Monday, March 7, 2011
STRONG FORECAST FOR NW SALMON TROLLERS
Strong returns of chinook salmon should give Oregon commercial fishermen their first decent season in years, but declining runs of coho from Columbia River hatcheries and worries over wild coastal fish mean charter boats and sports anglers can expect another mediocre year.
– San Francisco Examiner
More:www.sfexaminer.com
Alaska fishing crew rescued
A good Samaritan crew on the vessel Just In Case rescued five fishermen after The Capt'n Andrew, a 57-foot fishing vessel, ran aground on Bold Cape four miles southeast of King Cove Sunday morning.
– Coast Guard
More:www.d17.uscgnews.com
Solid profit for Oregon D-crab
Crab, and the $40 million it has brought the fleet in the past 2 ½ months, has become a mainstay, not just as the state's largest fishery but as a source of income upon which the Oregon Coast has come to rely.
– Eugene Register-Guard
More:www.registerguard.com
Fish farmers' ad campaign
Campaigning for a less-than-popular cause has always been a challenge, many times a welcome one, for advertisers.
– National Post, Canada
More:www.nationalpost.com
No change in Cook Inlet sports rules
The Alaska Board of Fisheries has decided not to restrict the Kenai Peninsula's popular salmon dipnetting fisheries.
– Anchorage Daily News
More:www.adn.com
Project to boost Kodiak sockeye
The project receiving the most community comments was the borough's resolution to help secure legislative funding for the Kodiak Regional Aquaculture Association's request to fertilize Karluk, Frazer and Spiridon lakes to combat depressed sockeye salmon returns.
– Kodiak Daily Mirror
More:www.kodiakdailymirror.com
Feds want oil spill study for Chukchi Sea
The federal government will be conducting a new oil spill analysis before it completes a lease sale in the Chukchi Sea.
– Pacific Fishing columnist Alexandra Gutierrez, reporting for KUCB, Unalaska
More:www.publicbroadcasting.net
Oregon fisherman making shrimp nets
Longtime fisherman turned net maker Dave Gregory hopes his new business, South Coast Nets, will make waves with shrimp trawlers angling to save fuel this spring.
– Coos Bay World
More:theworldlink.com
Poor shrimp prices blamed on Pacific Seafood
Despite increased costs in everything from fuel to boat maintenance, the price he gets for shrimp at the processing plant is half what it was 15 years ago.
– The Oregonian
More:www.oregonlive.com
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
JAPAN LOSING LOVE OF FISH
As for what used to be a staple of the Japanese diet, namely fish, those surveyed paid ample lip service to its importance. But, "the variety of fish hitting the dining table is much lower than before." One mother laments, "I have to scream at my kids to get them to eat fish, and I just don't have the energy."
– Japan Times
More:search.japantimes.co.jp
U.S. fish consumers getting smarter
If you look backwards 10 years, a shrimp was a shrimp," says Carl Safina, co-founder of the Blue Ocean Institute, a marine-environment advocacy group. "It was like a bagel. You didn't ask if it was a sustainable bagel. There wasn't a discussion to be had over it."
– Wall Street Journal
More:online.wsj.com
Seiner aground
A 58-foot seiner ran aground near King Cove on Sunday. The five-member crew of the F/V Capt'n Andrew was rescued by its appropriately named sister vessel, Just In Case.
– Pacific Fishing columnist Alexandra Gutierrez, reporting for KUCB, Unalaska
More:www.publicbroadcasting.net
Commerce secretary heads for China
President Barack Obama will nominate Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke, the son and grandson of Chinese immigrants, to be the next US ambassador to China.
– Taipei Times
More:www.taipeitimes.com
Sports halibut cut hurts economy
With the decline of the forest industry across the province, tourism is becoming a more important lifeline for these coastal regions, and the recreational fishing community, from high-end lodges to small charter operators and individual anglers, say the new DFO policy, will cut the season short, perhaps even as early as mid-June.
– CBC
More:www.cbc.ca
More gravel mining on the Fraser
Gravel removal from the Fraser River is back in the news.
– Chilliwack (B.C.) Progress
More:www.bclocalnews.com
Judge sides with Exxon over payment
U.S. District Court Judge H. Russel Holland ruled Monday against a request that he force Exxon Mobil Corp. to pay for the cleanup of oil left on the Prince William Sound shoreline from the 1989 tanker Valdez spill.
