A recent update to the state’s Columbia River salmon management policy to change harvest allocations and allow commercial gillnetting on the main stem has anglers reeling. “We’ve made a lot of changes over the last 30 years to how we fish in order to adjust to (federal Endangered Species Act) listings, in order to adjust to harvesting the best fish in the river at the best times,” said Robert Sudar, a commercial fishing advisor based in Longview. “It’s a totally different fishery than it was 30 to 40 years ago.” >click to read< 10:08
Tag Archives: commercial fishermen
Nova Scotia: Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan asking sides to meet to de-escalate lobster fishing tensions
And late Friday afternoon the Assembly of Nova Scotia Mi’kmaw Chiefs declared a state of emergency for mainland Nova Scotia because of what it calls political unrest and violence. Early Friday evening Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan issued a statement,, “Our Government’s first priority is to ensure everyone involved remains safe. In Canada, anyone can participate in peaceful protests and that process is fundamental to our democracy,” she said. “At this time, it is imperative that all parties, and the public work together to lower tensions on the water and in our communities, to foster understanding between one another,,, “To that end, I’m extending an invitation for Indigenous leadership and industry leadership to meet with me as soon as possible. >click to read< 15:13
‘Deadliest Catch’: 8 Things You Didn’t Know About the Show
For 16 seasons, viewers have loved watching crab fishermen in the Bering Sea during the Alaskan fishing season. The Mike Rowe narrated show is now Emmy Award winning and has helped shed light on how commercial fishing is one of the most dangerous jobs in the United States. Here are some things you might not know about the popular show. 1, How much do they actually make during crab season? (the first video features Captains Gary and Kenny Ripka). 3, Even though cameras are rolling, no one is actually safe onboard! When they say reality show…they mean reality. Captain Sig Hansen has claimed that the crew put their lives on the line every day, and that includes the cameramen. At one point, he had to save a cameraman’s life when a crane holding 900 lbs of crab almost knocked him off the boat. The crewmembers are a bunch of badasses, living on the water for three to five-week stretches right alongside the fishermen. It’s a dangerous job, but someone has to film it. >Videos, click to read< 16:43
Quiet seafood truck protest: DFO urged to crack down on illegal out of season lobster fishing
The owner of a seafood company that has trucks parked at the DFO detachment declined an interview and wouldn’t comment about the protest or who organized it. Asked why the trucks are there the company owner simply said, “DFO knows.” The trucks were first parked at the DFO detachment on Aug. 27, the same day hundreds of commercial lobster fishermen protested outside of federal Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan’s office in Bridgewater demanding DFO provide enforcement. As they have in previous summers, fishermen have been raising concerns over what they say is out-of-season commercial lobster harvesting taking place. They say commercial activity is happening under the guise of the First Nations fishery and accuse some fishers of abusing the intent of that fishery. photos, >click to read< 20:38
USDA trade aid for lobster industry using coronavirus coffers
The Trump administration is committed to starting an aid program to help the struggling lobster industry, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said Wednesday, but the funds to do so will come from the coronavirus stimulus package, not the aid used to bail out farmers after President Trump’s trade war with China. The lobster industry, like many others during the coronavirus outbreak, has seen losses as markets on cruise ships and restaurants evaporate.,, Trump has began paying considerable attention to Maine’s lobster industry starting this summer, traveling to Bangor in June to announce he would reverse protections for the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument. >click to read< 18:07
ADF&G sockeye numbers questioned amid large pink salmon run
Joe Hanes has been on the river since 1969 and has operated a guide service on the river since 1986. He says he’s seen an apparent disconnect between the department’s numbers and the conditions in the river for around 15 years, especially on even-numbered years when Kenai sees a dramatically larger run of pink salmon. “A lot of people think they’re going to come down here and catch sockeye salmon because the department said over 300,000, or well over 200,000 sockeye came in the river the last few days,” Hanes said. “As we can see, they’re all pinks.” ADF&G Division of Commercial Fisheries operates theKenai Riverat river mile 19 of the Kenai River. >click to read< 11:19
