Nantucket’s Commercial Scalloping Harvest Tops 8,000 Bushels
Nantucket’s commercial scalloping season comes to an end today, and the harvest by island fishermen will top 8,000 bushels for the first time since the 2019-20 season. Scallopers, along with officials from the Nantucket Shellfish Association and the town’s Natural Resources Department, all said they were pleased to see the final number above 8,000 bushels, a small but not insignificant increase over last season’s total of 7,329 bushels. Bruce Cowan was among the few scallopers still fishing on Thursday, and he returned to Old South Wharf with his five-bushel limit and a smile on his face just before noon. Even with heavy rain and wind gusts expected to top 40 mph today, he said he was still thinking about getting out there for the final day of the season. Photos, more, >>click to read<< 07:45
UK authorities backtrack on under-10 medical requirement
The UK government has announced a partial reversal of its policy on medical certification for fishermen. This follows an extensive campaign by the NFFO, and now anyone fishing for four weeks or more on a UK under-10 vessel between 30th November 2021 and 29th November 2023 is exempt from the requirement to hold a medical fitness certificate. ‘This is a welcome outcome and desperately needed. It is a total reversal in the government’s position on the under 10m fleet and will benefit thousands of fishermen,’ an NFFO representative commented. more, >>click to read<< 06:50
New Bedford – True North Seafood to shut down city plant
One of the city’s largest seafood processors is shutting down its waterfront facility, laying off as many as 94 local workers as the company consolidates its production in Virginia. True North Seafood, a subsidiary of Canadian seafood giant Cooke, announced the sudden decision to its staff at a floor meeting Thursday morning. The company is a leading distributor of imported fish, processing more than 16 million pounds of salmon each year, according to its website. Cooke has both harvesting and processing operations spanning 15 countries and over 13,000 workers. Its revenues are north of $4 billion, according to a recent interview with CEO Glenn Cooke. more, >>click to read<< 20:16
Opinion: In memoriam of Blue Harvest — private equity giveth, and it taketh away
You have to be careful when you swim with sharks — sometimes private equity sponsors. Sadly, for New Bedford, Blue Harvest did business with the Dutch private equity firm Bregal Partners. There’s a lot to unpack here, but one thing that sticks out is why a Dutch financial firm would have an interest in a New Bedford fishing company? Big fans of cod? Nope. Money. The answer is always money. The point here is not to blame the process — it’s to learn to avoid the greedy players involved and reflect on why we all did not see it coming. Or at the very least for being surprised it happened. more, >>click to read<< 16:59
Retired Lobsterman Joseph A. Pesce Jr. of Revere, Mass, has passed away
Joseph was born in Revere on September 15, 1938. He was the son of the late Joseph A. and Anna (D’Ambrosio) Pesce. He had been a lifelong resident of Revere and attended Revere Public Schools. Following high school, Joe worked at the Boston Ship Yard as a pipe fitter until he decided to pursue his passion to be a lobsterman. Joe began working as a commercial lobsterman, which was a career that would span over 65 years. His devoted son, David, joined in his passion for lobstering and worked alongside him for the last 30 years. They were the best partners. He was a dedicated and hard-working man who devoted his life to providing for his family. more, >>click to read<< 12:27
Fishermen keep fighting against offshore turbines
It’s a fishing story that’s not being told. That is how some members of the North Carolina For-Hire Captain’s Association (NCFHCA) feel about what they see as a threat offshore wind turbines would pose to the local fishing industry, economy, wildlife and environment. “No matter how we feel or whatever, the feds are shoving this down our throat and it doesn’t matter what we say,” said Capt. Cane Faircloth, a NCFHCA board member who handles media, public relations and marketing for the association of about 300 people. The subject is dear to the heart of Dr. Nick Degennaro of Southport, who has worked in the offshore industry for 30 years and has a doctorate in commercial engineering from the University of Rhode Island. He is opposed to offshore wind energy. This issue is so important to him, “because it’s going to destroy the ocean,” he said. Degennaro said areas that have offshore wind turbines become “dead zones” for fishing. more, >>click to read<< 10:48
Lineless Lobster Launches The Gear Guardian as a Low Cost Rapidly Deployable Interim Solution to the Entanglement Crisis