– Anchorage Daily News
More:www.adn.com
Russian pollock fishery scrutinized
The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) has welcomed the commitment of the Russian Pollock Catchers Association (PCA) for its responsible approach to pollock fishing and ongoing efforts to endorse high standards of the Code for Responsible Fisheries in the management and production of the country's fisheries.
– FishBio.com
More:fishbio.com
Norwegian salmon farmers getting rich
"High salmon prices are the greatest driver for growth in seafood exports."
– FishNewsEU
More:www.fishnewseu.com
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
OVERFISHING END NEAR, SAYS NMFS CHIEF
At a hearing in front of the Senate Commerce Committee on the Magnuson-Stevens Act, Assistant NOAA Administrator for Fisheries Eric Schwaab said that the U.S. is making good progress toward meeting the mandate to end domestic overfishing.
– NOAA
Read his presentation:www.legislative.noaa.gov
Sitka's fishing boats 'refined'
The fishing boats of Sitka and this region are about the most shapely, elegant and refined in the entire world.
– Linda Blankenship speaking on KCAW, Sitka
More:kcaw.org
Sitka school fish lunches gain support
A pilot program to serve locally-caught seafood in Sitka's middle school is gaining momentum. Organizers are modeling the project on "farm-to-schools" efforts in the lower forty-eight. As KCAW's Robert Woolsey reports, the target audience seems to be eating it up.
– KCAW, Sitka
More:kcaw.org
Repairing Kodiak's Karluk Lake
"Karluk pretty much dictates my fishing for the whole season," he said. "The issue is that we are having poor lake health, poor recruitment in the lakes and poor survival, which is affecting our overall fishing time."
– Kodiak Daily Mirror
More:www.kodiakdailymirror.com
Alaska CDQ group hires new director
WACDA, the umbrella organization for the six nonprofit companies operating under the federal Community Development Quota program, has hired Aggie Blandford as its new executive director.
– Pacific Fishing columnist Wesley Loy, writing in his blog: Deckboss
More:deckboss.blogspot.com
Bycatch-reduction inventions sought
Fishermen, backyard inventors, students and others have been invited to submit entries for the best new fishing gear to reduce bycatch. Leading entries in the fifth International Smart Gear Competition will be in the running for $57,500 in prizes.
– World Wildlife Fund
More:wwf.panda.org
Branding Maine's commercial fisheries
If you did an Internet search to find words that have emerged from obscurity to become popular nearly overnight, one that would inevitably appear on almost anyone's list would be the word "branding."
– PerishableNews
More:www.perishablenews.com
Poisons planned for salmon farms
Despite mounting public concern over the impact of aquaculture pesticides on the marine environment, Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) is in the process of developing regulations that will facilitate and enable the ongoing use of eco-toxic pesticides in the open water by the salmon aquaculture industry.
– TheFishSite.com
More:www.thefishsite.com
Salmon farms eyed for Washington county
Jefferson County (Wash.) officials are considering where and how to permit net pen aquaculture, which has been prohibited in the county for decades.
– FishFarmingXpert
More:www.fishfarmingxpert.com
Thursday, March 10, 2011
CRABS FLY – TO CHINA
Oregon's beloved Dungies are being shipped to China by the plane load.
– The Oregonian
More:www.oregonlive.com
Dutch processor to pay big fine
A Seattle-based seafood processing company that operates mostly in Alaska will pay $1.9 million in penalties and for the cost of cleaning up ammonia and other waste it discharged from its plant in the Aleutians.
– Anchorage Daily News
More:www.adn.com
ADF&G worrying over budget
Managers at the Kodiak office of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game warn that current funding levels could cause cut backs in core operations for the commercial fisheries division. This comes as legislatures in Juneau puts together a budget for the agency.
– KMXT, Kodiak
More:www.kmxt.org
Kerry calls ratz 'disaster'
Expressing concern that the commodification of New England's groundfishery has accelerated economic inequality, Sen. John Kerry has urged the U.S. Commerce Department to acknowledge the policy has been a "disaster" — as alleged by elected federal and state officials.
– Gloucester Times
More:www.gloucestertimes.com
Coos Bay not working for fleet
South Coast fishermen, battling efforts to lock up large swaths of ocean, need all the help they can get. Leaders of the region's largest town should be key allies of this important local industry.
– Coos Bay World
More:theworldlink.com
Can't say no to salmon farms
With county officials working toward final approval of the Locally Approved Shoreline Master Program, it appears the issue of net pen aquaculture is not over in Jefferson County.
