Monthly Archives: May 2023
Snow crab producers, harvesters ready to move on from 6-week delay to start of season
“We have a shortened season, we have an increase in quota, and it’s very important that we keep our focus not on what has happened, but where we need to go,” ASP executive director Jeff Loder told reporters Tuesday. Loder did show slight frustration around the length of the holdout, saying both the price of $2.20 and the incremental increases were part of conversations months ago. Although the FFAW wasn’t able to change the $2.20 per pound set by the price-setting panel, President Greg Pretty says the work done in six weeks of holding out, like making sure $2.20 is the minimum price along with incremental increases, is a positive. >click to read< 15:06
Maine: Lobstermen support better science to help right whales
The historical record of Maine lobstermen is clear.One right whale entangled in 2004 was disentangled and swam free. No right whale death has ever been attributed to Maine lobster gear. Gov. Janet Mills and our congressional delegation, without partisanship, acknowledge Maine lobstermen are not a threat to the right whale population. Despite never having seen one in the 50 years I’ve fished; I’ve made multiple changes to make my gear more whale friendly. These changes have been time-consuming, expensive, and potentially dangerous to me and my crew but resulted in less rope in the water. >click to read< 11:52
Blessing of the Fleet honors those in local fishing industry
The annual Blessing of the Fleet and Memorial Service will be held at the Charleston Fisherman’s Memorial Garden on Memorial Day. The service honors the local men and women involved in commercial fishing and the fishing industry who have lost their lives since 1941. This year they will be honoring fishermen Stan Main and Chauncey Woodworth, and fishing industry professionals Kevin Roy Cameron and Fernando Sandez. The 1954 Buoy Bell will be rung as each name is read, which is significant because fishermen rely on this sound to aid in safe navigation. The Fisherman’s Memorial Committee members said everyone in the community is invited to participate in the event. “It’s a matter of showing appreciation to the fisherman and to honor them, and it’s a nice event that shows patriotism,” Whitmer said. photos, >click to read< 11:26
State charges Petersburg fishing guides with 54 violations
Four fishing guides at a Petersburg lodge are being charged by the State of Alaska with over 50 violations. The four men were working for Rocky Point Resort in 2019 and 2020. All of the charges are misdemeanors involving illegal fishing for halibut. Halibut is strictly regulated with a limited quota for commercial and sports fishermen, and the harvests must be documented. State and federal officers were involved in the investigations, including undercover officers posing as fishing clients. >click to read< 10:29
THE RECENT TIE-UP – Leadership and protecting Rural Communities – Ryan Everard
To me this tie-up was a lot more than fishing for $2.20 a pound. It was an opportunity to let our stories be told and our voices be heard. It’s about the overall state the industry is in, and it’s about all of us coming together and letting our voices finally be heard. No matter what fleet you are in, or if you wear an apron or oil skins, we need to all come together and remove the rules that are meant to divide us. When I look at the Inshore vs Offshore & Plant- Workers VS Crew members, I don’t see a big difference in any of us other than financially living in three separate worlds. I see families with nine Trap Bert draws vs one, and I see the wife’s, sons, and daughters that helped spread their fish. Just like it was a family affair for our forefathers, I believe it still a family affair for all of us. >click to read< 09:38
SNP MP urges locals to oppose marine protection plans
The proposals to restrict fishing and other human activities in some coastal areas are designed to protect wildlife and the environment. But fishing industry representatives, along with people in many communities in the Highlands and Islands, have raised concerns – as have several of the SNP’s own MSPs. Mr. O’Hara, an outspoken critic of his party’s plan to introduce HPMAs on the west coast, has urged his constituents to make their opinions known to the Scottish government by contacting his office directly to have their views collated and shared with Holyrood ministers. >click to read< 08:30
