Daily Archives: February 24, 2024
A crew member has died after an incident on a Clearwater Seafoods vessel in eastern Nova Scotia
A crew member has died after an incident on a Clearwater Seafoods vessel in eastern Nova Scotia, the province’s Department of Labour confirmed Saturday. The department says it was notified of the death Thursday, and a stop-work order is in place as officials investigate what happened. The death is the second workplace fatality in Nova Scotia this week. Christine Penney, a spokesperson for Clearwater Seafoods, said the incident took place Thursday on board the Anne Risley, which is a company vessel that has been undergoing annual maintenance refits in Mulgrave, N.S. More, >>click to read<< 18:58
Here’s how activists use lobstermen as bait to endanger Maine industry, communities
Far left activists are exploiting the recent death of an endangered whale to imperil the future of Maine’s iconic lobster fishery. These organizations have poor command of the facts and no knowledge of our industry. Their agitating imperils our fishery and the working communities that depend on it. Organizations like the National Resources Defense Council, the Conservation Law Foundation and others are exploiting this event to pressure regulators to impose new rules. These organizations are restless and can claim some success. A self-styled watchdog called Seafood Watch convinced Whole Foods to stop stocking Maine lobster products late in 2022. 3 Videos, more, >>click to read<< By Dustin Delano 16:12
Bailouts
The Alaska Congressional delegation is singing praises for a new $100 million bailout of the state’s floundering commercial salmon processing business. In a joint statement from the office of Sen. Lisa Murkowski, the trio applauded the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) move with the state’s senior Republican lawmaker tried to spin it as a new poverty program to provide “almost $100 million of Alaskan seafood for people experiencing food insecurity. “This purchase won’t just bolster Alaska’s seafood industry and support our coastal communities,” Murkowski was quoted as saying, “but will help bring the highest-quality and healthiest seafood products in the world to families in need. I am grateful for the USDA’s investment in our fishermen and the health of Americans.” There has been no actual “investment in our fishermen,” presuming she is talking about Alaska fishermen. But they may benefit from a deal that helps processors clean out some of their inventory before the upcoming fishing season. More, >>click to read<< 13:06
Oregon: Fishing group reacts to BOEM news on offshore wind
Despite overwhelming opposition from tribes, fishing organizations and coastal communities, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced the release of the final wind energy areas (WEAs) off Oregon’s south coast today. The WEAs remain unchanged from the draft areas released earlier this year. State agencies, fishermen, environmentalists, state legislators and others raised significant concerns about the draft WEAs, apparently to no avail. “This is a slap in the face to the many stakeholders who have been trying to engage with BOEM for the last few years,” said Heather Mann, Director of the Midwater Trawlers Cooperative. “BOEM is a rogue federal agency pushing a dangerous agenda largely unchecked. BOEM will stop at nothing until our oceans are littered with wind turbines and all just to meet an arbitrary political deadline.” more, >>click to read<< 10:24
A day on the ocean with Maine’s tough winter scallopers
Their day began in the 5:30 a.m. darkness, when Josh Todd and his father, Alex Todd, steamed the F/V Jacob & Joshua from Chebeague Island to Littlejohn Island, where they picked up Blanchard. As Alex Todd piloted his boat to the day’s fishing ground west of Eagle Island, Josh Todd and Blanchard readied the vessel’s eight-foot, 1,500-pound dredge where it hung from scaffolding at the stern. Once in position, Blanchard lowered the dredge on a quarter-inch steel cable. The Jacob & Joshua shuddered, and the rigging groaned, as the dredge bit into the graveled sea floor, roughly 80 feet below. 8 photos, more, >>click to read<< 08:15
‘It’s definitely precedent setting:’ commercial prawn operator fined $250K
Prawning in an environmentally sensitive area off the lower Sunshine Coast resulted in a heavy fine and fishing gear seizure against a Delta man. A recent provincial court sentencing hearing in Sechelt followed the conviction of 13 violations under Canada’s Fisheries Act against Dean Keitsch in connection to incidents in July 2020 off the coastal community on board his vessel Dark Star. Fisheries officers retrieved more than 550 prawn traps set at the bottom of the Strait of Georgia Glass Sponge Reef Marine Refuge, which is closed to all forms of bottom fishing. photos, more, >>click to read<< 07:05
U.S. Coast Guard performs medevac recuse off coast of Nantucket for injured crew member
The U.S. Coast Guard performed a medevac recuse off the coast of Nantucket for an injured crew member on Thursday. According to the Coast Guard, the fishing vessel F/V Rachel Leah was 150 nautical miles off Nantucket when a crewman sustained facial injuries. The victim was described as a 50-year-old with a large laceration. The Coast Guard says a tight line struck him in the face. Video, >>click to read<< 06:01
