Tag Archives: commercial fishermen
A Rebuttal to a Recent Commentary: Alaska trawl fisheries are vital and under attack by those using myths
This campaign to ban trawling – a sustainable fishing method responsible for a substantial majority of fishery landings in the Alaska Region and nationally – poses a direct threat to Alaska’s coastal economy, seafood sector and way of life. If you enjoy wild seafood – fish sandwiches or shrimp; fish sticks or scallops; fish tacos or rockfish – you are enjoying seafood caught by “trawl” or “dredge” fishing gears that touch the seafloor. It’s true that these fishing methods, like every farm, aquaculture facility and fishing operation on the planet, impact the environment. But, what’s also true is that the impacts of trawl fishing in Alaska are continually monitored to ensure long-term ecosystem health. The recent commentary authored for the Alaska Beacon by Heather Sauyaq Jean Gordon and David Bayes is the latest effort to demonize sustainable trawl fisheries. Like other attacks on our sector, the commentary comes from a vocal few that play fast and loose with the facts. By Sam Wright, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 11:43
Sipekne’katik claims ‘significant progress’ in talks with Ottawa over controversial N.S. lobster fishery
The First Nation at the centre of a highly contentious out-of-season lobster fishery in southwest Nova Scotia says mediation with the federal government is bearing fruit, with lengthy meetings between both sides leading to the first “meaningful dialogue” in 25 years. The comments from the lawyer for Sipekne’katik First Nation come in a letter to a Nova Scotia Supreme Court judge that asks that litigation launched by the band against the federal government in 2021 be paused for another six months to allow negotiations to continue. The two sides, along with intervenor Unified Fisheries Conservation Alliance, which represents commercial fishing interests, are expected to discuss the time extension in court this morning. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 08:02
‘This is our primary income’: Dungeness crab season delayed again
In the latest blow to North Bay commercial fishing, the start of the California Dungeness crab season has once again been delayed. This time, until the new year, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife has announced. The postponement, which marks the seventh year in a row for such delays, is in response to continued concerns about humpback whale migration patterns and the protection of endangered marine life from being entangled in fishing gear. The previous year’s season opener was delayed until Jan. 18 — months after the most lucrative time for the season, said Dick Ogg, president of the Bodega Bay Fisherman’s Marketing Association. “This is our primary income,” Ogg said. “It would be like if somebody told you they won’t let you work for the next month and a half.” more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 16:51
F/V Wind Walker – ‘Doesn’t even seem real’: Friend remembers lost Coos Bay fisherman
Five men are still missing and presumed dead after their fishing boat capsized off the Alaskan coast early Sunday morning. One of the fishermen, 22-year-old Jake Hannah, is from Coos Bay. His close friend and fellow fisherman Ben Martinez-Yates tells KOIN 6 he’s still in disbelief after hearing the news. “Usually, this time of year up there, the weather gets really, really nasty. The weather is just unpredictable, and boats ice up and stuff happens,” said Martinez-Yates. Hannah was aboard the 50-foot “Wind Walker” when it made an emergency radio call near Juneau very early Sunday. “When they went to turn around, they flipped over and the boat capsized,” said Martinez-Yates. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 12:43
F/V Wind Walker: Utah man, 4 others missing after fishing boat capsizes off Alaska coast
A Utah man and four others are missing after their fishing boat capsized early Sunday morning off Couverden Point, Alaska, about 24 miles southwest of Juneau. According to a press release by the U.S. Coast Guard, the search for the missing fishermen was suspended Monday morning, one day after they received a Mayday call that the vessel was overturning. Among those aboard the commercial fishing vessel Wind Walker was Alex Zamantakis, 28, who grew up in Magna. A GoFundMe account set up by family members said funds will go Zamantakis’ girlfriend, and their six-month-old son, Alex. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 12:33
Families of 5 missing crew members worried after Coast Guard suspends search for capsized fishing boat
