Daily Archives: January 19, 2021
NOAA Fisheries reports on early pandemic impact on fisheries
NOAA Fisheries Friday, January 15 released a report on the economic impact on the seafood catch and recreational fishing nationwide and here in Alaska through last summer.,, Nationwide the commercial fishing industry started off 2020 with increases in revenue from seafood sales. But as the pandemic hit in March, that income dropped off 19 percent compared to the most recent five-year average. Those declines swelled to 45 percent by July. >click to read< 19:25
Commercial southern bluefin tuna fleet battles turbulent La Niña weather and global market
More than 40 vessels and six spotter planes are involved in the search for large schools of bluefin tuna off the picturesque tourist town of Robe. About 10,000 fish at a time will be captured and towed in cages to farms at Port Lincoln — the home of the state’s tuna industry — to be grown out for key markets in Japan and China. Australian Southern Bluefin Tuna Industry Association chief executive Brian Jeffriess said the La Niña weather event was causing problems for the sector. He said the cooler weather conditions were fuelling “unpredictable” fishing trends and lower catch rates. >click to read< 13:50
F/V Chief William Saulis: Families say everything possible should be done to recover bodies from sunken boat
Laura Smith, the sister and next of kin of Gabriel, says it would give her family closure to have her brother’s body back home, and she favours raising the boat for further investigation if it can be done without endangering lives. “We all would like to see the boat raised and the bodies returned for closure and to have a proper burial,”,,, “As long as I know they have done everything in their power, until they can’t do more, I’ll be happy with that.” Lori Phillips, Cogswell’s mother, said she continues to expect a federal agency, whether it’s the RCMP or the Transportation Safety Board, to inspect the sunken boat with the ROV, and she believes it should be raised. “We need the final ritual. . . . I’d like to have him home,” she said. >click to read< 11:18
Stanley Clarence Hasbrouck of Tillamook, Oregon, has passed away
Stanley C. Hasbrouck, loving father of six, passed away on Jan. 7, 2021 at the age of 88. Stan was born on May 3, 1932 to Fred and May Hasbrouck, he was the youngest of 5 children. He joined the army in 1952 and served his country during the Korean War. Stanley was a commercial fisherman most of his life. He was also a mechanic, heavy equipment operator and the airport manager in Dutch Harbor, Alaska. >click to read< 09:55
New York State more than doubles the number of foreign wind turbines planned off the coast of Long Island
New York State’s decision last week to award two “massive” offshore wind power contracts to Norwegian energy giant Equinor will more than double the size of a planned wind farm off the coast of Long Island. It also promises “substantial” upgrades to a section of the electric grid at Oceanside. The 
plan, announced by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo last week as part of an expansive post-COVID-19 green economy, would bring the number the number of turbines expected to be spinning off the South Shore by 2027 to around 170, encompassing some 80,000 acres from Jones Beach to Islip, the company said. >click to read< 08:50
Captain’s License Revoked Following COVID-19 Outbreak at Sea
Sveinn Geir Arnarsson, captain of freezer trawler Júlíus Geirmundsson, pleaded guilty when the Westfjords Police Chief’s case against him was heard in the Westfjords District Court last week,,, Twenty-two of the vessel’s 25 crew members contracted COVID-19 while at sea last October. The ship did not return to harbour for three weeks despite the outbreak on board. >click to read< 07:50
Coronavirus cases detected at Alaska seafood plant
Seattle-based Trident Seafoods reports that four workers at the company’s Akutan, Alaska, seafood plant have tested positive for coronavirus, including one who had difficulty breathing and had to be evacuated by air to a hospital in Anchorage. The Akutan plant in the Aleutian Islands is a processing hub for Bering Sea harvests of pollock, crab and cod, with a workforce of 700 employees that will swell in the weeks ahead to 1,400 people. >click to read< 07:29
Public Hearings for Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Commercial/Recreational Allocation Amendment
The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (Commission) are seeking public comment on the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Commercial/Recreational Allocation Amendment. Comments may be submitted at any of five virtual public hearings to be held between February 17 and March 2, 2021 or via written comment until March 16, 2021. >click to read, click for links< 12:41
Share this post