State and Local

September 8, 2014 — Some say it is the first wahoo fish caught off California's coast.

A fisherman reeled in an "extremely rare" wahoo fish.

View the video from KCAL/KCBS at CNN

 

September 6, 2014 — For more than two weeks talks of a strike by Louisiana shrimpers have filled VHF radios and social media. Talk has turned into action according to Louisiana Shrimp Association’s president Clint Guidry, as state shrimpers have put a moratorium on harvesting to protest falling shrimp prices at the dock.

The work stoppage of undetermined length was decided upon at an informal meeting of Louisiana Shrimp Association attended by more than 250 shrimpers from across this state. “This is not a strike,” Guidry told Gulf Seafood News. “This is a fisherman initiated work stoppage. We are asking everyone to stand united for this industry from the west to the east coast of the state.”

According to Guidry, “This is an industry problem that needs an industry solution.” The self described peacemaker, organizer and diplomat wants to work closely with shrimp processors to find solutions beneficial to both sides.

He said the shrimp stoppage is specially timed to currently declining catches. The expectation is for that to change in approximately a month’s time, and he’s hoping by then shrimpers and processors can find solutions to make sure everyone is profitable.

Read the full story at Gulf Seafood News

September 6, 2014 — The Fishing Partnership Support Services estimates about 25 percent of Massachusetts groundfishermen are without health insurance and expects the percentage to grow higher each day the current fishing disaster continues.

That is why the partnership, which has offices in Gloucester, New Bedford, Scituate and Chatham, plans to put on a full-court press to help as many fishermen as possible sign up for health insurance when the next open enrollment period dawns on Nov. 15.

“It’s a critical time,” said J.J. Bartlett, president of the partnership. “That’s why it’s perfect timing for us to be able to expand our services by adding another full-time staffer to help fishermen navigate the health insurance application process.”

The process of obtaining health insurance is convoluted enough on its own, but Bartlett said it’s made more complex for fishermen and fishing families who are susceptible to fluctuating incomes that can reduce their eligibility from one year to the next for certain insurance programs.

There is also the very nature of the fishermen’s life, requiring extended time on the water, which leaves them less time to navigate the health insurance landscape on their own.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times

PLYMOUTH, Mass. — September 4, 2014 — The two kayakers who were attacked by a great white shark near a group of seals Wednesday evening found themselves at the mercy of two interlocking trends — the surging seal population in Cape Cod Bay and a corresponding rise in the number of predatory sharks that feed on them.

Both populations have steadily rebounded in recent decades thanks to conservation measures, marine specialists say. And Cape Cod Bay, where large seal colonies are drawing more sharks closer to shore, is at the center of the resurgence.

“White shark populations are on an upward swing,” said George Burgess, who directs the Florida Program for Shark Research. “And the seal colonies are magnets.”

Greg Skomal, a senior fisheries biologist in the state’s marine fisheries division, said as the seal population has burgeoned, the animals have spread to new areas, bringing along the sharks into less familiar waters.

“As they grow, they expand to find areas that are suitable,” he said. “And the sharks follow.”

Read the full story from The Boston Globe

BOSTON, Mass. — September 5, 2014 — The state's top health official will decide whether to accept the recommendation of attorneys to revoke the licenses of Joe's Lobster Mart, effectively forcing the 43-year-old business to close.

The decision is likely to come within days and was prompted by owner Joseph Vaudo's guilty plea in March that he received stolen oysters at his retail and wholesale fish market on the Cape Cod Canal in Sandwich. On Oct. 26, 2013, police had his market under surveillance during a transaction with Michael Bryant, who police suspected of stealing oysters from Dennis and Barnstable shellfish grants. Bryant has since pleaded guilty to a string of oyster thefts.

Vaudo, 63, paid a $6,250 fine for his criminal offenses, but is likely to pay a much stiffer penalty when the state Department of Public Health revokes his permits to operate Joe's Lobster Mart.

At a three-hour hearing Thursday before the state Division of Administrative Law Appeals, Vaudo personally took the stand to plead his case that public health was never threatened. Three other witnesses provided testimony about his business practices calling him a respected and trusted fish dealer.

Kenneth Bresler, a magistrate with the state law agency, has already ruled the Department of Public Health is within its rights to revoke Vaudo's license. Thursday's hearing was billed as a chance for Vaudo to prove to health officials why they shouldn't take that step.

Afterward, attorneys for DPH said they will recommend to Commissioner Cheryl Bartlett that she revoke the permits and issue a cease-and-desist order, which would force Joe's Lobster Mart to close immediately. In a discussion between attorneys after the formal hearing, Vaudo's attorney, John Kiernan, could be heard asking what would become of more than $200,000 in inventory that remains in the fish warehouse as of this week.

“Sell it off,” James Strong, an attorney for the DPH, responded.