Lineless Lobster proudly announces the launch of its new project aimed to help address the Right Whale entanglement issue with a product called “The Gear Guardian.” The Gear Guardian is a low cost mechanical device with no electronics that attaches to any lobster trap in minutes. It is designed to reduce the occurrence and severity of Right Whale entanglements, provide a way to rescue otherwise lost “ghost gear” and prove a consumer demand for ethically sourced lobster. “It hit me two years ago-I love whales but hate the way the entanglement issue with Right Whales is playing out. It’s painful seeing Lobstermen hit with unfair regulations and at the same time watching good science be ignored or debated,” says Chris Buchanan, Founder of Lineless Lobster. links, more, >>click to read<< 09:33
Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut receive proposals for offshore wind projects
Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut received proposals Wednesday for offshore wind projects as the three East Coast states hope to boost their reliance on the renewable energy source. The three states joined in a historic agreement that allows for potential coordinated selection of offshore wind projects. Massachusetts received bids from Avangrid Renewables, South Coast Wind Energy and Vineyard Offshore in response to the region’s largest solicitation to date for offshore wind, seeking up to 3,600 megawatts. more, >>click to read<< 08:07
‘I’m not going to hang around:’ Some Maine lobstermen decide to quit over new regulations
Some lobstermen have decided the paperwork, and more harsh future regulations, aren’t worth it. Bill Coppersmith’s lobster boat is named the “Billy and Andy.” He stopped lobstering the day new reporting requirements started. “Forty-three years of doing it, I took the last of my gear out of the water on New Year’s Day. And I said, ‘That’s probably it,'” Coppersmith said. “It’s come to be too restrictive to go. It creates more work. And I can’t create any more revenue because of the restrictions they’re putting on here.” Lobstermen are also now required to keep a tracking device on board so the Atlantic States Commission can track their movements in the Gulf of Maine. Coppersmith says that’s an invasion of privacy. Video, more, >>click to read<< 06:26
San Diego fishermen fined for poaching
State Department of Fish and Wildlife officials have fined a network of San Diego fishermen a total of $145,000 for poaching bluefin tuna, yellowtail and mahi mahi. A six-month investigation showed more than 5,500 pounds of fish were bought from recreational fishermen and sold in commercial markets, according to a recent news release from the department. Nick Haworth, 28, pleaded guilty and agreed to community service and a $10,000 fine, the release states. His father, David Haworth, 60, agreed to community service and to host six events feeding fish meals to the homeless through a local food bank. The Haworths participate in the Tuna Harbor Dockside Market near Seaport Village and have sold fish at their dock at Driscoll’s Wharf in Point Loma and with home deliveries. Others involved include, more, >>click to read<< 18:45
Fisheries committees to discuss possible trawling closures to protect submerged aquatic vegetation
Three advisory committees of the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission will meet in April to discuss a proposal to protect submerged aquatic vegetation through shrimp trawl area closures. The meetings will be held in person and live-streamed on YouTube. Public comments will be accepted in person during the meetings. The commission’s northern advisory committee will meet April 9 at 6 p.m. in the Dare County Board of Commissioners’ meeting room in Manteo. The Southern Advisory Committee will meet April 10 at 6 p.m. in the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries central district office at 5285 Highway 70 West in Morehead City. The shellfish/crustacean advisory committee will meet April 11 at 6 p.m. in the central district office. more, >>click to read<< 15:19
Nominee to Bering Sea fisheries council would tip balance toward tribes, away from trawlers
Tribal and environmental advocates calling for a crackdown on salmon and halibut bycatch are set to gain a new ally on the federal council that manages Alaska’s lucrative Bering Sea fisheries. Washington Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee last week nominated Becca Robbins Gisclair, an attorney and conservation advocate, to the North Pacific Fishery Management Council. If U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo accepts Inslee’s recommendation, Gisclair, senior director of Arctic programs at the environmental advocacy group Ocean Conservancy, would assume one of the council’s 11 voting positions. Inslee’s choice comes amid an intense fight at the council about tighter regulation of bycatch, and after what advocates described as a last-minute flurry of lobbying in an effort to convince Inslee to pick an ally of one side or the other in that dispute. more, >>click to read<< 13:42
