Monthly Archives: January 2019
25-year-moratorium could be lifted as redfish stocks continue to increase in Gulf of St. Lawrence
Island fishermen and the province are working together to make surGulf of St. Lawrence P.E.I. gets its fair share of the redfish quota if the the federal government decides to reopen the industry in the future. A significant increase in redfish stock in the Gulf of St. Lawrence is spurring an interest in reopening redfish harvesting after a moratorium has been in place for nearly 25 years. A renewed commercial fishery would be at least two years away, said Dave MacEwen, P.E.I.’s manager of marine fisheries. Other provinces will be looking for their share of the quota as well, and he wants to make sure Island fishermen are “full participants.” >click to read<19:51
3 Fishermen dead after fishing boat capsizes crossing Yaquina Bar bar
The Mary B II crab boat capsized about 10 p.m. Tuesday, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. >click to read< U.S. Coast Guard.Authorities have released the identities of three men killed when a fishing boat capsized in rough waters off the Oregon coast. The Oregon State Police said in a statement the victims were James Lacey, 48, of South Toms River, New Jersey; Joshua Porter, 50, of Toledo, Oregon; and Stephen Biernacki, 50, of Barnegat Township, New Jersey. Authorities say Biernacki was the skipper of the Mary B. II. >click to read<16:23
2 commercial fishermen from N.J. among 3 dead after boat capsizes off Oregon coast – >click to read<
Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 44ft.11in. Dixon Lobster/Scalloper, 625HP Detroit
Specifications, information and 9 photos >click here< To see all the boats in this series, >Click here< 11:39
Whale rule changes coming on two tracks
Maine lobstermen and their representatives, along with state fisheries regulators, continue in the trenches of debates about how much the Maine lobster fishery is implicated in the decline of the North Atlantic right whale. Ongoing efforts to protect the whales from entanglement with fishing gear may result in two different new sets of regulations, Sarah Cotnoir, resource coordinator for the Maine Department of Marine Resources, and Patrice McCarron, executive director of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association, told the Zone B Council last week. >click to read<11:03
BREAKING: Fishing boat from Deadliest Catch: Dungeness Cove” TV show capsizes in Newport
A commercial fishing boat that was part of the “Deadliest Catch” spinoff series capsized around 10:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Coast Guard officials said the Mary B. II, one of the boats from the “Deadliest Catch: Dungeness Cove” Discovery television show, requested a Coast Guard escort across the bar in Newport because the bar was restricted due to 12 to 15-foot waves. During that escort, the boat capsized and all three crew members ended up in the water.
The Coast Guard is currently attempting a rescue. >click to read<09:10
Timeline – Surf Rescue off Newport’s North Jetty – F/V Mary B 2 capsized – >click to read<
Coast Guard confirms three fishermen dead after boat capsizes near Yaquina Bay – >click to read<12:27
EDITORIAL: Ocean imbalance
Fisheries scientists, writing in the Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, suggest that the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence cod stock may be extinct by 2050, because cod five years old and older now face an annual mortality rate of 50 per cent. The stock was already hit hard by the fishery, and collapsed in the 1990s. But it’s still not rebounding, even after years of limited fishing, and the scientists suggest that could be because the cod congregate to spawn, and are easy targets for the Gulf grey seal population, whose numbers have grown from around 6,000 in the 1960s to 100,000 in 2014. >click to read<08:20
RI fishing professionals worry offshore wind farm would harm industry
Fishermen across the Ocean State are worried a proposed offshore wind farm in the Rhode Island Sound would harm the state’s fishing industry. The Coastal Resources Management Council will vote on Jan. 22 whether to approve Vineyard Wind’s proposal to install 84 wind turbines off of Martha’s Vineyard to supply power to Massachusetts. “This is a losing proposition for the fishing industry- big time,” said Lanny Dellinger, who is the chair of the state’s fisheries advisory board. >click to read<20:33
Government Officials Ignore Public Comment, Create New Financial Burden on Fisherman
In a letter acquired by Cause of Action Institute (CoA Institute), it appears that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the U.S. Department of Commerce have approved a controversial fishery management proposal while ignoring public comments critical of the plan. This approval also seems to have been issued before the close of a second public comment period for implementing regulations. The NOAA rulemaking is expected to seriously impact commercial fishing on the Eastern seaboard by applying costly new burdens on fishermen. >click to read<19:23
