Monthly Archives: November 2020
One lawsuit dismissed, another filed against State of North Carolina over fisheries management
The latest suit was filed on Tuesday in state court, the same day another group’s legal action against government officials’ management of marine fisheries in North Carolina was dismissed in federal court. The Coastal Conservation Association of North Carolina, along with 86 North Carolinians, filed their civil action Tuesday against the state in Wake County Superior Court. In an unrelated case, an organization called the North Carolina Coastal Fisheries Reform Group filed a federal lawsuit in August saying regulations that allow large, ocean-going shrimp trawlers to work in the state’s sounds violated the Clean Water Act. >click to read< 08:01
Fears in France for future of fishing industry after Brexit
Fishermen in northern France have enjoyed nearly 50 years of shared seas during Britain’s membership of the European Union. But a no-deal Brexit is threatening to sink the livelihoods of people in Boulogne-sur-Mer who have been fishing all their lives. “If we don’t have an agreement it will be catastrophic,” says fisherman Laurent Merlin. His haul of flatfish and crabs will be at risk if any deal between the UK and the EU does not guarantee access to the seas off Britain. >video, click to read< 19:45
2020 commercial salmon catch, and value took a dive
Commercial salmon harvests proved challenging for the 2020 season, challenged by a global pandemic of the novel coronavirus, with the overall fish catch and its value down considerably from a year earlier. Data released on Monday, Nov. 9 by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, said the all species harvest has an approximate value of $295.2 million, down 56 percent from $673.4 million in 2019. Fishermen delivered some 116.8 million fish, a 44 percent drop from the 208.3 harvested a year earlier, the report said. >click to read< 18:15
A dramatic early morning rescue operation mounted as Fife fishing boat hits the rocks
Volunteer RNLI crews from Anstruther were able to rescue two men from the Carisma before she was wrecked after hitting the rocky shore near Pittemweem shortly after 6:15am. The loss of the vessel is a massive blow to her owner and skipper Kirk Doig, who launched Carisma Seafoods in August when the Covid-10 pandemic ended most demand from fish markets as the country felt the full impact of lockdown on the hospitality industry. >click to read< 15:55
New Trawler Built Under Coronavirus Restrictions
‘That was undoubtedly our major challenge this time. We had signed the contract with the shipowner just a few days before quarantine measures were ordered by the Argentinian government,’ said Domingo Contessi, the shipyard’s president. ‘Construction began in April, when all of the 
restrictions were already in place, so this boat was completely produced under social distancing requirements’. Fortunately, both Contessi’s suppliers and staff responded positively to the company’s new needs and Siempre María Elena was completed within the time agreed with Aquellos Tres S.A., the shipyard’s client. >Video, photos, click to read< 13:23
Fishermen’s quarrel over stolen fish leads to attack
А Веlіzе Сіtу fіѕhеrmаn іѕ ѕtаblе іn hоѕріtаl аftеr bеіng аttасkеd thіѕ mоrnіng аt thе Nоrthеrn Fіѕhеrmеn Соореrаtіvе Соmроund оn Nоrth Frоnt Ѕtrееt. Роlісе ѕау 41-уеаr-оld Аlfrеd Ваrrоw tоld thеm hе hаd bееn аррrоасhеd bу оnе “Вlасk” frоm Кеllу Ѕtrееt, а dаrk соmрlехіоnеd, mеdіum buіlt mаn whо ассuѕеd hіm оf ѕtеаlіng fіѕh frоm hіѕ ісе bох. Ваrrоw ѕаіd hе wаlkеd аwау frоm “Вlасk” tо аvоіd аnу соnfrоntаtіоn аnd wеnt tо ѕіt bу thе ехіt аrеа аnd whіlѕt thеrе “Вlасk” fоllоwеd hіm аnd рісkеd uр аn іrоn ріре mеаѕurіng аррrохіmаtеlу 2 1/2 fееt іn lеngth аnd hіt hіm tо thе сеntеr оf hіѕ fоrеhеаd. >click to read< 10:58
Transportation Safety Board: Factory freezer trawler fire met with uncoordinated response
A fire on board OCI’s factory-freezer trawler Newfoundland Lynx in January started in the vessel’s sauna and, while the fire was contained, it was met with an uncoordinated response by the crew due to a lack of fire drills that involved “realistic scenarios,” states a Transportation Safety Board (TSB) report released this week. The report also notes that some of the firefighting equipment on board was in a deteriorated condition and that there wasn’t enough of some key parts of the firefighting equipment. It advised in the report that, “It is important that crews perform fire drills on a regular basis to confirm that firefighting equipment is in working order, and to reinforce their knowledge of how to use the equipment and of assigned emergency duties. It is also important that these drills include varied and realistic scenarios so that crews are prepared to respond effectively to emergencies.” >click to read< 08:21
Parents of missing West Kingston fisherman sue owner of sunken trawler for negligence
