Guest Column: Move cautiously with Western Atlanic bluefin tuna
(07-07-2017)
by Rich Ruais
After the last complete Western Atlantic Bluefin stock assessment in 2014, Dr. Clay Porch (the lead bluefin assessment scientist for National Marine Fisheries Service) described the assessment results as follows:
“This is the mo...
A much needed revolution in fishery stock assessment
(09-27-2016)
Dr. Kevin Stokesbury is about to turn the world of fishery stock surveys on its head.
Fishermen have long maintained the NMFS stock assessment for Atlantic cod is out of touch with reality. Commercial boats fishing for healthy stocks such as pol...
Guest Column - Now that draft regional ocean plan is out...
(07-01-2016)
Now that draft regional ocean plan is out, fishermen again encouraged to comment and help shape final document
by Amy Trice and Anne Hawkins
In Commercial Fisheries News May issue, the background, impending release, and need for fishermen to c...
Northeast Ocean Plan to be released in May: Comments welcomed, participation encouraged
(04-26-2016)
In mid-May, an important New England ocean planning document will be released. Fishermen in the Northeast should take advantage of the 60-day public comment period that will follow.
The Northeast Ocean Plan is a regionally developed blueprint th...
GUEST COULMN: Mosquito fleet fights consolidation
(05-26-2015)
by Brett Tolley
Control over the iconic New England groundfish is concentrating into fewer hands because of catch share policy, and the future of our ocean and seafood system is at stake.
According to last year’s National Marine Fisheries Ser...
GUEST COLUMN: Regulations have done little to boost depleted cod stocks; Maine’s lobster management approach offers clear direction
(03-03-2015)
The following originally appeared as an op-ed in the Bangor Daily News (BDN) and is reprinted here by permission of the BDN.
—Editor
Colonial America’s first true industry, groundfishing, has followed the path of many others.
Tec...
New bluefin stock assessments show stunning reversal in abundance
(10-29-2014)
by Rich Ruais
As recently as 2009, the Standing Committee on Research and Statistics (SCRS) to the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) was warning that the eastern Atlantic stock of bluefin tuna in the Mediterra...
GUEST COLUMN - Reject distractions; fix catch shares now
(09-01-2014)
by Brett Tolley
Three years ago, I sat among a group of fishermen testifying before the New England Fishery Management Council that the new catch share program was not working and needed to be fixed. The fleet was consolidating, access was becom...
Guest Column - Disaster aid distribution raises tough questions
(04-21-2014)
by David Pierce
Disaster aid is the talk of the waterfront and within the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF), too. And why wouldn’t it be? Many groundfish fishermen have been hit hard by very low groundfish catch limits, indivi...
Guest Column – Industry gives thumbs up to electronic reporting
(11-19-2013)
In the fall of 2012, the Atlantic Coastal Cooperative Statistics Program (ACCSP) brought together fishermen, dealers, and fisheries managers to better understand the potential pros and cons of electronic reporting.
Electronic reporting by fisherme...
Guest Column – Coping with wind farms through ‘best practices,’ mitigation, planning - John Williamson
(10-01-2013)
In the global picture, offshore wind power is an increasing part of the energy mix in Europe, China, and Japan. The world leader in offshore wind production, the United Kingdom (UK), which includes England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland, ha...
Guest Column – Offshore wind: A perspective from BOEM
(08-01-2013)
As recently reported by Commercial Fisheries News, several fisheries representatives were invited to visit the Thanet offshore wind facility in England to speak with regulators and fishermen about issues regarding offshore wind development (see CFN M...
Guest Column – Cable projects: Bringing wind energy to shore
(08-01-2013)
One often-overlooked aspect of offshore wind energy development is how the energy will be brought onshore. Transmission cables carrying the energy created by offshore wind turbines must cross the ocean, make landfall – often in working waterfront...
Guest Column - Wind farm planning: How to be heard
(07-01-2013)
Many fishermen are asking what they can do to preserve fishing opportunities in the wake of ocean wind energy development. The answer is threefold: be aware of what is being proposed in your area; know what governmental body is in charge; and eng...
Guest Column – Wind farms: Ecosystem effects differ depending on species, seafloor features
(06-01-2013)
As the siting of ocean wind energy projects continues along the East Coast, many fishermen are left wondering how wind energy development will affect fishing resources.
What is involved in testing an area for a wind farm and installing the turbine...
Guest Column - Fishermen safety Can’t beat training; attend courses - by J.J. Bartlett
(02-21-2013)
With changes in Massachusetts and federal laws making health insurance more available to all, the Fishing Partnership Health Plan has changed its focus and its name.
Now called Fishing Partnership Support Services (FPSS), our mission is to sup...
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