Five B.C. First Nations say salmon decision shows systemic racism at DFO
The five Nuu-Chah-Nulth First Nations are upset that Ottawa decided to give a surplus allocation of salmon — which arose this year due to reduced recreational fishing during the COVID-19 pandemic — to commercial fishers rather than to the First Nations. Clifford Atleo, lead negotiator for one of the nations who is also called Wickaninnish, says he feels sports and commercial troll fishers are given more rights to fish in the waters off the west coast of Vancouver. He says the latest decision to shut First Nations fishers out of an opportunity to catch more chinook salmon this year shows systemic racism is “alive and well” within the federal fisheries department. >click to read< 08:52
Veteran fisherman Tom Lindberg tried to save his deckhands
The daughter of the veteran Cobble Hill fisherman who died when the Arctic Fox II capsized in the waters off Washington state said her father put the deckhands’ lives ahead of his own as heavy waves crashed onto the boat in the pitch black night. Tom Lindberg, the 76-year-old skipper of the tuna troller, and another fisherman died Aug. 11 after the boat capsized about 136 kilometres offshore of Cape Flattery, which is just south of Port Renfrew. The third fisherman was found alive in a life boat by U.S. Coast Guard officers responding to the vessel’s distress call. Paula Lindberg was told there was only 20 minutes between when the mayday call was put out around 2 a.m. and when the boat went down which is “incredibly fast.” >click to read< 11:07
Apprehension: Young deckhands backed out of fatal F/V Arctic Fox II trip just before fishboat departed
Two men who were supposed to crew the boat decided to leave money on the table and walk away before it hit the open ocean. Raymond and Anthony Dixon, twins from the Nanaimo area, were on board the F/V Arctic Fox II as new deck hands with Captain Tom Lindberg when they sailed out of Cowichan Bay Marina on Sunday, Aug. 2. Originally, there was another deckhand, Jessie Gilbert, who had actually recruited Raymond. But the day before Raymond was due to arrive in Cowichan Bay, Gilbert had to go home sick. So Raymond recruited Anthony, who was hired immediately. It would have been the 19-year-old brothers’ first commercial fishing trip. >click to read< 06:53
Brothers sensed danger and didn’t stay on boat that later capsized – In Victoria, Dixon and his brother met the boat’s owner, Larry Teague, who told them they have to keep an eye out for boats because Lindberg’s eyesight was poor. Dixon believes Lindberg was in his early 80s. >click to read<10:04
Alaska fishermen face ‘perfect storm’ of problems during Coronavirus pandemic, but state grants could help
On Friday, the Alaska Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development announced that the COVID-19 small business grants program was being expanded. Starting Aug. 6, commercial fishermen across Alaska can apply for grants worth between $5,000 and $100,000. Before that date, fishermen were ineligible for help as they typically don’t have business licenses. Many in Alaska’s fishing industry need the assistance. Robert Venables, the executive director of Southeast Conference, said fishermen across the region had been reporting poor returns. “This year it’s been a perfect storm, the slump has continued. The catch is even worse than last year, by far,” Venables said. >click to read< 13:56
Three Commercial Fishermen rescued from life raft off the NSW south coast
Three men have been rescued after their fishing trawler took on water and sank off the NSW South Coast today. About 7.30am, emergency services were called to Bass Point, Shellharbour, following reports a boat was sinking. The 22-metre commercial fishing trawler came into trouble when it hit rough seas about 15 nautical miles east of Bass Point. Emergency rescue crews had arrived within an hour from the time the men sent out an emergency signal. All three were found to be suffering mild hypothermia but were otherwise unharmed. >Video, click to read< 11:22
Second coronavirus wave would be ‘catastrophic,’ Massachusetts fishermen say
Commercial fishermen and lobstermen in Massachusetts already “crippled” by the coronavirus pandemic say they fear a second wave in the fall would sink the industry. “If there’s a shutdown then, it could be catastrophic,” said Joey Ciaramitaro, co-owner of Gloucester-based Captain Joe & Sons wholesale lobsters. People think of summer as the lobster season, but really, the fall is when the most lobsters get landed. That’s what we’re most concerned about: shutdowns in the fall,” Ciaramitaro said. Video, >click to read< 19:35
