Category: 2013

Fishermen gain monkfish relief in north – even on groundfish days

GLOUCESTER, MA – Vessels with Category C and D monkfish permits now will be able to land unlimited amounts of monkfish from the Northern Fishery Management Area for the rest of the 2013 fishing year while working under a monkfish or groundfish day-at-sea. The landing-limit suspension became effective Oct. 28 after the National Marine Fisheries …

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Maine to cut glass eel landings by at least 25 percent; require ‘swipe cards’

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, GA – Maine’s glass eel fishermen will have to reduce their landings next year by 25% to 40% compared to this year under an agreement negotiated with the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC).  Furthermore, eel industry participants likely will have to use a new swipe card reporting system developed by the …

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Scallopers expand RSA priorities to include predation, water quality

GLOUCESTER, MA – Atlantic sea scallop fishermen are becoming increasingly concerned about the potential impact of global warming, ocean acidification, predation, and disease on their fishery. Mike Marchetti, president of the Eastern New England Scallop Association, summed it up pretty succinctly this past winter during a meeting of the New England Fishery Management Council’s scallop …

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SAFE-BOAT SMART-BOAT: Station bills – Know your job in an emergency

by Fred Mattera During a recent simulated engine room fire drill, I observed a seasoned crewman, someone who has been engaged in safety drills for the last seven years, become impetuous and anxious instead of composed and thoughtful. By doing things without serious thought, he made some simple but dangerous mistakes that, in a real-life …

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SW Boatworks keeps on growing

by Brian Robbins When Stewart Workman first opened SW Boatworks in Lamoine in 2000, the shop’s main focus was custom finishing of hulls from other shops.  Thirteen years later, the offer still stands, and one of SW’s projects this winter will be a 46′ Wesmac lobster boat. But, the acquisition of Calvin Beal’s molds in …

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Two brothers and an eastern rig – Ochses on single-boat scalloping

FAIRHAVEN, MA – Eastern rigs were once the mainstay of the New England offshore fleet.  But these classics also are what Point Pleasant, NJ-based brothers Arthur and Ken Ochse learned to fish on. Getting started as youngsters, between them now the two have almost 100 years of fishing experience.  So when it came time to …

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Bullard highlights value of scallops – lobsters – New Bedford to Northeast

HYANNIS, MA – John Bullard, National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) Northeast regional administrator, took a few minutes during the New England Fishery Management Council’s Sept. 24-26 meeting here to highlight the important contributions to the region’s economy of the scallop and lobster fisheries, as well as the surprising growth of aquaculture. Bullard distributed a handout …

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Species News – Scallops, Yellowtail

Georges Bank yellowtail quota to drop in 2014 but US share to increase  HYANNIS, MA – Following hours of difficult discussion that stretched out over two days, the New England Fishery Management Council voted on Sept. 25 to adopt a 400-metric-ton (mt) 2014 quota for Georges Bank yellowtail flounder as recommended by the US/Canada Transboundary Management …

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Connecticut pesticide ban a victory for Long Island Sound lobstermen

DARIEN, CT – Late in June, 14 years after a major lobster die-off in Long Island Sound, Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy signed into law a bill banning the use of the pesticides methoprene and resmethrin in coastal areas due to their toxicity to fish, lobsters, and other aquatic invertebrates.  The ban went into effect on …

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Licensing agreement enables dealers to sell MSC-certified Maine lobster

RICHMOND, ME – The Fund for the Advancement of Sustainable Lobster, the industry group that pursued and obtained Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification for Maine lobster earlier this year, is now offering all dealers and processors in the state the opportunity to display the MSC ecolabel on their Maine lobster products. Under the MSC certification …

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