EDFish

Pound Net Fishing on the Scuppernong River, North Carolina

By Tom Lalley / Bio / Published: June 2, 2009

EDF mostly works on ocean fisheries, but we took some time out a few months ago to meet with Willy Phillips from Columbia, North Carolina to see how he fishes using pound nets on the Scuppernong River. Willy owns Full Circle Crab Company, Inc. and he also fishes for yellow perch, shad and other fish that mostly come to the river after spending part of their life in the ocean.

Pound nets are an ancient fishing method. They’re basically fish traps: fish swim in but can’t swim out. Fishermen simply pull the nets up and harvest the fish. There’s virtually no bycatch or waste because unwanted fish are thrown back unharmed into the river.

Here are two video clips of my trip out on the river with Willy. I was on a rocking boat surrounded by flopping fish and working fishermen who were very gracious to this city boy.

VIDEO 1: This is the start of the pound net fishing process. The fishermen pull the nets up until the fish are close to the surface where upon they can be scooped up with smaller nets.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-QtQaJA0Kw

VIDEO 2: As you can see, the nets are loaded with fish. The herring fishery is closed in North Carolina and herring constitutes most of the fish you see here that are being thrown back into the river.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rEBl9StVXfw

Posted in Mid-Atlantic / Tagged Fishing, North Carolina, Pound Nets | Read 1 Response

Oil Exploration in Cuban Waters, Only One of Many Important Marine Issues

By Tom Lalley / Bio / Published: May 18, 2009

Thoughts from Dan Whittle. Dan is the Southeast Regional Director for EDF’s Oceans program. He works to reform management of marine fisheries and to protect sensitive coastal areas and essential fish habitats in the southeastern United States and in the northern Caribbean, including Cuba.

Dan Whittle, Southeast Regional Director for EDF Oceans program. The U.S. and Cuba share many ecological resources, but the countries have different ways of managing them. Drilling is just one important issue out of many and is covered well in Nick Miroff’s Washington Post article, Cuba’s Undersea Oil Could Help Thaw Trade With U.S. The U.S. and Cuba should move quickly to facilitate more information exchange among academics, scientists and conservation groups to help both countries do a better job of managing coastal and marine resources. The sooner we work together, the sooner we’ll see benefits for the people, the environment and the economy in both countries.

Posted in Uncategorized / Tagged Cuba, Energy, Environment, Oil Drilling | Comments are closed

EDF/Brookings Event, Steps for U.S.-Cuba Cooperation on Oceans

By Tom Lalley / Bio / Published: May 6, 2009

Dr. Doug Rader, EDF Oceans Chief Scientist, presenting at an event on Cuban fisheries at Brookings Institution.

At least on the surface, relations between the U.S. and Cuba appear to be warming. Fidel Castro was even seen wearing a lapel pin with the U.S. and Cuban flag on it, so timing couldn’t have been better for a meeting hosted by EDF and the Brookings Institution where a new path was outlined for the U.S. and Cuba to work together on protecting the diverse marine resources in the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean (read more about EDF’s Ocean program initiatives in Cuba).

Dan Whittle, EDF The panel of experts at the Brookings Institution.

The experts at the meeting agreed that the environment could be the easiest issue for the two countries to collaborate on since so much is shared, and so much is at stake. Whatever Cuba does in its waters directly affects, for example, the U.S. fishing industry and vice-versa. Other shared resources include coral reefs, ocean fish populations, habitats for migratory birds, marine mammals and turtles, and the list goes on.

Among the many bright spots on this issue is that President Obama already has the authority to authorize government-to-government initiatives or American NGO projects in Cuba.

Posted in Uncategorized / Tagged Brookings Institution, caribbean, Catch Shares, Cuba, EDF, Fisheries, Fishing | Comments are closed

Welcome to EDFish!

By Tom Lalley / Bio / Published: April 28, 2009

Tom Lalley, EDF Oceans Marketing and Communications Director EDFish is the new voice of EDF’s Oceans program. We have so much to say and share during this exciting time for the oceans and, in particular, fisheries. Blogs have emerged as one of the most efficient ways to communicate, so we’re using this vehicle to facilitate dialogue and keep you informed of our work with fishermen, fishery managers, policy makers and the entire community of those concerned about healthy oceans and coastal communities. We have big plans for EDFish so please check back often to see how this site changes and what our staff and friends are up to.

EDFish will cover the full breadth of work and activities of the Oceans program. While our work is primarily focused on oceans policy, we also want to highlight the personalities and knowledge of our incredible staff. That means not only the latest information on policy, but also a good dose of lighter features on staff travels, tidbits on natural history and news about the many ways people use the Oceans. And we want to hear from you, whether you agree with us or not. There’ll be plenty of opportunity to speak your mind.

Posted in Uncategorized / Tagged EDF Oceans, Tom Lalley | Comments are closed