Dungeness crab season gets underway amid hope for relief in commercial fishing fleet
On Sunday, veteran fisherman Chris Lawson learned he had lost his eldest granddaughter in a terrible crash on the Bay Bridge. The next day, he was out on his commercial fishing vessel, Seaward, setting traps on the ocean floor in preparation for the delayed start of the Dungeness crab season Thursday at 12:01 a.m. Moving on is part of the grieving process, said Lawson, a third-generation commercial fisherman. But this year, it also was a necessity. Scarce fishing opportunities over the past year have pushed many in the commercial fishing industry to the brink, so the chance to finally harvest crab, even in the middle of the night, was not to be missed. Lawson’s girlfriend’s son, whom he calls his “stepson,” launched as well, setting pots from a second boat. Video, photos, more, >>click to read<< 08:18
Major lobster plant in Escuminac, with 135 workers, temporarily closing
A major lobster processing plant in Escuminac is temporarily closing its doors, two years after it was purchased by a private American investment firm. Raymond O’Neill & Son Fisheries employs about 135 seasonal workers each year. It was purchased in 2021 by ACON Investments, based in Washington, D.C. Luc LeBlanc, a fisheries advisor at the Maritime Fishermen’s Union, called the job losses at O’Neill & Son “another hard blow to our coastal communities.” At least 100 fishermen benefited from the factory’s activities, said LeBlanc, who was attending the same industry meeting in Moncton Thursday. more, >>click to read<< 07:37
Newport Fishermen’s Wives work to show up whenever, or wherever, their community needs them
On a windy wet Saturday in January, the Newport Fishermen’s Wives end their annual meeting at Mo’s Seafood and Chowder on the bayfront and welcome visitors. As servers deliver tureens of clam chowder and platters of thick buttery toast, the group members stand to introduce themselves. Then, from the far end of the table, Denise Porter rises. “I started with the Fishermen’s Wives five years ago when my husband passed away,” Porter begins, noting that the anniversary of the capsizing that took Josh Porter’s life was just three days away. “First, I want to say I wouldn’t be standing here if it weren’t for you,” Porter says. “You walked me through everything … This is my passion. This organization is amazing.” Founded in the 1970s, the Newport Fishermen’s Wives today is the public face of the fishing community, a band of women known for showing up wherever needed, whether it be serving casseroles at a funeral, providing safety gear for the fleet or helping a family make ends meet. Photos, more, >>click to read<< 20:46
Commercial and recreational fishers call for overhaul of SA and Queensland permit system
Some commercial fishers in South Australia are calling for an overhaul of the recreational fishing sector, including the introduction of a permit system and a phone app for reporting their catch. SA and Queensland are the only states where recreational anglers are not required to hold permits. Elsewhere they need permits to fish from boats and in some jurisdictions, licences are required to fish from land.But commercial operators from the Marine Scalefish Fishery in SA are required to pay an annual base fee of $3,000 and those who hold quota licences pay thousands on top of that. Lower Eyre Peninsula commercial fisher Hugh Bayly would like that to change. “It’s grossly unfair,” he said. “We are paying huge amounts of money to manage a resource which everyone has a right to access and the recreational sector pays nothing.” photos, more, >>click to read<< 18:12
Preserving our heritage and livelihood – A shrimper’s stand against unjust regulations
I’ve been a shrimper for over 45 years. It’s more than just a job; it’s a legacy that’s been passed down through generations in my family. Since I was 15, I’ve been working in the waters of Plaquemines Parish, my workplace, my passion, and my source of livelihood. Today, as I continue to bring the finest Gulf shrimp to your tables, I find myself fighting not only for my job but for the very soul of Louisiana’s shrimping heritage. The recent rule by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) mandating the use of Turtle Excluder Devices (TEDs) on skimmer trawl vessels longer than 40 feet is a real threat to our community. This rule, though it may seem well-intentioned, is an example of overreach and disregard for our industry’s reality. more, >>click to read<< 13:44
Celebrating 200 Years of Lifesaving: Torbay Hosts RNLI Anniversary Events
