Monthly Archives: August 2021
Legendary Commercial Fisherman Michael D. McHenry has passed away
“You can have that boat if you want to re-float it.” That was all Michael had to hear. He began his fishing career at age 15, fishing in the summers until he graduated from Half Moon Bay High School in 1961. After that, he went full time on the water going down to Three Rocks every day and coming in with a boat full of ling cod. In 1965, Michael bought the F/V Pescadero and continued his career, now as a salmon fisherman. When his abilities outgrew that boat, he built the Merva W and launched her in 1971. The legendary “Blue Boat” was named after his mother, Merva Wilson. She is a steel, 65-foot salmon/crab/albacore fishing boat. He made a name for himself throughout coastal California and Oregon as a fun-loving Irishman and a salmon fisherman extraordinaire. Fishermen were drawn to him as a natural leader and he led a following of fishermen nicknamed “The Z Squad.” >click to read< 18:47
Search suspended for crewman who went overboard from New Bedford fishing vessel
The Coast Guard on Monday morning responded to a call for a man overboard from commercial fishing vessel F/V Blue Wave, a scalloping vessel belonging Blue Harvest Fisheries. CEO Keith Decker said the vessel returned to port Tuesday morning, where crew members will meet with Coast Guard officials. He said they are waiting for the investigation to determine what happened. There were seven crew members on the vessel, including the captain and the man who went overboard. The Blue Wave left port around Friday, Decker said, and was scheduled to return after eight to 10 days. >click to read< 15:07
Foundation created in memory of Alex and Ethan to memorialize ‘2 great young men‘
Alex Hutchinson and Ethan Reilly were killed in a boating accident last September. But nearly a year later, the community is rallying to create a foundation in honour of the boys, who were both known for their kind-heartedness before they died at only 17 years old. The families were then approached by Joey Dumville, who coached both Ethan and Alex in hockey and knew them well. The Hutch Cup will be held on Sept. 11. It’s a 
competition to see who can catch the biggest lobster and take home the trophy in honour of Alex. “Alex loved being a fisherman, and he was the third man in the boat, which is usually a job for an adult,,, The foundation also plans to host the Rufus Run this year, an all-terrain vehicle event in honour of Ethan, who loved anything and everything to do with motors. For Ethan’s mom, the warmth behind the legacy foundation is something she saw in her son from the time he was a child. >click to read< 13:19
“Oiled: A Fisherman’s Journey”
Derrell Short, a former fisherman, has released his memoir, covering everything from the Exxon Valdez oil spill to his adventures at sea in Kodiak Island, Alaska. Short covers not just the mishaps of working on a crab boat, but also how he worked on the Exxon Corporation oil spill in 1989. An Exxon tanker had run aground on Bligh Reef in Prince William Sound, an inlet in the Gulf of Alaska, Alaska. The tankard had been transporting crude oil from Valsez, Alaska, to California. Short covers the spill in his memoir and criticizes Exxon on the cleaning up of the oil spill.,, Other sections of the memoir focus on Short’s building his remote cabin, hunting, his many encounters with bears and his time as a fisherman. >click to read< 10:28
Offshore wind farms will have ‘major’ impacts on commercial fishing. Meanwhile, in New Bedford,,,
Development of the South Fork Wind Farm off the coast of Rhode Island would will have an overall “major” adverse impact on commercial fishing, according to a newly released federal study.,, Mark Philips, a commercial fishermen operating out of Greenport, cast doubt on the notion that climate change and fishing presented greater threats than the turbines themselves to his fishing activities.,, With wind farms planned from Maine to North Carolina, he sees his fishing options collapsing, even if, as the study points out, planners identified and excluded the most productive fishing grounds from the wind-energy areas. >click to read< – New Bedford fishermen, officials question New York offshore wind areas as auction nears >click to read< – 09:24
Net migration: Young commercial fishermen ship out of Cook Inlet
The Cook Inlet salmon fishery was once an economic engine for Kenai. But the fishing there is no longer lucrative. Many fishermen with deep ties to the inlet are retiring, or moving elsewhere. The F/V Nedra E is smaller than the other boats bobbing at the dock in Naknek. Thor Evenson didn’t have Bristol Bay in mind when he designed the boat for his parents, Nikiski homesteaders Jim and Nedra Evenson. Until last year, she’s been a Cook Inlet boat, captained by Jim, then his nephew, and now his grandson, 32-year-old Taylor Evenson. Last year, Taylor couldn’t put it off any longer. So with the help of the boat’s original builder, Kevin Morin of Kasilof, he gutted everything behind the cabin, chopped several inches off bow and stern, and installed a brand new deck, to bring the Nedra E in line with Bristol Bay standards. >click to read< 07:50
Arrested by the Feds! Chief Mike Sack busted “for promoting an illegal fishery.”
