Tag Archives: Humboldt County
Crab season to begin Saturday but price talks could delay start
Crabbers are still negotiating with fish processors over the price per pound of crab, and by the first week of January, they might have a deal, said Harrison Ibach, president of the Humboldt Fishermen’s Marketing Association. He added that he could not speculate on what the price would be, but that it would likely not be as high as last season’s $4.75 per pound. “It’s a very soft seafood market at the moment. I guess you could say it’s probably due to economic conditions, the cost of living is extremely high,” Ibach said. “There’s not been a lot of consumption of domestic seafood or seafood in general.” >click to read< 11:26
Fishermen, Con Groups Appeal Nordic Aquafarms’ Environmental Report Certification
Two weeks after the Humboldt County Planning Commission certified the Final Environmental Impact Report (FEIR) for Nordic Aquafarms’ planned land-based fish factory on the Samoa Peninsula, the decision is being appealed to the Board of Supervisors. On Thursday, leaders of three local nonprofits, the Redwood Region Audubon Society Chapter, the Humboldt Fishermen’s Marketing Association and 350 Humboldt, submitted a letter to the supervisors and to John Ford, the county’s director of planning and building, initiating the appeal. The letter alleges that the environmental report, which was prepared for the county by local engineering firm GHD, violates the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) by understating several of the project’s impacts, including its greenhouse gas emissions, its energy use and the threats it poses to commercial fisheries and coastal and bay ecosystems. >click to read< 11:44
Nordic Aquafarms Final Environmental Impact Report Available for Public Review
The County of Humboldt has prepared a Final Environmental Impact Report for the Nordic Aquafarms California, LLC – Coastal Development Permit and Special Permit application (Case Number PLN-2020-16698), and the report is now available on the county’s website. The Planning Commission will be considering the Coastal Development Permit and Special Permit at a Public Hearing on July 28 beginning at 6 pm in the Board of Supervisors Chambers. >click to read< 12:00
Fishermen voice concerns about Humboldt County offshore wind farm project
While the proposed wind energy area off Humboldt Bay is estimated to have a minimal to low impact on the region’s commercial fishing, some industry members do not fully agree with site assessment and characterization survey findings. During a virtual meeting hosted Tuesday morning by BOEM,,, Pacific Seafood consultant Mike Okoniewski stated during public comment most fishermen in the region he has spoken to about the project have not been reached to participate in the discussion. Eureka-based fisherman Travis Hunter also voiced concerns over potential impacts on the local fishing industry. He stated that the relevant reports do not state how the project will displace the fishing industry. >click to read< 09:04 Online meeting on Wednesday evening from 5 to 8 p.m. Links to the meeting and more information regarding the projects can be found at Humboldt Wind Energy Area | Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (boem.gov)
Commercial Dungeness Crab fleet ordered to end operations June 1 for whale endangerment concerns
An order to end the current crabbing season six weeks early in Northern California will deliver another blow to crab fishermen in Humboldt County after seeing record low landings this season, fishermen said. “The price on crab is very high right now. There might not be the most participation (out of the season) but there are still a lot of people who rely on springtime crabbing at a very high price,” he said. “It is quite unfortunate and sad that it is going to be closed earlier than normal.” California Department of Fish and Wildlife director Charlton Bonham ordered the state’s commercial dungeness crab fishing fleet to end its activities at noon on June 1, approximately six weeks earlier than the normal July 15 end for Northern California crab fishermen. All crab lines must be cleared by the end time set. >click to read< 08:33
Nordic Aquafarms pushes forward with onshore fish farm in Humboldt County
Humboldt County has given Norway-based seafood company Nordic Aquafarms the green light to move forward,,, “We also expect the discharge draft permit to be sent out for public comments by the (Water Quality Control Board) soon,” said Marianne Naess,,, “Fishermen and the Humboldt Fishermen’s Marketing Association as a whole really have environmental concerns about the Nordic project,” Fisherman Jake McMaster told the Times-Standard. “Concerns from sucking 10 million gallons of water out of the bay every day as well as fish escapes. >click to read< 12:54
Crab fishing industry not canceled yet, but,,,
Humboldt County’s crab fishing season will remain open for now, unlike fisheries south of the Sonoma and Mendocino counties line, which have been ordered to close on May 15. An ongoing settlement agreement allows the season to be ordered closed when there’s too high a risk of whales becoming entangled in fishing gear. For now, the North Coast has been spared of closure, though a recent report from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration flags one humpback whale, which beached at Samoa in October 2019. The whale later died. Overall, the report indicates California had 17 whale entanglements in 2019, down from 34 the year before. >click to read< 21:46
Coronavirus: Seafood Industry Comes to ‘Screeching Halt,’ But Some Businesses Adapting
