Daily Archives: October 12, 2021
P.E.I. lobster boat Captain Clarence White’s sentencing set in fatal boat collision
A sentencing date has been set for a P.E.I. lobster boat captain convicted in a 2018 boating collision that killed two men. Clarence Barry White, 53, was found guilty of two counts of dangerous operation of a vessel causing death on Sept. 10 in Supreme Court of P.E.I. White’s matter was back in Supreme Court on Oct. 12 before Chief Justice Tracey Clements, who scheduled sentencing for Jan. 17, 2022. White was originally charged with two counts of criminal negligence causing death, but was convicted after a trial by Justice Gregory Cann of the two lesser but included offences of dangerous operation of a vessel causing death. >click to read< 17:12
UK sub ‘not involved’ in 2004 French trawler tragedy
A British military submarine linked to the sinking of a French fishing trawler nearly 18 years ago had nothing to do with the incident, the UK vessel’s former captain said Tuesday, sparking fury from victims’ relatives. The families of the five crew members who died on the Bugaled Breizh on January 15, 2004 are hoping an inquest at the High Court in London will confirm their view that the boat was pulled down by the British submarine HMS Turbulent. But the Turbulent’s former commander Andrew Coles said the nuclear vessel was docked on the day of the tragedy. “We definitely weren’t involved,” he told the hearing in London, echoing other witness testimony at the hearing. >click to read< 16:17
You gotta read this! Congress considers extensive appropriations for environment, fisheries
A congressional committee recently proposed billions of dollars in environment, and fisheries related appropriations, which may help protect and restore the North Carolina coast and its fisheries. Not everyone supports the proposed appropriations, however. N.C. Fisheries Association director of government relations Jerry Schill said in a strongly-worded email Oct. 9 to the News-Times he has no plans on reading, studying or lobbying for or against the proposed budget. Mr. Schill said he was in Washington, D.C., Sept. 28 to work on labor issues that relate to commercial fishing.,, “It was a frustrating day because, well D.C. just plain sucks,” Mr. Schill said. “ >click to read< 14:59 (Billions $$$ to NOAA!)
Maine Lobstering Union, lobster dealers sue over offshore closure
The union and its co-plaintiffs allege that the closure is “the product of an arbitrary and capricious agency action” and argued that the federal government’s own data showed there has not been an entanglement in Maine lobster gear for nearly 20 years. Instead, the National Marine Fisheries Service made the closure “simply to spread risk reduction responsibility across jurisdictions, without regard to the fact that lobster fishing is far more important to Maine’s economy than it is to that of any other state.” >click to read< 13:26
Danish Fisheries Hit by Crisis in Aftermath of Brexit
New fisheries research ship will monitor state of P.E.I. stocks
The Capt. Jacques Cartier took part in the 51st annual September survey in the Southern Gulf of St. Lawrence last month, along with the ship that it will eventually replace, the CCGS Teleost. The work follows an 18-month delay in getting the new ship operational because of malfunctions, delays receiving parts, and COVID-19-related travel restrictions in Nova Scotia.,, The research vessel will collect fish using a bottom trawl, then sort all the species, measuring and counting every creature drawn up. “For P.E.I. that would include lobster, mackerel, halibut. Essentially, all the oceanic species that are exploited in P.E.I.” photos, >click to read< 10:48
F/V Bear Update: Drone Footage Shows Grounded Boat Taking a Beating
A bird’s-eye view of the the fishing vessel F/V Bear, a 68-foot scallop boat that became grounded at Island Beach State Park over the weekend, spent another day at the mercy of the waves as crews have yet to be able to free her. In the meantime, new drone footage posted by a YouTuber known as SuazOnn shows the sheer scale of the weight that must be hauled in order to refloat the vessel, which was built in 1984. Video, photos, >click to read< 09:38
Stone crab season to open, race to place traps begins
Stone crab season opens Oct. 15 and crabbers are permitted to drop traps 10 days in advance. Cortez fisher Brian Lacey and his crew wasted no time Oct. 5, the first day traps were allowed in the water, putting their first load out in the Gulf of Mexico at midnight. “The longer the soak period, the better the catch, typically, for stone crabs,” Lacey said Oct. 5. In 400-trap increments, the 7-year commercial fisher aimed to drop 2,700 traps within a 40-mile area in a four-day span. >click to read< 08:47
New Bedford Ex-Fisherman: Marine Monument “ridiculous” and an “abuse of power.”
As conservation groups celebrate the White House’s restoration last week of a marine conservation area off the Cape Cod coast, one New Bedford fishing industry insider called the move “ridiculous” and an “abuse of power.” New Bedford Seafood Consulting Executive Director and former scallop fisherman Jim Kendall spoke out after President Joe Biden announced on Thursday the restoration of the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument. >click to read< 07:38
