Tag Archives: Northern shrimp
The northern shrimp problem — a brief history, Russell Wangersky
Perhaps it’s fitting this battle is over a creature that’s a hermaphrodite — because the ongoing battle over northern shrimp hinges on a fundamental change. The financial-valuable northern shrimp, Pandalus borealis, develops as a male, lives four to seven years as that sex, before going through an inversion and becoming female. Right now, a federally established panel is asking a crucial question: should the last players to enter the shrimp fishery — Newfoundland and Labrador vessels closest to the resource — be the first ones edged out as the biomass shrinks and the total allowable catch shrinks with it? So think of this as something of a shrimp primer. Read the rest here 10:39
Dire warnings in the battle for Atlantic Canada’s lucrative northern shrimp
Nova Scotia fishermen and politicians are warning Ottawa about a possible repeat of the political meddling that led to the devastating collapse of the cod stocks in the early 1990s. This time, however, the problem isn’t cod, it’s northern shrimp. A federal panel reviewing the quota for Newfoundland’s north coast wrapped up the last of six public hearings Friday in Halifax, where 150 fishermen, processors, industry representatives and politicians packed a stuffy conference room. With hundreds of millions of dollars at stake, the temperature in the room went up as the presenters traded barbs over the fate of a lucrative industry that is only around 40 years old. Read the rest here 20:56
LIFO panel gets personal stories at Gander hearings-Who will share the northern shrimp?
Glen Best is a fifth-generation fisherman who lives on Fogo Island. Since 1990, he’s invested about $5 million in his fishing enterprise — buying new vessels and fishing licences, and transitioning his enterprise from groundfish to crab and, since 1998, to shrimp. He was one of about 100 people who came to Gander Thursday to present to the federal panel appointed by Fisheries and Oceans Minister Hunter Tootoo to review the (LIFO) policy on northern shrimp. Best’s story was similar to the one told by several other fishermen at the hearing. Read the rest here 11:28
DFO justifies Area 6 northern shrimp catch by offshore fleet
Fisheries and Oceans Canada is defending its decision to allow offshore factory freezer trawlers to catch northern shrimp this spring, even though its own scientists say the stock is vulnerable to collapse. Inshore fishermen have criticized the fishing, because 2016 quotas have not yet been set, and could be cut significantly. Glenn Best, who fishes shrimp off Fogo Island, said the so-called “bridging policy” should not have been applied in Area 6 at a time when stocks are under review. “The [cod] moratorium would be a walk in the park compared to what’s going to happen if we lose this shrimp,” he said. “This is the bread and butter. This is what sustains communities from Fogo Island to St. Anthony to southern Labrador. We need this shrimp. Why are we taking chances with it?” Read the rest here 10:10
The politics behind the northern shrimp – A quick look at two decades of decision-making
LIFO (Last In-First Out) – The cool thing about the Internet is that it offers up reams of background reports, press releases and historical data related to government policies and political decisions. Sometimes, someone who was there — who was privy to some of the goings on within the inner circle — will pick up the phone to remind a reporter of some of the history of a particular issue.So it was last week that Gerry Byrne, who is the province’s Minister of Advanced Education, gave me a call to talk about northern shrimp. Strange, you say? Wouldn’t the provincial fisheries minister, Steve Crocker, be the one to reach out to a reporter on that ongoing issue? In normal circumstances, yes. However, in this instance, Bryne has the lead on background material. Read the rest here 17:01
Last In, First Out review sees duelling public campaigns by inshore and offshore shrimp harvesters