Bristol Bay Fisheries Report: July 24, 2020
A lull in returns today at 468,000 fish, the daily harvest bay-wide was about half what it was the day before. The total run is 55.9 million fish, about half a million away from last year’s. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has released the final environmental review for the proposed Pebble Mine. A Seattle-based seafood processor will pay out more than $440,000 to workers at a Bristol Bay cannery, the result of a settlement after the company was sued in June. “We think that it is a fair and just compensation for the workers that were held for 12 days at a hotel without being paid,” said Jonathan Davis, a managing partner of the San Francisco-based Arns Law Firm, which filed the lawsuit. The firm took on the case pro bono, so it will not receive any compensation for its work. The processor, North Pacific Seafoods, was sued for false imprisonment and failing to pay the workers, among other charges. >click to read< 15:30
Spanish F/V Pesorsa Dos detained in Irish waters and escorted to Killybegs
The F/V Pesorsa Dos was detained by the Irish Naval Service for alleged breaches to fishing regulations in Irish waters around 25 miles off Malin Head on Friday. She arrived at Killybegs on Tuesday morning after it had taken a few days to recover all of her gear. The Spanish owned gill-netter stands accused of attempting to foul the propeller of the local trawler F/V Alison Kay at the end of June during a confrontation 30 miles to the west of Shetland. At the time fishermen shared a number of video clips showing the incident,,, >click to read< 15:50
With demands for an investigation, Skipper describes how local boats are pushed out of fishing grounds – >click to read<
Coronavirus snagged the R.I. fishing industry, so state let fishermen sell direct to the public
In the spring, when the state closed restaurants to stop the spread of the coronavirus, fishermen were hit hard. Prices dropped dramatically. In some cases, wholesalers stopped buying, and fishermen had no place to sell their catch. To help fishermen navigate this storm, the state temporarily changed some regulations to allow them to peddle their catches directly to consumers, fish markets and restaurants, instead of selling exclusively to wholesalers. Fifteen Rhode Island fishermen are “actively using” their direct-sale licenses, according to Nichole Ares, principal biologist for the DEM’s marine fisheries division. The fishermen have sold about 13,000 pounds of fish for a total of about of $40,000. More than 160 fishermen applied for the licenses,,, photo’s, >click to read< 18:43
Fishing Dragger Struck and Sunk by recreational boat in dense fog near Montauk Inlet
Coast Guard Sector Long Island Sound received a report of a collision about a quarter-mile from the inlet at about 6:30 a.m. The commercial fishing vessel F/V Petrel, based out of Montauk, had been hit by the sailing yacht Chaos, a 40-foot powerboat, according to Petty Officer Anthony Pappaly, a Coast Guard public information officer. The crash occurred just north of the Bell buoy, where the commercial fishermen were getting ready to put out their net. The two people aboard the Petrel, the captain and his first mate, were taken aboard the Chaos as their boat began to sink into the harbor. Friends of the commercial fishermen said the other boat was going 30 knots, which is just under 35 miles per hour on the road. >click to read< 13:53
Seattle seafood company reports 6 more crew have Coronavirus in Dutch Harbor
The cases are onboard the American Triumph, which is operated by Seattle-based American Seafoods. Last month, the company announced that more than 100 crew members on three of the company’s six vessels had tested positive for the virus. At the time, experts questioned the company’s decision to mandate a five-day quarantine period, rather than the 14 days recommended by many health officials. American Seafoods subsequently said it had extended its quarantine period to two weeks. The cases announced Friday bring the total tally of positive cases on American Seafoods vessels to 117 since late May, according to spokesperson Suzanne Lagoni. >click to read< 10:18
Asian market collapse means more spot prawns for us