The chief of Sipekne’katik First Nation has been arrested by federal fisheries officers on the day the band’s new treaty fishery launched in southwest Nova Scotia. Chief Mike Sack was arrested on Monday, taken to the Meteghan fisheries office and later released. DFO has not provided details of why Sack was arrested, or whether he could face charges under fisheries legislation. ‘Why would you arrest me? I haven’t done anything here,'” he said. “It just seems to be all scare tactics for the fisheries, to try to stop what we have going on.” >click to read< 15:59
U.S. Coast Guard searching for fisherman missing from F/V Blue Wave off Nantucket
A 36-year-old fisherman went missing from a fishing boat about 70 miles off the coast of Nantucket late Sunday night, and a search effort is ongoing, officials said. Crewmen on the fishing boat Blue Wave called the Coast Guard at around 11:20 p.m. Sunday to report the fisherman missing, Petty Officer Ryan Noel said. The fishermen said the man was woken up for his nighttime watch, but never reported for duty. >Click to read< 14:20, to be updated as we get more information.
Please Congress, we need real energy solutions, not your offshore wind farm fantasy!
200 small nuclear reactors are presently powering 160 ships and submarines all around the world, and have been for decades. What’s on foot is a move to bring those reactors onshore and use them to shore up power grids being wrecked by the chaotic intermittency of wind and solar. STT promotes nuclear power because it works: safe, affordable, reliable and the perfect foil for those worried about human-generated carbon dioxide gas,,, One of the feeble ‘arguments’ against it, is that nuclear power plants are of such vast scale that they take longer to build than the pyramids of Giza, and cost twice as much. SMR technology takes the sting out of that case. And, as Walter Starck outlines below, SMRs provide the perfect opportunity to reintroduce our good friends logic and reason into the debate about what powers us now, and the future. >click to read< 12:37
If the Frenchman Bay salmon farm isn’t right for Norway, it’s not right for Maine
About that American Aquafarms proposal: NIMBY- not in my backyard. In this case it applies to the developer, not the opponents. Whenever I describe to people the location of this industrial development in Frenchman Bay, their first reaction is always the same: What were they thinking? How could they possibly do this? The short answer is, the developers came here to do what they couldn’t do back home in Norway. They couldn’t build this project in their own backyard, so they are trying to put it in our front yard,, We’re better than this, and it’s time we stand up for all that is special about the Maine coast and say no. Not here. Not now. Not ever. >click to read< By Jerry Potter 10:55
Commercial Fisherman James “Punkin” Gaspard, Sr., of Bordonville, La. has passed away
James “Punkin” Gaspard, Sr., age 77, passed away at his home in Bordelonville surrounded by his loved ones on Saturday, August 14th, 2021. He followed in the footsteps of his father as a commercial fisherman for greater than 60 years. His favorite past-time was fishing on his pier with his grandchildren, spending countless hours in his shed, and spending time with those closest to him. >click to read< 09:50
Daughter of Reedville Fisherman’s Museum Founder Named President
Passion, love of a cause and, and energy – Becky Haynie of Reedville, Va. checks all three boxes for the Reedville Fishermen’s Museum where she was recently elected president of the board of directors. Becky’s passion and love of the job comes from her late father Wendell Haynie who passed away Dec. 20, 2020. Wendall, his brother Braxton and Alice Butler spearheaded the formation of the Greater Reedville Association in 1988, which led to the creation of the museum.,, “My father grew concerned that so many artifacts were disappearing off the boats and that there would not be any left for posterity,” she said. “He wanted to create a home to secure and display them. I want to make sure that home is secure too. >click to read< 09:05
Tensions renew over “unauthorized” lobster fishery in Nova Scotia
