Daily Archives: November 9, 2022

Texas Oyster Fishing at a ‘Crossroads’ – Parks and Wildlife has closed most of the state’s bays to commercial harvest.

Oyster season got off to a sluggish start this month with only nine out of Texas’ 29 public harvest areas open to commercial fishers. And last Thursday, the Parks and Wildlife Commission voted to close 2,100 acres across three bays near Rockport permanently as a sanctuary for oysters, fish, and other wildlife. Although this new sanctuary takes away just 3 percent of the state’s total harvest area, it’s become a flashpoint for fishers. Because of temporary closures elsewhere, by the end of last oyster season, this small area was providing a third of the harvest. Hundreds of people from commercial fishing families protested outside the Parks and Wildlife headquarters in Austin. “How can we survive if you don’t let us work?” the protestors’ signs read. >click to read< 19:07

St. Paul government declares emergency in attempt to get ahead of looming crab crash

The Pribilof Island of St. Paul runs on snow crab — also known as opilio crab. The community’s Trident Seafoods is one of the largest crab processing plants in the world. So when fisheries management officials announced the species “overfished” and the Alaska Department of Fish and Game shut down snow crab for the first time in the fishery’s history in October, City Manager Phillip Zavadil knew the community needed to act fast. “We’re trying to get creative and have people understand that this is going to happen more and more, and that we need to address it,” Zavadil said. “We can do something now, instead of waiting for next year, when we don’t have any funding or we can’t provide services.” About two weeks after ADF&G’s closure announcement, the city declared a cultural, economic and social emergency. >click to read< 10:51

Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 42′ X 16.5′ David MacDonald Lobster Boat, 500HP Volvo

To review specifications, information, and 22 photos’, >click here<, To see all the boats in this series >click here< 10:09

The next generation: Tyler Miranda fights for New Bedford fishermen

Tyler Miranda went on his first fishing trip on his father’s lobster boat when he was six years old. Little did that child know that over 30 years later he would launch to prominence among New Bedford scallopers when he led the charge against a proposed limited access permit leasing program earlier this year. “I don’t want to be a Wal-Mart fisherman,” he said before representatives of the New England Fishery Management Council in May. “I think the fisherman’s voice should be heard.” Video, photos, >click to read< 07:43

Joyce Murray Brings Opening Remarks to Seal Summit

Every major player in the seal industry gathered in one large room at the Delta Hotel yesterday to brainstorm their way to new products and markets.  Ministers, senators, scientists, business, FFAW, Indigenous leaders and MPs took part in the session. Media, however, were not allowed to cover it, and were told to leave the room following opening remarks by Fisheries and Oceans Minister Joyce Murray. While media were barred from yesterday’s seal summit discussions, Murray will take reporters’ questions when the two-day event wraps up this afternoon. >click to read< 07:04 Newfoundland and Labrador,

Nicole Expected to Become Hurricane Wednesday Before Impacting Florida’s East Coast

Tropical Storm Nicole is expected to become a Category 1 hurricane Wednesday as it moves toward the east coast of Florida, forecasters said. Nicole had maximum sustained winds of 70 miles per hour and was moving west-southwest at 13 mph about 270 miles east of West Palm Beach, according to the latest advisory from the National Hurricane Center in Miami. Nicole is forecast to be at hurricane intensity by Wednesday or Wednesday night while it is moving near or over the northwestern Bahamas, the hurricane center said. >click to read< 06:37