Northern cod remains in cautious zone, DFO says growth has stalled. FFAW critical of methodology
Scientists with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada say the northern cod stock remains above the critical zone in Newfoundland and Labrador but hasn’t shown signs of growth since 2016. DFO released the findings of its latest stock assessment on Tuesday, showing levels are still in the cautious zone. Paul Regular, northern cod stock lead for DFO, said their findings suggest numbers haven’t changed much since 2016. The province’s fisheries union, meanwhile, is questioning the validity of DFO’s findings this year, given that some of the work was done earlier in the season than normal. Video, more, >>click to read<< 11:42
A New Chapter In Newlyn’s Fishing Legacy: Formalising The Fish Auction Agreement
In a significant development for the Port of Newlyn, the Newlyn Pier & Harbour Commissioners (NP&HC) and W Stevenson & Sons Limited (WS&S) have finalised a landmark agreement, poised to redefine the UK’s leading quality fish auction from 1st April 2024. This formalization solidifies a longstanding and productive relationship, setting the stage for a modernised partnership aimed at bolstering the facilities and services for the Cornish fleet and the wider UK fishing industry. With the agreement set to activate on the 1st of April, WS&S will assume exclusive auctioneering rights at Newlyn Fish Market for a duration of seven years. more, >>click to read<< 10:31
Fishing industry reels over Biden’s destructive wind farm plan: It’s ‘coming at us from every direction’
Time is running out for fishermen and women in the Northeast who fear their industry is being put at risk by the Biden administration’s renewable energy agenda. “Ground fishermen, lobstermen, whatever you are, you’re under the microscope right now, and it just seems to be something coming at us from every direction,” New England Fishermen’s Stewardship Association (NEFSA) COO Dustin Delano said on “The Big Money Show” Monday. “And with this offshore wind agenda out there to attempt to fight climate change,” he continued, “it’s almost like environmentalists and different folks are willing to destroy the environment to protect the environment.” Video, photos, more, >>click to read<< 08:52
Lawmakers support new fees on Louisiana seafood dealers who import foreign catch
State lawmakers advanced separate bills Tuesday to address the dominance of cheap foreign seafood in Louisiana. One would require seafood dealers to pay higher fees for importing foreign catch into the state, and another would require wholesalers and retailers to obtain a new seafood importer license. House Bill 748, sponsored by Rep. Jessica Domangue, R-Houma, would raise the state’s imported seafood safety fee from a flat $100 per year to a 0.1% assessment on the company’s gross revenue. The proposal marks the freshman lawmaker’s first bill, which Domangue, the daughter of a commercial fisherman, called “very special” for its ability to protect the domestic seafood industry. It cleared the House Committee on Natural Resources and Environment with unanimous support and will head to the House floor for consideration. more. >>click to read<< 08:05
Six missing workers presumed dead after Baltimore bridge collapse, US Coast Guard says
A desperate search was launched to try and trace six construction workers who plunged 185ft into the cold waters below the bridge. Given the time they have been missing and the water temperatures, the workers are presumed to have died. The Coast Guard will now suspend its search and rescue mission and instead focus on a recovery mission. “We do not want to injure any of these first responders in this recovery effort,” an official said. It comes after harrowing close-up video footage has emerged of the moment Baltimore’s Key Bridge collapsed after being struck by a container ship. The ship, the Singaporean flagged Dali, was only 20 minutes into its journey when it slammed into a support column on the bridge. photos, video, more, >>click to read<< 07:09
DFO delays opening of crab season by a week, staving off more fish harvester protests
The federal government has agreed to push back the opening of the snow crab season, following a request from the fisheries union and a threat of more protests. The Department of Fisheries and Oceans made the announcement Monday evening, a day after the Fish, Food & Allied Workers union wrote to the department and asked for a one-week delay. Fish harvesters wanted time to iron out the details of an agreement last week with the provincial government to implement sweeping changes to the industry that would affect the upcoming season. DFO initially denied that request, releasing its management plan Monday morning with an expected start date of April 1, prompting influential fisherman John Efford to threaten to rally protesters outside the DFO office in St. John’s. more, >>click to read<< 17:31