Crab season off to a stormy start
Local commercial Dungeness crab fishermen overcame challenging weather conditions over the weekend in delivering their first catch of the season. Washington and Oregon crabbers set gear during the three-day “soak” period over the New Year’s holiday under blue skies, but then faced stormy weather leading up to the official opening of the fishery on Friday. “It wasn’t all rainbows and butterflies,” said Buck & Ann captain Dennis Rice, who delivered a vessel “plugged” with estimated 35,000 pounds of Dungeness crab Monday, Dec. 7 at Ilwaco Landing. >click to read<15:54
All right whales survived visit to Canadian waters last year
No North Atlantic right whales died in Canadian waters in 2018, so protective measures will continue, a Fisheries spokesperson says. The year free of deaths means the protective measures implemented last year are working, said Adam Burns, director general for fisheries resource management with Department of Fisheries and Oceans. “In 2018 there were at least as many North Atlantic right whales in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence as there were in 2017, when we had all of those incidents, and we continued to have fishing activity in those same areas,” Burns said. In 2017, the death toll came to 18. Twelve of the whales died in Canadian waters. >click to read<14:17
Newfoundland town fears for safety of seals swarming its streets
Seals have been swarming the streets of a northern Newfoundland town, with residents fearing for the animals’ safety but being warned to stay away. Brendon Fitzpatrick of Roddickton said seals had been spotted in the area as early as October, but in recent weeks the animals have wandered into town, sometimes in the middle of the road. >click to read<11:24
FISH-NL renews call for halt to seismic testing – ‘If plankton isn’t protected you might as well say goodbye to the fish’
The Federation of Independent Sea Harvesters of Newfoundland and Labrador (FISH-NL) is once again calling on the Canada/Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board (C-NLOPB) to suspend offshore seismic work in light of new research that reveals plankton productivity has plunged. The research by the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) doesn’t link the dramatic and persistent drop in plankton to seismic activity, but other research has found the intense acoustic signals may damage the critical elements of the food chain. “It’s highly coincidental that as seismic activity ramped up plankton productivity plunged,” says Ryan Cleary, President of FISH-NL. “Seismic activity may be necessary for offshore oil and gas development, but it must not come at the expense of our wild fisheries and marine ecosystem — cutting off our nose to spite our face.” >click to read<10:43
Riding Alongside One of the World’s Last Whaling Tribes
An up-close look at the Lamalerans of Indonesia, one of the last hunter-gatherer societies on the planet Baleo! Baleo! — “The hunt is on!” The cry resounded through the village. A minute before, a motorboat had raced into the bay, and its crew had screamed the signal to the men on the beach, who themselves had taken up the cry. Now every man, woman, and child who had heard their alarm was adding a voice to the shouted relay, until all fifteen hundred souls in the ramshackle houses and surrounding jungle chorused that the sperm whales had been sighted. >click to read<10:02
Crab fishing season delayed by weather, small crabs
Smaller crabs and bad weather are delaying the start of crabbing for Washington and Oregon,,,Fishermen could start setting up their Dungeness crab gear Jan. 1 — a month later than usual — because crab were under the legal size and molted late. That means the loss of the lucrative Christmas market. And even then they couldn’t start pulling traps on Friday, when stormy weekend weather kept some crabbers from harvesting their catch. Steve Manewal, manager of the South Bend Products processing plant in Chinook, didn’t start receiving crab shipments until Saturday afternoon. In the southern third of Oregon Coast and parts of California, the season remains delayed because crabs haven’t met weight requirements yet,,, >click to read<22:54
CDFW – Northern Commercial Dungeness Crab Season Further Delayed in Ocean Waters North of Patrick’s Point, Humboldt County due to Public Health Hazard >click to read<
Upper Cook Inlet King Salmon Fisheries Closed for 2019, Area Subsistence Fisheries Restricted
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) today announced closures to 2019 Northern Cook Inlet (NCI) king salmon commercial and sports fisheries. Subsistence king salmon fisheries in Northern Cook Inlet will also be restricted. The department is restricting and closing king salmon fisheries to conserve weak king salmon stocks. Multiple king salmon stocks in NCI, including seven stocks of concern, have failed to meet escapement goals in recent years.>click to read<19:41