The Department of Fisheries and Oceans will review the Last In, First Out (LIFO) policy for the northern shrimp fishery and that has two groups of harvesters launching two very different public campaigns. Earlier this year the federal government announced it would temporarily suspend the controversial policy. Some fishermen fear a review will work against the smaller inshore boats as they were the last to enter the fishery. In an attempt to win favour by tugging on the hearts and minds of people in this province, both inshore and offshore supporters have released videos. Watch the competing videos here 09:16
External Review of the Department’s Last-In, First-Out Policy on Northern Shrimp
The Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard launched the Ministerial Advisory Panel to carry out the external review of the Department’s Last-In, First-Out policy (LIFO) for the Northern shrimp fishery. The Panel will provide advice on whether LIFO policy specific to the Northern shrimp fishery should be continued, modified or abolished. For more information on the purpose of the Panel, go to the Terms of Reference tab below. The Panel is planning to hold public consultation meetings with fishers, Indigenous peoples, industry and others to hear their views on the LIFO policy. For planning purposes, anyone wishing to attend a meeting will be required to register for that meeting in advance. The Panel is also accepting written submissions. Please note: While the Panel is independently carrying out the review process for LIFO, the Department is providing the Panel with logistical and administrative support. 10:05
Newfoundland and Labrador: Fishing — by the numbers
It can make your eyes glaze over, I’ll grant you that. And if you’re not emotionally or financially tied to the argument that’s being hotly debated in the public forum, you probably have tuned out. So it is with the current, ongoing spat over northern shrimp. It’s the case of the duelling reports; with the Fish Food and Allied Workers on the one hand arguing the social and economic benefits of the inshore fishery, and the Canadian Association of Prawn Producers and their factor freezer trawlers on the other, with numbers to argue that they, too, employ local people and support the local economy. Both have statistics to support their cause. Both say the reports being used by their other side are flawed. Read the article here 09:38
LIFO suction – War between big fish and little fish, or perhaps corporations and small business
If the controversy over quotas in Shrimp Fishing Area 6 doesn’t sound familiar, it should. Because it really is the same old song and dance when it comes to our age-old industry: too many boats chasing too few fish — or, in this case, one of the species those fish feed on. Pandalus borealis — the northern shrimp — has gone a long way towards alleviating some of the pain caused by the collapse of the cod fishery almost 25 years ago. But it, too, has come under pressure, and the science indicates quotas must be reduced. Read the rest, Click here 17:45
Large vessel owners accuse FFAW of ‘double standard’ – Fishing industry divided on how to handle northern shrimp
A union call to shut down the lucrative shrimp fishery off the northeast coast of Newfoundland and the south coast of Labrador because of declining stocks has other players saying that goes too far. It’s a politically charged debate, with roots in the battle between huge factory freezer trawlers and smaller inshore vessels, about who will get a share of the dwindling resource. “I’m nervous,” Twillingate harvester Brad Watkins told the Central Morning Show Thursday, saying a shutdown could drive brokers and buyers to other parts of the world. “That’s a very scary thing to be thinking about. I think they are jumping too fast here,” said Watkins. Read the rest here 16:02
Atlantic States Marine Fishery Commission Northern Shrimp Research Set Aside Program explained!
