Daily Archives: February 28, 2020
Watermen take to the streets to protest
About 100 members of the Talbot Waterman’s Association lined up in front of the Easton Shore Land Conservancy to protest in the early morning hours of Wednesday, Feb. 26. The group is taking issue with the conservancy’s and Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s lack of effort to work with the watermen in a way that allows them to make a living, they said. The evening before the protest, a group of about 200 watermen gathered in Annapolis to address Senate Bill 948, sponsored by state Sen. Paul G. Pnsky, D-22-Prince George’s, that would reduce unlimited tidal fishery license holders’ ability to harvest oysters. >click to read< 21:23
‘On pins and needles’ – NL fish harvesters, processors keeping an eye on China as coronavirus crisis continues
COVID-19, also commonly referred to as the coronavirus, is having a significant economic impact on China, a country whose importance continues to grow as a destination for seafood from this province. “Everybody’s on pins and needles,” Garnish-based harvester Alfred Fitzpatrick told SaltWire Network recently. The crab season along the province’s south coast usually opens up in early April, followed a couple weeks later by lobster. That’s not far off, and with talk in recent days of COVID-19 potentially becoming a pandemic, it looks as if the economic consequences will continue, as well. “Oh, my God, yes,” Fitzpatrick responded when asked if the COVID-19 crisis was inspiring conversation on the province’s wharves. “Like I said, everybody is worried. With the cost of everything going up and the new requirements and everything everybody got to do, I mean, it’s all money, and if you don’t make it, you can’t spend it, hey,” he said. >click to read< 17:40
F/V Scandies Rose: U.S. Coast Guard convenes Marine Board of Investigation
The U.S. Coast Guard has convened a Marine Board of Investigation into the loss of F/V Scandies Rose and five of its seven crewmembers. A Marine Board of Investigation is the highest level of investigation in the Coast Guard. Upon completion of the investigation, the Board will issue a report to the commandant with the evidence collected, the facts established and its conclusions and recommendations. >click to read< 14:09
Graves requests $100M in fisheries disaster assistance to La. after record-setting opening of Bonnet Carre Spillway
Congressman Garret Graves has written a letter to the National Oceanic an Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) asking them to allocated the remaining $100 million in fisheries disaster assistance to Louisiana to go towards mitigating the impacts of the recent openings of the Bonnet Carre Spillway.,, “To rub even more salt in the wound, our fishing industry has been taking it on the chin for years, punished by previous, man-made disadvantages, including falsely labeled crawfish from overseas and imported shrimp taking precedent in the market over our domestic and sustainable seafood products,” said Graves. >click to read< 12:50
NOAA grants Alaskan Fisheries $24.4 million in disaster relief funding. When, though?!
Thursday the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), approved a $24.4 million dollar disaster relief package to help restore the loss of fisheries impacted by the 2018 pacific cod fishery disaster and sockeye salmon failure in Chignik. The money will be administered by the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission who will distribute the relief payments to fishermen and their deckhands, processors, and fishery research in the affected regions. >click to read< 10:26
Jessie’s Ilwaco Fish Co. files for receivership
Receivership is similar to bankruptcy, but is handled under state law. The process is often used when a company is unable to meet its financial obligations. Receiver Christopher Wain was appointed on Feb. 26 by Pacific County Superior Court Judge Donald Richter, according to court documents. Jessie’s is owned by Alber Seafoods, Inc., a California company that also filed for receivership on the same day. Wain specializes in keeping companies running during a receivership, he said when reached Feb. 27., Jessie’s owes about $10.5 million in secured and unsecured debts and has assets with a book value of $7.1 million, >click to read< 09:50
Coronavirus: Seafood industry falls victim to the virus
Abalone fisheries, reliant on China for up to 90 per cent of sales, have been paralysed by the sudden drop in demand with Tasmania’s entire fleet of up to 100 abalone dive boats “ground to a halt” for the past month. Lobster was one of the first sectors to suffer as the result of China’s quarantine lockdowns, forcing the sale of export catches on the local market at discounted prices. The crisis has since broadened, affecting scale fisheries such as banded morwong and wrasse, and all processors reliant on China exports or live fish trade to deserted Chinatowns in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. >click to read< 09:16
First Nova Scotia Lobster Day being ‘shell-abrated’
With the final Friday in February officially proclaimed Nova Scotia Lobster Day by the provincial government, it’ time to ‘shell-abrate,’ says the South Shore Tourism Cooperative.” We’re delighted to have the honour of observing the province’s first Nova Scotia Lobster Day on the final Friday in February. Nova Scotia Lobster Day not only celebrates the province’s lobster fishing heritage, culture and economic impact, but it does so during the height of the lobster fishing season. In honour of the first Nova Scotia Lobster Day, a reception will be held at the Lunenburg Academy on Feb. 28 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Limited tickets are available via http://bit.ly/lobsterreception. >click to read< 08:35:15
