Tag Archives: Gina Raimondo
Disaster aid has arrived, but Western Alaska’s salmon and crab problems continue
The Alaska congressional delegation announced on Friday that the U.S. Commerce Department released the disaster aid. The money is to go to harvesters, processors and communities affected by designated disasters in salmon and crab fisheries that occurred between 2020 and 2022. For Bering Sea snow crab, signs are that the problems that led to the first-ever harvest closure, which was announced last October, will last for years. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries Service 2022 survey found that despite the emergence of cooler and more normal temperatures, mature male snow crab abundance was the lowest on record and mature female snow crab abundance was the third lowest on record. >click to read< 10:12
Fishery disaster aid and nearly $500 million worth of Alaska projects included in omnibus budget bill
Aid to Alaska fishermen, companies and communities was included in the year-end omnibus appropriations package that won final passage on Friday. The $300 million in aid funding follows official disaster declarations issued last week by U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo for Alaska salmon and crab fishery failures dating back to 2020, as well as some salmon failures in Washington state dating back to 2019. The $300 million in total disaster aid “is a great start for much-needed money to help fishermen and communities pay their bills,” Jamie Goen, executive director of Alaska Bering Sea Crabbers, said in a statement. >click to read< 10:01
$300M in fisheries disaster relief makes it into federal spending bill
A massive congressional appropriations bill made public Tuesday includes $300 million in disaster assistance for fishing families and communities buffeted by downturns in Bering Sea crab as well as some Alaska and Washington salmon harvests. The full House and Senate still need to vote on the spending package. The $300 million in Alaska and Washington fisheries disaster funds is aimed at direct payments to crabbers and fishers and support for research and habitat restoration, according to Washington Democratic Sens. Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray. The Washington and Alaska congressional delegations joined together to press for a fisheries disaster declaration made last week by U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.The full House and Senate still need to vote on the spending package. >click to read< 16:06
Atlantic Herring: New England to get $11M in disaster relief funding
Disaster-level instability in the Atlantic herring industry has prompted the federal government to give $11 million to commercial fishermen and shore-side infrastructure in four states. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo said Thursday that the herring industry in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Rhode Island will get the assistance. More than $7 million is slated for Maine. Raimondo said the assistance “will help affected fisheries and communities recover from disasters and make them more resilient to future challenges.” >click to read< 15:49
Commerce Determinations Clear the Way for Alaska Fisheries to Receive Relief Funds
U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, and Congressman Don Young, all R-Alaska, today welcomed determinations from the Department of Commerce that fishery disasters have occurred in numerous Alaska fisheries, allowing Alaska fishermen to receive critical relief funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The funding can be distributed to fishermen and their crews, seafood processors, and research initiatives in the impacted regions. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo today issued determinations that fisheries disasters occurred in fourteen different fisheries->click to read< 09:30
New England Fishery Management Council pick disappoints Gloucester Mayor – feds pulling bait-and-switch
Gloucester Mayor Sefatia Romeo Theken on Tuesday said the June 28 decision to appoint recreational fishing stakeholder Michael J. Pierdinock of Plymouth instead of Northeast Seafood Coalition Executive Director Jackie Odell “was a serious oversight which has not gone unnoticed” by commercial fishing stakeholders. Romeo Theken did not directly criticize Baker for his recommendation to Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, who had final say on the council appointment. But New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell did.,,, >click to read< 12:19
PFMC Recommends Commercial Chinook Fishery Closure in Northern California
The Pacific Fishery Management Council has recommended closing the commercial chinook fishery between the Oregon border and the Fort Bragg area due to low fall salmon returns forecasted for the Klamath River. Meanwhile, the recreational fishery will be open for chinook from June 29 through Aug. 1,,, These recommendations will take effect if adopted by U.S. Secretary of Commerce, Gina Raimondo,,, >click to read< 19:33
Gina Raimondo – Secretary of Commerce nomination rekindles fish vs. turbine fight
In 2019, long-simmering differences between Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo (D) and the state’s fishing industry boiled over. The dispute concerned a plan to limit fishermen’s financial losses associated with a proposed $2 billion offshore wind project. Many boat captains felt the deal undervalued their catch, and they directed their ire at Raimondo, an outspoken offshore wind advocate, accusing her of freezing the fishing industry out of negotiations with Vineyard Wind, the project developer. At a meeting of the state’s Coastal Resources Management Council that February, many lined up to blast the package. Council members, who are appointed by the governor, expressed sympathy for the concerns but argued that it represented the best offer. They ultimately signed off on the deal. >click to read< 09:46
As Commerce Secretary, Raimondo to play key role in offshore wind.
In the selection of Gina Raimondo as the next U.S. Secretary of Commerce, the offshore wind industry would get a champion in Washington. What influence she could bring to bear for the emerging energy sector remains to be seen, but if confirmed to her new position in the Biden cabinet, Raimondo would oversee federal fisheries regulators who have raised some of the concerns about potential negative impacts of erecting what could be many hundreds of wind turbines in the ocean waters off southern New England. >click to read<09:45
Renewables and unions: Biden rounds out energy Cabinet
President-elect Joe Biden closed out his Cabinet picks last week with the choice of Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo (D) for Commerce secretary and Boston Mayor Marty Walsh for Labor secretary,,, Offshore wind insiders say Raimondo appears to be an answer to the growing friction between a burgeoning renewable sector and the fishermen who have long been the ocean’s dominant users.,, Raimondo would oversee NOAA Fisheries, a critical gatekeeper to the growing line of offshore wind projects awaiting approval from the incoming Biden government. >click to read< 17:08
Vineyard Wind, R.I. fishermen still at odds over turbines
At issue is minimizing impacts to fishing grounds for squid, lobster and other species that are critical to Rhode Island fishermen. Nearly four months into a review of its proposal by Rhode Island coastal regulators, Vineyard Wind has been unable to allay fears that its proposed offshore wind farm of up to 100 turbines would harm the state’s fishing industry. With a key approval from the Coastal Resources Management Council at stake, the New Bedford-based company has agreed to a two-month extension in an attempt to bridge the divide with agency staff and Rhode Island fishermen over the $2-billion project that would be built in 250 square miles of ocean south of Martha’s Vineyard. >click to read<23:54
New R.I. Offshore Wind Project Missing Details
The Revolution Wind project was chosen through a shared bidding process with Massachusetts. Key details, such as cost, the power-purchase agreement, job creation, and work to be done in Rhode Island, will be revealed when Deepwater Wind files its contract with the Public Utilities Commission this summer.,, The coordination between Massachusetts and Rhode Island in the offshore wind bidding process went mostly unnoticed by the media.,, Deepwater Wind didn’t respond to a request for comment. But in the past 18 months, the renewable-energy developer has hyped its investment in New Bedford, Mass., >click to read<10:19
