean fishing grounds where the New Bedford company plans to install 84 giant wind turbines. The state’s Fishermen’s Advisory Board, the group convened to represent the commercial and recreational fishing industries in the face of offshore renewable energy development, is set to meet Tuesday to consider a potential payout from Vineyard Wind. Yet, as of late Monday, the board had not received any details of a proposal. >click to read<21:4
Disaster declarations, relief in limbo for multiple fisheries
The last few years of commercial fishing for Alaska have turned up poor for various regions of the state, resulting in disaster declarations and potential federal assistance.The 2018 season proved no different, with at least two disaster requests in the works at the state level. A third is in process at the federal level, and yet another is finally distributing money to affected fishermen from the 2016 season.<click to read>12:46
