Tag Archives: Steve Train
Maine lobstermen say ‘red listing’ a threat to their livelihoods without cause
“I truly believe the lobstermen have done everything we’ve been asked by National Marine Fisheries and the DMR,” said Gerry Cushman, who has been lobstering in Port Clyde for 38 years. “We’re not the bad guys here,” he said. “You ask us to do it, we do it. So why are you putting us on the red list? “ The Seafood Watch listing is recommending consumers not buy American lobster from either the U.S. or Canada. Maine is the primary producer of that lobster for the U.S. Cushman said he believes Seafood Watch has taken the action against Maine fishermen to pressure them to stop fighting proposed regulations in court. Steve Train, a lobsterman from Long Island in Casco Bay, echoed those points, saying Maine fishermen have followed all the whale protection rules, even though they have also been challenging them in court. Video, >click to read< 19:37
Are the whales leaving with the food? Gulf of Maine research raises questions about new lobstering rules
As the Gulf of Maine’s waters warm, recent studies show the main food source of the endangered North Atlantic right whale is moving north, out of Maine waters. And the whales appear to be following them. Such findings haven’t escaped the notice of the Maine lobster industry, which has been referencing them in its legal arguments as to why impending new federal restrictions on lobstering gear won’t help save the whales. Oceanographer Jeffrey Runge, of the University of Maine and the Gulf of Maine Research Institute, said the lipid-rich copepods have been abundant in the Gulf of Maine since Henry Bigelow did his first oceanographic surveys in the early 20th century, but that abundance has dropped by about 70 percent in the past 20 years. >click to read< 11:57
‘It used to be just simple:’ Maine lobstermen concerned for future of industry
From new regulations to high fuel prices, some Maine lobstermen say they just can’t catch a break. Many are concerned for the future of the industry that is so much a part of Maine. Steve Train grew up lobstering. “I’ve just always had a love for this as a way to make a living,” Train said. Lobstermen are facing many obstacles, from offshore wind farms to impending federal fishing regulations meant to protect endangered right whales and even high fuel prices. photos, video, >click to read< 10:09
Coronavirus: Maine Fishermen’s Forum board of directors has canceled the 2021 event
“There is no possible way that we can protect our forum participants in such a tight environment, due to COVID-19 and required safety restrictions,” Steve Train, a lobster fisherman on Casco Bay’s Long Island and president of the forum’s board of directors, wrote in an Oct. 21 letter to commercial fishermen and posted to the forum’s website. The letter added, “The board intends to continue serving the commercial fishing industry throughout 2021. We will be meeting soon to discuss options, and will share more details as they become available.” >click to read< >mainefishermensforum.org< 08:02
Video: Maine lobstermen look to Asian Carp as potential solution for bait crisis
“My bait bill today was ridiculously high, I think. But there’s people that spend more,” said Lobsterman Steve Train. The rising costs are credited to increased demand, but also new regulations that limit the catch for one of the most popular fish for lobstering – herring. “The reality is it’s not the just the price, it’s the availability. Without the herring coming on to put in the bait bags to catch lobsters… we’re going to have a bait shortage,” said Train. The state estimates a nearly a 50,000,000 pound herring gap in the next year. >Video, click to read< 11:19
Slow lobster season so far in Maine, but price is steady
It’s been a slow lobster season so far in Maine, but the lack of crustaceans isn’t translating into high prices for consumers, and fishermen are still hopeful for a bump in catch this summer.,,, The season so far is similar to the lobster hauls veteran fishermen saw in the 1980s and 1990s, when the boom in catch typically came later, said Steve Train, a lobsterman based in Long Island. It’s frustrating for those who are used to the big, early catches of the modern era, he said. >click to read< 15:11
Scientists say Maine’s lobster boom won’t last. Here are the fisheries coming next
In southern New England, many fishermen have turned their attention to species such as Jonah crab and black sea bass, the numbers of which have increased as ocean temperatures warm and as lobster in the region have become more scarce. Maine’s lobster landings remain near historic highs, but some say the changes that have occurred south of Cape Cod are inevitable in the Gulf of Maine. “I know it’s a hard concept to get around, but it’s going to happen,” Norbert Stamps, a Rhode Island fisherman, told a roomful of other fishermen at the Maine Fishermen’s Forum in Rockport in March. “It seems as the lobster declined [in southern New England], the crab increased. And sea bass are everywhere.” >click to read<10:43
Steve Train, lobsterman
Dropping out of college doesn’t lead to financial hardship in every case. When Steve Train, 48, left Northeastern University in Boston as a young man, he had only 12 courses left to take before he would graduate with a business degree. By then, however, the Long Island resident had decided he wanted to be a lobsterman. So he decided to spend his limited funds on buying more lobster traps and a larger boat, rather than pay for college tuition for a degree he would never need. Read the rest here 14:51
