Daily Archives: July 29, 2024
Scallopers assail continued closure of Northern Edge
Fisheries regulators voted this month to “discontinue” development of a plan to reopen the Northern Edge of Georges Bank — a lucrative scallop ground that has long been closed to commercial fishing. In April, the New England Fishery Management Council agreed to consider requests to reopen the fishing grounds at the urging of both the scallop industry and Mayor Jon Mitchell. He and industry representatives cited significant headwinds for the region’s top fishery, including a slump in prices and fewer days at sea for fishermen. They added that opening the Northern Edge would benefit the whole port economy and surrounding businesses. But in the midst of a four-day meeting in Freeport, Maine, the Council voted not to continue discussing plans to reopen the area in order to focus on the “long-term productivity of the Georges Bank scallop resource.” For regulators, it’s a balancing act to weigh sustainability and the economic pressures on fishermen to sustain their livelihoods. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 17:43
Vineyard Wind Installed the Largest Offshore Turbines in the World. Were They Ready for Primetime?
When Vineyard Wind completed the installation of the first GE Vernova Haliade-X 13-megawatt wind turbine in the waters southwest of Nantucket in October 2023, the company trumpeted it as “the largest turbine in the western world.” It was supposed to be one of the 62 turbines that would make up the first large-scale, commercial offshore wind farm in the United States. But just nine months later, the project has been suspended by the federal government after the now infamous turbine blade failure on July 13th that left Nantucket’s beaches and the waters surrounding the island littered with fiberglass and styrofoam debris that is still being recovered. While offshore wind energy production has a decades-long track record in Europe and Asia, the Vineyard Wind project was the first of its kind in the United States, and the turbines Vineyard Wind is installing are larger and more powerful than any that have come before it. Photos, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 14:55
Fisherman rescues mysterious ‘ghost boat’ drifting off Pembrokeshire coast
A fisherman rescued a mysterious ghost boat drifting eight miles off the Pembrokeshire coast this morning (July 27). Milford Coastguard were contacted about an adrift vessel which prompted a Fishguard lifeboat to locate the boat and confirm no-one was on board. This was before Matt Lewis and his crew proceeded to the last known position of the vessel and the boat was towed in eight miles northwest of Strumble Head back to Fishguard Harbour where the ship was safely moored. In a Facebook post, Matt said: “Not the usual morning fishing. Myself, Vince Gyseman, Iwan Davies and Jack Wallace located and towed in a ghost boat drifting. “The ten metre steel fishing boat was initially reported by Stena Nordica some eight miles northwest of Strumble Head. It had parted ways with its tow vessel twice between Plymouth and St David’s Head. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 13:17
NCFA Weekly Update for July 29, 2024
Upcoming Meetings, The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Committee (ASMFC) will be holding their summer 2024 meeting August 6 – 8 in Arlington, Virginia. The Mid Atlantic Fisheries Management Council (MAFMC) will be meeting August 12 – 15 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission (MFC) will be meeting August 21 – 23 in Raleigh, North Carolina. July has been another busy month for NCFA and next month looks even busier! Thank you all for keeping in touch and continuing to read the Weekly Update. As these meetings draw closer, I will give more detailed information about each meeting the week before it is scheduled. more, >>CLICK TOREAD<< 10:45
Fishing communities welcome B.C. intention to reform licensing and quotas
As part of the Coastal Marine Strategy unveiled last week, the province says it’s moving toward an owner-operator system for quota and licences. Under the new system, licence and quota holders would also need to be active fish harvesters — something advocacy groups and First Nations have been requesting for years. A transition to an owner-operator system would aim to eliminate the ability of a few giants to stake a majority claim on B.C.’s fishing grounds. One company alone, Jim Pattison’s Canfisco, owns double-digit percentages of some fish quotas, worth tens of millions of dollars. An owner-operator system is not a novel concept in the country. Atlantic Canada has had one in place for years, and as a result, has lower costs compared to B.C. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 08:21
‘So-called expert bureaucrats’: Fishermen rip Sen Warren’s new plan to ‘silence’ them
America’s seafood leaders are pushing back on new plans from Democrats on Capitol Hill to revive a legal doctrine that fishermen say threatens to “silence” them. On Tuesday, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., led several of her Democrat colleagues in introducing the Stop Corporate Capture Act (SCCA), which she says is aimed at stopping corporations from “hijacking” the government. With the new threat of the Chevron doctrine finding permanence in federal law, New England fishermen are crying foul and pointing to the recent offshore wind disaster wreaking havoc on the Massachusetts island of Nantucket as a prime example of why lawmakers should not give “expert bureaucrats” power over their industry. Photos, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 06:45
