The massive blade that broke off a windmill tower, splashed down into the ocean and had pieces wash up on Nantucket beaches a few weeks ago is having repercussions here today in Connecticut. The joint venture project being developed by a division of Orange-based Avangrid and a Dutch renewable energy company is under scrutiny, even as construction of the 806-megawatt offshore wind farm came to halt in mid-July when a 300-foot section of a 360-foot blade broke off one of the turbines that are part of Vineyard Wind. The project, which is a joint venture of Avangrid Renewables and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, is being developed about 15 miles south of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket, and 35 miles from mainland Massachusetts. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 10:29
Daily Archives: August 6, 2024
FFAW celebrating decision against seafood processors in snow crab dispute
The Fish, Food and Allied Workers union is celebrating a ruling over last year’s payment dispute for snow crab that the union president estimates will net a collective $3.3 million payout for harvesters. FFAW filed the grievance against the Association of Seafood Producers (ASP) on the removal of the 20 per cent tolerance for snow crab in 2023. The tolerance had previously allowed harvesters to be paid the minimum price for their entire catch as long as the percentage of crab under four inches, but still of legal size, was less than 20 per cent. On Aug. 5 the arbiter ruled in favour of the fish harvesters union. “These processors have processing licenses from the province, and I expect them to behave in a more honourable manner than what they’ve been doing,” FFAW president Greg Pretty told CBC News. “It’s important not only that the harvesters get their money back, but that it shines a light on behaviours of crab processing companies in this province.” He said fish harvesters are owed approximately $3.3 million from 2023 from processing companies. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 14:19
Horseshoe Beach residents react to Hurricane Debby’s aftermath
One Dixie County town is standing strong after Hurricane Debby appeared in North Central Florida. Horseshoe Beach residents are cleaning up and rebuilding their community after Debby and showing great resilience one year later after the devastation of Hurricane Idalia. Long-time resident Ronald Neeley sat through yet another storm. “It was anywhere between 80 to 90 miles an hour wind hurricane and I stayed here,” said Neeley. “I stayed during this one, it wasn’t too bad, but the other one was nasty.” Hurricane Idalia hit Horseshoe Beach hard last year, leaving homes and buildings damaged beyond repair. Video, more, CLICK TO READ<< 12:46
CT-based Avangrid wind farm under scrutiny, energy production halted, after blade shatters.
Man accused of stealing crabs on Troublesome Point
A Currituck County man found himself in a pinch Friday night after deputies say that they caught him making trouble on Troublesome Point. Deputies say that they, along with the North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries, arrested David Dixon, Jr. of Gibbs Woods around 11:30 Friday night after they caught him in the act of stealing crabs from crab pots in the Troublesome Point area of Currituck Sound. Deputies say that when they got near to Dixon Jr’s boat that the man jumped overboard and tried to swim away, but he was quickly caught. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 09:25
Lawsuit alleges Cooke Aquaculture using shell companies to skirt U.S. law
Cooke Aquaculture, one of New Brunswick’s largest companies, has asked for dismissal of a U.S. lawsuit accusing it of using a complex web of shell companies to break anti-foreign ownership laws. Saint John-based Cooke Aquaculture has owned Omega Protein, in Virginia, since 2017. Omega is affiliated with another company that operates a Chesapeake Bay menhaden fishery, a small baitfish used to make fishmeal, fish oil and other products. The menhaden fishery under Omega has concerned environmental activists, who say the company is overfishing a fish that many species up the food chain depend on in the Chesapeake Bay, which is slightly smaller than the Bay of Fundy. The lawsuit alleges Cooke is violating the American Fisheries Act, which requires 75 per cent of a company fishing in the U.S. to be owned by a U.S. citizen. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 07:35