The U.S. Coast Guard suspended its search Monday after the fishing vessel F/V Wind Walker capsized early Sunday near Point Couverden, the southern tip of a small island in Southeast Alaska. Coast Guard officials confirmed Tuesday the names of the five crew members of the ship who are missing after the boat capsized: Travis Kapp, Jacob Hannah, Alex Ireland, Emilio Celaya-Talamanter, Michael Brown. Family members of Alex Ireland said Alex preferred to use the last name Zamantakis. His father Mike Zamantakis said they are struggling with the news that the search was suspended. “My hope is that last radio communication from the captain of the ship saying that the men were capsized but they were trying to get in the lifeboat,” Zamantakis said. “They haven’t found the lifeboat either, so that’s my glimmer, that’s my sliver of hope that Alex and his buds will be sitting under some logs or some leaves on a beach someplace trying to stay warm till they’re rescued.”Video, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 07:24
Louisiana Shrimpers face crisis as cheap imports threaten $1.3 billion industry
Louisiana’s shrimp industry, an essential part of the state’s economy and cultural identity, is under serious threat. A flood of cheap imported shrimp is driving prices to record lows, leaving local shrimpers fighting to survive. Without swift action, this generations-old way of life could vanish, taking with it jobs, traditions, and a vital piece of Louisiana’s coastal economy. Family-owned shrimping businesses, often passed down through generations, are struggling to stay afloat. The combination of plummeting prices and rising costs is forcing many to consider leaving the industry altogether. The potential collapse of the shrimping industry would devastate coastal towns like Grand Isle, Delcambre, and Pointe à la Hache, where much of the local economy depends on shrimping.
more,>>CLICK TO READ<< 08:52
N.S. lobster dealer granted bail in buyer intimidation case
A 65-year-old lobster dealer from southwest Nova Scotia charged with several counts of intimidation linked to the industry has been granted bail but is barred from dozens of fishing wharves and forbidden from going to almost every lobster wholesaler in the province. Eric David Thibault was arrested last week after RCMP alleged he and his son threatened a lobster buyer whose home near Meteghan, N.S., was shot up days earlier. Thibault also faces previous charges, including allegations he threatened a lobster fisherman who was seeking to change buyers, and three counts of witness intimidation from January involving two people at the harbour in Meteghan. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 15:43
How Jake Anderson Lost the F/V Saga on ‘Deadliest Catch’
As proven in the 20 seasons of Deadliest Catch, nothing is for certain. Things can change on a whim, and security is something not to take for granted. Fan-favorite Jake Anderson has learned this the hard way. After putting everything into the F/V Saga, Jake suddenly lost control of the boat he part-owned when he was served a repossession note. With the timing coinciding with the Red King Crab fishery reopening and a derby-style race underway, Jake was essentially lost at sea. Captain Jake Anderson has been a staple on the Discovery Channel series Deadliest Catch since 2007. When he started in the industry nearly 18 years ago, he began working as a greenhorn on the F/V Northwestern. Through his time in the industry, Jake has tried his hand at every job in his career, ranging from deckhand, deck boss, engineer, captain, and vessel owner. With his focus mainly on the operations side at the helm of F/V Saga, Jake’s world was turned upside down. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 12:18
Father and son face charges in southwest N.S. lobster-buying intimidation case
A Lamborghini-driving lobster dealer in southwest Nova Scotia and his son have been charged with intimidating a buyer whose home was shot up last weekend, the latest in a number of allegations against the father related to threats and intimidation. Eric David Thibault, 65, and his son, Zacharie David Thibault, 32, were in custody and appeared briefly Friday in provincial court in Yarmouth, N.S. They were scheduled to return Monday. The charges stem from an alleged encounter two days ago with Geoffrey Jobert, a lobster buyer near Meteghan, N.S. His home was shot at overnight Saturday, an attack he believed was linked to organized criminals involved in purchasing illegally caught lobster. The charges against the Thibaults don’t relate to the shooting, but are instead connected to an incident Wednesday afternoon where, according to RCMP and court records, the two men are accused of approaching Jobert near his home and threatening him. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 15:08