Tension over a growing Indigenous lobster fishery remains high on the wharfs and bays of southwestern Nova Scotia, where Sipekne’katik First Nation plans to launch their second season of a self-regulated commercial fishery this week. A year ago, violence erupted after the Sipekne’katik fleet began fishing lobster outside the federally regulated season which begins in November in St. Marys Bay,,, Colin Sproul, “The feds knew about the potential for violence last year, and did nothing. “There is a large-scale commercial fishery taking place right now, outside the law, no matter what the fisheries minister says. Our communities are seeing tractor-trailer loads of lobster leaving the area at night.” Mr. Sack said he’s worried more clashes will come if commercial fishermen don’t back down. >click to read< 07:51
U.S. Coast Guard responds to Haiti for humanitarian aid following 7.2 earthquake
Haitian’s government requested Coast Guard assistance following a magnitude 7.2 earthquake. The Coast Guard committed numbers of air and surface assets to help in transporting medical personnel and supplies, and transporting critically injured citizens to facilities needing a higher level of care in Port au Prince, Haiti. Photos, >click to read< 19:39
Offshore Wind Farms: Wind is not the answer, it’s a false dream of unreliable energy
The plan to construct a wind farm offshore of Morro Bay is based on a whole lot of hope and not much credibility.,, The American Jobs Plan is not destined to fulfill a lasting solution to economic stability in San Luis Obispo County. There is no factual or reasonable replacement for Diablo Canyon. There’s nothing to replace the amount of sustainable, constant, reliable clean energy supplied by Diablo Canyon. There’s nothing to replace the 1,500-plus full-time positions. The New Green Deal may be green but not a good deal! There’s no receiving something 100 percent if it’s not available 100 percent. >click to read< by Ellie Ripley 14:14
Electronic Monitoring of the Lobster fishery, Tracking of the Red Shrimp fishery to be imposed
America’s lobster fishing businesses could be subjected to electronic tracking requirements to try to protect vulnerable right whales and get a better idea of the population of the valuable crustaceans. The fishery has collapsed in southern New England, however. Fishermen from New York, Connecticut and Rhode Island were once a significant part of the fishery,,, >click to read<…The American red-spotted shrimp fishery may be subject to electronic tracking requirements to protect vulnerable right whales and better understand precious crustacean populations. However, fishing has collapsed in southern New England. Fishermen in New York, Connecticut, and Rhode Island used to be an important part of the fishing industry, Starks said, but the stock of red-spotted shrimp in southern New England is now depleted. Scientists have linked the collapse of fishing in southern New England to warming seawater. >click to read< 10:50
NFFO hits the UK Government for betrayal of the fishing industry during the Brexit negotiations
There are some in the fishing industry whose trust in the Government has been irrevocably shattered. The fishing industry was given assurances from the top of government, the Prime Minister, senior cabinet ministers and Chief Negotiator himself, Lord Frost, that our industry would not be sold out in negotiations with Europe, as it had been by Edward Heath in 1973. There was always a risk. Even when the fishing industry was used as the poster-child for Brexit, the NFFO paid for and distributed thousands of flags bearing the message,,, >click to read< 08:45
Fish Harvesters Benefit Program open for 2nd phase
Fish harvesters in the Northcoast and Haida Gwaii can now apply for the second phase of benefit payments under the Fish Harvester Benefit and Grant program, the Ministry of Fisheries and Oceans announced, on Aug. 5. This program helps eligible self-employed fish harvesters, who were not eligible for other financial relief programs, access critical support in dealing with the financial burdens of COVID-19. More than 18,000 fishers and families have accessed $130 million through the program in all provinces across Canada since its May 2020 inception. This includes self-employed commercial and freshwater fish harvesters, Indigenous harvesters with communal commercial fishing licences designated by their communities, and sharepersons crew who had less than their usual income in 2020. >click to read< 07:53
Argentinian shipyard Contessi launches multi-purpose fishing vessel Camilo S.
