Monthly Archives: September 2022
UK Export Finance support unlocks new contract to export fishing boat to Ireland.
Family-owned shipbuilder, Parkol Marine Engineering, has announced the launch of its new vessel, F/V Green Isle, which on completion will sail to the west coast of Ireland from Middlesbrough, marking its expansion across the country. The boat is the second to be built as a result of a new £3m Bond support package from UK Export Finance (UKEF). The contract is the second exporting win for the business, with the first contract secured in 2020 for a 27-meter fishing trawler commissioned by Irish fishing company D&N Kirwan. >click to read< 15:55 Nice photo here, >click<
The Reason Crabbers Worried Deadliest Catch Might Destroy Their Livelihoods
Considering the fact that most of the captains we meet in “Deadliest Catch” have enjoyed an immense amount of success due to the series’ popularity, it might surprise some fans to learn that there were plenty of fishermen who originally opposed the series, worrying that “Deadliest Catch” might destroy their livelihood. During an interview with The Fishing Website, Captain Sig Hansen explained that the first season of “Deadliest Catch” received a lot of pushback from other Alaskan king crab fishermen, many of whom worried that the series would spell disaster for their insurance. >click to read< 14:29
“The Ghost Trap” – Midcoast movie makers shoot local author’s debut novel
Never mind she began the book at age 33 and is now 53, her debut novel, “The Ghost Trap,” is being turned into a movie in towns and harbors from Warren to Camden. It is also the movie company’s first feature film. The story and movie makers have attracted some big Hollywood names, too. “The Ghost Trap” is a story of love and lobsters found and lost, and a bitter trap war between rival lobstering clans, sort of a watery version of the Hatfields and McCoys feud of American folklore, Kay Stephens explained during filming at a rustic house in Warren. Photos, >click to read< 12:35
Shetland fishing industry ‘flung by the wayside’ for offshore wind farms
Addressing a session during the parliamentary Westminster Energy, Environment & Transport Forum policy conference, Shetland Fishermen’s Association (SFA) executive officer Daniel Lawson said his industry had “big concerns” over the UK’s plans for renewables off the islands. “All of the things we saw with the onset of oil, protection, partnership, working consideration, consultation, compensation, they’ve all been largely abandoned so far in this rush towards offshore wind development,” he told delegates. Mr Lawson said the organisation, which represents 115 member vessels, was dismayed by news of the latest round of offshore wind licensing as part of the Crown Estate Scotland’s ScotWind clearing process. >click to read< 09:55
Rock lobster back on the menu
New Zealand’s rock lobster industry is catching up on a slow year thanks to the end of a Chinese lockdown and the conclusion of an unlucky spiritual festival. Shanghai is one of New Zealand’s biggest lobster importers, but the city was locked down from March to June. Fiordland Lobsters sales and marketing general manager Andrew Harvey said it had taken time for the industry to get back up to speed. That was combined with Ghost Month, a time dedicated to the spirits of the dead which spanned from late July to August. Australia banned exports of lobster to China in 2020, which had also increased the New Zealand share of the market and helped it through some of the slow patches. >click to read< 08:47
50th Boat Docking Competition makes big splash in Crisfield
“It’s a good ole down home fun Sunday afternoon, end of the summer activity,” Waterman Kevin Marshall said. In Crisfield, that tradition is known as the Boat Docking Competition at the National Hard Crab Derby. It brings out community members of all ages for a day out at the dock. The timer starts once you leave the dock, as boaters head down the waterway quickly and then throw four lassos successful on the piles for a chance at the prize. Yet, competitors we spoke with say it’s not an easy task. “And I only have inches on each side when I go in the slip,” Commercial Fisherman Tommy Eskridge said. Video, >click to read< 07:47
Okanagan First Nation fishery celebrates record return of sockeye salmon
An estimated 670,000 sockeye have entered the Columbia River system this summer on a nearly-1,000-kilometre upstream journey toward spawning grounds in creeks and rivers, according to fish biologists with the ONA. More than 80 per cent of those fish are destined for Canadian waters near Osoyoos, B.C., in the south Okanagan, said Richard Bussanich, the organization’s head fish biologist. “This is a great story,” Bussanich said. “We’ve got more fish than spawning habitat coming back.” In partnership with Canadian and U.S. agencies, First Nations in the Okanagan have worked to restore the migration channels and re-introduce sockeye to the region over the past two decades, each year expanding spawning territory further into the valleys’ creeks and rivers. >click to read< 11:47
