Daily Archives: April 8, 2023
Proposal to Develop Commercial Fish Farms in Santa Barbara Channel Concerns Local Fishermen
A number of Santa Barbara fishermen and concerned citizens are protesting a federal directive that could open local waters to as many as eight commercial fish farms in the Santa Barbara Channel, a move they say would harm not only marine life but also the livelihoods of existing fishermen. “I fish out in the Channel almost every single day,” said Eric Hodge, a local commercial fisherman. “If these fish farms are built, it would directly affect my job of putting food on Californians’ plates. Not only would they make it harder for me to fish on a day-to-day basis, but these corporations could undercut me at the market as well, making it harder for me to make a living.” >click to read< 22:00
San Pedro fisherman pulls up a mammoth relic from the past
Talk about an epic haul. It was a beautiful fall day in mid-November when San Pedro fishing boat skipper Vince “Enzo” Lauro and his five-man crew on the 70-foot-long St. Joseph headed out for what was to be a routine day collecting squid. But what they wound up hauling onboard nearly rolled the vessel: An old, 8,000-pound anchor that had been sucked down long ago into the ocean floor several miles off the Long Beach breakwater opening. Lauro, 59, described the find succinctly: “Crazy.” 6 photos, >click to read< 14:58
Alaska commercial fishing fatalities decline, reflecting national trend
Commercial fishing in Alaska, long notorious as a dangerous and potentially deadly occupation, is getting safer, according to data presented this week to federal regulators. Alaska fishing-related fatalities declined at a rate of 57% from 2013 to 2022, according to the presentation made on Thursday to the North Pacific Fishery Management Council, which is meeting in Anchorage. Alaska, with 88 fishing fatalities from 2013 to 2022, accounted for slightly over a third of the nation’s fishing-related deaths during the period, according to the presentation, made by Samantha Case and Richie Evoy, epidemiologists with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. >click to read< 14:10
F/V Mary B II: Why Coast Guard sluggishness?
It has been more than four years since the deadly capsizing of the crabbing vessel F/V Mary B II while attempting to cross the Yaquina Bay bar inbound in stormy weather on Jan. 8, 2019, killing the skipper and two crew members as Coast Guard vessels were nearby. A Coast Guard Marine Casualty Investigation board convened in Newport, May 13-17, 2019, and soon revealed the captain had alcohol and methamphetamine in his system and one crew member had cannabinoids. The captain had previously operated off New Jersey and wasn’t very familiar with Pacific Coast conditions. >click to read< 13:03 Search Results for F/V MARY B II
As seafood sales rise for Lent, Louisiana shrimpers say their industry is in trouble
With Lent elevating sales of crawfish, fish and shrimp across Louisiana, many local fishermen and shrimpers say they aren’t benefitting. “We’ve been here a long time, and yet we’re just going to get shoved out of the way. When importers come in and start buying cold storage and start buying infrastructure, we’re going to lose our way of life, and Louisiana is going to lose a lot. They’re more at stake than anybody because we’re known for our seafood. That’s why people come to Louisiana is for our seafood and for our culture,” said Acy Cooper, the president of the Louisiana Shrimpers Association. >click to read< 12:02
‘They are serial killers’: How blue crabs are devastating the fishing industry in southern France
For the last three years, the Canet-en-Roussillon lagoon, in southern France, has been under invasion from a blue crab which devours almost everything in its path. Scientists are trying to find the cause of the invastion, but for the time being the only way to keep the numbers under control is fishing. Since the crab tastes so good, local restaurant owners are considering putting it on the menu. Since the invasion began in 2020, the two friends (Yves Rougé and Jean-Claude Pons) have meticulously noted down the number of blue crabs they have caught. “We started seeing them in 2017, it’s been five or six years since they’ve been here,” explains Jean-Claude Pons. “We used to see one or two, then ten, and then it was kilos every day.” >click to read< 10:07
1st ocean fish farm proposed for East Coast off New England
A New Hampshire group wants to be the first to bring offshore fish farming to the waters off New England by raising salmon and trout in open-ocean pens miles from land, but critics fear the plan could harm the environment. The vast majority of U.S. aquaculture, the practice of raising and harvesting fish in controlled settings, takes place in coastal waters or on land, in tanks and ponds. But New Hampshire-based Blue Water Fisheries wants to place 40 submersible fish pens in water about 7.5 miles (12 kilometers) off Newburyport, Massachusetts, on two sites that total nearly a square mile, according to federal documents. >click to read< 09:03
State, federal officials vow to take quick action on Federal Fishery Disaster Declaration for salmon fishing industry
State and federal officials are vowing to move quickly to secure disaster aid for Californians affected by the closure of this year’s commercial and recreational salmon season, which could have an economic impact of $1.4 billion, according to one industry group. The administration of Gov. Gavin Newsom requested a Federal Fishery Disaster Declaration from U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo after a decision Thursday by the Pacific Fishery Management Council to recommend full closure of both commercial and recreational salmon seasons this year. It’s unclear what that might mean in terms of total dollars and eligible stakeholders. >click to read< 08:03
