Saving Seafood

MASSACHUSETTS: North Shore mourns father and son killed on sunken Gloucester fishing boat

February 17, 2025 — A father and son who were killed when a fishing boat sank off the coast of Gloucester late last month are being remembered for their love of the ocean.

Gloucester residents Paul Beal Sr., 70, and Paul Beal Jr., 34, were among the seven crew members of the Lily Jean who died when it sank while returning from a fishing trip on Jan. 30.

Remembering Paul Beal Sr.

Paul Austin Beal Sr. was born in Rockport to the late Lloyd and Marilyn Beal on Oct. 11, 1955, according to his obituary. He grew up in Rockport with his two brothers and graduated from Rockport High School in 1974.

“After graduation, Paul followed his heart to the Ocean. It was a way of life for the Beal Family, dating back to ancestors in Beals Island, Maine,” his obituary reads.

Remembering Paul Beal Jr.

Paul Austin “PJ” Beal Jr., was born in Gloucester on June 22, 1991, to his mother, Denee, and father, Paul Austin Beal Sr., according to his obituary. He was raised in Gloucester and attended Gloucester Public Schools.

“As a child growing up, PJ instantly took a love to the ocean,” his obituary reads.

Read the full article at MassLive

MASSACHUSETTS: Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries Hiring Recreational Fisheries Surveyors for 2026 Season

February 12, 2026 — The following was released by the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries:

The Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries is currently hiring Recreational Fisheries Surveyors for the 2026 season. We are seeking seven (7) surveyors for the South Shore, Cape Cod and Islands, and three (3) for the North Shore.

Links to the postings in MassCareers are provided below:

These seasonal positions run from April through November, with training scheduled for the last week of March. While we will review applications on a rolling basis until the roles are filled, first consideration will be given to candidates who apply within the first 14 days of the posting.

MASSACHUSETTS: Can the nation’s oldest seaport reinvent itself?

June 19, 2016 — GLOUCESTER, Mass. — The story of Gloucester trying to find its next act is not a new one. For years, the nation’s oldest seaport, like so many others, has struggled to reinvent itself in the shadow of a fading fishing industry.

But several developments in recent weeks could serve as a meaningful catalyst for change in the post-fishing economy.

Last week, the much-talked-about Beauport Hotel — a luxury 94-room facility and the city’s only large-scale hotel — opened on the site of the former Birds Eye fish-freezing plant, featuring three conference rooms to lure business travelers, along with a large restaurant and a rooftop pool with views of the harbor to entice tourists.

The hotel followed the May opening of the Gloucester Biotechnology Academy, a one-year certificate program for high school graduates that’s an extension of the Gloucester Marine Genomics Institute, founded in 2013 by biotech entrepreneur Gregory L. Verdine to study marine genetics.

For this North Shore community, the waterfront additions are an important example of what they might call casting a line and waiting for a bite. Influential investors hope a growing marine biotechnology sector will support the working waterfront, not with fishing, but with year-round jobs rooted in science and tourism. A hotel like the Beauport only adds to the appeal.

Read the full story at The Boston Globe