Saving Seafood

MASSACHUSETTS: Steamship Authority begins exploration of New Bedford freight options

April 19, 2017 — The Woods Hole, Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket Steamship Authority is working with a maritime consultant to determine if any existing facilities in New Bedford could handle freight ferries to Martha’s Vineyard and possibly relieve some truck traffic to the Woods Hole ferry terminal.

The ferry line has hired Craig Johnson, a partner in the Florida-based maritime executive search firm Flagship Management who was involved the time the Steamship offered freight service from New Bedford more than a decade ago, said Wayne Lamson, the Steamship Authority’s general manager. Lamson updated the boat line’s board on the matter at its Tuesday meeting at the Hyannis ferry terminal.

“He’s in the discovery phase and going around and seeing what facilities might be available before (we) approach certain potential private carriers to see if it would be something they would be interested in and if it would be something that is feasible in the long term,” Lamson said.

The Steamship Authority will pay $19,500 for the work, which will include the review of New Bedford shipping facilities, interviewing potential customers of the freight service and identifying private operators that might provide the service under a license agreement, Lamson said. Johnson is expected to report his findings to the Steamship Authority in three or four months.

The first step in a report issued last year outlining recommendations for a potential New Bedford freight line is to explore private operators to provide the service. If no operator can be found, the next steps would include pursuing funding to improve either the New Bedford State Pier or New Bedford Marine Commercial Terminal to allow for freight service.

Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times 

SEAN HORGAN: Fisherman on hunger strike to protest rules

April 17, 2017 — Stop us if this sounds familiar.

Last Thursday, Canadian fisherman Richard Gillett, a vice president of the Federation of Independent Sea Harvesters of Newfoundland and Labrador, decided enough was enough.

Gillett had had enough of the regulations and enough of scientists telling him that six critical fishing stocks in the Newfoundland and Labrador fisheries were in dire shape despite what he and other fishermen were witnessing on the water.

“There’s fish there,” Gillett told The Telegram newspaper. “We’ve never seen fish like it before. The fish are overrunning our crab grounds, eating our shrimp, eating our crab and we’re still at one-third of the level (regulators) would like to see.”

So Gillett went rogue. He camped out in a tent and began a hunger strike he said will continue until representatives from the Fish-NL organization get to meet with the federal minister of Fisheries and Oceans and receive an independent review of the science and management of the region’s fisheries.

Read the full opinion piece at the Gloucester Times

MASSACHUSETTS: Cape Cod boaters asked to use caution due to presence of extremely endangered right whales

April 17, 2017 — Boaters have been urged by officials with the Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF) to use extreme caution when enjoying the waters of Cape Cod.

According to a statement released by the Massachusetts Department of Fish and Game on Friday, an unusually large amount of endangered North Atlantic right whales have been observed in the bay area.

The right whale, which is known to congregate and feed near the bay on an annual basis, is a species of whale so endangered that their entire population is only about 500 animals, the statement says.

An aerial survey conducted on April 12 by the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies showed that roughly 163 of those whales were present in the Cape Cod Bay, meaning that some 30 percent of the known population of the species was sighted in the same bay on a single day.

“Aggregations of this magnitude have never been observed in Cape Cod Bay before,” said Gronendyke.

Boat owners have been urged to “proceed with extreme caution” and to reduce speed to less than 10 knots.

Read the full story at MassLive.com

UPDATE: Court rules in government’s favor in New England fishing monitor dispute

April 17, 2017 — An appeals court has found in favor of the federal government in a challenge by a New England fishermen’s group over the cost of at-sea monitoring.

The monitors are workers who collect data that help the government craft fishing regulations. The government shifted the cost of paying for monitors to fishermen last year.

A group led by New Hampshire fisherman David Goethel sued the government over the rule change. The fishermen lost in federal district court and appealed. A 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel in Boston agreed with the lower court Friday.

Monitors can cost hundreds of dollars per day. Fishermen argue it represents an illegal new cost burden they can’t shoulder in an era of tight quotas.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at NH1

From Port to Plate: A journey of New Bedford’s most profitable product

April 17, 2017 — Who knew that a silver dollar-sized scallop could provide such bang for a buck? As the most profitable item turned over in the most profitable port in the country, this milk-colored mollusk has almost been solely responsible for the re-birth of New Bedford’s working waterfront since the turn of the century.