New Bedford Port Authority weighs in on fisheries mitigation for offshore wind
New Bedford Port Authority Executive Director Gordon Carr is calling for SouthCoast Wind to follow Vineyard Wind’s lead in support of local fisheries programs and projects. Vineyard Wind is closing in on construction of its wind farm. “Similar to Vineyard Wind, SouthCoast Wind has deployed a robust fisheries liaison program staffed by professionals that truly know the commercial fishing industry,” he said. The New Bedford Port Authority is a member of an advisory panel established by Vineyard Wind. “It is difficult to determine the areas most impacted given the many unknowns related to offshore wind effects on the ocean ecosystem and the fishery,” he said. >click to read< 07:39
Haddock stock decline prompts catch limits
A low New England haddock stock has prompted regulators to cut the fishing quota of one of the region’s most popular fish. A staple in fish and chips and for fish burgers and home cooks, the amount available from the Gulf of Maine and Georges Bank for 2023 will be more than 80 percent less than the previous year. Prices are relatively high for shoppers, too, with Hannaford, Shaw’s and local fish dealers asking anywhere from $11.99 to $14.99 per pound this month for wild caught Gulf of Maine haddock. Haddock is “subject to overfishing” in the Gulf of Maine while the Georges Bank stock is not, according to NOAA Fisheries. >click to read< 19:02
Farmers and Fishermen: In the Sweat of Their Brow
I tried to put my finger on the pulse of the world in order to understand what ties these farmers to their land and these fishermen to the sea. I went wherever life erupts: to a pasture where a farmer slowly prods his cattle along, into the shade of a stable… 3PM. I embark for the first time on board of the trawler Alcyon 2. Cézembre and Samy are mending the fish nets, while Thierry begins to maneuver. The anchor is raised. The lights of the port fade away little by little. In the cabin, Samy is brewing 
coffee. The down comforters are laid out for the night. 3AM. The sound of metal clanking under the chains. Samy and Cézembre take a few seconds to slip on their fishing gear before heading back to the stern. Back on land, at the La Vallée café in Quintin. The oldest of the farmers is leaning against the counter, a scarf pulled over his head. He is a regular. This is the local watering hole. The morning light timidly pierces the mist. Photos, >click to read< 17:54
Transparency and Taking Control of the Merchants that Controlled our Family Since John Cabot
Just to be transparent and clear on my motives. My only goal is to cap our new boat at the 3 licences its allowed over the next 8 years so my kids have the same right as John and Jane Dos got in the larger fleet. I was forced out of the program in 2008 but I persevered and stayed fishing anyway and now I am a certified Fishing Master that paid for it out of my own pocket rather than depending on government funding to do it. That don’t make me less of a Professional Fish Harvester or less of a Fishing Master. >click to read the rest< by Ryan Everard (Certified Fishing Master)
Shrimpers and Crabbers Get Paid to Collect Abandoned Traps, Saving Wildlife from Derelict Fishing Hazards
Fishermen in Mississippi are getting paid to collect derelict crab traps, saving wildlife from getting caught in them. A bounty of $5 is offered for every abandoned trap collected, and in just three years the program, launched by Mississippi Commercial Fisheries United, a nonprofit fishermen’s organization, has collected over 3,000 such traps. This is perfect for fishermen looking to supply the Gulf Coast with delicious seafood, but what happens when the traps are abandoned or become lost? Their lethal trapping power remains and carries on indiscriminately, a phenomenon known as ghost fishing. >click to read< 12:29
Offshore wind moves forward amid calls for marine life studies