Graves and Peltola Urge Biden to Immediately Halt Unsafe Shrimp Imports
U.S. Congressman Garret Graves (South Louisiana) and Congresswoman Mary Sattler Peltola (Alaska) sent a letter to President Biden urging him to immediately halt shrimp imports into the United States from India, following concerning reports of severe food and safety issues and labor violations in Indian shrimp processing facilities. The reports highlight that shrimp imported from India are farmed and they regularly do not meet domestic health standards; the suppliers themselves know this to be true, evidenced by their tactics to evade detection at American ports. Graves and Peltola noted that there is already high-quality, healthy shrimp caught in America that is being pushed out of the market by foreign shrimp sold at artificially low prices and unsafe for consumption. more, >>click to read<< 12:49
Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 95′ Steel Dragger
To review specifications, information, and 30 photos’,>click here<, To see all the boats in this series, >click here< 11:53
Change to legal size of lobster imports proposed
Draft Addendum XXX, an amendment to American lobster regulations, will consider whether new minimum lobster size increases that take effect Jan. 1, 2025, should apply to lobsters imported into the United States. The proposed change was initiated to meet a federal Magnuson-Stevens Act requirement prohibiting imports of whole live lobster smaller than the U.S. legal minimum possession size. A public hearing will be held online on Tuesday, April 9, from 6-8 p.m. links, webinar, info, more, >>click to read<< 10:19
Southern Shrimp Alliance: The Outlaw Ocean Project Investigation Regarding Imported Shrimp Supply Chains
On the same day that Corporate Accountability Lab (CAL) publicly released the results of its three-year investigation into forced labor practices in the Indian shrimp industry, Hidden Harvest: Human Rights and Environmental Abuses in India’s Shrimp Industry, and the Associated Press published an article and video news story by investigative journalists Martha Mendoza, Mahesh Kumar, and Piyush Nagpal confirming CAL’s findings, The Outlaw Ocean Project has provided a rare view into the inner workings of a major Indian shrimp exporter to the United States, Choice Trading Corporation Private Limited. more, >>click to read<< 09:25
Commercial Fishermen Remain Worried About Proposed Plans from US Wind
Proposed plans for the West Ocean City Harbor came into focus on Monday night. Offshore wind company US Wind wants to upgrade the pier in the harbor, and a public hearing on Monday gave neighbors a chance to voice their opinions. One commercial fisherman we spoke with ahead of the public hearing said he’s worried the company’s plans, which are part of a future operations and maintenance facility, could run his industry out of town. “Now US Wind is trying to purchase the other two fish houses we have, so we’ll no longer have anywhere to pack out our fish, nowhere else to get ice,” said Jimmy Hahn. more, >>click to read<< 08:26
Baltimore Bridge Hit By Ship – Major Collapse
A major commuter bridge in Baltimore collapsed after being rammed by a container ship, causing vehicles to plunge into the water and threatening chaos at one of the most important ports on the US East Coast. The Maryland Transportation Authority issued an alert on X telling drivers not to use Interstate 695. Kevin Cartwright of the Baltimore City Fire Department described it as “a mass casualty, multi-agency incident” in an audio interview with CNN, adding as many as 20 people could be in the water. The disaster at the Francis Scott Key Bridge happened early Tuesday. It’s likely to cause huge disruption — both for shipping at one of the busiest ports on the US East Coast and on the roads — now that a key link has been severed on the major highway encircling Baltimore. Photos, more, >>click to read<< 07:31
Commercial fishing fleet still waiting for its homeport
Members of Gig Harbor’s fishing fleet have waited more than a decade for the city to build a Commercial Fishing Homeport, which has been part of the plan for Ancich Park since 2013. It looks like they will have to wait at least another year. Negotiations between the city and the National Marine Fisheries Service over mitigation for the $3.2 million project have stalled. The city likely will miss the so-called “fish window” for overwater construction this year. The city already has a design, local and state permits, and financing — including a substantial donation from the Gig Harbor Commercial Fishermen’s Club. But it doesn’t have the go-ahead from NMFS, which determines what mitigation is necessary to proceed. For the local commercial fishing industry, the clock is ticking. Photos, more, >>click to read<< 06:36