New Year’s Day 2019 was cruel for the family of John Ansay Jr. They learned early that morning that a sudden gale and turbulent seas had overtaken the fishing trawler Ansay worked on. Thirty-one-year-old Ansay and the boat’s captain, Oscar Diaz, Ansay’s uncle, were missing. Diaz had put out a mayday call at 1:30 a.m. as the F/V Mistress began taking on water 2½ miles southeast of Block Island. Rescue crews from the U.S. Coast Guard had fanned out over the area in search of the missing fishermen and the remnants of the 52-foot wooden boat. >click to read< 20:38
Offshore Wind Farm Threatens Tangier Family’s Conch Fishing Livelihood
A small group of Tangier watermen find themselves competing with Virginia’s biggest power company, Dominion Energy, for natural resources in an area just outside the Chesapeake Bay 27 miles off the coast of Virginia Beach. Dominion Energy is using a 2,135-acre site in federal waters – leased by the Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals, and Energy – for its recently launched Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind Project, a two-turbine, offshore wind test site. >click to read< 15:18
RCPM say a 74-year-old man faces assault charges in violent clash at Nova Scotia lobster pound
The RCMP says Yvon Thibault, of Digby County, faces two counts of assault stemming from an incident in New Edinburgh, N.S., on Oct. 14. A pound that stored Indigenous-caught lobster was ransacked as part of two clashes that police have said involved roughly 200 people at wharves in New Edinburgh and in Middle West Pubnico, N.S. Another man was arrested last month for allegedly assaulting Sipekne’katik Chief Mike Sack, also on Oct. 14., but RCMP Sgt. Andrew Joyce says there were two other assault victims that day and Thibault is not accused of assaulting Sack. >click to read< 13:21
Coast Guard medevacs commercial fisherman 60 miles southeast of Martha’s Vineyard with stroke like symptoms
The Coast Guard medevaced an injured fisherman 60 miles southeast of Martha’s Vineyard, Friday. At approximately 6 p.m., Coast Guard District One watchstanders received a notification from the crew of the commercial fishing vessel, F/V Persistence, reporting a 50-year-old crewmember displaying stroke-like symptoms and requested assistance. >Video, click to read< 12:16
Summer season a mixed bag for Port Townsend fishermen
With the summer season now well astern, many vessels of the Port Townsend fishing fleet have returned to Boat Haven to undergo routine maintenance and repairs. Joel Kawahara stayed in Washington waters for the summer season, aboard his 42-foot salmon troller, Karolee, based out of Quilcene. Jonathan Moore and his family recently returned to Port Townsend along with their 46-foot Little Hoquiam troller, Ocean Belle, following the close of the summer troll season in Alaska. Mike Carr and his 32-foot gillnetter Miss Melito also just hauled out in Port Townsend,,, >click to read< 10:42
Federal fisheries minister concerned about size of Mi’kmaq fishery in Cape Breton bay
Bernadette Jordan said Friday that while the government recognizes the Mi’kmaq treaty right to fish, the scale of the lobster harvest in the bay is exceeding proposals made by Indigenous fishers. “While lobster stocks are generally healthy, monitoring has recently indicated that fishing activities have significantly increased in St. Peters Bay,” the minister said in a statement. >click to read< 09:32
N.S. Seafood Alliance declares opposition to out-of-season moderate livelihood fishery – The Nova Scotia Seafood Alliance said it supports the treaty right, but it must be subordinate to limits set and policed by the government of Canada. >click to read<
Local Dungeness crab fishermen oppose new fish and wildlife regulations
The regulations are a product of concerns surrounding how often whales and other endangered species are getting caught in the ropes used to fish crabs. The regulations were met with some resistance from the local fishing community. However, conservationists argue the rules will do more good than harm to wildlife. Tim Obert, a fisherman, strongly opposes,,, “You’re driving down the street and you accidentally run over a squirrel or maybe you hit a deer on a mountain road, it doesn’t mean you go park your car in the garage and never turn it on again or never leave your house,” he said. Ben Platt, the President of the California Coast Crab Association, also opposes the regulations,,, >click to read< 08:13
‘Window dressing’: Sealord criticized for efforts to hire Kiwis