The offshore wind sector is taking shape every day in New Jersey while calls continue for a pause in activity to learn more about whether any of the work is connected to whale and dolphin deaths along the state’s beaches. “Today’s actions by NJDEP represent significant milestones and critical steps that are needed to advance the state’s first offshore wind project and bring clean, reliable energy and the associated economic benefits to the region,” said Maddy Urbish, Ørsted’s head of government affairs and market strategy, New Jersey. Ocean Wind 1 still needs additional state and local approvals, as well as clearance from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, before construction can begin. So far, the work has centered on ocean floor mapping using sonar technology. Those calling for the pause point to this work as a potential link, saying that the sonar can disorient marine life. >click to read< 11:31
Stock assessments show Maritime lobster population strong, fishery sustainable
Adam Cook is a DFO biologist who tracks lobster populations along the Scotian Shelf and Bay of Fundy, waters that support nearly 3,000 commercial licence holders in 12 lobster fishing areas (LFAs). Cook and his colleagues recently posted stock assessments for 2022. He said all LFAs in the Maritimes are in a healthy zone for stock status. “Which suggests there’s still enough lobster to not raise any sort of conservation concerns. The commercial biomass is doing quite well,” Cook said. It’s the same story in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence, although DFO’s stock assessments for five fishings area in that region have not been posted. >click to read< 10:17
Starlink helps locate sunken treasure in Washington waters worth millions
Nearly 150 years ago, the SS Pacific and the S/V Orpheus collided off the coast of Cape Flattery in Washington state. While the Orpheus was able to ready lifeboats and make necessary repairs, the SS Pacific was not so fortunate, sinking into the late-night waters killing all but two of its estimated, 325 passengers. To this day, the incident remains one of the deadliest maritime disasters in Pacific Northwest history. Jeff Hummel and Matt McCauley first met while attending a high school in Mercer Island in 1979. In conversation, Hummel brought up a sunken airplane he knew about, which his father witnessed crash in Lake Washington while working at the Boeing plant in Renton. Photos, >click to read< 09:32
Saving The Whales. The Fight Against Offshore Wind Farms.
As nine European countries sign a declaration to turn the North Sea into a huge industrial wind farm zone, they have effectively committed to wiping out wildlife on a monstrous scale; a mass, indiscriminate, destruction of life forms that have survived for millennia. A shocking opinion? Yes, but also a real possibility – and one thing is very certain, this is nothing to do with ‘green’ energy, ‘net zero’ or climate change. This is everything to do with greed and folly, a lethal combination. Whale Deaths And Wind Farms – An Obvious Connection >click to read< 08:45
HMPAs: Ross Greer put in his place by furious fishermen over ‘contemptuous’ marine ban tweet
Ross Greer made a “contemptuous comment” about the impact of fishing bans on coastal areas amid the ongoing backlash against the proposed Highly Protected Marine Areas (HPMAs). “The fisherman in the North Sea of the 1830s could catch one ton of halibut a day. Now the annual halibut take of the North Sea is two tons.” Fifth generation fisherman Kenneth MacNab said: “You know absolutely nothing about fishing or stocks but your welcome to come out anytime you wish just to let you see what actual work is and what fishermen have to do to support their communities to put it into perspective HPMAs will be 10 times worse than Brexit ever was.” >click to read< 07:49
South Shields lifeboat, the Bedford, restored by maritime trust
Constructed in 1886, The Bedford was the last lifeboat to be built by the Tyne Lifeboat Institution – now the Tyne Lifeboat Society. She was launched on 55 occasions between 1887 and 1937 and is of great historical significance to the maritime heritage of South Shields. The Bedford was built in 1886 by Lancelot Lambert at the Lawe Building Yard. It was named by a Miss Bedford, who bequeathed £1,000 – about £468,900 in today’s money- to the Lifeboat Society Trustees for a lifeboat to be named in memory of her brother, Benjamin, who was an engineer with the Tyne Improvement Commission. Photos, >click to read< 17:45
Grill your lobster on the BBQ and your life will never be the same again!