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is set to mark its 200-year journey from 1824 to 2024, with a series of celebratory events in Torbay over the year, starting with two on Sunday, March 3rd and Monday, March 4th. These two events, organized by RNLI Torbay and led by Simon James, will kick off a year of activities which will be a testament to the dedication and bravery of the RNLI’s volunteer crews throughout its rich history. On Sunday, an historic ‘Blessing of the Fleet’ will unfold featuring all RNLI lifeboats from the South Devon coast, from Exmouth to Salcombe. The lifeboats will gather in the Bay before embarking in convoy along the Breakwater to Torbay RNLI’s berth where a special blessing ceremony will be conducted by the Fishermen’s Mission Area Officer for Devon, Helen Lovell-Smith, Helen said, Photos, more, >>click to read<< 11:48
Judge dismisses lobster lawsuit, U.S.-caught crustaceans remain on
A California judge has dismissed a case filed by local lobstermen who called foul after a seafood watch group put the fishery on a” Red List” for its impact on critically endangered right whales. The California-Based Monterey Bay Aquarium and the Marine Stewardship Council pointed to trap/pot fishing gear used to catch lobsters that has been blamed for the deaths of critically endangered right whales. The “Red List” decision pushed Whole Foods, Hello Fresh, Blue Apron, and others to stop selling the shellfish caught in U.S. waters. In March, four Massachusetts lobstermen, Arthur Sawyer, Jarret Drake, Eric Meschino, and Bill Souza, filed a class action lawsuit saying the conservationists’ move caused monetary harm. But Judge Beth Labson Freeman wrote that they didn’t establish this as a class action lawsuit. more, >>click to read<< 10:43
Wreck catches fire during salvage mission
The curse of the F/V Austro Carina continues. On September 24 last year, the 25-metre-long, 150-tonne fishing trawler hit rocks, tearing a hole in the hull, near Shell Bay, on the south-eastern side of of Banks Peninsula/Te Pātaka o Rākaihautū. Four crew members were winched to safety by helicopter as the vessel teetered on rocks, amid icy water, with cliffs looming above. On Tuesday of this week, the vessel’s bad run of luck continued, as it caught fire during the salvage operation. photos, more, >>click to read<< 09:44
Maine fishing trawler that grounded during weekend storm will be demolished
A fishing trawler that wrecked on rocks off the coast off Cape Elizabeth during Saturday’s historic storm, and required a harrowing early-morning rescue, is a total loss and will be removed over the next few days, a salvage business owner said Wednesday. The F/V Tara Lynn II crashed into the rocks early Saturday off Trundy Point, a few miles south of Portland Head Light. The vessel came to rest too close to shore for traditional boats to get close enough to retrieve the crew, as winds gusted to 50 mph and 6-foot waves pummeled the shore. On Wednesday, the vessel remained in place about 300 feet offshore in Cape Elizabeth. The demolition and removal will take several days, said Parker Poole, who runs the towing and salvage company Determination Marine. more, >>click to read<< 08:53
Crew member fell asleep while piloting fishing boat wrecked in Cape Elizabeth in Saturday’s storm
The owner of a fishing trawler that ran aground off Cape Elizabeth early Saturday morning says one of the crew members fell asleep after turning on the ship’s autopilot. “[The crew member piloting the ship] fell asleep at the wheel and then just went straight into the beach,” said David Osier, owner of the Tara Lynn II and Osier’s Seafood in South Bristol. “Operator error is the cause of this accident.” The Tara Lynn II is one of four ships in Osier’s commercial fishing fleet. On Saturday, the ship was en route to Portland Harbor after a day of trawling for groundfish. He said what happened next was recounted to him by the ship’s captain. more, >>click to read<< 07:16
Louisiana Shrimp Association sues federal government over turtle excluder device requirement
The Louisiana Shrimp Association (LSA) has filed a lawsuit against the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) regarding a 2019 rule that requires the installation of turtle excluder devices (TED) on fishing trawlers. TEDs have been required on shrimp trawlers in certain circumstances since 1987 in order to separate sea turtles, sharks, and other large bycatch so they can escape through an opening in the netting. But in 2015, the ocean conservation organization Oceana sued the government arguing that the rules were insufficient and claiming that over 53,000 estimated sea turtles were still being killed via shrimp nets each year. Video, more, >>click to read<< 19:32
(PHOTOS) Crab On
As is seemingly never not the case these days, the start of our local commercial Dungeness crab season was again delayed this year. First, it was poor meat quality that prompted the CDFW to push back opening day to Jan. 5. Then, there was another setback: another setback caused by stalled negotiations on this year’s market price for the tasty crustaceans. Crabbing is complicated, people! But that’s all behind us now. On Monday morning Humboldt’s commercial crabbers set out, bright and early, to get their pots in the water. The crab is coming, friends. Local photographer and LoCO pal Matt Filar dragged it out of bed at the crack of Monday’s dawn to document and honor the hard work of our hometown heroic fishermen. We present some of his shots below. >>click to view<< 17:50
