Daily Archives: July 6, 2023
NOAA’s Sanctuary Expansion Proposal: ‘The nail in the coffin’ of American Samoa’s tuna industry
A regional fishery council warned that the Biden administration’s plan to block off the U.S territorial waters in the Pacific would be the end of American Samoa’s tuna canning industry and quash the culture which the federal government claims to protect. While commercial fishing is currently allowed within 50 to 200 miles of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument, the National Oceanic Atmospheric Agency’ssanctuary expansion proposal would completely cover the U.S exclusive economic zone, prohibiting commercial fishing by U.S fishermen in U.S waters. “For more than 30 years, American Samoa-based purse seiners and Honolulu-based longliners operated in the waters of the Pacific Remote Islands Area until the establishment of the PRIMNM in 2006,” the Western Pacific Fishery Management Council said. “This new action will force U.S purse seiners to fish farther away from Pago Pago Harbor and transport their catch to Mexico and Ecuador instead of the StarKist Samoa cannery, which serves as the backbone of American Samoa’s economy,” the council added.>click to read< 15:45
World Ocean Day Prompts Calls for Action
Calling themselves “Ocean Rebels for the COZ” members of Clean Ocean Action (COA), Mayor John Peterson, naturalist Trisha DeVoe and others came out to promote for the aquatic environment during World Ocean Day. Those present noted that after four decades of progress in ocean protection, new and old threats were being fast tracked that could impact the ocean of today. Peterson said he hoped to see “officials of all elected levels of government, up and down the Jersey shore” in joining COA 
in making the public aware “of the threats to our ocean and what can happen if we become complacent. Lavallette resident Brick Wenzel spoke to Jersey Shore Online.com from the perspective of a commercial fisherman. “I am the fishing liaison for the Fishermen’s Dock Cooperative out of Point Pleasant Beach. I have been a licensed commercial fisherman since 1982. When you look at the industrialization of our ocean, the commercial fishing industry is the most heavily impacted blue water economy with the industrial build out.” Photos, >click to read< 12:51
B.C. man fined $160K for breaking Canadian, U.S. fishing laws
A B.C. man who pleaded guilty to four counts related to breaching Canadian and U.S. fishing laws has been given a three-year deadline to pay $160,000 worth of fines. Judge Kimberly Arthur-Leung considered Hoan Trung Do’s fishing activities in Boundary Bay between July 15, 2018 and Oct. 31, 2020 before determining he’d “knowingly broke the law for financial gain and to the detriment of the environment,” according to a recent provincial court decision. The ruling explains that Do has been fishing since 1999 and therefore knew the regulations surrounding Boundary Bay, which is described as “a pocket of the Salish Sea bordering the joint Canadian and (U.S.) waters.” >click to read< 11:27
Female Fisherman Ashely Mullenger sees following boom after award
Norfolk’s ‘Female Fisherman’ has seen her social media following boom as she continues to bang the drum for British seafood since winning a national award one year ago. Ashley Mullenger, 36, was crowned ‘Fisherman of the Year’ in the Fishing News Awards last May – the first time ever a woman had won the title. Mrs Mullenger, who is based in Wells-next-the-Sea, said the flurry of media attention that has followed – including an appearance on Jeremy Vine’s Radio Two show – has given her the chance to promote British seafood. “The award has opened doors of opportunities for me,” she said. photos, >click to read< 10:47
California’s Salmon Fishers Are Facing a Summer Without Salmon. Will They Get Federal Help?
On another day, Matt Juanes would have set out on the water long before sunrise. Juanes, an experienced salmon and crab fisherman who has worked out of Fisherman’s Wharf for over five years, is no stranger to the trade. Today, though, he would be chasing an unfamiliar catch for the first time: coonstripe shrimp. Juanes is one of hundreds of commercial fishers who dock along the Golden State coast and who would normally be out hunting mighty chinook or “king” salmon — the mainstay of California’s commercial salmon fishing industry. The first months of summer are typically a premier time for both salmon and salmon fishers. But this summer, California’s salmon fishing season is completely shut down for the first time in over a decade. Photos, >click to read< 09:40
State engineer accuses SouthCoast Wind of lying to RI agencies. What the email says.
David Ciochetto, an ocean engineer with the state Coastal Resources Management Council, said the joint venture between Shell and Ocean Winds made false statements about its offshore wind project in written testimony to the Rhode Island Energy Facility Siting Board before a hearing last month. In an email to the coordinator of the siting board, Ciochetto said that, contrary to what SouthCoast Wind testified, an application that the company filed with the CRMC is incomplete and not under review. In addition, said Ciochetto, the company misrepresented the status of communications with a fishing board that advises the coastal council on the impacts of offshore wind development on commercial and recreational fishermen. SouthCoast Wind has not met with the Fisherman’s Advisory Board or experts that work with the board, said Ciochetto, who argued that the misleading statements are part of a larger pattern with the company. >click to read< 08:25
Biden-Harris Administration Approves Third Major Offshore Wind Project in U.S. Waters
The Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management today announced it has approved the plan for construction and operations of the Ocean Wind 1 project offshore New Jersey. Located about 13 nautical miles southeast of Atlantic City, the project will have an estimated capacity of 1,100 megawatts of clean energy – capable of powering over 380,000 homes – and is expected to create more than 3,000 good-paying jobs through development and a three-year construction cycle. >click to read< 07:30
