During a visit to Eureka Tuesday, March 26 congressman Jared Huffman announced plans to introduce legislation aimed at alleviating the financial hardship of a federal loan that has been weighing on Pacific Coast groundfish fishermen for just under a decade.
MARSHFIELD — Steve Welch is selling one of his two fishing boats this year because of new catch limits set to go into effect next month. With one less boat, he's been forced to drop five employees – four of whom have families to support.
Citing widespread evidence of an abundance of important commercial in shore fish stocks — and a scientific study that found flaws in the modeling methods used by the government to set catch limits — a contingent of state lawmakers led by Senate President Therese Murray is urging NOAA's top fisheries official to delay dire cuts planned for May 1 and allow the fleet reasonable access to stocks while new studies are conducted into the vitality of the Gulf of Maine ecosystem.
A new plan is being crafted by federal managers for Gulf of Alaska groundfish fisheries that will reduce bycatch by trawlers, and it will very likely result in a catch share plan. Now is the time for fishing residents to make sure the new program protects their access to local resources and sustains, instead of drains, their coastal communities.
Shrimp — those tasty native Lowcountry crustaceans — are looking slim so far for the spring and the summer. But commercial shrimpers say it's early yet.
HIGHLANDS, N.J. (AP) - Researchers gathered enough data to learn that an oyster-restoration program wrecked by Superstorm Sandy will work, and they now have more than $16,000 from the Dave Matthews Band to help re-establish the research on a Navy pier.
WEST OCEAN CITY — It had been a good day at sea for the Instigator, an 80-foot trawler out of Cape May, so it was a good day at Martin Fish Co.
Citing widespread evidence of an abundance of important commercial in shore fish stocks and a scientific study that found flaws in the modeling methods used by the government to set catch limits, a contingent of state lawmakers led by Senate President Therese Murray are urging NOAA's top fisheries official to allow the fleet reasonable access to stocks while new studies are conducted into the vitality of the Gulf of Maine ecosystem.
Commercial fishing for spring chinook salmon in the lower Columbia River will be delayed until April 9 with the net fleet then likely to be limited to seven to nine fish per vessel.
The Columbia River Compact decided on Monday not to have a commercial tangle-net fishery on Tuesday in order to allow more hatchery-origin spring chinook to enter the river. Sport fishing remains closed, as scheduled, on Tuesday.
Test netting in the Cowlitz and Wahkiakum county portions of the lower Columbia on Sunday caught 25 chinook and nine steelhead for 16 drifts.
State biologists proposed a tangle-net fishery from 1:30 to 8 p.m. on Tuesday. They predicted a catch of about 1,200 chinook.
Read the full story at The Columbian>>
Trawlers dragging their nets in the Gulf of Alaska out-of-sight over the horizon from most state ports may be catching and killing more king salmon than the residents of the 49th state would like, but don't worry. The fish aren't going to waste.
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Callifornia crabbing: Here's a fun video shot on the decks of the Majestik while catching Dungeness crab off the coast of northern California.
Alaska fisherman and commercial fisheries activist Kevin Adams was elected chairman at the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute board of directors meeting on May 9 in Anchorage.
The governor-appointed board consists of seven members: five seafood processors and two industry representatives actively engaged in commercial fishing. Adams was appointed to fill a harvester seat by Gov. Frank Murkowski in 2004.
With 38 years of fishing experience in Bristol Bay, Adams has long been an active member in the Alaska fishing industry, ASMI says. He has worked for both the Alaska Fisheries Development Foundation and the Bering Sea Fisherman's Association, and represents Alaska fishermen on numerous boards.
The Northeast Regional Planning Body, a group of state, tribal and federal representatives from New England who are working to implement the National Ocean Policy and address critical New England ocean issues, is holding a series of public meetings in May and June.
The meetings are being held to discuss draft regional ocean planning goals and associated potential actions. The planning body seeks input on these goals and actions. Additional information on the group's progress can be found here.
The meetings will also provide an opportunity to review draft maps and products from initial efforts to gather information on the natural resources and diverse uses of the ocean, including fishing, transportation, energy and infrastructure, aquaculture, and recreation.
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