Saving Seafood

Coast Guard crews in Maine to be paid Monday after all, despite shutdown

December 31, 2018 –After a last-minute intervention by Sen. Susan Collins, employees of the Coast Guard, including hundreds in Maine, will receive their pre-shutdown pay Monday on schedule.

Previously, the employees had been told they would not be getting their second paycheck of the month because of the partial shutdown of the federal government.

A spokesman for Collins said she contacted the White House on Friday afternoon to urge an immediate fix to the payment issue, and a few hours later was told that Coast Guard members would now receive pay for their pre-shutdown work.

“Good news for the Coast Guard!” Collins, a Republican, tweeted at 8:26 p.m. Friday. “White House staff called to tell me CG members will receive their paychecks as did other federal employees. I continue to work to end the shutdown, but this will provide immediate relief to CG members & their families.”

Read the full story at the Portland Press Herald

Overboard death rate falls for fishermen

November 26, 2018 — So, welcome back. We hope you had a fine Thanksgiving, whether you shared it with friends, family or that prickly tribe that inhabits North Sentinel Island out in the Andaman Sea. Though if it were the latter, it’s hard to imagine you’d be around to read this.

So, let’s open this week with some good news: Overboard deaths of commercial fishermen have declined by almost half to 204 in the period between 2000 and 2016, with credit going to better training, awareness and equipment.

According to studies by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, the decline is a product of major safety initiatives by the U.S. Coast Guard in the wake of a series of accidents that killed 10 fishermen off the East Coast in 1999.

The most dangerous fisheries for overboard deaths, however, include the East Coast (particularly the Maine lobster fishery), the Gulf of Mexico shrimp fishery and Northwest salmon gillnetters.

The studies show overboard deaths have declined 47 percent since 2000, but remain the second leading cause of death among fishermen after vessel disasters.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times

Seafood Harvesters Applaud Passage of Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2018

November 15, 2018 — The following was released by the Seafood Harvesters of America:

Today, the Senate passed the “Frank LoBiondo Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2018.” This bill updates and authorizes U.S. Coast Guard activities and provides long-sought relief for the fishing industry by providing a permanent exemption for fishing vessels from the Environmental Protection Agency’s incidental discharge regulations. It also increases the maximum length for vessels that must be maintained to class, and provides for regional and fishery specific alternative safety compliance programs to be developed.

“The passage of this bill is a breakthrough for the commercial fishing industry and it’s been a long time coming,” said Chris Brown, President of the Seafood Harvesters of America. “We are grateful to the numerous Senators who worked hard to permanently exempt fishing vessels from onerous regulations that would require us to monitor and log any water running off boat decks. We now have regulatory certainty for our businesses instead of operating under stopgap exemptions to these regulations. We applaud the Senate for passing this bill that also addresses our concerns with vessel classification and the development of the alternative safety compliance program.

The bipartisan nature of this bill is reflected in its maintenance of strong environmental protections for our nation’s waters, along with the reduction of nonsensical regulatory burdens on the commercial fishing industry. The bill effectively safeguards our waters from invasive species and provides the Great Lakes states flexibility with regards to the discharge of ballast water standards. Additionally, the bill increases the maximum length of vessels that must be maintained to vessel class standards for newly built vessels and includes language that allows alternative safety compliance programs to be developed in regional and fishery specific manners for existing vessels.

Seafood Harvesters Executive Director, Leigh Habegger, applauded the bipartisan bill, noting that the national commercial fishermen’s organization that represents over 3,900 small businesses and $1.25 billion in economic output has been pushing for enactment of a USCG reauthorization bill for five years. “Nothing unites fishermen more than the waters we navigate and the commitment we share to protect them.” Habegger said. “With the passation of this bill, fishermen are freed from the fear of having to remain tied to the docks from erroneous regulations. They can now focus on responsibly harvesting domestic seafood enjoyed by millions of consumers every day. This bill took a lot of work and we appreciate the sincere efforts and ongoing negotiations on both sides of the aisle. We look forward to working with the EPA and the Coast Guard through the implementation process.”

Fisherman Risks His Life to Save a Humpback Whale

November 14, 2018 — As they headed back toward the central California coast after fishing for slime eel in the Pacific Ocean, Sam Synstelien and Nicholas Taron made a troubling discovery: a humpback whale was entangled in a buoy’s rope, frantically trying to free itself.

Synstelien immediately called the U.S. Coast Guard but was told it might take a few hours for someone to get there. The two commercial fishermen thought that could be too long for the whale to survive its predicament.

