February 9, 2023 — FOX Business’ Madison Alworth reports from Islip, New York, where fishermen are worried rising fuel prices and wind turbine farm plans put jobs and profits at risk.
VIRGINIA: Dominion ‘on track’ with $9.8 bln Virginia offshore wind farm
February 9, 2023 — Dominion Energy Inc (D.N) executives said on Wednesday that the electric utility’s $9.8 billion offshore Virginia wind farm is on track and on budget, having recently entered a critical phase of the environmental review process.
The roughly month-long crucial public comment period on the environmental impact study of the 2.6 gigawatt project will end in February, Dominion Chief Executive Officer Robert Blue said on the Richmond, Virginia-based company’s quarterly earnings call.
“As it relates to the project’s execution, it’s very much on track and on budget,” Blue said, adding that Dominion is working with the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and other overseers of U.S. offshore wind development.
MASSACHUSETTS: Blue Harvest acquires new 90-foot groundfish dragger
February 9, 2023 — Blue Harvest Fisheries in New Bedford, Mass., recently completed its purchase of the newly-christened Nobska, a 90’x30’ trawler built in 2019.
Designed by Farrell & Norton Naval Architects and built in 2019 at Fairhaven Shipyard, Mass., the dragger was originally known as the Francis Dawn and based in Maine.
It is one of the newest groundfish vessels operating in New England “and represents the first step in implementing the company’s plans for the future of its groundfish operations,” according to a statement from Blue Harvest Fisheries.
Maine lobstermen are clawing to keep livelihoods afloat amid push to sink industry
February 8, 2023 — The U.S. lobster industry is clawing to keep their livelihoods and sounding off on a potentially “devastating” legal battle against environmental groups funded by big bucks from liberal, dark money groups.
“It seems like there’s always a battle in this industry,” Lobster 207 CEO Mike Yohe said on “Fox & Friends First” Tuesday. “They have deep pockets, so they just file another lawsuit to get us out of the water or change gear or change how we fish in the state of Maine.”
“The lobster industry is all we have here. And a lot of our coastal towns in my town, that’s pretty much what everybody does,” fourth-generation lobsterman Dustin Delano added on “Fox & Friends.” “If you’re not a lobster boat captain, you work on a lobster boat or you are involved in the supply chain, or you sell bait to the lobstermen, or you sell vehicles to lobstermen or in their crews. It’s just one of our number one things here in Maine, and this coast would be completely devastated without it.”
A recent Fox News Digital review of tax filings found environmental groups that have led litigation targeting the lobster fishing industry have been heavily funded by various liberal dark money groups that don’t disclose their individual donors.
The Catch Share Reform Coalition goes to Congress
February 8, 2023 — Reacting to Will Sennott’s July 2022 ProPublica story about a European family owning a large chunk of New England groundfish quota, a consortium of fishermen and others from around the country have landed in Washington D.C. and will be meeting with the members of House and Senate Committees to advocate for more fishermen-friendly systems.
From Feb. 6-9 the Catch Share Reform Coalition will be raising awareness in Congress of the failures of Catch Shares and other Individual Transferable Quota (ITQ) management schemes.
Consortium members cited Larry Marino, a representative of Louisiana’s Attorney General Office, as a high-profile critic of catch shares. Marino spoke at a recent meeting of the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council of the need to reform catch share programs.
MASSACHUSETTS: New Bedford Port Authority submits comments in support of offshore wind fisheries mitigation and compensation
February 8, 2023 — The following was released by the New Bedford Port Authority:
On February 7th, 2023, the New Bedford Port Authority (“NBPA”) released remarks aimed at providing in-depth commentary on the (9) State Framework for Establishing a Regional Fisheries Compensation Fund Administrator for Potential Impacts to the Fishing Community from Offshore Wind Energy.
Nine Atlantic Coast states are working together to advance and ultimately implement a consistent regional approach for administration of financial compensation (Regional Fund Administrator) paid by developers to address adverse effects of offshore wind energy development on the U.S. Eastern Seaboard’s commercial and for-hire recreational fishing industries.
The NBPA underscored that there is no port in the United States that has more interest, or more at stake, than the Port of New Bedford relative to this Regional Fund Administrator. It also emphasized that to have a truly legitimate and sustainable fisheries compensation fund program, any proposed framework, and the corresponding administrative process to distribute the funds, must be codified in federal law through an act of Congress.
The NBPA comments focused on the fact that potential losses to the fishing industry should not be based on geographic proximity to offshore wind projects, but instead should be based on losses incurred at landing ports. Therefore, it is imperative that shoreside income loss determinations be analyzed on a port-by-port basis based upon the actual losses incurred.
The NBPA believes a regional or cumulative approach to mitigation and compensation is essential. Cumulative impacts of multiple offshore wind developments across our entire coastline will produce collective impacts to fishing industries and the communities supporting them. A common set of rules and procedures established by this process will not only minimize the burden of fishermen seeking compensation but will give offshore wind developers clear expectations for their planning and development purposes.
“We appreciate this opportunity to assist policymakers in better understanding the unique interests of New Bedford as the nation’s leading commercial fishing port,” said New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell. “In our view, the two most important mitigation considerations for a Fund Administrator are ensuring access to mitigation funds for affected shoreside businesses in addition to vessels; and the importance of allocating funds commensurate with the value of the landings associated with respective ports. We look forward to a collaborative effort to establish a fair and equitable policy framework that addresses these concerns.”