– Port Townsend Leader
More:www.ptleader.com
Charters want halibut changes
The Southeast Alaska Guides Organization (SEAGO) and Alaska Charter Association (ACA) are pleading for the state to get more involved with the new 37-inch halibut limit set by the International Pacific Halibut Commission (IPHC).
– Juneau Empire
More:www.juneauempire.com
Salmon troll restrictions off California
Commercial salmon fishermen on California's coast will have a much more liberal season this year south of Pt. Arena. But anglers on the northern waters will face many more restrictions.
– Santa Rosa Press Democrat
More:www.pressdemocrat.com
Alaska sues again over polar bears
The state of Alaska filed its second lawsuit over polar bears, claiming the federal government's designation of critical habitat for the animals — an area larger than California — is excessive and unnecessary.
– Juneau Empire
More:www.juneauempire.com
B.C. processor keeps fishing alive
When Maple Leaf Foods shut down its fish processing plant in 1999, it was a dark day in Port Hardy, a small town near the northern tip of Vancouver Island, about a 500-kilometre drive from Victoria.
– Vancouver Sun
Read more:www.vancouversun.com
Tough times = less maintenance
Guys are unable to buy their fishing licenses and they definitely don't have money to haul their boats out and do the necessary maintenance to go salmon fishing. I very well could be out of business in a few weeks."
– KSBY, San Luis Obispo
More:www.ksby.com
Friday, March 11, 2011
ALEUTIANS TO CALIFORNIA:
PREPARING FOR TSUNAMI
Tsunami spawned by a huge earthquake in Japan has prompted evacuation notices and closures along the West Coast. One report says the estimated time of arrival for some waves on the West Coast is 11:15 a.m. today.
Click for some of the latest reports: 2011 Japan Tsunami
UniSea responds to federal fine
Yesterday, the EPA announced a 1.9 million dollar fine against UniSea in Dutch Harbor, for previously reported incidents that did not cause any environmental harm or pose a risk to any marine species or local ecosystems. I have attached the UniSea statement about this event.
– Steve Minor
Read the statement: www.unisea.com
Salmon troll season outlined
Federal regulators outlined three scenarios for commercial and sport salmon fishing along the coasts of California, Oregon and Washington starting this spring.
– San Francisco Chronicle
Read more: www.sfgate.com
Alaska Fish Report
A federal judge holds off on the Exxon Valdez re-opener; the state legislature considers dedicating money to salmon weirs; and another community starts serving local seafood in schools. All that, and ADF&G redesigns its web site.
– KMXT, Kodiak
More: www.kmxt.org
(Scroll down.)
Big Tuna in unified marketing push
A talking tuna, a mermaid and a bee walk into a supermarket and ... Sounds like the set-up for a joke, yes? It is, however, for real, as three long-time competitors whose brands are represented by those characters join forces to stimulate demand for the pantry staple they all sell.
– New York Times
More: www.nytimes.com
Usual subjects not killing Fraser fish
A federal judicial inquiry that is trying to find out why sockeye salmon in the Fraser River are in decline has been told that whatever is killing them, it is not one of the usual suspects.
– Globe and Mail, Canada
More: www.theglobeandmail.com
Seiner still aground
The F/V Capt'n Andrew remains grounded near King Cove, despite earlier reports to the contrary.
– Pacific Fishing columnist Alexandra Gutierrez, reporting for KUCB, Unalaska
More: www.publicbroadcasting.net
Norway bans some arctic oil drilling
Norway rejected oil drilling in ecologically sensitive waters just above the Arctic circle, partly because of worries over a disaster like the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
– Seattle Times
More: seattletimes.nwsource.com
CG's Acushnet decommissioned today
The 67-year-old Cutter Acushnet, the Coast Guard's "Queen of the Fleet," will be decommissioned during a ceremony at Base Support Unit Ketchikan Friday at 2 p.m. The Acushnet was originally commissioned as a Diver Class Fleet Rescue and Salvage Vessel, USS SHACKLE (ARS 9) for the U.S. Navy Feb. 5, 1944.
– Coast Guard
More: www.d17.uscgnews.com
Anti-Pebble protests head to Juneau
Mill Bay Coffee and Pastries owner Joel Chenet knows the quality of the fresh salmon he prepares is world class and to help protect the fisheries of Bristol Bay and the livelihood of the Kodiak fishermen working there, Chenet will travel to Juneau Sunday to spend a week lobbying legislators about the potential dangers of the proposed Pebble Mine.
– Kodiak Daily Mirror
More: www.kodiakdailymirror.com