“(The whale) was just swimming in counter-clockwise circles,” Taron told NBC Bay Area. “You could tell he was stressed and being held to the bottom.”

Instead of waiting for the Coast Guard or leaving the whale behind, Synstelien and Taron decided to try to save its life. They cranked up the volume on the radio of their 27-foot-long boat (aptly named “Persistence”) and shouted into the microphone to get the frantic, 40-foot-long humpback’s attention.

“We were screaming at the whale, ‘You’re either going to help us out and quit swimming away or else, like, good luck,’” Taron said.

The two were able to cut through the rope wound around the whale’s tail, but the rope still entangled its midsection. Synstelien decided to try to free it himself. As Taron recorded a video on his cell phone, Synstelien jumped onto the whale and shimmied up its back.

Read the full story at Care2

Rescue Efforts Continue For Whale Trapped In Fishing Net

July 3, 2018 — A rescue effort is underway in New Jersey’s Raritan Bay as the Coast Guard and state police try to free a humpback whale entangled in fishing lines.

The whale is believed to be the same one spotted a year ago and hasn’t been able to shed the line since then. “It’s in the whale’s mouth… wrapped around the top of the head, across the blow hole,” photographer Artie Raslich told CBS2’s Meg Baker.

The Coast Guard has made several attempts to free the whale to no avail.

Monday afternoon state police escorted a disentanglement officer out to find and help the whale off the shores of Keyport, New Jersey.

The Coast Guard is warning boaters in the area to keep a close eye out for the whale and to stay 100 yards away for their safety and for the safety of the giant mammal.

“I think terrible need to be aware of what we are leaving out there being responsible terrible animal out there suffering.” Keyport resident Christina Greenberg said.

Read the full story at WLNY

Safety training is a must for all who go to sea

May 14, 2018 — On December 20, 2004 the 75-foot New Bedford scalloper Northern Edge went down in the Nantucket Lightship Closed Area. Five men perished. It was a loss that rocked the city. Pedro Furtado, the only survivor, was a 22 year-old man who had been through safety training in his native Portugal before coming to the United States. He had the presence of mind to jump into the wintry sea while the other men froze. It was this disaster that prompted the city to introduce safety training for those who earn their livelihood from commercial fishing, the most dangerous occupation in the United States.

It has been very successful, according to Ed Dennehy, director of safety training for the Fishing Partnership which runs these one and two-day programs in fishing harbors up and down the coast. “We’ve been all over, from Jonesport, Maine to Jones Beach, Long Island, he said. “We like to bring the program to where the fishermen are and it has grown over the years.”

In response to the loss of the Northern Edge the city received some funds from National Marine Fisheries in 2005 in order to develop safety and survival training. At the time Dennehy, a retired Coast Guard captain, was running New Directions in New Bedford and with the help of SMAST and others, like Rodney Avila, along the waterfront the program began. Since then more than 3500 fishermen have taken the safety classes which are offered free. The Fishing Partnership began running the program in 2012.

I had the opportunity to participate in the training myself on Thursday last. It was held at UConn’s Avery Point campus in Groton and there were 40 participants, a testament to the growing awareness and demand for this vital service.

Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times

 

Dartmouth, MA is working with UMass Boston to map the future of Padanaram Harbor

April 4, 2018 — DARTMOUTH, Mass. — Several subcommittees studying a new harbor management plan being prepared for the town on Monday provided input to the consulting team from the Urban Harbors Institute at UMass Boston on issues dealing with docks, piers and seawalls, and the local, state and federal regulations of such waterfront structures.

The afternoon’s first discussion session dealt with the draft summary of communication and coordination issues between the various town boards, committees and appointed officials who exercise varying degrees of control over the public and private uses of Padanaram Harbor and its shoreline.

On the local level, those official entities include the Select Board, the Waterways Management Commission, the Harbormaster’s Office, the Shellfish Warden, the Conservation Commission, and the Planning Board. Representatives from many of those town departments and agencies were on hand to review draft portions of the plan.

Since the Parks & Recreation Department has two public parks on two different harbors, Parks Superintendent Tim Lancaster also attended the first review session. Lancaster noted that to complicate matters, both the town’s master plan and open space and recreation plan also address some harbor and waterways issues.

Marshall Marine Corp. owner Geoff Marshall was on hand to provide input from the waterfront business sector, and civil engineer Alan Heureux provided insights on use regulations from the perspective of a consultant who regularly deals with all town boards and departments involved in the oversight of waterfront development.

