Daily Archives: April 28, 2021
Opposing Ocean Industrialization, Maine fishermen, families protest offshore windmills
Hundreds of Maine fishermen and their families protested offshore windmills in Augusta Wednesday. Local fishermen say they’re under attack, and that offshore windmills could ruin their industry and put them out of work. “Today’s really our opportunity to plead for public support,” Maine commercial fisherman Christopher McIntire said. “We need the support of the state of Maine in order to save our historical fishing grounds from being bought up by oversea companies.” Maine fishermen are fighting against a proposed offshore wind farm. Video, photos, >click to read< 21:23
‘Tragedy of the Commons’ Will be the Fate of Marine Environment in Atlantic Offshore Wind Farms
Like the English commons, the Atlantic waters could take just so much ‘grazing’. The Canadian government finally recognized the cod fishery had crashed and closed it;,, Recognizing that fish could not be owned until they were caught, government regulators attempted to at least partially privatize fishing rights. So too, the waters in which they swim (Hague Line dividing CN and US waters in the Gulf of Maine and on Georges Bank.) It was that bottom and those waters that wind farm builders wanted “rights”.,,, So, the question arises “why don’t the fishing interests move to protect these sensitive marine habitats?” They have tried without much success. >click to read< 18:43
Multiple challenges hamper commercial Dungeness crab season
The commercial Dungeness season in California opened late because the state’s Risk Assessment Mitigation Plan (RAMP), which is in full-force for the first time this season,,, “It’s a little bit tough right now,” said Dick Ogg, who has fished commercially out of Bodega Bay for more than 20 years. “That’s kind of an understatement.” Ogg is a member of the Dungeness Crab Gear Working Group, which contributed to the RAMP. Ogg says he and other vessel operators have come up with a variety of strategies to reduce the chances of migrating whales or endangered Pacific leatherback sea turtles getting tangled up in gear. Ogg pulled his crab gear out early this year, deciding to put his energy into prepping for the salmon season. But he said for the vessels still at it, the higher market prices made up for low catches. >click to read< 14:08
Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 38′ Flowers Lobster boat, new Cummins 9 L Diesel, new gear, new shaft, new cutlass,,,
To review specifications, information, and 10 photos, >click here< , To see all the boats in this series >click here<12:27
Lawsuit filed by Quinn Fisheries and Blue Harvest Fisheries against Carlos Rafael’s trustee and three arbitrators
Quinn Fisheries and Blue Harvest Fisheries filed a lawsuit last week against Carlos Rafael’s trustee and three arbitrators, alleging they are blocking a multimillion-dollar transaction of vessels and permits that was scheduled to happen April 16. The permits are for scallops and multi-species fish. The fishing seasons have already started or will soon start and because the transaction cannot be finalized, Quinn Fisheries and Blue Harvest state they will experience serious and irreparable financial harm. According to the 19-page complaint, Quinn Fisheries planned to transfer certain vessels and permits to Blue Harvest, and then purchase vessels and permits from Blue Harvest. >click to read< 11:08
The city of St. Augustine now has an official seafood: Wild-caught shrimp!
The move received unanimous support from commissioners, who adopted a resolution. “The historic San Sebastian River hosted an important chapter in U.S. maritime history,” the resolution says. “Northeast Florida is the birthplace and home to the U.S. commercial shrimping industry … innovators, including Mike ‘Sollecito’ Salvador, Salvatore Versaggi and Antonio Poli, moved to St. Augustine in the early 1920s to set up fish houses and shrimping fleets that supplied northern markets … the industry grew rapidly, and a boatbuilding enterprise began in St. Augustine that became a cultural and economic mainstay of the city for most of the 20th century. 22 photos, >click to read< 09:43
Ocean Industrialization: The Biden Administration vs. Atlantic fisheries
In its rush to burnish its green bona fides, the Biden administration is showering billions of dollars of subsidies onto European offshore wind developers, and in the process threatening both the environment and the livelihoods of Atlantic coast commercial fishermen. Big Wind — money-making corporations, not philanthropists — stands to earn big bucks. And for what? The reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from building all of that offshore wind will be minuscule and will have no impact on world climate whatsoever. Instead, it is poised to wreck an entire industry and the thousands of jobs that commercial fisheries support. >click to read< 08:50
The people are Opposed to Offshore Wind in Cape May, N.J. – Anti Offshore Wind Farm protestors gather
They could not all go in to the meeting of the Cape May County Commissioners on Tuesday afternoon, but opponents of a planned offshore wind farm knew they were heard when the members of county government came out to them. Speaking to those gathered outside before returning to the commissioners meeting, commission Director Gerald Thornton said wind energy will cost consumers more and will not provide many jobs to local residents. >click to read<– Anti-wind farm protestors gather in Cape May Courthouse – There were no chants or marching at a protest late Tuesday afternoon outside the Cape May County Administrative Building. Tricia Conte organized the demonstration. She also created the group Save our Shoreline which has over 4,000 members. >click to read< 07:55
