Articles
Canadian council blames recreational fishery, seals for codfish problems
The Canadian federal Fisheries Resource Conservation Council (FRCC) claims cod were overfished off Newfoundland and Labrador last season. It attributed the problem to recreational, not commercial fishing. In a letter to Fisheries and Oceans Minister Robert Thibault, Council chairman Fred Woodman said the levels of catch in the recreational fishery far exceeded the Department of
Parliamentary committee: Canada should withdraw from international group
A Canadian parliamentary committee says that Canada should withdraw from the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization because of foreign overfishing on the Grand Banks. Federal Fisheries and Oceans Minister Robert Thibault isn’t so sure. In a report presented to Thibault in June, the House of Commons Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans recommended: “That the Government
Authorities go after Newfoundland lobster poachers
Lobster poaching is becoming an increasingly serious problem in Newfoundland — but it’s being met with an equally serious increase in enforcement, according to a federal Fisheries and Oceans officer. “We’ve charged 31 offenders in 18 days,” said Leinus Fitzpatrick, Area Chief for DFO Conservation and Protection who’s based in Corner Brook, Newfoundland. “And the
Burnt Church council election declared invalid
Canadian Fisheries and Oceans Minister Robert Thibault said in mid-May that he was optimistic about future relations between the federal government and the Burnt Church Mi’kmaq fishermen in New Brunswick. But by late in the month there wasn’t a recognized band council for him to negotiate with. On May 10, the federal Department of Indian
North Atlantic Seafood to re-open Lubec’s former Stinson plant
It’s a small piece of economic good news for Lubec – but even a small piece is welcome around Cobscook Bay these days. The former Stinson Seafood plant, which was closed last July, is about to be a facility operated by North Atlantic Seafood of Stonington. Although the company will probably hire only six to
Too many fish: company lays off 600
Fishery Products International (FPI) Ltd. in May announced the layoff of 600 workers at its flounder processing plant in Marystown, Newfoundland. The move came only days after provincial Fisheries and Aquaculture Minister Gerry Reid had expressed misgivings about FPI’s commitment to processing all its fish within the province. The action was described as a “voluntary
A significant change of command for the BOWDOIN
When the fabled schooner BOWDOIN departs for one of its voyages from Maine Maritime Academy in Castine this summer, it will be under the command of two women – for the first time in the vessel’s history. Captain Heather Stone, from Michigan by way of Hopkinton, New Hampshire, will be in command, and her first
Newfoundland town wants to tax fishermen as businesses
A Newfoundland town has come up with a tax plan that could have implications for fishermen across Atlantic Canada and beyond – negative implications, according to the fishermen. The Springdale, Newfoundland, town government has decided that taxing fishermen as businesses is a good way to increase revenue. Fishermen respond that the tax is wrong-headed and
Newfoundland lawnmakers put restrictions on FPI
The Newfoundland/Labrador legislature has approved a bill that restricts stock ownership and sets management limits on Fishery Products International Ltd. (FPI) of St. John’s, Newfoundland. The move was a response to a company plan to purchase Clearwater Fine Foods and the threat of massive employee layoffs. FPI has since backed off from both moves. In
Eastport works to solve its cargo storage problem
It appears that the Port of Eastport’s problem of cargo storage space at Estes Head, or lack of it, is on its way to being solved – and the solution may well be a new warehouse with a metal frame and fabric skin. The problem was summed up by Skip Rogers, Eastport manager for Federal