Tag Archives: Alabama
Fairhope Docks: a work in progress
The fate of Fairhope’s city marina is looking brighter, as the city looks to celebrate its past and build toward the future with its recent takeover. While the city has always owned the marina, located along Fly Creek off of Seacliff Drive, it had previously leased the property to a private company, Eastern Shore Marine, for several decades.,,, The city hired a new marina manager, Captain Drew Craze, to be onsite and help manage the goings-on throughout the upgrades and transitions the city hopes to make. Craze brings with him 25 years in the private marine industry, working with large vessels and corporate entities. Craze has already helped to bolster some of the commercial lease space available at the marina by bringing in another fishing boat. click here to read the story 10:28
Indictment in BP claims scam reads like a movie
The federal indictment of seven people accused of defrauding the BP claims process includes evidence that reads like a script from a movie. Fraud, conspiracy, dead people and a dog filing for a piece of billions in BP money. Those are all allegations spelled out in Thursday’s 95 count indictment. Prosecutors call it the biggest BP disaster identity theft case to date. The indictment alleges among the more than 40,000 client claims submitted, one was for Lucy Lu who turned out to be a dog. Five other names submitted had died before the 2010 oil spill. Read the rest here Seven indicted in largest BP fraud identity theft case to date– Related article here 13:54
No NOAA Confidence! 5 Gulf States Propose Gulf State Red Snapper Management Authority
ast week, marine fishery directors from all five states bordering the Gulf of Mexico — the first time all of the states have collaborated — sent out a proposal to Congress to develop an independent body, Gulf State Red Snapper Management Authority. The group would approve each state’s management plan, coordinate population assessments, provide consistent accountability measures and distribute federal funding for research, assessment and management. Read the rest here 18:50
Judge voids snapper season curtailment saying the National Marine Fisheries Services was playing a twisted version of Robin Hood
A federal judge in Brownsville has struck down a federal emergency ruling to limit red snapper season in Texas, Louisiana and Florida, saying the National Marine Fisheries Services was playing a twisted version of a popular fictional character. Furthermore, if one looks at the actual poundage of red snapper caught, and if one takes this admittedly weak literary reference one step further, when comparing at least Louisiana and Texas with Alabama, the NMFS is doing just the opposite — it is robbing from the poor to give to the rich.”continued @ The Brownsville Herald
APALACHICOLA, Fla: A Fight Over Water, and to Save a Way of Life
NYT – “This bay would be filled with boats,” said Mr. Shiver, 36, whose father and grandfather plunged nets, set traps and dipped tongs into the water along this stretch of the Florida Panhandle. “There used to be oysters everywhere in here, and now there is none.” In a budding ecological crisis, the oyster population has drastically declined in Apalachicola Bay, one of the country’s major estuaries and the cradle of Florida’s prized oyster industry. continued
Gulf Fishermen Get More Snapper!
Associated Press – Updated recreational landings data and new information from Louisiana and Texas prompted the change, according to a release from NOAA Fisheries, part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. NOAA Fisheries also raised the total allowed red snapper catch from 8 million pounds to nearly 8.5 million pounds, with 51 percent for commercial boats and the rest for anglers. continued
Congressional delegation battles to save Apalachicola Bay
News Service of Florida – This week, the U.S. Senate was the scene of the latest skirmish in a tri-state water dispute between Florida, Georgia and Alabama dating back to 1990. The Senate voted 83-14 to pass the 2013 Water Resources Development Act, after deleting a provision backed by Florida Sens. Bill Nelson and Marco Rubio that would have required Georgia to use less water from federal reservoirs for metro Atlanta’s drinking supply and release more to the other two states. Now the fight shifts to the U.S. House, as the seafood industry in Franklin County struggles to regroup after years of drought. continued