Spot prawn season ends tomorrow, but that doesn’t mean you won’t be able to get the sweet-fleshed delicacy — indeed, seafood lovers can now order the Doctor Prawnie Henry pack from Organic Ocean, consisting of five one-pound tubs of flash-brine-frozen spot prawn tails. “We just love her to death for what she’s done for us,” said fisherman Steve Johansen, as he ripped the shell off a wriggling spot prawn and ate it raw on the dock of the False Creek wharf. “It’s like a drug,” he said. “They’re wild, they’re tasty, they’re sweet, they’re sexy.” Johansen is one of 264 licensed spot prawn harvesters that fish the coast from Vancouver to Alaska during the annual six- to eight-week season. >click to read< 12:06
Harvesters remain resilient in facing economic challenges of Coronavirus
No one reading this needs to be reminded that we are in uncharted waters as thousands of Alaska fishermen set out to sea for the salmon season. As a fisherman with two young boys, I felt a deep sense of both privilege and responsibility as I set my nets in the glacier-fed waters of Taku Inlet in late June. Most fishing seasons the biggest questions are: Will the salmon come early or late? Will they be swimming deep or along the shoreline? This summer the questions are: Will Alaska’s independent fishermen financially survive the coronavirus? Will there be buyers willing to pay a decent price for their catch? Will fishermen get access to the personal protective equipment and testing that they need to avoid the spread of coronavirus? Will the long-fought Pebble mine be permitted while Bristol Bay’s fishing fleet is out risking their lives? By Tyson Fick >click to read< 14:47
Ilwaco: Commercial tuna season starts strong
The commercial albacore tuna season kicked off over the weekend with fisherman delivering their first catch of the 2020 season to local processors. Favorable weather and sea conditions culminated in a successful start, fishermen reported. “The last couple days were excellent,” said commercial fishermen Christian Johnson of the F/V Two Fishers upon delivering 7,300 pounds of tuna to Ilwaco Landing on Tuesday, July 14. Johnson was out fishing for 10 days along with fellow commercial fisherman James Plymer before returning to port Tuesday. Photo’s, >click to read< 16:37
Bristol Bay Fisheries Report: July 13, 2020
Baywide daily harvest dropped below 2 million for the first time since July 4th. The total harvest is over halfway to the pre-season forecast swimming in at 25.2 million fish. Total escapement throughout the bay is now just over 12 million, and has now passed the pre-season escapement forecast. The total run in Bristol Bay so far this season is 38.4 million fish. Average fish per drift delivery was below 1,000 in every district of the bay yesterday. >click to read< 09:48
1967: Two fishermen feared dead for almost a week were the toast of Portarlington last night.
In their broken down shark boat Veronica, they had won out after a grim, six-day battle against raging Bass Strait seas. Late on Saturday night, after a desperate last signal for help had been sighted by Cape Otway Lighthouse, the 32-ft. Veronica was taken in tow by another fishing boat. Yesterday morning the two crewmen, skipper Len Joseph, 32, and his mate Ron Oldfield, 34, stepped ashore at Apollo Bay, “back from the dead.” The engine had failed only two hours after sailing from Port McDonnell. Last Monday the men ran out of food. Len Joseph kept a log book which spells out the drama of the ordeal. >click to read< 08:49
Bristol Bay Fisheries Report: July 11, 2020
The run in Bristol Bay is over 30 million fish, 30.8 million to be exact. Total harvest baywide was 2.1 million yesterday, bringing the season’s harvest in Bristol Bay to 20.9 million fish. Total escapement so far this season across the bay is 8.8 million. Fish per drift delivery saw a bit of a swing yesterday. Ugashik fishers averaged over 2,500 fish per delivery, the Naknek-Kvichak saw an average of over 1,000 fish per drift delivery, but other districts were between 180 and 700 fish per delivery. audio report, Messages to the fleet, >click to read< 17:26
Scotland: Deep concern over failure to use PFD’s after fishing industry deaths
A safety warning has been issued to the fishing industry about the mandatory wearing of lifejackets (PFD’s) as concerns grow about deaths caused by not wearing them, despite moves to supply them free to Scottish boats. New figures show that six of the 12 fishermen who have died at sea in 2018 and 2019 were not wearing lifejackets,, The MAIB has said deaths in the water from those not wearing PFD was of “great concern” and said that “embedding behavioural change” could half the fatality rate in the fishing industry. It comes a year after the end of a scheme to supply PFDs to fishermen on Scottish-registered boats, with the intention of increasing the usage of a flotation garment while working on the open deck. Some 3,500 personal flotation devices (PFDs) were supplied,,, >click to read< 08:55
In Lobster Town U.S.A., When the industry suffers, the pain ripples.