Launched as Sweet Promise A 746 in 1965, this Noble’s-built stalwart, Tern LH 53, has clocked up almost 60 years’ service
The 33ft Tern, which today is based at Port Seton, was built in 1965 by Jimmy Noble as Sweet Promise A 746 for Robbie Cormack and Ian Balgowan of Stonehaven, at a cost of £6,000. At the time she was unique, said Ian, as she had a wheelhouse amidships with a winch behind. According to the Noble build lists, she was built for ‘Mr Cormack’ – but she was originally registered to Ian. Gordon told me he imagined she had been built for the boatbuilder’s son, as ‘she was built like a brick shithouse, larch on oak’. The frames were so close together, he said, that back aft on the return you could not see the planks. Gordon continued: “She was tough as they come, so I rigged her for scallops with three dredges each side and worked mainly in Falmouth Bay, away from the Looe fleet, close inshore. Best catch was just over 800 dozen for a trip. Photos, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 13:44
South Carolina shrimpers applaud decision to impose duties on shrimp imported from four countries
South Carolina shrimpers are celebrating the U.S. International Trade Commission’s recent decision to crack down on frozen shrimp imports from four countries. The ITC voted in favor of issuing countervailing duties on frozen, warm-water shrimp imports from Ecuador, India, and Vietnam after the U.S. Department of Commerce determined those governments were illegally subsidizing the industry. “We’re grateful because it’s an acknowledgment of what we feel and we experience in the industry and we see on a daily basis,” said Bryan Jones, a first-generation shrimper who lives in McClellanville. Jones serves as vice president of the South Carolina Shrimpers Association and was among a group of commercial fishermen who testified before the ITC in Washington, D.C. in October. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 14:20
Gov. Landry has pulled the plug on Louisiana’s biggest coastal project, Tulane expert says
A Tulane University environmental law expert said he believes Governor Jeff Landry has effectively killed Louisiana’s largest coastal project as envisioned. “What the governor did, basically, was pull the plug on the Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion,” said Mark Davis, a senior research fellow and founding director of the Tulane Institute on Water Resources Law and Policy. Landry told a Senate committee in Baton Rouge last Thursday that the $3.1 billion diversion would destroy Louisiana’s culture. In doing so, Landry sided with many commercial fishermen and other critics, who argue that 75,000 cubic feet per second of Mississippi River water would devastate the Barataria Basin, marine life and those who make their livings fishing these waters. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 12:40
Shot fired into lobster buyer’s home as southwest N.S. season opens
Commercial fishermen set to start the lucrative lobster fishery in southwest Nova Scotia on Tuesday morning are boycotting buyers alleged to be profiteering off the unlicensed summer fishery in St. Mary’s Bay. On Saturday night, one of the buyers those fishermen in lobster fishing areas 33 and 34 have turned to have a shot fired through his home. On Sunday morning, Geoffrey Jobert, owner of Lobster Hub Inc. in Meteghan, went downstairs in his Clare County home and found a series of holes passing through his garage door, kitchen, dining room and living room. He found a round lodged in his hardwood rocking chair. “It was stormy the night before and we didn’t hear the shot,” said Jobert. On the road outside, he said, he found a spent shell casing. While there was no message left, Jobert said he knows why he’s being threatened. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 07:18
Alaska’s total commercial salmon harvest this year was ultra-low in both quantity and value
The number of Alaska salmon harvested by commercial fishers was the third smallest since all-species records began in 1985, and the value to harvesters, when adjusted for inflation, was the lowest reported since 1975, state officials said. Additionally, the 450 million pounds of salmon that the total harvest contained was the lowest on record, officials said. The totals come from a preliminary recap of this year’s salmon season issued on Nov. 18 by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Only 101.2 million salmon were harvested this year, less than half the 232.2 million harvested last year, the department reported. The money paid to fishers for their catches, known as ex-vessel value, totaled $304 million, down from $398 million last year, the department said, In the Bristol Bay region, site of the world’s biggest sockeye runs, this year’s return was well above projections and 7% higher than the 20-year average, though the amount commercially harvested was a bit below the average. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 16:09