The sad demise of the Hastings fishing fleet
RX 53 Dorothy Melinda
Here local historian, and author of the book Fishermen of Hastings, Steve Peak looks at how our fishing fleet has declined in recent decades. He writes: Hastings Council’s plan to scrap the fishing boat Dorothy Melinda RX 53, which has been standing outside the railway station for many years, highlights the fact that there is now only one wooden decked fishing boat working off Hastings beach. This last survivor of many centuries of local history is the 29 feet long Felicity RX 58, owned by the Edmunds family. She was built in 1980 as the Our Pam and Peter for Denis Barton. On the beach there is one other possibly seaworthy decked boat, formerly called the Flying Fish RX 73. But she is now unmarked and has not been on the water for many years. On her stade is an open (ie, undecked) wooden boat, Bloodaxe RX 37, which has also been laid up for a long time. Video, photos, more, >>click to read<<15:54
How a Supreme Court case involving herring fishermen affects the Little Sisters of the Poor
A Supreme Court case being argued this week could have significant implications for a decade-long religious liberty battle fought by the Little Sisters of the Poor. The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments this week in Loper Bright Enterprises, Inc. v. Gina Raimondo, a case challenging the authority of the federal administrative state to dictate certain rules and regulations related to federal laws. Okay, so how are the Little Sisters involved? Though the involvement of a group of Catholic religious would seem unlikely in a case such as this, the Little Sisters of the Poor are participants in the Loper case, with the nuns having filed a friend of the court brief last year in support of the fishermen. more, >>click to read<< 12:46
Vessel Review: Seraphin- Scottish Owner adds Prawn and Groundfish Twin-Rigger to fleet
Family-owned Lighthouse Fishing Company of Peterhead, Scotland has expanded its east coast vessel fleet with the recent acquisition of a new twin-rig trawler built by Parkol Marine Engineering. Seraphim was built to a design by Ian Paton of SC McAllister and Company for both single and twin rig trawling of prawns and groundfish. It can also operate as half of a pair trawler team if needed, providing greater flexibility for the owners. The development of the new trawler was in fulfillment of the requirements of Lighthouse’s owners, father and son fishers Andrew and Joshua Buchan. photos, info, >>click to read<< 10:43
Cairns detectives charge man with torture and slavery offences against deckhands on board his fishing vessels
Operation Victor Diabelli
Deckhands allegedly swam through crocodile-infested waters to escape being tortured, with police charging a Karumba man with 46 offences including assault and slavery. Queensland Police Acting Inspector Jason Chetham said deckhands on board the man’s vessel were allegedly abused and assaulted and had food and water withheld. “They unfortunately worked without wages, they were forced to sleep on the open deck of the boat,” he said. Acting Inspector Chetham said police would allege there were five male victims and one 25-year-old female victim. more, >>click to read<< 09:37
Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 75′ Steel Shrimp Dragger, 3412 Cat
To review specifications, information, and 21 photos’,>click here<, To see all the boats in this series, >click here< 08:10
Maine fishermen look to rebuild higher after harbors took ‘a real beating’
Working waterfront property owners along the entire Maine coast witnessed destruction as extreme winds and storm surge flooded buildings, set some adrift and tore docks apart. Some already are planning to rebuild — with sturdier and maybe higher piers in mind as they consider the future — but it’s too early to tell how long it will take and how much it might cost. Commercial lobster docks where fishermen offload and sell their catch were damaged in Milbridge, Corea, Southwest Harbor, Stonington and New Harbor, to name a few places. photos, more, >>click to read<< 07:07
Kyle & Mallaig lifeboats launched to trawler hard aground at Kylerhea narrows
Kyle lifeboat Spirit of Fred. Olsen launched into a snowstorm at 5:48pm, and made best speed towards the vessel, arriving on scene at 6:00pm. On arrival the vessel was on the rocks and was listing slightly to port, however the 7 crew on board were all accounted for and uninjured. The UK Coastguard helicopter from Inverness arrived on scene, however at this point there was no danger to the crew so the helicopter was stood down and returned to base. The fishing vessel’s crew readied their life raft and got prepared to abandon the vessel should the boat capsize. The lifeboat could not get alongside the trawler but stood by to rescue any fishermen who entered the water. 2 photos, more >>click to read<< 19:00