Mural celebrates last boat-building family in seaside town of Sheringham in Norfolk
Lewis ‘Buffalo’ Emery started building boats in the 1850s after being unable to find a craftsman to make him a new crab boat. Lewis’ great great grandsons Jonathan, Michael and Malcolm were all present to see the work by artist Colin Seal which celebrates the Emery family. The mural depicts family members Reginald, Chris and Harold in the workshop at The Old Boathouse. Jonathan Emery, whose grandfather Reginald is in the mural, said: “The family are very proud of our family history and to see it immortalised here.” Photos, Video, >click to read< 10:41
“I once was lost, but now am found” – Burial site of long-dead fisherman found by kin
In 1915, Eben Devine was reported missing by fellow crewmen from the schooner Hattie A. Heckman. Ten days later his body was seen floating in Gloucester Harbor by George Bailey, keeper on Ten Pound Island, who rowed it ashore. Despite decomposition, Devine’s son Oscar identified the body, perhaps by his father’s coat and the spectacles in the pocket. The medical examiner ruled it a death by accidental drowning, but a darker story has always lingered in Devine family lore: Eben Devine, known to be a drinker, was followed from a bar on the October night of his disappearance by two men with whom he’d had an altercation. >click to read< 09:15
Call for Commission of Inquiry into How Irish Governments Managed Fishery Resource
Marine expert Dr Kevin Flannery has called for a commission of inquiry into how successive governments have managed Ireland’s fishing resource. In an Irish Independent feature on the impact of the 60 million euro whitefish fleet decommissioning scheme totalling 80 million euro including tax credits. Flannery also says people will drive around the west coast in a few years and wonder where all the Irish boats have gone. The decommissioning scheme aims to scrap 60 vessels, a third of the active whitefish fleet, at a time of growing concern over food security. It will be funded from the Brexit Adjustment Reserve to compensate for quota losses due to Brexit. >click to read< 08:12
Offshore wind could blow us out of the water say Cornish fishermen
As the fishing boat motors gently out of Newlyn’s harbour, the sky is clear and the sea is millpond-flat. Below the surface, the clear waters are teeming with life; Newlyn, in south-west Cornwall, is home to one of Britain’s largest trawler fleets, with more than 100 boats regularly landing catches. However, miles out to sea, a storm is brewing. The boats’ fishing ground could end up being squeezed by floating windfarms planned for the Celtic Sea, an area of the Atlantic bordered by Cornwall, south-west Wales, southern Ireland and the north-western edge of France. >click to read< 15:32
On air with Stonington lobster! QVC network features Greenhead’s tails
“I love lobster, first of all, and this is a part of the country I’ve never been to. In the spirit of exploration of our beautiful country, I am happy to be here,” said Jayne Brown, program host of the West Chester, Pennsylvania-based QVC television network. “Hugh is a doll, too. I love him,” added Brown. Brown was in Maine August 22-25, along with a crew of roughly 16 people, to shoot a remote production featuring lobster tails from Greenhead Lobster in Stonington. The “Hugh” to whom Brown is referring is Hugh Reynolds, Greenhead owner and operator for the past 25 years. Photo gallery, >click to read< 12:20
F/V Aleutian Isle: Fishing boat that sank off San Juan Island had apparently run aground the previous day
The U.S. Coast Guard and other agencies have declined to say why the boat sank, or even what it was doing before it went down, citing the ongoing investigation of the maritime disaster. The sinking sent a two-mile sheen of diesel fuel into prime habitat for the region’s endangered orcas. Nearly three weeks later, the boat still sits 240 feet underwater, an ongoing risk for leaking more diesel into Haro Strait. But eyewitness accounts, photographs, and public records fill in some of the information gaps. Eyewitness Brit Reese, of Sedro-Woolley, was shooting pictures near the marina entrance while waiting for a friend whose boat was anchored just outside. Photos, >click to read< 09:12
This invasive fish population is exploding as native Blue Crab populations hit record lows.