Feds seize Miami fishing boat after owner poached lobster in Biscayne National Park
The owner of a 34-foot commercial fishing boat surrendered it to federal officials Monday after the captain was caught poaching nearly 300 spiny lobsters and stone crabs in Biscayne National Park last summer. In August, a park marine patrol officer stopped the Silvita for a routine inspection and discovered 231 illegally wrung tails stashed in an anchor locker, along with more than two dozen egg-bearing or undersized lobsters, said park marine patrol spokesman Robert MacKavich. >click to read<19:13
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EDITORIAL: Change tack to save lives
At this time of year, we tend to focus our attention on road deaths, particularly the role drinking and driving plays in them. But as a province and a region surrounded by oceans and dotted with lakes, it is also vital to consider the dangers that lurk on the water as opposed to roads. The fact is, quite a few people die while working or enjoying leisure time on waterways. In its annual report, the Canadian Red Cross released unofficial numbers showing that there were 39 water-related deaths in Atlantic Canada in 2018. Nova Scotia’s share of that total was 16. Some of the deaths were related to commercial fishing while others occurred while people were involved in recreational fishing, boating and swimming at lakes and on beaches. >click to read<07:17
Southeast Alaska Tanner Crab Fishery Deadline Nears
The 2018/2019 commercial Tanner crab fishery in Southeast Alaska will open concurrently with the commercial golden king crab fishery on Feb. 12, 2019. The registration deadline is Jan. 14, and all commercial fishermen registering after the deadline will have to pay a $45 late fee. Permit holders may register at Alaska Department of Fish and Game area offices in Douglas, Sitka, Ketchikan, Petersburg, Wrangell and Haines. Simultaneous, though separate, registrations are allowed for Tanner crab and golden king crab. Commercial shrimp or Dungeness crab pot registrations may also be obtained and fished simultaneously with Tanner Crab,,, >click to read<06:58
Ocean Cleanup Device Malfunctions
A first-of-its-kind floating ocean cleanup system deployed to collect plastic pollution from the Great Pacific Garbage Patch has been taken out of service early after it broke apart while operating halfway between Hawaii and California. The wind- and wave-propelled cleanup system, launched from San Francisco in September by Dutch nonprofit The Ocean Cleanup, consists of a 600-meter-long U-shaped floating barrier with a three-meter skirt below that glides at the ocean surface to collect plastic and funnel all debris at its center. >click to read<15:16
Ocean Cleanup device breaks down, well before ridding Pacific of plastics – >click to read<18:33
Researchers aim to find where Pacific salmon spend their winters
An international team of scientists is heading to the Gulf of Alaska for a ground-breaking research survey to uncover the secret lives of Pacific salmon in the winter. Discoveries coming out of a 25-day research cruise using a trawler in the North Pacific are expected to help countries do a better job of managing, conserving and restoring salmon stocks, including improving forecasting of returns. “I say it’s the great black box because we basically lose track of the salmon after they leave our coastal waters,” said Brian Riddell, president and chief executive of the Vancouver-based Pacific Salmon Foundation, a key backer of the endeavour. The team is made up of six Canadian scientists, eight from Russia, three from the U.S., and one each from Japan and South Korea.>click to read<13:41
Conservancy Hornby Island calls for government to shut down herring roe fishery
A Hornby Island organization is calling for the federal government to shut down a Pacific herring roe fishery scheduled to operate in the Strait of Georgia in March. According to Conservancy Hornby Island, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans is preparing to approve the catch of 20 per cent of herring that spawn in the Strait of Georgia. This is approximately 28,000 tons of spawning herring or approximately 200 million fish.,, Neil Davis, director of resource management with the DFO says determining a fishing allowance that will ensure the sustainability of a species is not something that is taken lightly. Each year prior to spawning season in late February or March, DFO does large amounts of research before setting a fishing allowance. >click to read<12:24
Fish and Game optimistic about 2019 sockeye run