If Bartlett revokes his license, Vaudo could appeal to Superior Court but would not be able to keep his business open as he has since DPH announced its intent to revoke his license in April. There's an outside chance Vaudo could sell fish from the retail part of the store, Madeline Piper, an attorney for the state, said. That appears to be a slim chance because it also requires a permit from the state.

Read the full story from the Cape Cod Times

PLYMOUTH, Mass. — September 5, 2014 —  Sitting on her deck Thursday afternoon overlooking the rocky outcrops of Manomet Point, Ida Parker shivered at what she called the “crazy, surreal” sight of people swimming in the bay.

It was a reaction she couldn't have ever contemplated in her 29 years growing up in her family's waterfront home.

But on Wednesday, Parker and friend Kristin Orr, 29, a Barnstable High School graduate now living in the Plymouth area, were attacked by a great white shark while on an early evening kayak trip to the crumbling remnants of two rocky jetties on the point.

On Thursday, the town of Plymouth put up signs banning swimming on its beaches, and its harbormaster called for more shark research to discover if great whites are more frequent visitors to the area.

“We went from nobody believing they are out there to a full-blown attack on a kayak. It's unnerving,” Harbormaster Chad Hunter said Thursday.

The area where the attack occurred is frequently used for swimming, boating and water-skiing, Parker said.

“This is going to change a lot of things, how we all swim out there,” Parker mused. “The sad thing is that, for me, it's my backyard, my home. It's where we felt the safest.”

Parker's house has been in the family for more than 60 years, back to her grandmother's tenure there, and during that period it had been as safe a place for any type of water-related adventure imaginable.

“We water-ski and tube there. Kayaks go out to that corner (the point) every day, multiple kayaks,” Parker said. “It was an area where you are very comfortable.”

Read the full story from the Cape Cod Times

September 4, 2014 — The Massachusetts Health Connector has granted $110,040 to the Fishing Partnership Support Services to help fishermen navigate the health insurance system.

The Fishing Partnership, which provides services to fishermen and their families, has offices in New Bedford, Gloucester, Scituate and Chatham.

The grant will help pay for an additional health care "navigator" to rotate among the offices to advice fishermen in need of insurance.

Fishermen are not easy to enroll in health insurance plans because they are independent workers who depend on incomes that fluctuate depending on their catch, Fishing Partnership President J.J. Bartlett said in a statement. Because their incomes fluctuate, their eligibility for subsidized programs can change each year.

Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times

KITTERY, Maine — September 3, 2014 — The Kittery Port Authority will be holding a workshop Thursday to discuss recent concerns that have been raised about squid fishing at Pepperrell Cove.

The KPA at its July meeting voted to put up signs prohibiting squid fishing, after boat owners complained squid ink was staining dinghies. KPA Chairman Bob Melanson has said the ink has also stained the newly opened float system there.

But there have been concerns that the KPA has no authority to ban the practice if it is done by licensed fishermen. Over the summer, people also complained to Town Manager Nancy Colbert Puff that the KPA would need to change its rules and regulations, which would require a public hearing. That has not yet occurred, according to KPA agendas.

Read the full story from SeacoastOnline

 

REEDVILLE, Va. — September 2, 2014 — Omega Protein Corp. employees picked a cornfield clean recently, donating nearly three tons of produce to food banks in the Northern Neck.

The gleaning effort was a partnership between Omega and the Northern Neck Food Bank designed to get fresh produce on the tables of regional residents who need it.

"We're happy to help our community whenever we can," Monty Diehl, Omega Protein's senior director of fishing operations, said in a release.

"It feels great to know that we're helping to make sure that fresh food isn't wasted and is directed to those who really need it."

Omega owns and operates a processing plant in Reedville that turns Atlantic menhaden into fertilizer, pet food and Omega-3 fish oil. The facility employs about 300 people and is the last such operation remaining along the East Coast.

The gleaning took place Saturday, Aug. 23, at a farm near Reedville. Volunteers harvested nearly 6,000 pounds of corn.

Read the full story from the Daily Press

REEDVILLE, Va. — September 2, 2014 — Omega Protein Corp. employees picked a cornfield clean recently, donating nearly three tons of produce to food banks in the Northern Neck.

The gleaning effort was a partnership between Omega and the Northern Neck Food Bank designed to get fresh produce on the tables of regional residents who need it.

"We're happy to help our community whenever we can," Monty Diehl, Omega Protein's senior director of fishing operations, said in a release.

"It feels great to know that we're helping to make sure that fresh food isn't wasted and is directed to those who really need it."

Omega owns and operates a processing plant in Reedville that turns Atlantic menhaden into fertilizer, pet food and Omega-3 fish oil. The facility employs about 300 people and is the last such operation remaining along the East Coast.

The gleaning took place Saturday, Aug. 23, at a farm near Reedville. Volunteers harvested nearly 6,000 pounds of corn.

Read the full story from the Daily Press