Lobster season has finally arrived! Grilling is a very good alternative for cooking lobster, and it’s easier than you think to do. Whether live or precooked, whole or shelled, there are many recipes to make with grilled lobster. Simply dipped in flavored butter, stuffed in homemade pasta or rolled, lobster stands out with its tender flesh and unique taste. Take advantage of the short season to light the grill and cook magnificent Quebec lobsters with ease. This recipe only takes a few minutes to make, but the flavors will surprise you. Enjoy your BBQ! >click to read< 13:18
Fishermen join disaster response effort
It took 10 years for Casey Streeter to build his fishing business, but it took just 10 hours for it all to be washed away. When Hurricane Ian hit Florida last September, local Pine Island fisherman Streeter lost nearly everything. But everything changed when Streeter got a personal call from AshBritt’s founder Randy Perkins to join him in recovery efforts. That’s why it was special for Streeter to join Congressman Byron Donalds to experience AshBritt’s coordinated debris removal work in action. >click to read< 11:33
Disaster aid has arrived, but Western Alaska’s salmon and crab problems continue
The Alaska congressional delegation announced on Friday that the U.S. Commerce Department released the disaster aid. The money is to go to harvesters, processors and communities affected by designated disasters in salmon and crab fisheries that occurred between 2020 and 2022. For Bering Sea snow crab, signs are that the problems that led to the first-ever harvest closure, which was announced last October, will last for years. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries Service 2022 survey found that despite the emergence of cooler and more normal temperatures, mature male snow crab abundance was the lowest on record and mature female snow crab abundance was the third lowest on record. >click to read< 10:12
‘Aggravation’ expected when part of lobster fishing area closes
Chris Wall is among those being asked by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans to remove all their gear from a portion of lobster fishing area 24 before it closes on Tuesday at 5 p.m. due to the confirmed sighting of a North Atlantic right whale. “It will affect the bottom line because I think you’re going to find more people in a smaller area trying to catch the same amount of lobsters,” Wall said. “So … it will affect everybody. It’s just going to cause some aggravation, for sure.” Wall isn’t aware of any right whale ever getting caught in lobster fishing gear on P.E.I., he said. >click to read< 08:56
Lobstergate: The unintended consequences of Britain’s Freeports
In the distance is Bran Sands, a jut of land perched at the face of the estuary where the river meets the North Sea, and a dredger is passing by, moving tonnes of sediment from the River Tees to be disposed of some miles out. Fishermen Paul Widdowfield and Stan Rennie tell me this sight has become a daily occurrence. To them, it is a salty and unwelcome one. Neither Widdowfield or Rennie have gone out on their day boats for almost 18 months now. Both had fished out of Hartlepool for 40 years or more, catching brown and velvet crabs and highly prized lobsters. Today, in an area synonymous with fine shellfish, there is little or nothing left to land. The Teesside Freeport is, according to the government, the UK’s largest, “driving growth in renewables, advanced manufacturing and the chemicals and process sectors.” >click to read< 07:53
Future generations
I am the Son of James Everard and the nephew of the late Tom Best. I am a member of what once was the largest inshore fishing family in Petty Harbour known as the “Best Brothers” whom received bravery medals for risking their lives from the Order of Canada to save others who were in distress. Now it’s time we need your help to rebuild the inshore fishery here in Petty Harbour. All our licences are leaving the community to Large Boat fishing family’s because the rules in the professionalization program are designed to help them grow and in turn destroy us. >click to read< 18:07
Shrimpers in Louisiana struggling to survive off low prices
Last week, shrimpers from across Louisiana held a rally at the State Capitol, blaming foreign imports for overcrowding the market. “You’re not breaking even right now, you’re in the red. Matter of fact, you’re below the red. I just don’t know what else to do,” Hackberry shrimper Kenny Kellum said. The abundance of foreign imported shrimp has caused prices to plummet in Louisiana, making it nearly impossible for shrimpers to survive. “We don’t want to give it up but we’re being forced out of something we’ve been doing all our lives and there’s no reason why somebody else should come in here and put us out of our living,” Kellum said. Video, >click to read< 16:34