Consultant Steve Blevin told attendees that public input provided last year made it clear that there is no single agency or department in overall charge of harbor or waterfront uses. Survey results also pointed out that there is a public perception that all of the different entities involved in supervising or regulating those varied uses don’t always communicate with each other or coordinate their efforts.

At the state level, oversight over the harbor and coastal shoreline also comes from the Department of Environmental Protection and Division of Marine Fisheries. Federal government involvement sometimes includes the Army Corps of Engineers and the Coast Guard.

Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times

 

CALIFORNIA: Search suspended for Eureka fisherman missing after falling overboard

February 6, 2018 — The North Coast commercial crab season had an “alarming” start for the Coast Guard this past weekend, with two search-and-rescue missions in Humboldt Bay being conducted including one where a search was suspended for a missing crabber who fell overboard.

“Essentially we’ve had two search-and-rescue cases in two days of the crab season,” Coast Guard Petty Officer Sarah Wilson said Monday morning. “That’s always alarming for us.”

The first hauls of the North Coast crab season began Monday morning.

Eureka crab fisherman Aaron Newman of the vessel Maria Isabel was heading back to the Humboldt Bay jetty on Monday afternoon to unload at Caito Fisheries, one of the local processing facilities in Eureka.

“It appears to be kind of spotty,” Newman said describing the first day’s catch. “Not everyone is catching crabs, but there definitely are some spots.”

Read the full story at the Eureka Times-Standard

 

Massachusetts: Boats owned by jailed ‘Codfather’ sink in New Bedford

February 5, 2018 — NEW BEDFORD, Mass. — Two Carlos Rafael vessels will remain submerged under about 25 feet of water until at least Tuesday, the earliest a lifting machine can arrive, according to the New Bedford Fire Department.

The fishing vessels Dinah Jane and Nemesis sank early Monday morning. New Bedford police and fire responded to Homer’s Wharf at 1:24 a.m. after the vessels’ emergency position radio beacons transmitted a signal to the Coast Guard at about 1 a.m. No one was onboard the vessels.

The two vessels were tied to each other and one pulled down the other, according to Edward-Anthes Washburn, the executive director of the Harbor Development Commission.

The cause of the sinkings won’t be known until the fishing vessels are raised, Fire Chief Michael Gomes said.

After arriving, New Bedford Fire deployed about 400 feet of oil containment boom. At least one of the vessels did leak fuel oil, but Gomes said a diver plugged the vents, which leaked. The situation continues to be monitored.

According to the Coast Guard, the 65-foot Dinah Jane and 67-foot Nemesis contain a combined capacity of 9,500 gallons of fuel.

Carlos Seafood Inc. didn’t return requests for comment on Monday. Rafael, also known by some as “Codfather,” was sentenced last year to 46 months in prison for falsifying fishing quota, bulk cash smuggling and tax evasion.

The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection and the New Bedford Harbor Development Commission also arrived on scene Monday morning. The vessels were already submerged when all agencies reported.

Read the full story at the Cape Cod Times

 

First dead right whale of 2018 found off Virginia

January 26, 2018 — A whale carcass tangled in fishing line that was reported off Virginia Monday is confirmed as the first documented death of a North Atlantic right whale this year, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The imperiled right whales, which lost nearly 4 percent of their total population last year in Canadian and U.S. waters, and with only five documented births, faces significant man-made threats from both fishing gear and ship strikes, according to researchers.

“This isn’t just a crisis, this is a countdown to extinction,” said Regina Asmutis-Silvia, executive director of Whale and Dolphin Conservation, which has an office in Plymouth.

A stranding response team with the Virginia Aquarium received notice and a photo of the carcass Wednesday, at which point the whale was identified as a North Atlantic right whale that appeared to show it was was alive and swimming when it ran into the line.

Entanglements of whales in ropes prevents them from surfacing for air, leading to drowning, or creates a drag that hampers feeding, movement and reproduction, and reduces energy stores, according to scientists.

NOAA requested a drift analysis from the Coast Guard to determine where the carcass might be, and to determine if it can be towed to shore for a necropsy.

The sex and identify of the dead whale has not be determined.

“Disaster, depressing,” said Charles “Stormy” Mayo, who directs right whale research at the Center for Coastal Studies in Provincetown, said of the latest whale carcass. “These are our whales, the humans who live along the Gulf of Maine. We are obviously not doing a very good job as stewards. Something’s got to change soon.”

In addition to a voluntary ship slow-down announced this week for 30 miles south of Nantucket, NOAA announced Thursday another voluntary slow-down 100 miles east-southeast of Virginia Beach, where a U.S. military ship crew had seen the carcass and four other live right whales.

Read the full story at the Cape Cod Times