The multi-purpose fishing vessel Camilo S will fish primarily for Argentinian red shrimp, but it can also operate on hake, anchovy, and other stocks. Built for owner Mateo Mariscal, F/V Camilo S is designed to work coastal waters. The deck is laid out for either demersal or pelagic trawling with Berycar hydraulics, including a trawl winch with two main drums and a bagging winch. The codends are emptied into hoppers on deck and the contents pass through the catch handling system on the foredeck designed for rapid grading and sorting, and with selected shrimp boxed in ice in the fully insulated fishroom below. Video, and photos, >click to read< 18:56
Planned “unauthorized fishery” has minister’s office concerned with Sipekne’katik treaty fishery intent
In a statement released Saturday, Bernadette Jordan’s office said the band’s self-regulated “treaty fishery,” which is slated to begin Monday, is “very concerning.” Jordan’s office said the department would continue to enforce the Fisheries Act for all harvesters, including those who operate in St. Mary’s Bay off southwestern Nova Scotia.,, Sipekne’katik Chief Mike Sack issued a statement on Friday saying the band is ready to begin a self-regulated treaty fishery that is in accordance with the Mi’kmaw’s legal right to fish when and where they want. >click to read< 14:42
Port San Luis commissioner continues bullying, harassment
Shortly after the Port San Luis Harbor District agreed to pay a $150,000 settlement over allegations of bullying and harassment, Commissioner Bob Vessely doubled down again releasing a copy of a confidential document from closed session. Vessely emailed the document to Chris Pavone, head of the professional fisherman’s association with the comment, “Just for your amusement, feel free to share.” Vessely’s email was forwarded to more than 50 commercial fishermen. >click to read< 13:11
Fleet of more than 50 fishing cutters protesting in Afsluitdijk against offshore wind farms
“We want to keep fishing,” says Anja Keuter, a spokeswoman for IJsselmeer fishermen in the Netherlands. Her husband is a fisherman and her three sons want to be one too. Today sailing on one of the cutters. “So many areas have been closed to fishing by wind farms that we won’t have any more space soon. Both in the North Sea and in the IJsselmeer.” In the part of the IJsselmeer where the protest takes place today, near Breezanddijk, fishing cutters are no longer welcome. The Fryslân wind farm can be seen from the dam. Recently there are 89 windmills in the water. >click to read< 12:42
“We’re in pretty bad shape,” Commercial fishermen, fishing industry decline over the past 20 years
North Carolina commercial fishermen have complained for decades that government regulations and a variety of other factors threaten their livelihood and have them headed the way of endangered species. Glenn Skinner of Newport, executive director of the North Carolina Fisheries Association an advocacy group of commercial fishermen, said statistics back that up. “These declines are the result of many different factors. with regulations, the fear of future regulations or outright bans on commercial fishing gears being a significant factor,” Skinner said. He said public perception and political agendas drive the regulations. >click to read< 11:26
Ocean City Councilman Michael DeVlieger, Offshore Wind Farm Warrior, Resigns
City Council Vice President Michael DeVlieger stepped down Thursday night in an emotional farewell that included some hugs, tears and laughter with his colleagues during his last meeting on the seven-member governing body.,, Councilman Keith Hartzell, “No one fights harder than you in a cause,”,, “Early on, I have had the pleasure of being on the front lines when our community was hit by Super Storm Sandy. In the face of tragedy, I witnessed kindness and beauty,,,DeVlieger has been Council’s most outspoken opponent of wind energy offshore wind farm proposed 15 miles off the coast between Atlantic City and Stone Harbor. He has raised concerns about the wind farm’s possible negative impact on the coastal region’s environment, tourism industry and commercial fishing operations. >click to read< 10:23