Blaine Olsen, a lifelong lobsterman, was navigating his 30-foot boat off the coast of Stonington, Maine, when his sternman, who’s also his wife, yelled above the diesel engine’s din about the pittance the local cooperative was paying harvesters. He shot Ginny a doleful stare for a good five seconds. “Holy sh-t, man,” he said. “It costs us $600 a day to go out.” The dock price, $2.25 a pound for soft-shell lobsters, was half what it was a year ago, making it virtually impossible to earn a profit. The novel coronavirus has barely touched the public health of this corner of rural down east Maine, with Hancock County reporting just 16 cases and one death as of June 30. Its economic health is another matter,,, >click to read< 10:50
Honoring a legacy: Commemorative tote honors Maine fishermen who died at sea
When Hayley Brown’s father Captain Joe Nickerson died at sea, she said she was in shock. And while the pain of losing her father is still with her, she’s getting creative to honor his legacy and support the causes he was truly passionate about. Nickerson and his crewmate Chris Pinkham were fishing aboard the boat named after Hayley, the Hayley Ann, off the coast of Portland when it capsized in January., Nickerson was the chairman of the Maine Coast Fisherman’s Association (MCFA), so Hayley teamed up with them and Sea Bags to create totes in memory of her father. All proceeds from the sale of the bags will support MCFA in advocating for Maine’s fishing communities and the next generation of fishermen in Maine. On Father’s Day, the MCFA introduced the totes. >Video, click to read< 18:21
Substance Abuse and Safety: Coast Guard Identifies Concerning Trend in Maritime Law Violations in Alaska
U.S. Coast Guard investigators and inspectors have identified a concerning trend throughout the state of Alaska, ranging from illegal drug use to unserviceable life saving equipment. Investigators at Coast Guard Sector Anchorage have observed an increase in the number of positive drug tests for non-credentialed mariners throughout the Arctic and Western Alaska., Another concerning trend observed by inspectors with the Coast Guard Marine Safety Task Force relates to unserviceable or missing life-saving equipment aboard commercial fishing vessels. From June 8 through 22, members of the task force removed 119 immersion suits during commercial fishing vessel exams in the King Salmon area because they were not in serviceable condition. >click to read< 19:44
Transportation Safety Board says ‘countless’ reports show fishermen need to wear PFDs, use EPIRB emergency beacons
Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) investigator Chris Morrow said it has concluded many times that fishermen need to wear personal flotation devices (PFDs) and they have to have emergency beacons on board. He said the investigation into the capsizing of the Ocean Star II lobster 
boat found those to be consistent issues. An emergency beacon, known as an electronic position indicating radio beacon or EPIRB, might not have helped the crew aboard the Ocean Star II, but Morrow said they were in the water a long time without PFDs.,, On May 5, 2018, > Richard Moreau and Liz O’Connell <drowned after their small crabbing boat capsized near Port Medway, N.S. >click to read< 14:40
Lucky 13, and the Latest Fishfinding Tech
Delivered from its Danish builder to owners in Orkney, Aalskere is the third trawler for Iain Harcus with the same name and number – keeping to the Orkney preference for a registration number that adds up to 13., Iain Harcus has fished for 20 years with the 33.90 metre Aalskere that was acquired in 2000, built as Vandal, photo’s, >click to read< Aalskere’s wheelhouse has an uncluttered layout a single E Vejvad Hansen skipper’s chair at the centre 
of Aalskere’s wheelhouse, facing a bank of 55-inch 4K monitors, supplemented by an overhead row of seven Neovo X24 monitors, plus six 19-inch screens at the aft wheelhouse trawl console. There are ten monitors altogether integrated into the Woodsons Quad view system, controlled using a trackball with a cursor that moves seamlessly from one screen to the next. Photo’s, >click to read< 15:46
