Daily Archives: April 20, 2022
R/V Bigelow: Overspread, Under spread, or the Perfect spread.
Today both commercial and recreational fishermen believe that NOAA’s Northeast Fisheries Science is problematic while N.E. Trawl Panel Members who regulate the R/V Bigelow net, state there is a problem of over and under spreading which causes the net to fish inadequately. The N.E. Trawl Panel wants to put a Restrictor Wire between the trawl doors to stop the overspreading. I believe what they want to do will not work adequately, because if one door hits an obstacle the other door will be affected. Another issue would be dragging wire on the bottom of the ocean between the doors will affect the herding of fish. What will it take to address and fix the overspreading and under spreading and achieve the perfect spread at all times? >click to read< 21:01 Thank you, Captain Salvatore Novello, Gloucester, Massachusetts
Commercial fisherman medevac’d 50 miles east of Charleston, South Carolina
The Coast Guard medevac’d a man Wednesday aboard the fishing vessel F/V Crystal C, 50 miles east of Charleston, South Carolina. A Coast Guard Air Station Savannah MH-65 Dolphin helicopter aircrew transferred John Gary Modin to awaiting emergency medical services at Air Facility Charleston. EMS transported him to the Medical University of South Carolina for further medical care. >click to read< 18:30
Lobster gear change enforcement delayed because of supply change issues
NOAA said Wednesday morning that it will use a “graduated enforcement effort” until the supply issues have been resolved. The regulations require lobstermen to splice NOAA-approved weak rope or weak plastic links into the lines they use to connect buoys to traps on the ocean floor. But the approved gear has been in short supply as manufacturers struggle to produce enough to outfit the weak rope or weak plastic links fishing fleets. The regulations are intended to prevent whales from becoming entangled in fishing gear, which can result in grave injury or death. >click to read< 13:49
Susan Collins – Scarcity of required gear is making it extremely difficult for lobstermen to meet the May 1st deadline – >click to read< 14:48
Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 42′ OEM Lobster Boat, 500HP Scania Diesel
To review specifications, information, and 7 photos’, >click here<, To see all the boats in this series >click here< 12:17
Local boat looks to Unalaska’s youth in hopes of revitalizing island’s fishery
“I was 25 years old in Corvallis, Oregon visiting a friend,” Dickerson said. “And this guy from Alaska came over and started telling these incredible stories. And I thought, ‘I’ve got to go there.’ And so I bought a plane ticket to Dutch Harbor and never left.” Since then, Dickerson has seen the industry ebb and flow, and watched the small boat fisheries and once-young fishermen evolve and start to grow old. Dickerson said things like a lack of local boats along with the aging community have led to a shortage of younger Unalaska fishermen today. Rather than sit back and watch the fishery dwindle, he got some help from the Unalaska Native Fishermen’s Association’s youth program and took things into his own hands. photos, >click to read< 10:45
Charlie Pierce: Poorly managed bycatch is an Alaska tragedy
During my visits with communities throughout Alaska a number of concerns are discussed. One major concern, common to many communities is the effect of lax and dismissed enforcement of commercial fishing “Bycatch” rules by our current administration. Before going further, let me tell you the truth about that cute term “Bycatch.” Around the world it is called “discarded and killed fish.” “Bycatch” is a NOAA-created, feel-good phrase embraced by the Alaska Administration to make it sound like it’s no big deal. Politicians playing games with words. >click to read< 09:52
Northern cod 30 years after the moratorium: Confederation’s greatest shame
As the 30th anniversary of the northern cod moratorium looms, DFO cannot say with certainty whether the at-sea fall survey will be completed this year, the small-scale inshore fishery limps on with an average price of 64¢/lb, and the number of active enterprises has fallen to 1,259 — a shadow of the fishery’s glory days when the stock supported 30,000-40,000 workers. On the plus side, scientists with Fisheries and Oceans finally acknowledge that seals “undoubtedly” have an impact on cod — just not as huge as the lack of caplin (which seals also eat by the millions of pounds, but one DFO baby step at a time). >click to read< 08:02
