Hopes, Fears and The Future

Hopes, Fears and The Future

My fishing seasons begin bright with hope and filled with expectations. Last year’s mistakes and missed opportunities have been recalled and dissected all winter; plans have been laid to assure better outcomes next time. And those next times are coming soon. The marina has promised that, sometime later this week, my boat will go into […]

Aquaculture in the Gulf of Mexico — Proceed with Caution

Aquaculture in the Gulf of Mexico — Proceed with Caution

According to short term projections by the Food and Agricultural Organization (or FAO), global fish demand could increase by 47 million tons in less than ten years. In the last several decades, despite rising seafood consumption, wild-capture fisheries’ production remained steady, while aquaculture production grew to help meet this demand. The United States is not […]

The Pacific Council’s Grand Habitat Compromise Took Years of Hard Work

The Pacific Council’s Grand Habitat Compromise Took Years of Hard Work

Like most big headline-grabbing policy breakthroughs achieved through the regional fishery management council process under the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the recently announced protections for deep sea essential fish habitat (EFH) on the West Coast took years of painstaking work. Many fishermen and environmentalists are rightfully celebrating their collective achievement, but it’s worth taking a moment to […]

Who Speaks For The Fish?

Who Speaks For The Fish?

Photo by John McMurray No one can deny the social and economic importance of recreational fishing, and sport fishing organizations used to be a significant voice for conservation and management of our marine resources. However, there is a disturbing trend in some corners of the sport fishing community. Where conservation and abundance were once the […]

Senators Step-Up To Bring California Swordfish Fishing Into the 21st Century

Senators Step-Up To Bring California Swordfish Fishing Into the 21st Century

New legislation will improve marine resource conservation and promote innovative new fishing gear This post first appeared in Fishing Wire and is reprinted with permission Last Tuesday, Senators Feinstein (D-Calif.), Capito (R-W.Va.) and Harris (D-Calif.) introduced S.2773 the Driftnet Modernization and Bycatch Reduction Act to phase out the use of mile-long drift gillnets in the […]

Live Bluefish Matter

Live Bluefish Matter

Anglers and bluefish have a complicated relationship. We call them “yellow-eyed demons” when they show up in the surf, attacking lures meant for striped bass. And we call them worse things farther offshore, when they show up to ruin shark baits and mangle carefully-rigged—and expensive—ballyhoo intended for tuna. But when they burst through the surface […]