June 2018 MAINE COASTAL NEWS Page 11.


D. E. L. A. - F  D Commercial Fishing News


From the Director - Yesterday was Mother’s Day. We hope


that all Mothers had a great day and had a chance to enjoy their families. My mem- ories of my Mom go back to “the island.” (Stonington). She worked in one of the neighborhood grocery stores, Bill Rich- ardson’s if I remember it right. One of the highlights was being able to have a ten cent bag of penny candy whenever I went there with my grandmother to visit Mum. Addie Burchess’s store was just down over the hill, so it was a candy mecca! What great mem- ories I have of that neighborhood, which was Greenhead, Stonington. That’s when we could walk down to Clyde Conary’s and watch the boats come in with their lobsters for the day. Later years, Mum and I would go to


Port Clyde together to get a few barrels of bait for the week. We had a great time be- cause we’d always stop at the bread store in Rockland and stock up on bread and cakes for lunches that week. You should’ve seen us stop at Walmart with all of those barrels of bait in the back of the truck! We didn’t dare stay very long with the sun beating down on them. It was great memories…I sure miss her.


Most of the boats are getting ready to hit


the water now. A lot of the them are taking advantage of the halibut season which was shortened a bit this year. We are also trying to get a few weeks in ourselves this year. A lot of pictures have been hitting social media with great shots of the fi sh they’ve been catching. Brian Densmore had a great looking fi sh on their Facebook site. Con- gratulations, Brian! We have all been gearing up for the


whale meetings that are happening at this time. We, as fi shermen, do have the opportunity to make suggestions for our representatives to


take to the Take Reduction Team meetings for possible solutions. The “big” meeting is set for October of this year. The whale folk are actually testing the idea of ropeless gear. That is the one that has a bag that fl oats to the top of the surface and takes the rope with it for hauling. Then it all has to be carefully put back in place so it can be set again, with the rope back in its canister. I know this all sounds “crazy” but this is all a serious option that the whale people are considering that we do. So please, if you can attend one of the meetings, please do and bring your suggestions with you. It is very important to all of us as a fi shery and the future of our livelihoods. Canada is also coming on board with


some rules to help comply with saving the whales. There are a lot of whales in Canada right now, as well as a lot of whales down around Cape Cod, Massachusetts. As far as Maine, most of our fi shermen have rarely ever seen a whale, if they have ever seen one at all. Of course, no one wants to see one of those majestic animals caught in rope or gear. Somehow, there must be some viable solutions that can be agreeable to all, (most) of us.


On May 22, the DMR is hosting a


Public Hearing on Lobster Trawl Limits. It is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. at the Ellsworth High School. The proposed rule would limit the number of traps on a trawl to a maximum of fi ve traps within the waters of Zone B from the six mile line to the 25675 line. The proposal was supported by 2/3rds of Zone B license holders voting in a referendum conducted in February. On April 25, 2018 the Zone B Council voted unanimously to recommend to the Commissioner to advance this proposal to rule-making. Comment deadline: June 1, 2018. I am now on the Advisory Board for the Northeast Center Life-Jacket/PFD Project.


Marine Insurance An employee-owned company serving Maine people and their boats since 1866. P. O. Box 88


Belfast, Maine 04915 – dassatt711@yahoo.com 2017 – “Working together”


Name: _____________________________________ Address: _________________________________ Town/city: __________________ Zip: ________


Offices in Rockland, Camden, Belfast, Southwest Harbor, Portland and Waterville.


AllenIF.com/marine (800)439-4311 OWNER, VESSEL, FLEET OR CREW


JOHANSON BOATWORKS Full Service Yacht Yard


Phone number:___________________E-mail address___________________ Type of membership:


( ) Lobsterman/stern man ($100) yearly


( ) Lobsterman – age 70 & over ($50) ( ) Student ($56) yearly ( ) Business associate ($113) yearly ( ) Avid supporter ($132) yearly ( ) Friend of DELA ($100)


( ) I wish to support DELA’s legal fund _____________


( ) I wish to support DELA’s Scholarship Fund____________ We also take Master Card and Visa


Card _ _ _ _ - _ _ _ _- _ _ _ _- _ _ _ _ Expiration date _ _/_ _ Security code _ _ _


Card holder’s name (print) _______________________________________________ Card Holder’s signature___________________________________________________


Rockland, Maine • 207-596-7060 info@jboatworks.com • jboatworks.com


*Downeast Lobstermen’s Association is a qualified tax exempt organization under section 501 ( c ) (6) of the Internal Revenue Code


License no. ___________


This is an important subject that involves safety on the water. You may have been involved with trying various life jackets and had a chance to choose the one that you liked the best. They need photos of fi shermen wearing their lifejackets. Submit a photo and you could win a USCG approved Type V Lifesling! Text your photo to 607 437- 9098 or e-mail to Rebecca.well@bassett. org. Make sure you include your name and contact information to be entered into the raffl e.


Another project that you may be inter-


ested in is “Women Who Fish.” Susan Tobey White wants to tell the stories of those who are lobstering in Maine by creating large


(3x4 and 5x4 feet) paintings. Her plan is to show these with your fi st name and your statement beside the painting. She wants to tell your story. If you send her several photos, she may create a composite of them. Her contact info is: Susan Tobey White Studio, 134 Church St., Belfast, ME 04915, 207-322-1699 susan@susantobeywhite. com, www.susantoberwhite.com. I visited Susan and have seen the fi rst paintings of her project. They are really inspiring. Please feel free to contact us any time if


you have questi ons about any of the informa- tion in this report: dassatt711@yahoo.com or 207 322-1924. Stay safe, Sheila


The lobster boat SARI ANN on the dock at Billing's Diesel & Marine in Stonington.


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