The invasive species in question is the blue catfish, a species so large it has become known as the “River Monster of the Potomac ” and other major Chesapeake Bay tributaries. The catfish’s diet includes native Blue Crabs. A November 2021 study from the Virginia Institute of Marine Science reports the catfish consumed as many as 2.3 million crabs per year from a study area in the lower James River. The first blue catfish were intentionally imported into the James River in Virginia during the 1980s. The species is native to the Mississippi valley. The fish are huge and consume almost any other species of wildlife they can encounter, catch and swallow, including crabs and other shellfish, Love said. Researchers have found the blue catfish will even eat ducks. >click to read< 07:59
Innovative ropeless fishing gear helps prevent whale entanglements
When fishing zones get closed down due to whale sightings, fish harvesters now have a new place to turn. Can Fish is a program set up by the Canadian Wildlife Federation to allow fishers to test out and use groundbreaking ropeless technology for free. The North Atlantic right whale is one of many marine species being impacted by the changing ocean temperatures in a warming world. The whales have been swimming northward moving from the Bay of Fundy to the Gulf of St. Lawrence,,, The Canadian Wildlife federation is trying to lessen this risk by popularizing the use of ropeless fishing gear through its newly introduced Can Fish program. At a warehouse in Halifax, Nova Scotia, fish harvesters can show up and borrow innovative ropeless fishing gear for free. The catch? These fishers need to provide data collected as they use the innovative technology in order to help build future designs of the equipment. Video, photos, >click to read< 17:30
‘A life on the mud’ for setnetter who fishes from Bristol Bay beach
Liz Moore spends most of the year working from her Shoreline, Wash., home office, where she helps evaluate programs run by governments and nonprofits. In the late spring of each year, she returns to this Southwest Alaska community, where she was raised, to pick sockeye out of setnets that stretch from a muddy beach. The shoreline setnet operation she runs includes a half-dozen skiffs and a crew of 10 men and women, some of whom come from as far away as New York. “When we get back to Seattle … it’s a life on pavement,” Moore said. “Here, it’s a life on mud, and I think I’m much more suited for a life on the mud.” >click to read< 15:04
Canada and Nova Scotia help support adoption of new and improved on-board lobster handling/holding technologies
On behalf of the Honourable Joyce Murray, Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, the Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship and Member of Parliament for Central Nova, and the Honourable Steve Craig, Nova Scotia Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture, announced a total contribution of over $400,000 to help the Maritime Fishermen’s Union deliver a project to its members that will improve the quality, vitality and value of harvested lobster. This funding will help the lobster fishery in the Southeastern Northumberland Strait, Eastern Cape Breton and Southwest Nova Scotia improve the quality of lobster being marketed, the efficiency of fishing activities, and the onboard safety of crew. Live-well systems, which measure water quality, will be installed or upgraded on vessels. >click to read< 13:16
Funding announced to help support quality of harvested lobster – >click to read<
Ecuador signs agreement with FDA to facilitate more shrimp imports into the US
An agreement between the United States and Ecuador could impact Alabama’s seafood capital, Bayou La Batre. Officials said the agreement is to help facilitate growth of shrimp exports to the U.S. “It’s really going to affect us a lot more. Shrimp prices are already low, fuel prices are high. It’s going to hurt the fishing industry more than anything,” Local shrimper Trey Bonin said. “It’s crazy. I guess President Joe Biden can sign some paperwork to forgive all the boat loans and the loans that the shrimp shops have to take out. Like he’s doing for the college folks,” Bayou La Batre Mayor Henry Barnes said. Video, >click to read< 10:24
Fisherman lost at sea for 11 days survived in an upturned freezer
A fisherman who was lost at sea managed to survive for 11 days by climbing into an upturned freezer. Romualdo Macedo Rodrigues, 44, was sailing off the coast of French Guiana in a seven-metre wooden boat when it began taking on water and promptly sank. To make matters worse, the Brazillian native couldn’t swim – but luckily, he had a freezer on board so he climbed into that and hoped it would float. He then managed to stay afloat in the floating freezer for 11 days, with no food or water, before he was eventually spotted and pulled from the sea by the crew of another vessel off the coast of Suriname, which borders French Guiana. >click to read< 09:04
F/V Aleutian Isle: Recovery operation ongoing for fishing vessel that sank off San Juan Island
On Thursday, the Coast Guard gave an update on a 49-foot commercial fishing vessel that sank west of San Juan Island on Aug. 13. It was carrying around 2,500 gallons of diesel fuel and a combined 100 gallons of hydraulic fluid and lubricant oil aboard when it sank. The Coast Guard said divers had cut away the ship’s netting to find fuel vents and to prevent entanglement during the scheduled recovery. Four valves were also secured, including valves for waste oil and hydraulic fluid. The Aleutian Isle, which is around 200 feet down, is lying on its starboard side. >click to read< 07:49