After a poor sockeye return last summer, Alaska’s Department of Fish and Game is slightly more optimistic about 2019. Six million sockeye salmon are forecasted to run through the Upper Cook Inlet in 2019, according to Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s 2019 Upper Cook Inlet Sockeye Salmon forecast. The forecast, released Friday, estimates a range of 4.8 million to 7.3 million for the total sockeye salmon run. Escapement is forecasted at 2 million while Upper Cook Inlet commercial harvest is estimated at 3 million and other harvest at 1 million. >click to read<11:38
Coast Guard rescues fisherman who fell overboard near South Padre Island, Texas
The Coast Guard rescued a man who fell overboard off a 65-foot shrimping vessel near South Padre Island, Texas, Saturday afternoon. A Coast Guard Station South Padre Island boat crew on a routine patrol witnessed a crewmember fall off the 65-foot shrimping vessel Morgan Rae. The boat crew recovered the crewmember and transferred him back onto the vessel. There are no reported injuries. -USCG- 10:02
Our surf clam fishery is headed for disaster
When it comes to fishery management controversy never seems to be too far away. Last month you may have read about the dubious nature of a decision by the New England Fishery Management Council to close a large area of Nantucket Shoals to fishermen who harvest surf clams there, ostensibly to protect fish habitat. Questionable actions such as these undermine industry confidence in fishery regulators and serve only to alienate, and embitter, fishermen and the many others on the waterfront whose livelihoods are threatened by such draconian measures. >click to read<20:47
Illinois Lt. Gov: Michigan’s carp money would be too little, too late
It’s not that Illinois is being rude, or even dismissive, it’s just that Michigan’s promise of $8 million to help keep Asian carp in the Illinois River doesn’t solve today’s problem, according to the Rauner administration. Illinois Lt. Gov. Evelyn Sanguinetti said Illinois needs to focus on its Asian carp problem immediately.,,“He indicated that we need to act now.,,, “Imagine if we were able to take the money and double down on our commercial fishing. That’s where we are going to see a bigger impact,” Sanguinetti added. >click to read<16:35
‘Only the beginning’: waking up to the great lobster grab of 2019
Governments do sneaky things at Christmas. They put out bad policy when the media is distracted, in holiday mode and under-resourced, in the hope no one will thoroughly analyse ideas that need intense scrutiny and research. Massive, damaging cuts are couched in language designed to appeal to voters and con busy reporters. Last year, it was cuts to regional education. Almost exactly twelve months later Fisheries Minister Dave Kelly released this gem: Boost for WA jobs and local lobster supply from WA’s most iconic fishery. Sounds terrific. And with the agreement of the crayfishing industry: “Western Rock Lobster (Council), have agreed on an innovative industry development package that will substantially grow the industry to provide more benefits to the Western Australian community.” Nothing to see here. Only good news. The truth begins to emerge,,, >click to read<13:16
Adrift fishing vessel towed ashore by USCG in heavy seas
A 78-foot fishing vessel adrift after losing power about 15 miles off the Columbia River entrance Thursday evening was towed to safety by the U.S. Coast Guard after a nearly 20-hour operation in heavy seas, according to a Coast Guard release. The Lisa Marie suffered a loss of steering around 8 p.m. A crew launched a 47-foot motor life boat from Coast Guard Station Cape Disappointment and battled 12- to 16-foot seas and 40-knot winds to reach the vessel and take it into tow. >click to read<10:43
Southern Gulf of St. Lawrence cod could be extinct by mid-century: report
There is a high probability that Atlantic cod will be locally extinct in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence by mid-century — even with no commercial fishing, according to a new report. The paper, published in the Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, says the death rate now stands at 50 per cent for adult Gulf cod five years and older. The likely culprit? Grey seals. “That high a natural mortality is not sustainable,” says Doug Swain, a federal Fisheries Department scientist who co-authored the study. >click to read<10:12
Japanese bluefin tuna sold at auction for record $4.4m
A giant bluefin has been tuna was sold for a record 333.6 million yen ($A4.4 million) in the first auction of the year at Tokyo’s new fish market. The 278-kilogram tuna, valued at 1.2 million yen per kilogram, was caught in Oma, one of the best tuna fishing grounds in Japan, on the northern tip of main island Honshu. It was bought by Kiyoshi Kimura, president of Sushi Zanmai, a major sushi restaurant chain. “I did not expect it to be that expensive. However, since I was able to buy a good one, I’d like customers to try it,” Kimura told reporters. >click to read<22:51
