Daily Archives: February 20, 2019
DFO ‘complacent’ on fish kills at Nova Scotia’s turbines, biologist says
A former Fisheries and Oceans Canada scientist is accusing his former employer of skewing research to allow for the continued operation of Nova Scotia Power’s Annapolis Tidal Turbine. “The Fisheries Act says you shouldn’t destroy fisheries habitat,” said Michael Dadswell, On Wednesday, members of a Canadian Science Advisory Secretariat panel tasked with reviewing existing scientific literature to help determine whether the tidal turbine is violating the Fisheries Act were supposed meet at Acadia University to review their draft report. >click to read<20:01
Seafood Giant Agrees to $23M in Upgrades to Reduce Coolant Leaks, EPA Says
Trident Seafoods Corporation, one of the largest seafood processing companies in Alaska and the Pacific Northwest, will spend up to $23 million to reduce coolant leaks from refrigerators and other equipment and to improve compliance; the company will also pay a $900,000 fine. Trident agreed to the settlement with the EPA and the US Department of Justice to resolve alleged violations of the Clean Air Act. The EPA says Trident violated the Act by failing to promptly repair leaks of the refrigerant R-22, an ozone-depleting hydrocholorofluorocarbon (HCFC). This allowed its appliances to leak refrigerant at high rates for thousands of days, releasing over 200,000 pounds,,,, Trident will retrofit or retire 23 refrigeration appliances used on 14 marine vessels to use an alternative refrigerant that does not harm the ozone layer compared to typical refrigerants. >click to read<18:12
FISH-NL pleased with DFO move to increase seal licences; first step in addressing population
The Federation of Independent Sea Harvesters of Newfoundland and Labrador (FISH-NL) is encouraged that Fisheries and Oceans has finally moved to increase the number of — the first step to combating the massive population. DFO issued an advisory to harvesters earlier today to say that new applications for commercial assistant sealers will be considered.,,, The Harp seal population in the northwest Atlantic was last estimated in 2012 at 7.4 million animals — almost six times what it was in the 1970s.,,, Groups in British Columbia have called for a cull of the estimated 110,000 harbour seals and sea lions off that province for the impact they’re having on Pacific salmon stocks. >click to read<16:36
Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 47′ MDI Gillnet/Lobster, CAT 3406, Permit available
Specifications, information and 24 photos >click here< To see all the boats in this series, >click here<12:12
Northern shrimp stock plunges off the coast of Labrador
The federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans’ latest northern shrimp assessment shows a dramatic drop in the offshore Labrador stock, with a slight increase for the inshore fishery in Newfoundland. New data from DFO Monday reveal a 46 per cent drop in the fishable biomass — defined as the weight of all the shrimp larger than 17 millimetres — between 2017 and 2018 in Shrimp Fishing Area 4, along Labrador’s northernmost coast, to 42,100 tonnes. Heading south down Labrador’s coast to Shrimp Fishing Area 5, the biomass has dropped 43 per cent, to 80,100 tonnes. >click to read<
Feds release Puget Sound steelhead recovery plan
The National Marine Fisheries Service has drafted a recovery plan for Puget Sound steelhead, including those from the Skagit River. The fisheries service, which is a division of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, is taking public comment on the plan through March 28. A recovery plan is required for any species protected under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. >click to read<10:53
Barnhill opens Got Ice, Inc.
Eddie Barnhill, a third generation Pine Island fisherman, has sold his boats and traps and started a new business, Got Ice, Inc. The Barnhill family has been fishing from Pine Island since Eddie Barn-hill’s grandfather, Alfred Barnhill, arrived here from Punta Gorda. His father, Edward Sr., also fished his entire life and that was Eddie’s plan to fish until he turned the business over to his sons. >click to read<10:15