Outer Banks Seafood Festival Endowment Created
The Outer Banks Community Foundation is pleased to announce that the Outer Banks Seafood Festival Endowment has been established by the Outer Banks Seafood Festival Board of Directors. The Outer Banks Seafood Festival is a nonprofit organization that promotes the positive impacts of our local seafood industry, educates people about seafood indigenous to North Carolina and the Outer Banks, and provides need-based support to the local fishing community and its members through festival proceeds. The endowed, designated fund will be maintained to support the Seafood Festival and its philanthropy. >click to read< 17:38
Fishermen launch legal action over North East crustation deaths
Fishermen along the North East coast have told of taking up new jobs amid a fishing crisis which has threatened their livelihoods and seen dead crustaceans wash up along the shoreline. Paul Graves, a lifelong fisherman off the Teesside and North Yorkshire coast, has taken up extra jobs over the summer to earn a living while his fishing boat is tied up in Hartlepool Mr Graves, like many other fishermen in the area, have grown frustrated by a marine life crisis which has seen hundreds of dead crustaceans wash ashore along the coast. For Paul, he’s contemplated selling his boat, owned by his family for years, due to the uncertain future. “I tied the boat up and went and did seven weeks work for a cable company,” he said. photos, >click to read< 15:49
An almost exceptional season for Gaspé lobster fishermen
According to the Regrouping of Professional Fishermen of Southern Gaspésie, the 2022 season is second among the best fishing seasons for Gaspé lobster fishermen, after that of 2021. The General Manager of the Regrouping, O’Neil Cloutier, indicates that this observation can be made both from the point of view of prices and of the volumes caught. Gaspé fishermen brought 8,170,000 pounds of lobsters to the wharf in 2022, a decrease of about 2% compared to 2021. Prices followed the same trend, decreasing slightly. On average, anglers had received a record landed price of $8.35 per pound in 2021. They received an average of 40¢ less this year. >click to read< 10:43
Arizona lobster roll chain buys processing plant and wharf in Maine
A growing Arizona restaurant chain is snapping up pieces of Maine’s lobster industry, buying a Bailey Island wharf and now a Richmond lobster processor, so that it can keep selling cheap lobster rolls at its drive-thru locations. Angie’s Lobster bought a processing plant from Shucks Maine Lobster last month, adding to the family-owned wharf in Harpswell it purchased in late July to source lobster for the company. Angie’s officials would not say what they paid for either purchase. Representatives of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association and Maine Lobster Dealers’ Association did not return messages Wednesday evening requesting interviews about the sale. >click to read< 10:03
Fishing company fined $59,000, vessel seized after illegal bottom trawling
A deep sea fishing company has had its vessel seized and fined $59,000 after illegal bottom trawling by a skipper on his first high sea job. The Amaltal Fishing Company, a subsidiary of Talley’s Group Limited, and skipper Charles Shuttleworth, were convicted and sentenced in Nelson District Court on Thursday on 14 charges of bottom trawling in a protected area. In March, Amaltal and Shuttleworth were found guilty of the charges, which were brought by the Ministry for Primary Industries. Reading from court documents, Judge David Ruth described how Shuttleworth, despite his 40-year experience, had never worked on the high seas. >click to read< 09:10
Offshore Windmills Will Generate High Costs and Unsafe Conditions
A new wave of commenters now seems to have adopted the Kennedy family objection to an offshore wind farm that was proposed about 30 years ago for the area just south of Hyannis, off Cape Cod. “Well,” said one Kennedy family member memorably, “but we will have to look at those monstrosities.” Offshore wind is one of the most expensive sources of commercial electricity generation when all costs including maintenance and repairs are included in the rate calculation. Onshore windmills, on the other hand, are one of the least expensive ways to generate electricity, just a little cheaper than using natural gas. However, that’s a problem since Biden inflation and energy production in this country are locked together and have produced nothing but higher costs on everything. >click to read< 08:35
F/V Aleutian Isle lying on starboard side 200 feet down, TFR extended to Oct. 15
An ROV was deployed early Tuesday morning August 30 to the F/V Aleutian Isle wreck site. The ROV and subsequent dive operations confirmed the commercial fishing vessel is lying hard on her starboard side with the hull facing up slope and has not moved from its general location at a depth of more than 200 feet off San Juan Island. Plans were to deploy the ROV again Wednesday afternoon as divers prepare for the next window of opportunity to dive to the wreck site. >click to read< 07:33
