Daily Archives: March 12, 2022
What Canadians think of the Blue Economy
Fisheries and Oceans Minister Joyce Murray released findings Friday of an engagement process on its Blue Economy Strategy, which aims to make better use of Canada’s oceans for food production, energy and marine trade. Murray’s ministry consulted 1,600 Canadians to get feedback on its Blue Economy Strategy, which is designed to protect Canada’s oceans and maximize economic benefits from it. But one of the most important ocean-based industries in B.C, salmon farming remains under a cloud of uncertainty, with investments and hundreds of jobs at risk, as a deadline for renewing 79 federal licences looms. Murray offered no clarity on whether they will be renewed in June, which is when they expire. >click to read<, The Blue Economy-Who wants the disappearance of fishermen? The answers are here. >click to read< 19:17
Federal windfall won’t put a stop to state lobster industry relief bills
Although Maine’s lobster industry is set to receive $17 million in federal funding as part of the 2022 omnibus spending package, it is unlikely to affect two bills going through the Legislature that seek more than $30 million in state funds for the industry. The spending bill will bring more than $200 million in funding for projects across the state. For the lobster industry, it includes $14 million to help lobstermen comply with new federal regulations intended to protect endangered North Atlantic right whales, set to take effect May 1, along with $760,000 for the Department of Marine Resources to conduct outreach and education among lobstermen, and $2.3 million for right whale research, monitoring and conservation. >click to read< 17:28
Remembering America’s Forgotten ‘Fish Evangelist’
The Eat More Fish campaign distributed posters that implored patriots to “Save the meat for our soldiers and allies,” or, simply, “Eat the carp!” One of the posters featured a stern-looking woman in a starched lunch-lady uniform and paper cap. “Eat more fish,” she admonished the onlooker, “a real health food.” The woman’s name was Evelene Spencer and, to many Americans, she would have been a familiar sight. From 1915 to 1922, Spencer held the distinguished title of Fish Cookery Expert at the USBF (later renamed the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service), where she led the charge in 
persuading the public to eat seafood, so prolifically that she eventually became known as the Fish Evangelist. Born in Canada in 1868, Spencer was a 47-year-old restaurant manager in Portland, Oregon, when she was hired by the USBF. She was married and the mother of two daughters. But little else is known about Spencer’s life or culinary training prior to her role as Fish Cookery Expert. photos, >click to read< 13:00
U.S. Bans Russian Seafood, Alcohol in Downgrade of Russia’s Trade Status
The United States will join the European Union and Group of Seven (G7) countries in downgrading Russia’s “most favored nation” trade status, President Joe Biden announced Friday. As part of a new executive order from Biden, the administration will also ban alcohol, seafood and diamonds from Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine, which is currently in its third week. The move is part of a series of actions by the U.S. and Western nations to chip away at Russia’s economy through sanctions and bans. >click to read< 11:15
Atlantic Canada snow crab fishery hopes for another banner year
But concern over high fuel prices, fear of U.S. recession dampens hopes for one Nova Scotia processor. The snow crab fishery in Atlantic Canada is gearing up in hopes of another banner season in 2022, buoyed by expectations of more quota, high prices and less competition from rival nations. But will rising inflation, especially in the United States, and uncertainty over the war in Ukraine dampen the spectacular returns in 2021 when the fishery was valued at nearly a billion dollars? >click to read< 10:04
Stephen W. Walima of Rockport, Mass, has passed away
Stephen W. Walima, 62, of Rockport, passed away on Friday, March 4, 2022, following a brief illness. Born in Gloucester, son of Ann S. (Budnovitch) Walima and the late William W. Walima. He was a graduate of Rockport High School, class of 1977. He later graduated from Wentworth Institute of Technology, receiving his bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering. Steve worked for many years as a commercial fisherman on various boats out of Rockport and Gloucester and loved tuna fishing too. He was predeceased by his father, William W. Walima; and his pug, Bart who was his best buddy. >click to read< 09:21
Mid-Water Herring Trawlers to Return to Inshore Waters – Court Overturns Exclusion Zone
Herring fishermen from New England and the Mid-Atlantic won a crucial decision last week when a federal judge in Boston ruled in their favor against an exclusion zone in Northeast U.S. waters. The court ruled that a National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) measure excluding the mid-water trawl fleet from productive inshore fishing grounds violated the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the nation’s premier fisheries law. The lawsuit was brought by the Sustainable Fisheries Coalition (SFC), a trade group representing herring and mackerel fishing companies. >click to read< 08:16