Chesapeake Bay blue crab population improves after all-time low in 2022
This year, the number of spawning age female crabs and adult male crabs both increased substantially, but the number of juvenile crabs only increased by about 15%, according to the winter dredge survey, which is completed from December to March by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources and the Virginia Institute of Marine Science. “We are encouraged by the increases in adult crab abundance, but we need to be vigilant given the ongoing low recruitment numbers,” said Lynn Fegley, acting director for Maryland Department of Natural Resources’s Fishing and Boating Services, in a statement. “We haven’t seen a strong year class since 2019 despite maintaining the spawning stock at a level capable of producing one.” Video, >click to read< 12:56
Right whale sighting shuts down lobster fishing section for at least 15 days
The Department of Fisheries and Oceans is asking lobster fishers to remove all gear in a portion of Lobster Fishing Area 24 within the next 96 hours due to the confirmed sighting of a North Atlantic right whale. The whale was at the 10 and 20 fathom line in LFA 24 off the Island’s northern coast, the P.E.I. Fishermen’s Association said in a release. Charlie McGeoghegan, chair of the P.E.I. Lobster Marketing Board, said the early closure is “very disappointing.” “It’s the heart of our season.” >click to read< 11:36
Maritime Explorer: Captain Cameron McLellan
As a skilled sailor and navigator, Cameron McLellan hails from a family of multi–generations of seafarers. On the paternal side, the McLellans have hundreds of years of fishing in their bones with a few spar markers on the bank of the Kennebec River in the mix. The McLellan’s fished the Grand Banks, George’s Banks, and the Gulf of Maine several generations back. On the maternal side, the Murphy’s were full–rigged ship captains. With this heritage and a level of comfort on the sea, there was no question from an early age that Cameron would continue the tradition and make his living on the water. While successful as a fisherman, Cameron always kept his childhood dream alive. >click to read< 10:30
Role of Unionized Firms at Center of Maine’s Offshore Wind Debate
On Thursday the Maine Legislature’s Energy, Utilities and Technology Committee held a public hearing on a proposal to pave the way for the development of offshore wind infrastructure in the Gulf of Maine, including the construction of a coastal manufacturing facility that would build the offshore floating wind turbines Lawmakers also considered Thursday Rep. Tiffany Strout’s (R-Harrington) LD 1884, a bill that would block offshore wind developments. In recent years, the prospect of filling the Gulf of Maine with hundreds of wind turbines has taken on an air of inevitability, with environmental groups, industry groups, and well-paid lobbyists pouring millions of dollars into political pressure campaigns and ad campaigns designed to build support for the project. Unions, construction companies, investment companies, and lobbyists are all lining up to secure their share of what could be one of the largest taxpayer-funded projects in the history of the state. >click to read< 09:42
Bigger Mi’kmaw lobster fishery possible because DFO redistributed unused licences
Mike Leonard, director of Indigenous fisheries management for DFO’s Maritimes region, said the federal department has bought back lobster licences over the years as commercial fishers voluntarily relinquished them, creating a bank of licences that Indigenous communities can access. That process has allowed Eskasoni to join two other First Nations in the moderate livelihood fishery during this spring’s season without affecting the health of the lobster stocks, he said. “In the first year, in 2021, we worked with Potlotek First Nation and then last year We’koqma’q First Nation joined as well and this year it’s become an Unama’ki approach, so across the Unama’ki traditional territory, which aligns with Cape Breton,” Leonard said. >click to read< 08:55
Deal reached in Newfoundland and Labrador crab fishery, harvesters to start fishing
A bitter standoff that shut down Newfoundland and Labrador’s lucrative snow crab fishery for nearly six weeks came to an end on Friday. The union representing inshore fishers and plant workers announced its negotiating team had reluctantly signed a deal with the group representing seafood processors to start the fishery. The deal guarantees prices would not fall below $2.20 a pound, the price fishers were protesting in the first place. Shortly after the union announced the agreement, the provincial government issued a news release saying the deal was the culmination of a meeting that day between the union, the processors association and Premier Andrew Furey, who thanked the two parties for working together. >click to read< 07:56
