Daily Archives: October 3, 2024
Eight crew members rescued from sinking boat after crash during fish transfer
Eight people had to be rescued from a fishing boat after it crashed into its sister vessel and began to sink south east of Fair Isle. An investigation found that the skipper of Peterhead-based trawler Guiding Star had left the wheelhouse unattended during a routine fish transfer between it and the Guiding Light in October 2022. The Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) report said the skipper had been “excited to view the quality catch” after several days of intensive fishing and wasn’t there to prevent the boat from colliding with Guiding Light during a heavy swell. Water began to enter the boat’s hull immediately following the crash, rising above the cabin floor and erupting through the emergency escape hatch before continuing to flood the main deck. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 08:16
Show Me the Benefits: 10 Years in, What Have Marine Protected Areas Accomplished?
More fish, more sustainable fisheries, and an ecosystem better protected from threats was the promise of the Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) and the 124 MPAs now in place in California. Ten years on, what have they accomplished? The recently completed 10-year review by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, as well as numerous scientific papers, suggest that our hopes were misplaced. The review concludes “statewide and regional trends across habitats showed no difference in biodiversity inside compared to outside MPAs.” As to the very real threats to California’s coastal ecosystems, climate change and recent marine heat waves, the review is decidedly not sanguine “analysis across habitats in the central coast revealed that MPAs did not provide strong resilience against the marine heatwave.” Ouch! Finally, there is not even evidence that there are any more fish in California state waters now, except for some of the areas that are closed to fishing. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 07:00