Newfoundland and Labrador recorded its highest lobster landings ever this past season
And so, this past spring, when I was hearing so much about the abundance of lobsters in our waters, I wanted to find out what was going on. I called around to several harvesters in various parts of the province to find out about their catch rates. The thing is, when lobsters are plentiful, lobster fishermen can be a tight-lipped bunch. I knew after a few phone calls, it would be hard to get anyone to go on camera for a Land & Sea show to brag about their bounty. And that was confirmed for me by Fortune Bay fisherman Alfred Fitzpatrick, who fishes out of Garnish on the Burin Peninsula. “Fellows will tell you they poached a moose before they tell you they caught a lobster. If you hauled 200 pots and you got 10 lobsters, and your brother asked you, you’d say, ‘Boy, I got five,'” explained Fitzpatrick. Video, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 08:14
Nova Scotia: Safety Top Priority as Lobster Season Begins
With the lobster season about to start, fishing crews in southwestern Nova Scotia are reminded to make safety a top priority. Dumping Day, as the first day of the season is known, will see thousands of lobster traps dumped along the south and western shores in lobster fishing areas 33 and 34. The start in both areas is weather dependent but is expected to be Monday, November 25. The Province urges fishers to take the time and necessary steps to stay safe. Fishing crews preparing to head out each day should: monitor the weather, assess their boats, check all vessel safety equipment to ensure it is inspected and accessible, prepare for emergencies. Occupational health and safety laws require all crew members to wear a life jacket or other personal flotation device. Links, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 15:06
California’s Dungeness Crab Season Delayed Again, But Could Open in Time for Holidays
California Department of Fish and Wildlife officials have delayed the commercial Dungeness crab season statewide for the second time this year and extended a ban on recreational use of certain traps. There’s still a chance the commercial season for Bay Area crabbers could open earlier than the past few years, though, just in time for holiday dinners. Officials said they plan to reevaluate the region’s waters, which had been scheduled to open on Dec. 1, early next month. The restrictions are due to increased whale populations and their entanglement in crabbing gear. If the whales have finished passing through on their way south to winter breeding grounds, the Department of Fish and Wildlife said it could open the commercial season — and lift the recreational restrictions — statewide on Dec. 15. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 07:08
Maine: Judge dismisses case against the state challenging lobster boat tracking rules
A federal judge has ruled against a group of five lobstermen that sued the state in attempt to stop electronic boat tracking requirements that went effect almost one year ago. The rules require lobstermen with federal fishing permits to install monitors on their boats that track their location on the water. The fishermen argued that they should not be subject to monitoring at all times. They often use their boats for other purposes beyond commercial lobstering, which Woodcock acknowledged. The boat tracking requirements will stay in place for now. But in his decision, Woodcock said the lobstermen had raised important Fourth Amendment questions and encouraged them to appeal the case. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 11:21
After a dramatic decline, lake trout have recovered in most of Lake Superior
After decades of work, fishery managers say lake trout have fully recovered in most of Lake Superior after the invasive, fish-killing sea lamprey decimated their numbers. The Lake Superior Committee of the Great Lakes Fishery Commission, which is made up of state, tribal and Canadian natural resource managers, announced the population’s recovery Wednesday. The lake trout population in Lake Superior dropped to dramatically low levels during the mid-1900s due to overfishing and an invasion of sea lampreys, eel-like parasites that suck the blood of their hosts. The parasitic fish spread to the Great Lakes from the Atlantic Ocean, invading Lake Superior by 1938. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 11:03
Long Island Sound Lost Its Lobster Fishery. Is Cape Cod Bay Next?