Earthquake may have triggered sunken F/V Saint Patrick to spill diesel off Kodiak Island
A shipwreck from decades ago has begun leaking diesel fuel off Kodiak Island. “We know that this is a vessel that sank in 1989 in Women’s Bay and it’s been resting there since,” Jade Gamble, the state’s on-scene spill coordinator,,, “It started leaking after the earthquake.” She says it’s not clear how much diesel and other contaminants are on the former fishing vessel F/V Saint Patrick. The former scallop boat was hit by a rogue wave during a stormy November night in 1981 near Marmot Island. The captain ordered the crew to abandon ship; only two of its 12 crew members survived the frigid waters. >click to read< 09:18
South Carolina: Multiple people, businesses charged for illegal commercial fish harvest and sales
James Wooten of Bluffton, Dawson Loper of Bluffton, and David Festerman of Griffen, GA are each facing multiple charges for illegally harvesting and selling flounder, tripletail, sheepshead, and red drum. 42 fish were seized during the arrest. Restaurants buying the fish were also implicated. Chef Eric Seaglund at Hudson’s Seafood House in Hilton Head “was charged with one count of unlawful purchase of a saltwater fishery product, and one count each of possessing undersized tripletail and undersized flounder.” >click to read< 08:32
Fine, flat calm #FishyFriday in Newlyn.
Fine start to the final day of the week and with a big spring tide the netting fleet are all in port waiting for the next neap to begin…fish, photos, >click to read< 22:44
No longer using term ‘moderate livelihood fishery’, Sipekne’katik treaty fishery to open Monday
The Sipekne’katik Fisheries Department said it is no longer using the term “moderate livelihood fishery,” because many in the community view it as a phrase coined by Ottawa following a 1999 Supreme Court of Canada decision. Mi’kmaw fishers in Nova Scotia argue that the Supreme Court decision affirms their treaty right to fish for a moderate livelihood when and where they want, including outside the federally regulated commercial fishing season. Sipekne’katik Chief Mike Sack said about 15 to 20 boats will be participating in the fishery, employing roughly 100 people. “It’s very good economic spinoff for our community,” said Sack in an interview Friday. “It doesn’t make anybody rich, it just puts food on tables.” DFO could not immediately be reached for comment Friday. >click to read< 19:38
Large scale investigation into alleged lobster fishery violations
Massachusetts Environmental Police swarmed the dock at Sandwich Marina Thursday and Friday for a large-scale investigation into alleged fishing violations by a lobsterman. Approximately 10 Environmental Police trucks were parked at the marina. The agency’s boat “Jessie” returned to the marina at mid-morning Friday fully loaded with 30-40 lobster traps it had retrieved from offshore as well as three barrels of lobster pot lines. photos, >click to read< 17:29
Coast Guard, partner agency rescue 2 from boat fire east of Skyway Bridge
Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg watchstanders received a mayday call via VHF Channel 16 from the vessel owner stating his vessel’s engines were in flames, and they had utilized all the fire extinguishers available, and needed immediate assistance. The Sector watchstanders issued an urgent marine information broadcast notifying vessels in the area of the situation and diverted a Coast Guard Station St. Petersburg 45-foot Response Boat—Medium and a 29-foot Response Boat-Small II crews and a Hillsborough County Fire Rescue marine unit to the scene. video, photos, >click to read< 15:48
