Tag Archives: lobster fishery
Lawsuit filed to save North Atlantic Right Whales from death in fishing gear
Today’s lawsuit against the National Marine Fisheries Service, filed in federal court in Washington, D.C., alleges that federal management of the American lobster fishery violates the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act. The lawsuit seeks to force the agency to sufficiently examine the fishery’s impacts on North Atlantic right whales and adopt additional measures to prevent more entanglements in the future. The lobster fishery is the most active fixed-gear fishery in the northeastern United States. >click here to read< 12:08 
Minister praises role fishermen play in boosting P.E.I. economy
Provincial Fisheries minister Alan McIsaac told members of the Prince County Fishermen’s Association on Monday that the Island’s fishing industry is one of the shining reasons why the province will balance its budget, or show a slight surplus, this year. McIsaac said the lobster fishery alone produced landings of 36.4 million pounds and a landed value of $226 million in 2017. “You fellows are the ones that are making the economy go and helping us to balance the books.” click here to read the story 18:26 
Trade: Why new lobster markets are needed to protect 450 jobs in our region after Brexit
New markets for the lucrative £35m lobster fishing industry in Holderness are to be investigated to help protect 450 jobs after Brexit. The local lobster fishery is the largest in Europe, landing more than one million lobster each year. Some 250 fishermen and 200 onshore jobs are supported by the industry, with 65 vessels operating out of Hornsea, Withernsea, Easington and Tunstall. But with more than 80 per cent of the Holderness catch exported to Europe, new markets will be needed if the UK leaves the EU without a favourable deal. click here to read the story 10:28
Indigenous fishermen hope to be arrested, trigger court case as Nova Scotia lobster season kicks off
As one of the most lucrative fisheries in Canada prepares for opening day, some Mi’kmaq in Nova Scotia are trying to trigger a court battle over Indigenous fishing, hoping it will see them win a greater share of the thriving lobster business. And they are daring the Department of Fisheries and Oceans to arrest them. One of them is Cheryl Maloney, an activist, law school graduate and mother of four boys. She wants her family to be able to earn the “moderate livelihood” she says the Supreme Court of Canada ruled they are entitled to in 1999. click here to read the story 09:19
Fishing groups say lobster fishery would be better off with industry-led by-catch monitoring system as opposed to something DFO imposes
If the reality is that it’s coming anyway, three local fisheries organizations say fishermen and industry would be better off to handle it themselves as opposed to having it handed down by DFO. Such is the case with a proposal that could see by-catch monitoring happen in the lobster fishery by the fall of 2018. Three local organizations – Coldwater Lobster Association, the Maritime Fishermen’s Union and the Bay of Fundy Inshore Fisheries Association – have joined efforts to get the message out that industry is willing to develop a monitoring system that would be better for the fishery in terms of cost and time.,,, Another proposal being thrown around is cameras on fishing boats. These three associations are all strongly opposed to such a Big Brother approach, saying not only would it be extremely expensive, but it would not generate any useful scientific data. click here to read the story 11:16
Restrictions on tap for southern New England lobster fishery
New restrictions are on tap for the region’s historic lobster fishery, which is grappling with an unprecedented decline. Scientists have said lobsters off southern Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut have declined in the face of the warming ocean. The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission is considering ways to help preserve the species, and a report from the commission says one way to preserve lobsters could be to increase the minimum harvesting size. The commission’s lobster board might take action on the issue Thursday. “The biggest challenge I see is trying to establish an appropriate goal to manage the fishery in the face of what the scientists are telling us is the decline caused by ocean warming,” said Dan McKiernan, a member of the lobster board. Read the rest here 15:43
Terrible weather conditions are blamed for slow start to lobster fishery in Fortune Bay
Exceptional windy conditions resulted in most fishers only being able to haul their pots three or four times during each of the first two weeks of the season, which opened on April 16. Veteran fish harvester Ernest Follett of Grand Bank said his catch rate is down over 30 per cent compared to the first week or so of fishing last year. “It’s not fit,” he said. “With the wind from the northeast, the lobsters just don’t crawl.” Another factor may also have affected catch rates. During the first week of the season, many of the Grand Bank lobster fishers had no choice but to use frozen herring for bait as very little fresh fish was available. Read the story here 16:19
The lobster fishery drives a boat building ‘boom’ in the Canadian Maritimes
Boat builders are benefiting from a steady upward rise in the lobster fishery, which has had everything go right in the past year. The cost of fuel to drive their boats has dropped, while lobster prices are up and catches strong. A lower Canadian dollar has made selling in the U.S. more lucrative. “The combination of those things means lobster fishermen are making more money. The sales we are seeing are the best we have [had] since our organization started recording them and that is 19 years,” said Tim Edwards of the Nova Scotia Boatbuilders Association. Maritime boat yards are operating at full capacity to meet demand for new lobster fishing boats — costing upwards of $1 million each — which has wait times for those new vessels stretching years into the future. Read the article here 08:04
Environmental Group Says Lobster is “Poor Choice” for Pregnant Women – “Them’s fightin’ words!”
Later this summer, the Environmental Working Group (EWG) plans to raise concerns about mercury levels in lobster within the context of a draft update to federal consumer guidelines for seafood consumption. As a Maine resident (and someone who has been covering mercury in seafood more than a little recently), I immediately sat up and took note at the mention of . Read more here 20:01
‘It’s not a big deal’: Lobster fishermen say closure of offshore herring fishery not too detrimental
BELFAST, Maine — The National Marine Fisheries Service Saturday closed a large swath of ocean offshore in the Gulf of Maine to fishing for Atlantic herring — the preferred bait of many lobstermen. But the closure should not have a major detrimental impact on the state’s valuable lobster fishery, according to David Cousens, president of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association. Read more here 08:30
Pesticide board to focus new tests on protecting lobsters
AUGUSTA, Maine — The state Board of Pesticides Control is preparing to embark on a new program of water monitoring — sediment monitoring, more precisely — to focus on protecting marine life, particularly the state’s valuable lobster fishery. Read more here 08:45
Nova Scotia Family makes a go of lobster fishery
Herald Chronical – At the tip of the Cape George, which juts out into the Northumberland Strait, forming the northern edge of St. Georges Bay, Father Evo DiPierro was blessing the fleet on Sunday.“I found her in a snowbank,” Colin said of his wife Yvette as he brought the Paper Maker within range of the priest’s holy water. Yvette laughed and said, “We don’t need to put all our stories in the paper.” Every fisherman has to scrounge and save for a new boat, but few have worked as hard as Colin and Yvette. continued