Catches in Cape Cod Bay were good for many years, and prices were good, too. But lobstermen here started worrying in the late 1990s when the fishery collapsed in Long Island Sound. And that worry hasn’t gone away, because environmental changes here resemble those that were affecting Long Island Sound back then. In the aftermath of Tropical Storm Floyd in August 1999, the lobsters in Long Island Sound started coming up dead or lethargic, not making it back to the docks alive. Fall landings for all Connecticut ports dropped between 91 and 99 percent that year, according to a joint report of the state’s dept. of environmental protection and marine fisheries office published in 2000. Fast forward 25 years: hopes for a Long Island Sound population rebound have not panned out. A December 2021 report in the Portland Press Herald introduced Michael Grimshaw this way: “Grimshaw is believed to be the last full-time commercial lobsterman in Connecticut.” His traps used to bring in up to a few thousand pounds a day, wrote reporter David Abel. A good day was now getting him 50 pounds, Grimshaw told him. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< By Capt. Mike Rathgeber 08:40
‘Just Go Fishing’: Florida’s commercial fishermen getting back on the water
After being sidelined for more than a month following back-to-back hurricanes, the commercial fisherman in the historic Village of Cortez is back out hunting for grouper, blue crabs, bait fish, and everything in between. It was only a few days ago that Karen Bell, President of A.P. Bell Fish, said her team was able to go back out to sea and do what they love: fish. And the timing for some very bored fisherman couldn’t have been better. “All the grouper boats are out. They’ve only been out the last three or four days,” Bell said. The storms knocked Bell’s operations out for weeks. “A lot of damage. You know, I’ve got between my family and me, maybe 20 houses here, every one of them flooded, even mine, which sits high,” Bell said. “A.P. Bell’s roof is missing. It was like a double strike. At Star Fish, we lost all of our refrigeration equipment, the kitchens, the stoves, the ranges, and all the refrigeration stuff, so it took a little bit of time to get fixed.” more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 11:12
Expensive Offshore Wind in Jeopardy in a Trump Administration
Offshore wind is much more expensive than onshore wind with costs to build at 4.5 times the cost of natural gas generation and operational costs at 2.3 times. President-elect Trump recognizes offshore wind’s high costs and limited utility and is likely to end its massive subsidies promulgated by the Biden-Harris Administration. Immediate actions available include revoking Biden’s executive order that paved the way for higher cost, less reliable electricity. Biden-Harris officials have heaped subsidies upon offshore wind through the Inflation Reduction Act and cut corners on regulations to expedite the technology. Offshore wind has had recent catastrophic failures including broken blades that have closed beaches in a tourist town and imperiled fishermen. Biden’s Executive Order 14008 issued on February 1, 2020–only two weeks after his Inauguration– launched the offshore wind program in the United States. This is an executive order that President-Elect Trump could easily rescind on his first day in office by just issuing a counter-executive order, which would stop the onslaught of this very expensive energy being added to the U.S. grid. Another way is to remove the excessive tax credits that encourage its adoption, which would take new legislation and add time to the process. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 18:47
Pacific Seafood Halts All Processing in Eureka, Laying Off an Undisclosed Number of Employees
Pacific Seafood, the processing and distribution giant based in Clackamas, Ore., has halted all processing activity at its Eureka plant, dramatically scaling back its operations there and laying off an undisclosed number of local employees. The seafood getting unloaded here in Eureka is now being shipped north for processing at Pacific Seafood plants in Oregon, Ogan said. The 83-year-old company has nearly 40 locations across the country — from Kodiak, Alaska, to Miami, Fla. — and employs somewhere in the neighborhood of 2,500 people nationwide. Local fisherman Mike Cunningham, who has been selling his catch to Pacific Seafood for 35 years, said the company has removed much of its processing equipment and shipped it north to plants in Oregon, where it anticipates more abundant crabbing. “They are going to continue to buy crabs here, and they have some residual processing capacity,” Cunningham said. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 15:37
Donald Trump Pledges to Halt Big Wind Subsidies
Donald Trump’s election victory is quickly taking the wind out of the Biden administration’s ambitious renewables initiatives. President-elect Trump promised to end federal subsidies for offshore wind projects on his first day in office. As with many of his campaign pledges, Americans wait to see whether he will deliver. However, the market did not wait to see. Stock prices of offshore wind developers and turbine makers moved sharply downward following election day as investors query whether windmill projects are economically viable without the hefty federal subsidies Trump has promised to terminate. Environmental groups and fishermen have also raised concerns about the potential ecological trade-offs of this plastic-based technology and worries about ecotoxins created in the manufacturing of solar panels and EVs have caused consumers to pause. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 10:22