Sealord is being accused of not making a genuine effort to employ New Zealanders to work on the two Russian-owned trawlers it charters. An ad in October told prospective employees on the two Russian trawlers, they would be doing “the same repetitive task” the “entire time” they were out at sea. Compare that to an ad for a place on one of the seven trawlers it owned that were mostly crewed by New Zealanders. No monotonous work without end on these vessels. Instead it proclaimed “no two days are ever the same”, talked of fishing trips with the equivalent amount of time off, on full pay, once you got back to shore. There were “three delicious meals a day” (the Russian trawlers also supplied meals but there was no mention of how good they were), a free flu jab and free internet access while at sea. >click to read< 17:28
NOAA Fisheries Approves Electronic Reporting Requirements for Mid-Atlantic and New England Commercial Vessels
NOAA Fisheries has approved a recommendation from the Mid-Atlantic and New England Fishery Management Councils to require federally permitted commercial fishing vessels to submit vessel trip reports electronically as eVTRs within 48 hours of the end of a trip. This requirement will take effect November 10, 2021. This action affects all commercial vessels holding federal permits for any species managed by the Mid-Atlantic or New England Fishery Management Councils, >click to read< 14:59
Half Moon Bay fishermen frustrated over delay and are anxious to start Dungeness crab season
California postponed the start from Nov. 15 to Dec. 1 due to 50 humpback whales off the coast. The postponed crab season is meant to protect whales and sea turtles from becoming entangled or captured in fishing gear. Scott Edson, a fisherman who fishes in Bodega Bay and Half Moon Bay, said the delays are becoming the norm every year. He blames the shipping industry for the harm to whales and said most fishermen like him rarely trap whales. The regulations and delays make him feel his livelihood is at the whim and mercy of people and organizations who don’t appreciate the dangers and stress a later start season puts on the small fishermen. He has seen a lot of crab permits for sale as people begin leaving the industry. >click to read< 10:36
McClellanville receives $25K grant to help preserve its working waterfront
McClellanville is one of 12 towns recently awarded the Hometown Economic Development Grant from the Municipal Association of South Carolina. The $25,000 grant will go towards an economic development plan to keep and preserve it’s working waterfront, the main economic and cultural aspect of the town.,, “It’ll help the whole town out, this is a shrimping and fishing village, so that working waterfront, probably about half of that town relies on that working waterfront,” >Video, click to read< 09:49
A Fundraiser for New Hampshire Lobsterman Juan Peralta-Martinez
Juan suddenly passed away on 11/09/20. He is survived by his wife Katerina and his two young boys. Juan was a lobsterman and was new to the industry, but that didn’t stop him. He lobstered as much as he could when he wasn’t being a role model for his two sons. We are raising this money for Juan’s family to help support them in this time as well as cover funeral costs We appreciate any donation and would like to thank you in advance! Anything over our goal will go to Juan’s two boys for there college fund! >click to read, and please donate if you can<08:26
Fishing community grieves the loss of a Hampton lobsterman
Juan Peralta-Martinez became a lobsterman at a time when many say the industry was struggling to stay afloat, but those who worked alongside him said he was born for a life at sea. “He was meant to be one of the lobstermen,” said Linda Hunt, manager of Yankee Fishermen’s Cooperative,,, A husband and father of two from Hampton, Juan died at age 36 years Monday from what authorities believe was a drowning while working on his boat in the harbor. He left behind a wife and two sons, 9-year-old Juan Gabriel and 8-year-old Alejandro. >click to read< 07:48
‘Are We Getting Invaded?’ U.S. Fishing Boats Faced Russian Aggression Near Alaska
Capt. Steve Elliott stood dumbfounded on the trawler Vesteraalen as three Russian warships came barreling through, barking orders of their own. On the ship Blue North, commands from a Russian plane led Capt. David Anderson to contact the U.S. Coast Guard, wondering how to protect his crew of 27.,, “The Coast Guard’s response was: Just do what they say.” This summer, Russia’s military operated in the Bering Sea, home to America’s largest fishery, where boats haul up pots crawling with red king crab, and trawlers dump nets filled with 200 tons of pollock onto their decks. >click to read< 18:26
‘We won’: Clearwater Seafoods deal gives Mi’kmaq control of lucrative ocean stretch
Early this week, leaders of the Membertou and Miawpukek First Nations, both of which are Mi’kmaq communities, reached an agreement to buy Nova Scotia-based Clearwater Seafoods in a deal worth C$1bn (£580m). Heralded as the “single largest investment in the seafood industry by any Indigenous group in Canada”, the landmark deal comes at a critical moment for Indigenous communities in the region, as tensions remain high over their treatied fishing rights. >click to read< 15:48
