Daily Archives: September 7, 2023

Warming bonus

 

A warmer ocean continues to smile on Alaska commercial salmon fishermen, but the fish market is sadly another story. The 49th state these days finds itself vying with Russia to become the world’s biggest supplier of cheap salmon to stuff into cans and pouches while upscale consumers spend their money on nice, fat salmon filets. Norwegian salmon farmers – Leroy, Mowi and others who specialize in six-and-a-half to 13-pound Atlanatic – are posting record profits and worry about being taxed by the Norwegian government the way Alaska taxes oil, and Alaska fishermen are waiting to find out just how low the final price for the bulk of their catch, pink salmon that have in recent years averaged 3.4 pounds, according to Alaska Department of Fish and Game data.  >>click to read<<

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Third-Generation Provincetown Fisherman Kenneth Macara, has passed away

Kenneth Roland Macara of Provincetown and Delray Beach, Fla. died at home on Aug. 16, 2023 after a short battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 91. The grandson of Joseph Macara, who emigrated from Portugal to Provincetown in 1899 and captained four draggers, including one named Victory, and the son of fisherman Manuel Macara and his wife, Inez, Kenneth was born on Dec. 9, 1931 in Provincetown and grew up here. When he was nine, he said in a 2021 interview for the Provincetown Portuguese Festival, he “forced” his father to “let me go fishing.” That desire to go to sea dominated his life. He was known as a “highliner,” a fisherman whose boats produced high yields of fish and thus high profits. As his grandfather and father had done, he captained draggers, taking over Victory II from his father. After years of fishing, Kenneth built a new boat, the Ruthie L, named after his wife, and passed Victory II on to his son Kenneth II. In his 2021 interview, Kenneth described the fate of the latter.  >>click to read<< 10:06

Cheryl Clegg presents her Endangered Lobsterman portrait series

Photographer Cheryl Clegg is undertaking a project to highlight the endangered Maine lobstermen. She says it’s an effort to “put faces to those that are impacted by the regulations to the community and the red list.” Her exhibit will feature portraits of local fishing families, and the public is welcome. It will be at Hammond Hall in Winter Harbor from August 30th through October 29th, with a reception scheduled for Sunday, September 10th at 4 p.m. Video, >>click to read<< 09:09

Florida Gov. DeSantis Requests Aid For Fishing Industry

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday sent a formal request to the U.S. Department of Commerce seeking assistance for the fishing industry after last week’s Hurricane Idalia. Without putting a dollar figure on the potential damage, DeSantis said in a letter to Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo that the commercial and residential fishing communities in North Florida’s Big Bend region were “greatly affected” by the Category 3 hurricane. Florida’s Big Bend is an important cornerstone of the state’s fishery,” DeSantis said in the letter. “This region includes over 600 fishermen, 160 fishery wholesalers and retailers, 240 aquaculture shellfish farmers, and 450 for-hire charter captains, all of which play important commercial fishery roles.”  ><<>click to read<<  07:54