Fall of the kings
The Seattle-area-based Wild Fish Conservancy has dropped a bomb on the Alaska commercial fishing industry with a petition to the federal government demanding it list the state’s Chinook salmon as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Such a listing would almost certainly to lead to yet more restrictions on Chinook-directed fisheries, such as the troll fishery in Southeast Alaska and the drift gillnet fishery off the mouth of the Copper River, which has been found to intercept some Chinook bound for rivers in Southeast, British Columbia and the Lower 48. The number of those fish now caught in the Copper’s Chinook fishery is not large but appears to increase in years when ocean waters are warm which could present issues going forward. more, >>click to read<< 17:17
Major winter storm hits Juneau, sinking 3 docked boats
A prolonged winter storm is piling multiple feet of snow in some areas of Southeast Alaska, leading the National Weather Service to issue a winter prolonged winter storm and Petersburg. NWS described the storm as a “long duration snow event.”The snow is also contributing to dangerous conditions for harbored boats for Juneau and Petersburg. Docks & Harbors would like to remind all boat owners to make sure their vessels and structures are cleared of snow and all pumps are operating correctly, their boats are not taking on any water, and all mooring lines are secure,” Thatcher wrote. According to Juneau Harbormaster Matthew Creswell, heavy snow accumulation contributed to the sinking of three boats. Video, more, >>click to read<< 13:12
Contorting The Approval Process’: Biden Waived Taxpayer Safeguards To Get Wind Farm Built
A Massachusetts wind project, which recently became the first utility-scale offshore wind project to deliver electricity to the grid, wouldn’t have been financially viable if the Biden administration hadn’t intervened, according to internal documents reviewed by Fox News Digital. Federal officials with the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) acknowledged in the unearthed communications shared with Fox News Digital that granting a waiver on development fees designed to safeguard taxpayers was “critical” for the 800-megawatt Vineyard Wind project. [emphasis, links added] BOEM ultimately waived the financial assurance for the decommissioning costs fee for the project in June 2021. “The more we dig into the details of the Vineyard Wind project the more concerning it becomes. more, >>click to read<< 11:48
Op-Ed: Engineering insights when building a trawler
Constructing a new factory trawler fishing vessel in the United States is not an undertaking for the faint of heart. Thinking back to an article written about 10 years ago, industry scholars predicted a boom in shipbuilding to replace the Alaskan fishing fleet. While naval architects, shipyards and equipment suppliers saw a boom in their immediate future, the renewal of the fishing fleet has barely begun. In fact, less than 5% of the fishing trawlers in the Alaskan fishery have been replaced. The refrigerated seawater (RSW) catcher fleet has seen one large conversion join the ranks. The Amendment 80 fleet has seen three new construction vessels, along with one sponsoning and one conversion project. The American Fisheries Act (AFA) fleet has seen one new-build project completed. Vessels in all three fleets have seen significant upgrades in this time, but the underlying hulls still date from the 1980s and 90s with some going back as far as the 1960s and 70s. more, >>click to read<< 10:16
Hundreds of jobs, industry stability at stake in pending Atlantic Canada fishery decision
The Trudeau government is poised to allocate fishing access to the massive redfish population in the Gulf of St. Lawrence at the end of the month, a highly anticipated decision generating both dread and hope throughout the industry in Quebec and Atlantic Canada. Nova Scotia, which has the most to lose, is warning Ottawa that “hundreds of jobs” are at stake if it loses its long-standing share of the fishery. Now that the redfish population is estimated to weigh in at a whopping four million metric tonnes, Scotia Harvest and the other Nova Scotia operators are looking nervously at other provinces lobbying for access. Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador interests, to take one example, are lobbying for a piece of the action to compensate for a drastic reduction in shrimp quota for fleets in their province. more, >>click to read<< 09:06
Workers begin salvaging a fishing boat that wrecked in Saturday’s storm