Fools and Other People’s Money: Offshore Wind Industry Bamboozles Boris With ‘Wind Power’s Cheap’ Myth
If 2020 demonstrates anything, it’s the herd-like behavior of governments. Italy responds to the Covid-19 pandemic with a lockdown, so the rest of Europe follows its lead, but for Sweden. Britain decides to go for net-zero greenhouse-gas emissions by 2050 without a clue as to how much it will cost, and much of the West, including Joe Biden, follows suit. Only New Zealand had the gumption to ask how much it might cost. Earlier this month, British prime minister Boris Johnson pledged that offshore wind, cheaper than goal and gas, he claimed, would power every home in Britain by 2030. Cheaper than gas? Boris got suckered. >click to read< 14:44
Sea lions throw a party on Cowichan Bay’s federal breakwater to feast on spawning salmon
Steller and California sea lions jostle for space, bark 24-7, and leave stinky feces on the breakwater. About 300 sea lions will climb onto the 182-metre-long concrete dock at one time during at the height of the season, said federal harbour manager Mark Mercer. “They are three layers deep out there.” The majority are males, he said, likening the event to a big bachelor party. Depending on species, males range from about 850 to 2,500 pounds. “Like I tell people: ‘What you see on the breakwater is literally the tip of the iceberg. That’s a tenth of what’s out there.’ >click to read< 12:29
Mi’kmaq-owned partnership in Clearwater Seafoods deal a ‘benefit for everybody’
The sale of Clearwater Seafoods to Premium Brands of British Columbia and a coalition of Mi’kmaq First Nations is a game-changing moment in Atlantic Canada, says a public policy analyst. Ken Coates, a senior fellow in Indigenous rights and economic development with Ottawa’s MacDonald Laurier Institute for Public Policy, said Tuesday it’s “absolutely a transformational moment.” Video, >click to read< 10:39
National Fisheries Institute Statement on EU Parliament Removing Tariffs on U.S. Lobster
The National Fisheries Institute (NFI) welcomes today’s announcement that lawmakers in the European Parliament’s trade committee have voted in favor of removing tariffs on U.S. lobster and encourage the full Parliament to back the deal when they vote. The duties on live and frozen U.S. lobster shipped to the EU had been between 8 and 20 percent, but as part of a mini trade deal announced by the Trump Administration in August, the rate will drop to zero. NFI applauds President Trump and Ambassador Lighthizer for focusing on U.S. seafood exports. We also commend Senator Susan Collins on her steadfast advocacy for the U.S. seafood community. >click to read< 08:47
Converging forces make for worst Upper Cook Inlet season in decades
Low prices, an oddly timed sockeye run and another year of very poor Kenai king returns combined to result in one of the worst Upper Cook Inlet commercial fishing seasons on record. The 2020 Upper Cook Inlet harvest of roughly 1.2 million salmon was less than half the recent 10-year average harvest of 3.2 million fish and the estimated cumulative ex-vessel value of approximately $5.2 million was the worst on record, according to Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s Upper Cook Inlet Commercial Salmon Fishery Season Summary. >click to read< 16:27
Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 54′ Fiberglass Shrimp Dragger, 2 John Deere 6081’s, Kubota – 21 KW genset
To review specifications, and information, and 3 photos >click here<, To see all the boats in this series, >click here<12:10
In Southeast, this year’s salmon harvest fell by more than half
Southeast Alaska’s salmon harvest was less than half of last year’s haul. That’s according to a preliminary report from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game released on Monday. Commercial fishermen in Southeast harvested just over 14.3 million salmon across the five species this year: almost 5 million chum salmon, 1.1 million coho, 8 million pinks, 373,000 sockeye and 200,000 chinook. The preliminary ex-vessel value of Southeast’s 2020 salmon fishery was just over $50 million dollars. That’s less than half of 2019’s estimated value,,, >click to read< 11:23
William Edwin Cain Jr., has passed away
William Edwin Cain Jr., born March 26, 1940, passed away at his home on Nov. 6th, 2020. He was 80. Mr. Cain’s parents, during his childhood moved the family from Marshallton, DE to Walnut Street in Rock Hall, MD, where his dad, William Cain Sr. started a small Seafood Business (Cain’s Seafood). It’s there, that he learned the Bay, becoming a waterman. Billy, as everyone knew him, had a love of the Bay and wanted all the nautical teachings he could learn. Mentored by the late Calvin Kendall, a waterman icon himself, he taught Young Billy all he could of the Bay and how to harvest it. Billy purchased his pride; the Sea Lady. Over the years Billy built many friendships,,, >click to read< 09:40