Norwegian fishermen snagged U.S. nuclear-powered submarine
“We had just emptied the nets and put them out again and was on our way back to shore at Sommarøya when we were called by the Coast Guard on channel 16 on the VHF-radio,” says Harald Engen (22) to NRK Troms. Engen is captain on Øygutt, the 10 meters small fishing vessel. The Coast Guard could inform that a submarine had sailed into the net and dragged it two nautical miles north where it was cut off. The incident occurred outside Malangen, west of Tromsø on the coast to the Norwegian Sea. The submarine was the USS Virginia, a nuclear-powered 115 meters long attack sub. Such submarines are in recent years more frequently surfacing in the sheltered fjords outside Tromsø. Norway’s Coast Guard are assisting in bringing onboard supplies or new crew members. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 13:12
GOP Lawmakers, Fishermen Urge Trump to Keep Promise to Axe Offshore Wind
Trump’s return to the Oval Office may deal the problem-riddled offshore wind industry another blow if his administration follows through on his pledge to scrap federal support for offshore wind projects during his second term. Republican lawmakers, opposed to heavily subsidized green energy, and commercial fishermen, who view the industry as an existential threat to their livelihoods, are calling on the president-elect to follow through on his campaign’s promise, which could imply ending federal subsidies and lease sales for the industry. “The incoming administration has an historic opportunity to save American workers from foreign developers, reinvigorate iconic coastal towns, and improve America’s food security,” NEFSA CEO Jerry Leeman said in a press release following Trump’s election win. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 06:54
Trump has vowed to kill US offshore wind projects. Will he succeed?
Opponents of offshore wind energy projects expect President-elect Donald Trump to kill an industry he has vowed to end on the first day he returns to the White House. “I believe this is a tipping point for the offshore wind industry in America,” said Robin Shaffer, president of Protect Our Coast NJ, one of the most vocal groups opposing offshore wind on the East Coast. “They have been given a glidepath by Democrat-run administrations at the federal and state level for many years. For this industry, (Tuesday’s) results will bring headwinds far greater than they have faced previously.” Commercial fishermen in Maine said they hope the Trump administration will undo policies designed to help build and approve offshore wind projects, saying regulators attempted to “future-proof” the industry against political change. Jerry Leeman, CEO of the New England Fishermen’s Stewardship Association, called on Trump to reverse a commitment to deploy 30 gigawatts of offshore wind by 2030. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 06:37
Charting a course toward seafood independence for Alaska’s vulnerable food systems
As a commercial fisherman based in Sitka and the executive director of the Alaska Longline Fishermen’s Association (ALFA), I’ve spent decades navigating Alaska’s challenging waters and the headwinds facing our fishing communities. Alaska’s coastal residents are resilient, but they are up against a new magnitude of challenges. The loss of fishing access and community-based processing capacity, along with a dearth of local markets for seafood, are straining once vibrant fishing economies up and down our coastline. I recently contributed to a fisheries access report commissioned by the Alaska Sustainable Fisheries Trust (ASFT), which highlights the outmigration of fishing access in Southeast Alaska. Communities with historically robust local fishing fleets now see few active vessels based in town. This trend is acute in communities such as Kake, which has lost its local processor — and with it, a viable market for resident fishermen. Through interviews and in-person engagement, ASFT’s report found that a common concern among fishermen was the loss of a local fish buyer. When this happens, resident fishermen often sell their permits or abandon fishing altogether. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< By Linda Behnken 12:05
$2M to give more ocean information to fishers, scientists. ‘It will make a difference.’
A $2 million dollar grant aimed at beefing up collaboration between commercial fishermen and scientists was announced in late October at an event in Sandwich. The money will put 450 more sensors on commercial fishing equipment and data monitors on 150 more commercial fishing vessels. David Casoni has been fishing for 50 years. His lobster boat, Margaret M, is docked at Sandwich Marina. He has hundreds of lobster traps in Cape Cod Bay. He’s placed most of them based on historic knowledge. “We’re trying to catch an animal that has virtually no brain and it’s outsmarting us,” he said. “We know it reacts to food, pheromones, and somewhat to temperature, but it’s not consistent.” more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 08:03