In order to maintain a continuing record of biological data collected from the northern shrimp commercial fishery, the section approved a cooperative winter sampling program that will allow a handful of harvesters to land up to a total of 22 metric tons (about 48,000 pounds) of shrimp under a “research set aside quota.” The goal of the program, according to an announcement from the commission, is “to continue the wintertime series of biological data (e.g. size composition, egg hatch timing) collected” from Gulf of Maine northern shrimp fishery catches in the absence of a commercial fishery.Read the article here 11:57
Shrimpers wanted for Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission research program
The commission, which hopes to begin the test-tow portion of the the program in mid-January and the trap portion about a month after that, is looking for a total of four trawl vessels and two trap vessels from New Hampshire, Maine or Massachusetts. The $10,000 program is designed to catch the northern shrimp, Pandalus borealis, while they are in inshore waters to collect data on the timing of the egg hatch, as well as the size, gender and development stages of the shrimp. Read the article here 07:44
ASMFC Northern Shrimp Section and Advisory Panel meeting in Portland, Me. June 12, 2015
Interstate fishery regulators will meet in Portland, Maine, this week to identify management options for the shuttered Northern shrimp fishery. Regulators are working on an amendment that focuses on the development of a limited entry fishing program. (privatize/eliminate/consolidate) Read the rest here Location Westin Portland Harborview (formerly Eastland Hotel), 157 High Street Portland Meeting Materials & Supplemental Materials 16:00
Newfoundland/Labrador – Stakes are big in shrimp fishery
The little northern shrimp gets picked on a lot in what is called Northern Shrimp Fishing Area 6 off the province’s northeast coast. The bullies include the offshore factory-freezer trawlers and inshore boats from all over the province that steam to the large expanse of water off the northeast coast of the island and southern Labrador. The overall shrimp resource has been declining in recent years and there’s controversy over which sector — the offshore or the inshore — should take the biggest hit in quota in coming years. Read the rest here 16:28
Our Jobs, Our Resources: Unfair Sharing of Northern Shrimp
The future of our coastal communities is at risk. Thousands of jobs are in jeopardy due to unfair sharing of the northern shrimp resource. The federal government has deliberately chosen to ignore the longstanding principle of adjacency to the benefit of the corporate-owned offshore fleet, to the detriment of our coastal communities. Our northern shrimp resources are being taken out of our waters with no benefit to our province’s economy. Read the rest here 10:10
A great Northern Shrimp article: 2015 Commercial Northern Shrimp Fishery Moratorium Announced
In addition to announcing the moratorium for the 2015 commercial northern shrimp fishery, ASMFC also announced a draft amendment that would establish a limited entry program for the northern shrimp fishery for use in the future if and when the stock recovers and the fishery is re-opened. Read the rest here 13:30
Baker | Shrimpin’ ain’t easy – Federal decision to cut inshore shrimp quotas mystifying, devastating for NL economy
I wonder how many people casually dismissed the news this week about northern shrimp quota cuts as just more “fishermen crying and whining” about their lot in life. A good many I’d say. And that’s too bad because in doing so you missed something that has huge ramifications. For everyone. Read more here 10:54
Rally for fair sharing of Northern Shrimp on Mar. 21
The rally will take place at Plum Point Motel in Plum Point, beginning at 1 pm this Friday, March 21, 2014. Read more here 09:15
Northern Shrimp: first casualty of New England warming water? – Tragically, the answer is maybe
The Gulf of Maine is the southernmost extent of the range for this cold water species and the water in the Gulf has been getting warmer since the 1960s (see graph). Shrimp require specific water temperature and chemistry during spawning and for larval shrimp survival. In the past, shrimp success has been lower during warm water events in the Gulf of Maine. It is possible that the warming trend in the Gulf of Maine is causing spawning events to not occur or to have very low survival rates for larval shrimp. Read more@workingwaterfront 08:36
Maine shrimping shutdown on horizon this winter – Scientists say the shrimp index is the lowest it’s been since the annual survey began in 1984.
This summer’s shrimp index was at its lowest point since the annual trawl survey began in 1984, said Maggie Hunter, a scientist with the Maine Department of Marine Resources who sits on a three-state technical committee that analyzes the data and recommends what the rules should be for the upcoming season. Regulators will use the survey when they meet in November to decide the dates of this winter’s shrimp-fishing season — or if there will be one at all. more@portlandpress 08:31
Northern Shrimp Shrimping hours expanded, season end date set for April 12, 2013
Due to low catches of northern shrimp, which officials say may be a result of relatively warm water temperatures in the Gulf of Maine, hours in the fishery are being expanded, according to officials. The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission also set a season end date of April 12 and, for the trap fishery, decided to remove the daily limit of 500 pounds, the Maine Department of Marine Resources said. Read more
Maine Shrimpers Face Big Changes Under Upcoming Regulations
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) has scheduled three meetings in Maine next week to take comments on a proposed amendment, known as “Draft Addendum 1,” to the current Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Northern shrimp.http://fenceviewer.com/site/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=77091:shrimpers-face-big-changes-under-upcoming-regulations&Itemid=938
