Articles
Crab decision sparks riot, but boycott ends
A boycott of the snow crab fishery by traditional New Brunswick crabbers to protest a federal quota decision was canceled on May 20, effective May 23. Called on May 5, one day before the season opening, the boycott was intended to protest the decision by Fisheries and Oceans Minister Robert Thibault to lower the total
Canada plans to protect large female lobsters – sometime
Within the space of 24 hours in May, the Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans announced its plan to protect some female lobsters off the coast of Prince Edward Island – and then conceded that it didn’t have the equipment to implement it. DFO officials declined to elaborate, but Ken Campbell, communications officer for the
Closure of Newfoundland’s cod fishery brings angry response
The decision by Canadian Minister of Fisheries and Oceans Robert Thibault to close what was left of the Newfoundland cod fishery has left provincial officials questioning their future relationship with the federal government. Thibault’s action in late April also left hundreds of fishermen and fish plant workers wondering how they’re going to put food on
Plan to close Gander weather station angers fishermen and officials
Canadian Environment Minister David Anderson calls it consolidation. Newfoundland fishermen call it a threat to their safety. The “it” is Anderson’s decision to close several weather reporting stations – most notably the one in Gander, Newfoundland. This means that Newfoundland and Labrador fishermen will be getting their weather forecasts from Halifax, Nova Scotia, and they’re
Minimum lobster size to increase in Gulf of St. Lawrence
Canadian Fisheries and Oceans Minister Robert Thibault has raised the minimum lobster size in certain areas of Atlantic Canada – a move met with enthusiasm by the Maritime Fishermen’s Union. The new multi-year management plan will be implemented in Lobster Fishing Areas (LFAs) 23, 24, 25, 26A, and 26B in the southern Gulf of St.
New schooner being built in Eastport
Eastport will have the beginning of a windjammer fleet come June 2004 if plans by John Bishop and Capt. Butch Harris come to fruition. They’re building a 92-foot clipper-bowed, gaff-rigged schooner, the HALIE MATTHEW, on the grounds of the Eastport Boat School. When she’s launched she’ll join the knockabout schooner SYLVINA BEAL, owned and operated
Scientist has concrete idea for lobster habitat
A New Brunswick scientist who has been working with different strengths of concrete is planning to construct lobster habitats out of the material. Buquan Miao, an engineering professor at the Universite de Moncton, has been experimenting with concrete for 20 years and has produced, on the one hand, a substance as light as Styrofoam and,
P.E.I., Magdalen Islands fishermen meet over disputed fishery
A boundary dispute between Prince Edward Island fishermen and fishermen from the Magdalen Islands of Quebec remains unresolved. The dispute is over a lobster fishery. The two sides met for the first time in mid-February. Hosted by the Magdalen group, the meeting did produce agreement on at least one point: that both groups of fishermen
Newfoundland fishermen await cod closure decision
The future of what’s left of Newfoundland’s northern cod fishery remains uncertain as Robert Thibault, Canada’s Minister of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO), mulls over a plan to shut it down. His decision is expected in late March or early April, according to DFO communications advisor Sophie Galarneau. The Fisheries Resource Conservation Council (FRCC), however, has
Tidal envy
The Bay of Fundy has the biggest tides in the world. Everybody knows that, right? After all, thousands of tourists come to see them. But it’s not necessarily true, say scientists at the Canadian Hydrographic Service (CHS), a division of the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans. In response to highest-tide claims by residents around