Harrison Ibach, a commercial fisherman based out of Eureka in Humboldt County, says that when the coronavirus hit the U.S., his business dried up practically overnight. “Oh, man, the seafood industry has pretty much come to a screeching halt,” Ibach said. Since 2008, he’s fished for black cod, rockfish, salmon and crab out of the Woodley Island Marina. Most of his catch goes to high-end fish restaurants in San Francisco. But now, Ibach says, those restaurants aren’t buying. “We now know that the vast majority of Americans really enjoy seafood,” Ibach said, “But we’ve also learned that they really enjoy eating seafood at restaurants.”,, Ibach, who has a wife and two young children, says he has gotten creative in response. He recently started to sell fish directly off his boat, >click to read< 20:19
Commercial Crab season to start at $3 per pound
Commercial crab fishing season begins overnight into Tuesday with a $3-per-pound market price, roughly the same as the going rate in the Bay Area. The season’s start was delayed by a gap in meatiness (crab meat levels need to be at a certain level for fishing to begin) and lengthy negotiations over an official market price.,, As they have done ahead of past seasons, some crab fishermen worried about where price negotiations would wind up. Historically, crabbers have even gone on strike over market price disagreements. , >click to read< 08:34
Crab fishermen hope new season won’t have same roadblocks. Next big hurdle is to negotiate commercial prices
Crabbers anticipate being able to set up their gear on Dec. 28 with an official start date just days later. But the fishermen still need to finish negotiating this year’s market prices — a process that could indefinitely delay the season’s start if it doesn’t move quickly. It’s illegal in California to sell crabs commercially without a set market price. “We’re definitely worried,” said fisherman Scott Creps. “We’re hoping to get everything worked out and get a full season this year.” >click to read< 07:22
CDFW Announces Quality Delay for Commercial Dungeness Crab in Northern Fishery, and Important Updates to Pending Opening in Central Fishery
In a memo released today (11/15), CDFW Director Charlton H. Bonham delayed the northern California commercial Dungeness crab season due to poor crab meat quality test results. The delayed area in the north includes Mendocino, Humboldt and Del Norte counties (Fish and Game Districts 6, 7, 8 and 9). The northern Dungeness crab fishery is delayed until 12:01 a.m. on Monday, Dec. 16, 2019 pending another round,,, >click to read< 09:03
Fisherman, conservationists want more research before developing wind farms
Before Humboldt County begins investing in offshore wind energy, local conservationists and fishermen say more research needs to be done to assess the projects’ local impacts. Harrison Ibach, president of the Humboldt Fishermen’s Marketing Association, said much of California’s waters are already closed to commercial fishing and the installation of wind turbines is going to further reduce the number of areas where fishermen can operate. “We can’t afford to lose any more grounds,” Ibach said. >click to read<07:49
Stakeholders Voice Concerns and Cautious Optimism About Offshore Wind Energy at McGuire-Hosted Hearing – click here to read<
Local crabs testing clean of neurotoxins prior to Dec. 1 commercial opener
The commercial opener for Dungeness crab fishing is set to take place on Dec. 1, and to the relief of Humboldt County crabbers, there is little sign of domoic acid which caused disastrous effects of last season. Eureka crab fisherman David Helliwell said he is concerned the naturally-produced neurotoxin could make a return this year, but said only time will tell whether they will be able to haul in enough crab before then to make up for last year’s losses. “We were able to pay some bills, but not others,” Helliwell said describing the impacts of last season’s late start. “We didn’t have any income for five months. So the fact that we had income for two months doesn’t make up for all that lost time.” North Coast crabbers were supposed to have started their season on Dec. 1, 2015, but instead found themselves setting their pots in May this year. The season ended in July with the statewide crab fleet pulling in less than half of their average haul. Many crabbers fell into debt and are now waiting for federal emergency relief funds that may never come. Read the story here 10:16
Following a 6 month delay, Dungeness crab catch plummets on North Coast
While the first few days of Humboldt County’s six-month-late Dungeness crab season had some good hauls, the catch has dropped to the point that some crabbers are already packing away their gear, according to local industry sources. “I’ve never seen it go down this fast,” Wild Planet Foods Eureka plant manager Jeff Huffman said Tuesday, “though we’ve never had a season start this late. Usually we’re locking the doors at this point.” But some crabbers are faring better than others since the North Coast commercial Dungeness crab season opened on May 12. Jubal Hall of the “My Lady” crabbing vessel said he will continue crabbing as long as they can, and described the catch so far as “decent, but not great.” Read the story here 08:21
Humboldt commercial crab season to open, but with an exception
Press release from Department of Fish and Wildlife: Except for one area within Humboldt County, the California coast is open for recreational Dungeness crab fishing. The commercial crab fishery will follow in the same areas, opening May 12. The recreational Dungeness crab fishery is open north of 41° 17.6’ N latitude at the southern boundary line of Reading Rock State Marine Conservation Area (near Redwood Creek), Humboldt County to the California/Oregon border, however the recreational fishery remains closed between 40° 46.15’ N latitude (a line extending due west from the west end of the north jetty at the entrance of Humboldt Bay) and 41° 17.6’ N latitude. Read the rest here 21:28
