Daily Archives: July 13, 2023
Mary Meaux – Our shrimping industry keeps taking hits with foreign imports
Days before the opening of the Gulf of Mexico commercial shrimp season, a group of shrimpers held a rally in Texas City to bring awareness to the plight of Texas shrimpers and the shrimping industry in general. Tricia Kimball, whose husband Kyle is president of the Port Arthur Area Shrimpers Association, explained the effort. The season for the Gulf of Mexico state and federal waters reopens 30 minutes after sunset Saturday, according to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Kyle Kimball is a third-generation commercial shrimper. He remembers standing on a 5-gallon bucket as a child helping his father pick through shrimp. It’s been his lifelong career but last year when diesel prices hit $5 per gallon, he only went out once because it was too expensive. >click to read< 20:06
Coast Guard medevacs crewmember from fishing vessel near Venice, La.
The Coast Guard medevaced a crewmember from a fishing vessel Wednesday near Venice, Louisiana. Coast Guard Sector New Orleans watchstanders received a call on Channel 16 at 5:13 p.m. from the fishing vessel F/V Sea Charger requesting a medevac for a crewmember aboard who was experiencing stroke-like symptoms. Sector New Orleans watchstanders coordinated the launch of a Coast Guard Station Venice Response Boat – Medium crew to respond. A Coast Guard Cutter Tigershark boat crew also diverted to assist. The boat crews arrived on scene and embarked the man onto the RB-M which then transferred him to awaiting emergency medical services personnel at Coast Guard Station Venice. The man was taken to Ochsner Medical Center West Bank where he was last reported to be in stable condition.
More Than $35 Million for Maine’s Lobster Industry Advanced by Senator Collins in Funding Bill
U.S. Senator Susan Collins, Vice Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced that she advanced more than $35 million and key language to support Maine’s lobster industry in the Fiscal Year 2024 (FY24) Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies (CJS) appropriations bill. The bill, which was officially approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee today, now awaits consideration by the full Senate and House. “Flawed and incomplete data is being used to inform regulations, creating unnecessary, burdensome requirements for Maine lobstermen and women,” said Senator Collins. “This funding would support Maine’s iconic lobster industry by improving the incomplete and imprecise science upon which the federal government relies. As the Vice Chairman of the Appropriations Committee, I will continue to advocate for this funding as the appropriations process moves forward.” >click to read the press release< 15:47
Still a lot of crab to be caught in Newfoundland and Labrador
A 2022 report by consultant David Conway, who was commissioned by the province to review the fish price setting system, recommended the industry begin discussions in October of that year to establish a formula for crab prices for the 2023 season. However, discussions between the FFAW and ASP didn’t get going until March, partly because both groups saw a change in leadership over the winter with Keith Sullivan resigning as union and Derek Butler leaving as executive director of the ASP. The decision on prices for this season fell to the province’s Fish Price Setting Panel which used the final offer selection model, where processors and the union each made a pitch on price and the panel had to choose one or the other. >click to read< 13:12
Aloncar Launches Innovative Artisanal Vessel
The Aloncar shipyard in Argentina launched on 17th June the last trawler in a series of three similar vessels that have been under construction since last year. Virgen de Itatí 2 replaces a smaller coastal boat with the same name which has been operating from the Patagonian port of Rawson for more than 15 years. Although it has an overall length of just 10 metres, Virgen de Itatí 2 is designed to have the functionality of a larger, modern fishing vesel. The shipyard’s engineers took care to optimise its hydrodynamic qualities, developing a final layout that has proved to be effective and stable. The design incorporated an inverted bow arrangement. Virgen de Itatí 2 is also outfitted with the latest equipment. Photos, >click to read< 11:55
Retired Commercial Fisherman Bernard J. Mattera of San Pedro, California, has passed away
It is with heavy hearts to announce the peaceful passing of our beloved Father. Bernard J. Mattera, born and raised in San Pedro, California, on July 17, 1933, passed away on July 3, 2023, surrounded by his loving family, just 14 days short of his 90th birthday. Benny was a retired Commercial Fisherman of 55 years. He was a proud owner of several fishing boats, including bait and tuna boats. He was most proud of FV Pioneer, which he captained and engineered alongside his son John. Dad enjoyed his family immensely, especially his great-grandchildren. Benny was a prayerful man and would pray up to 15 complete Rosaries a day for his family and whoever had a request and need. >click to read< 10:32
Weekend event to challenge wind farm plans up and down shore
Offshore wind power opponents scheduled a waterfront protest starting at 11 a.m. Saturday, with plans for participants to gather on beaches throughout South Jersey. Some have posted plans to gather in Ocean City, Wildwood Crest, on Long Beach Island and on Atlantic County beaches. “This is not just an Ocean City event. This is all New Jersey beaches and beyond,” said Adrienne Possenti, a Vineland resident who is helping organize the Ocean City gathering. But she said the Ocean City gathering is particularly urgent as the plans call for cables to pass under the city to bring offshore wind power to the grid. “If we can stop that, we stop the rest of the project,” Possenti said Wednesday. >click to read< 09:38
Wind Farm Protesters to “Link Hands” on Beaches – Opponents of a proposed wind energy farm off the South Jersey coast will link hands on the beaches Saturday in a protest symbolizing their unified fight against a project they believe will be an environmental and economic disaster. Photos, info, >click to read< 11:30
The new Vietnamese generation leaves the seafood business behind in Mississippi. Why?
The son does not know how to sew the nets. The father took the old boat out last month but caught no shrimp. And the docks at Bayou Caddy, where Sau Truong once taught young Elvis Ta the ways of the Gulf of Mexico, are quiet this summer. The fishermen have all gone home. “Real soon,” Ta predicts, “the Gulf Coast shrimp industry will be gone.” One by one, the children of Vietnamese fishermen on the Mississippi Coast are forsaking the livelihood that once meant everything to their families. The water was Truong’s world, four decades ago, he had fled home, crossed an ocean and eventually bought his own boat. For some, the shift is not a shock. Nguyen said many parents are excited to see kids follow careers that they choose, instead of careers they have no choice but to do. Photos, >click to read< 08:52
Midcoast Maine lobsterman Sadie Samuels featured in new NBC series on women in food
Rockport lobster boat captain and Belfast restaurant owner Sadie Samuels was featured on an NBC streaming show in a recent episode focusing on women in the commercial fishing industry. In the Head of the Table streaming show “Women on the Water” episode, host Elena Bessert introduces viewers to both Samuels and a Washington state indigenous fishing guide and outdoor influencer. Samuels comes from a fishing family and got her student lobster license at age 7 when she began throwing a few traps from her father’s lobster boat. At age 14, she bought her own boat, named Must Be Nice. She still fishes from that boat. >click to read< 07:43