While other New England ports have shrunk or been gentrified from a working waterfront to high rise condos and upscale restaurants, New Bedford has thrived.

In 2015, the port of New Bedford hauled in more than $321 million according to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration — $104 million more than Dutch Harbor, Alaska which had the second-most profitable port that year.

Three years earlier, in 2012, the municipality formerly known as the Whaling City set the national record for highest-valued catch at $411 million with scallops accounting for nearly 80 percent of that number. Alliteration aside, the Scallop City just doesn’t have the same ring to it, although a case could certainly be made for a name change.

Ed Anthes-Washburn, Port Director of the city’s Harbor Development Commission, said the port accounted for more than 36,000 jobs and held a value of $9.8 billion in economic value in 2015 — nearly double Boston’s $4.6 billion value in 2012 — according to the commissions state-funded study by Martin Associates in October.

“It’s really huge,” Anthes-Washburn said of the port’s impact on the city and the state. “We’re growing at a time where a lot of ports are shrinking.”

Fishing industry-lifers believe the scallop business will continue to boom thanks to the rotational management system that allows vessels to enter certain areas once they are deemed to be replenished by NOAA officials. Given a certain amount of trips each year, vessels can fish in those closed access areas until a designated date at which point two other areas open up. Creating a level of sustainability, the previously fished areas are then closed so that the scallops can be replenished.

Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times

Right Whale Found Dead in Cape Cod Bay

April 17, 2017 — The following was released by NOAA:

On Thursday, April 13, a dead North Atlantic right whale was reported around 11:30 a.m. near Barnstable by researchers conducting right whale surveys in Cape Cod Bay. The United States Coast Guard provided assistance by towing the carcass to a landing site in Sesuit Harbor. Researchers then transported it by trailer to a necropsy site in Bourne for a complete examination. The necropsy logistics were organized by the International Fund for Animal Welfare and overseen by NOAA Fisheries. The examination team was led by Bill McLellan from University of North Carolina Wilmington and included stranding response experts from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center, Marine Mammals of Maine, Atlantic Marine Conservation Society, Center for Coastal Studies, New England Aquarium, Massachusetts Division of Fish and Wildlife, and University of New Hampshire. 

“It’s really worrisome to know that another young right whale has died in our waters,” said Misty Niemeyer, Necropsy Coordinator for the International Fund for Animal Welfare. “As an endangered species of approximately 500 individuals, every animal is important for the survival of the population. We need to learn as much as we can from her tragic death and gain valuable insight in hopes to further protect the species.”

The young whale was a female, and was approximately 27 feet long. She has been identified as a one-year old offspring of Eg#4094 from the North Atlantic Right Whale Catalog born in 2016.

“It’s very difficult to lose one of our endangered North Atlantic right whales, but it’s important for us to use this tragedy as a means to stay vigilant in our efforts to recover the species,” says Kim Damon-Randall, assistant regional administrator for protected resources at NOAA Fisheries Greater Atlantic Region. “We’ll analyze the samples taken from the whale for disease, biotoxins, histology, genetics, and life history information. This will provide a glimpse into the life and death of this whale, which will contribute to our efforts to protect other whales in the population.”

Preliminary findings of bruising were consistent with blunt trauma. There was no evidence of entanglement. Final diagnosis is pending ancillary laboratory tests that can take weeks or months. There have been a record high number of endangered right whales observed in Cape Cod Bay over the past few weeks, and over 100 whales were observed last weekend during an aerial survey research project. We urge vessels of all sizes to keep a close look out for right whales at all times and to travel slowly to help prevent injury to both whales and people. Right whales skim the water surface to feed or hang just below the surface and are difficult to see. They can grow to 50 feet in length and weigh up to 55 tons, so they are large animals that need space. Look for blows, ripples in the water, and patches of plankton–these are often signs that whales are in the area. Vessels and aircraft are required to maintain a distance of 500 yards from right whales.  We encourage everyone to take this opportunity to view the right whales from local Cape Cod beaches, including Race Point Beach. More information on right whales, and how to report sightings, is on NOAA Fisheries Greater Atlantic Region’s website. 

Feds: Fish firms owe workers $203K in damages

April 14, 2017 — Kristian Kristensen and his two Harbor Loop companies — Cape Ann Seafood Exchange and Zeus Packing — must pay more than $200,000 in liquidated damages to 132 employees in a settlement over violations of overtime and record keeping.