‘Give us a call’: Fisheries Protective Co-op welcomes outside buyers
The Fisheries Protective Co-operative (FPC) welcomes outside buyers interested in purchasing fish from the province’s inshore fleet and invites such companies to contact the co-op to line up supply. “Give us a call,” says Ryan Cleary, spokesman for the FPC’s interim board. “The more competition the merrier to deliver the best possible price to our enterprise owners and break the power of the cartel.” On March 15th, following demonstrations outside Confederation Building in St. John’s, the provincial government initiated an application process for outside buyers, starting with the soon-to-be opened snow crab fishery. “Government policy, which to this point has resulted in the absence of free and open competition, is being reversed as a result of last week’s agreement with the protest movement,” says Merv Wiseman, who also sits on the FPC’s interim board. more, >>click to read<< 18:33
Maine Fishermen Caught More Fish in 2023, Thanks to a Hunger Relief Program and COVID Funds
Maine fishermen bucked yearslong, industrywide trends last year and caught more fish, a development regulators and industry members said shows the impact of COVID-19 relief funds. The catch of haddock more than doubled to more than 500,000 pounds (226,796 kilograms), and the catches of Atlantic cod, witch flounder and Atlantic halibut were all up significantly. Federal money also supported the Fishermen Feeding Mainers program, which buys fish to support food banks and schools. Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association, an industry nonprofit group, launched the Fishermen Feeding Mainers program in part to help the groundfish industry survive the COVID-19 pandemic. more, >>click to read<< 15:23
Fishery officers make 39 arrests and seizures at rivers for unauthorized elver fishing
Unauthorized fishing is a threat to the sustainability of fish stocks and undermines the livelihoods of law-abiding fish harvesters. The elver fishery is not open for 2024 in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, therefore any harvesting is unauthorized. Should anyone choose to fish for elver they will be subject to enforcement action as per the Fisheries Act and the Maritime Provinces Fishery Regulations. Since March 6, 2024 in separate incidents across Southwest Nova Scotia, fishery officers arrested a total of 39 individuals who are under investigation for infractions of the Fisheries Act and Maritimes Provinces Fishery Regulations for the unauthorized harvest of elver. Across Nova Scotia, fishery officers also seized a total of 11 vehicles, 14 fyke nets, 78 dip nets, elver fishing equipment, eight weapons, and approximately 8.8 kg of elver, which were released live back into their river of origin. more, >>click to read<< 14:16
ENGO Sues UK Government Over International Fishing Quotas
UK’s environmental group Blue Marine Foundation has sued the British government for setting fishing quotas above sustainable levels. The charity claims that the government has set fishing quotas for more than half of UK stocks at levels exceeding what scientists recommend. The group says that this is illegal under post-Brexit fishing law, which requires that the management of UK’s fisheries is based on the best available scientific advice. The organization estimates that the sum of annual quotas for mackerel and the resulting catches have exceeded scientific advice by an average of 44 percent since 2010. This case comes days after a report by Oceana UK released last week, revealed that industrial vessels suspected of using harmful fishing methods, such as bottom-trawling, spent more than 33,000 hours in UK’s marine protected areas in 2023. >more, >>click to read<< 11:01
Massachusetts fishermen say feds are hypocritical in Gulf of Maine wind energy designation
A move to designate two million acres in the Gulf of Maine as a hub for wind energy is snagging a sharp hook from Massachusetts fishermen who say the development overlooks risks to the North Atlantic right whale. A handful of Bay State fishermen advocacy groups are teaming with counterparts from across New England in criticizing the Biden administration’s plans to industrialize the area off the coasts of Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine. Fishermen, however, say the industrialization of the two-million-acre area is “flatly inconsistent with a policy of endangered species protection.” “Fishermen are disheartened that the WEA designation favors foreign energy developers over marine mammal protection,” the Gulf of Maine Fishing Associations said in a statement last week. “This preferential treatment is in stark contrast to the federal government’s aggressive campaign to burden commercial fishing needlessly with crushing restrictions to protect whales.” more, >>click to read<< 08:43