As impacts from offshore wind will only grow in scope and intensity as more projects are built out, any framework must include ongoing scientific and economic analyses, technical aspects of fishery management and ecosystems, and socio-economic values, all with direct and substantial participation and collaboration with our fishermen.
MAINE: Wave of changes hitting Maine’s lobster industry all at once
February 8, 2023 — Even with congressionally-approved six-year reprieve from economically restrictive rules related to preserving the remaining population of critically endangered North Atlantic right whales, the lobster fishery in the U.S. Northeast is facing an inflection point.
The Maine Lobstermen’s Association is continuing to battle the National Marine Fisheries Service in court, challenging the agency’s May 2022 biological opinion for right whales.
ALASKA: A Mine That Threatened Alaskan Salmon May Be No More
February 8, 2023 –A proposed mine project in Alaska may have been dealt its final blow. Last week, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) effectively vetoed the project, citing its potential harm to salmon fisheries in the state’s Bristol Bay watershed.
Called Pebble Mine, the proposed development included a mile-wide open-pit mine, a power plant, a gas pipeline, access roads and a port to take advantage of gold and copper deposits thought to be worth hundreds of billions of dollars.
The EPA issued a final determination last week, banning the local disposal of dredged waste from building and operating the mine. This dumping would have “unacceptable adverse effects” on local waters, including around 100 miles of streams and 2,000 acres of important breeding grounds for the bay’s salmon, per the agency.
“The Bristol Bay watershed is a vital economic driver, providing jobs, sustenance and significant ecological and cultural value to the region,” says EPA Administrator Michael Regan in a statement. “With this action, EPA is advancing its commitment to help protect this one-of-a-kind ecosystem, safeguard an essential Alaskan industry, and preserve the way of life for more than two dozen Alaska Native villages.”
MASSACHUSETTS: Blue Harvest Fisheries expands groundfish fleet
February 8, 2023 — Blue Harvest Fisheries has expanded its groundfish fleet, adding the former Francis Dawn as “part of the company’s strategy to assemble a new, modern fleet,” the New Bedford, Massachusetts, U.S.A.-based company said in a press release.
The vessel, now renamed the Nobska, will fish for groundfish in the Gulf of Maine and Georges Bank, landing its catch in both New Bedford and Gloucester, Massachusetts, Blue Harvest said. The Nobska’s current captain, Aldie Leeman, has agreed to work for Blue Harvest, and the company is in the process of transferring the groundfish permit from an older vessel that burned in 2021, also called the Nobska, to the new vessel.
Blue Harvest Fisheries Completes Purchase of New, Modern Groundfish Vessel
February 8, 2023 — The following was released by Blue Harvest Fisheries:
Blue Harvest Fisheries has completed the purchase of its newest, most modern groundfish vessel, the newly-christened Nobska. The new vessel is Blue Harvest’s latest investment in its groundfish fleet, and represents the first step in implementing the company’s plans for the future of its groundfish operations.
The Nobska, built in 2019 in Fairhaven, Massachusetts and originally known as the Francis Dawn, is one of the newest groundfish vessels currently operating in New England. It has several innovative features that allows it to land in-demand, premium groundfish. These include a state-of-the-art electronics system, and a slurry ice/vat system for the fish hold that allows the Nobska to keep groundfish fresher for longer, and to land a higher-quality product at the dock.
The Nobska is the first of Blue Harvest’s new investments to upgrade its groundfish operations and will be the replacement for an older Blue Harvest vessel, also named the Nobska. The purchase is part of the company’s strategy to assemble a new, modern fleet. By investing in newer vessels that can spend more days fishing every year, run more efficiently, and require less maintenance, Blue Harvest hopes to maintain its position as an innovator in the New England groundfish fishery.
“We are excited for the opportunities that a new, modern vessel like the Nobska will provide for our groundfish operations,” said Chip Wilson, CEO of Blue Harvest Fisheries. “We are committed to the long-term future of this fishery, and this purchase is the first step in our strategy to remain involved here in Massachusetts for years to come.”
Originally based in Maine, the new Nobska will fish for groundfish in the Gulf of Maine and Georges Bank, landing its catch in both New Bedford and Gloucester. Blue Harvest will be working with the Nobska’s current captain, Aldie Leeman, who has been with the vessel since its initial launch and who brings decades of fishing experience to the company. Blue Harvest will also be working in the coming weeks to transfer the groundfish permit from the old Nobska to the new replacement vessel.
About Blue Harvest Fisheries
Blue Harvest Fisheries is a leading supplier of premium quality seafood sustainably harvested from MSC certified fisheries in the U.S. The company operates its own fleet of groundfish vessels as well as offload facilities in New Bedford and Fairhaven, MA and an SQF certified waterfront manufacturing facility in New Bedford, MA. The Blue Harvest Fisheries product line features haddock, ocean perch (Acadian redfish) and Atlantic pollock (saithe) as well as other groundfish harvested in the waters off New England. Blue Harvest Fisheries products are sold fresh and frozen to leading restaurants, wholesalers and distributors across the U.S. The company also offers custom processing and is a supplier of private label products to retailers and food service distributors.
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