The U.S. Department of Labor said an investigation by its wage and hour division unearthed violations from October 2011 through September 2014. The probe determined Kristensen and the companies owed $203,998 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages. Liquidated damages are monetary compensations for a loss or a person’s rights or property, awarded by a court judgment.

The Labor Department said the defendants paid the back wages in 2015, but refused to pay the damages and civil penalties assessed for the violations.

The Labor Department then filed suit in March 2016 in U.S. District Court in Boston to recover the unpaid amounts.

“After almost a year of litigation and negotiation, the defendants agreed to settle by consent judgment,” the Labor Department said in a statement. Kristensen did not return calls from the Times seeking comment Thursday afternoon.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Times

MASSACHUSETTS: Endangered whales visit Cape Cod in record number

April 13, 2017 — More than 100 North Atlantic right whales, including two mother-calf pairs, were spotted in Cape Cod Bay on Sunday, breaking a record for previous sightings, according to the Center of Coastal Studies.

An aerial survey team researching the rare marine mammal took thousands of photos of the 112 animals, which were scattered across two-thirds of the bay from the Cape Cod Canal to Provincetown, where there was a large concentration of the animals, according to Charles “Stormy” Mayo, right whale habitat expert at the center. There are 524 North Atlantic right whales in the world, according to the Center.

The number of right whales spotted may still increase, as researchers analyze the photographs taken during the flight, according to the center.

This year, only three right whale births were recorded, and two of those calves were spotted Sunday with their mothers, Mayo said. The number of calves has dropped precipitously during the past 10 years, from a high of 39 in 2009, according to data from the North Atlantic Right Whale Consortium.

“It’s a pretty special situation that this many whales and arithmetically two-thirds of the calf population was here in Cape Cod Bay,” Mayo said. “The people who fly in our airplanes, who are trained researchers, said all 112 animals had their mouths open.”

Read the full story at the Cape Cod Times

Troubled waters, heartfelt stories in ‘Sacred Cod’

April 13, 2017 — Of the two sacred emblems of Massachusetts — the bean and the cod — the cod gets all the glory but the bean is certainly more environmentally secure.

For centuries fishermen from Gloucester have relied on cod — and the world has relied on them to provide it — but recently scientists have determined that the fish stocks are being depleted at an unsustainable rate and soon there will be no more cod to fish. The fishermen protest that because of the regulations imposed on them, soon there will be no fishermen left to do the fishing.

Andy Laub, Endicott College’s Steve Liss, and Boston Globe reporter David Abel’s thoroughly researched, reasoned and surprisingly moving documentary “Sacred Cod,” premiering Thursday at 9 p.m. on Discovery, gives time to both sides. They offer warm, robust, and sympathetic portraits of these Gloucestermen with their powerful work ethic, fierce love of family, and faith in the American Dream. And they also thoughtfully and thoroughly present the point of view of the bureaucrats and scientists who are trying to do what’s best with the information they have. Emerging as heroes are those willing to consider both sides and seek new solutions.

On one level, the debate comes down to point of view. Based on their extensive research and analysis, the scientists of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the agency studying the problem and issuing regulations, say that the cod stock has declined to a fraction of what it must be to remain sustainable. The fishermen take a more empirical and anecdotal approach; they say that the figures are wrong, that from their experience plenty of cod are still out there. One fisherman takes John Bullard, NOAA’s regional administrator, on a fishing trip. The trawling net disgorges a mountain of fish. “There it is, the elusive cod!” the fisherman scoffs. He tells Bullard that he has just caught his entire annual quota in 45 minutes.

Read the full story at the Boston Globe

MASSACHUSETTS: How Did ‘The Codfather’ Rise? Some Say Fishing Rules Pull Up Big Fishermen

April 12, 2017 — While Carlos Rafael waits to hear his fate, some wonder whether there could be another “Codfather.”

Critics say fishing industry regulations pave the way for bigger and more corrupt fishing enterprises.

But, some, like Janice Plante of the New England Fisheries Managment Council, disagree with those who blame the regulatory system, insisting the rules don’t “make somebody a criminal.”

Joining Morning Edition is Niaz Dorry, of the Gloucester-based Northwest Atlantic Marine Alliance. She explains why she believes Rafael’s success is connected to fishing industry rules.

Read the full story and listen to the radio piece at WBUR