The F/V Tara Lynn II will never float again. On Saturday, the ferocious storm battering the state’s coast drove the 50-foot fishing vessel onto the rocks at Trundy Point just after midnight. Grinding against an unmerciful ledge, the Terra Lynn II’s fiberglass belly shattered, scattering its engine, 500 gallons of diesel fuel and 5,000 pounds of fish all over the coast. Now, the cleanup is underway. Parker Poole and his company, Determination Marine, are in charge. Poole also heard the ship’s mayday call when it went out Saturday morning. Photos, more, >>click to read<< 07:50
Pilot describes ‘surreal’ rescue of 3 Halibut fishermen off N.S. coast
The pilot of a Canadian Armed Forces helicopter that rescued three fishermen from their burning boat in the Atlantic Ocean Sunday says the fishermen should be praised for the way they responded to the situation. “They got into a raft right away and made a radio distress call and brought the gear they needed,” said Capt. Evan Southern, who is based at 14 Wing Greenwood in the Annapolis Valley. Southern said he learned around 8:30 a.m. AT Sunday that a fishing boat around 110 kilometres off Nova Scotia’s South Shore was in flames, forcing the three halibut fishermen on board to get into a life raft. more, >>click to read<< 20:52
Fishing for Scallops When the Scallops Are Nearly All Dead
Mike Tehan pilots a fishing boat called Nibbles out of Shelter Island. An hour before sunrise on the first day of scallop season in November, as he unwound the ropes, started the outboard motor and piloted the 25-foot fiberglass boat from an island cove into the open waters of Peconic Bay, Mr. Tehan knew just what he’d find. “I didn’t come out here with big plans to get rich today,” he said. “You can’t say it’s depressing, because you already know. But you hope. “He bashed north against the waves, toward the protected bay off Orient, at the far northeast corner of Long Island. He dropped four rusty dredges into the water, just as the bay turned pink with sunrise. He let the outboard rumble the boat around for five minutes. Then he pulled the dredges back up and dumped the contents into a sorting tray. “Let’s see, we got seaweed, rocks, conch shells, lots of dead scallops and one good scallop,” he said, picking through the dreck with bright orange gloves. more, >>click to read<< 14:36
The boat belonging to a fisherman who fell overboard off the Coromandel Peninsula has been found.
Will Fransen, the owner of Betty Gee, was rescued on January 3 after spending nearly 24 hours in the water without a lifejacket. The boat was missing until today, when it was found at the Raukokore River mouth, south of Waihau Bay on East Cape. “The 12 metre long vessel was located today off East Cape. ” Fransen said he was hooked in a gimbal fishing harness with safety rails on the port and starboard side, which “enclosed” him, however he wasn’t wearing a lifejacket or Personal Locator Beacon when he was yanked off the boat while attempting to reel in a marlin. photos, more, >>click to read<< 12:54
Commercial Fishers Say Biden Admin’s ‘Ocean Justice’ Initiative Totally Ignores Their Concerns
The Biden Administration announced the “ocean justice” strategy in December 2023 during the United Nations (UN) climate summit, known as COP28, in order “to advance environmental justice for communities that rely on the ocean and Great Lakes for economic, cultural, spiritual, recreational and food security purposes.” However, several stakeholders in the commercial fishing industry who depend on the fruits of America’s waters to make a living and are therefore interested in sustainable use of the oceans, say that the administration is overlooking their concerns about how the oceans are managed, especially with regard to the administration’s extensive efforts to fast track industrial scale offshore wind. more, >>click to read<< 10:19
How the Boldt decision 50 years ago remade Pacific Northwest fishing
Louie Ungaro waited out the turn of the tide, when chum salmon — he hoped — would hit his net. Fishing here is his tradition, a practice and a way of life as old as his people, the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe.“Elliott Bay ain’t going nowhere, and neither are we,” said Ungaro, a member of the tribe’s council and lifelong hunter and fisher. Yet it took violent protests and a decision appealed all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court to affirm their right to fish, explicitly stated in treaties signed by their ancestors nearly 170 years ago as settlers colonized the Pacific Northwest. The decision handed down by U.S. District Court Judge George Boldt 50 years ago next month was the result of sacrifices made by Native fishers and their families jailed and beaten while defending these rights. And yet now another threat looms over all they fought for: scarcity of the fish themselves. Photos, more, >>click to read< 08:53
