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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
They will kick off the hearing with a State of the State of the California Dungeness Crab Season, one of the oldest commercial fisheries in California, and what to expect on ocean conditions, domoic acid levels and crab quality in the months to come.
Then they will transition into the robust efforts the State, Crab Fleet and numerous environmental organizations have been laser focused on: Protecting the Golden State’s majestic whales from entanglement. The committee will also be focused on the impacts large ships have been having on California whale populations.
“For several years now, California’s crab fishery has been on the brink of disaster due to high domoic acid levels in our ocean, and at next week’s hearing we’ll be taking a look at the current ocean conditions and how they’re impacting the crab fishery,” North Coast Senator Mike McGuire said. “We’ll also be discussing progress made from the critical legislation passed to protect California’s majestic whale populations from entanglement and other issues impacting whales including commercial ship strikes, which is a growing concern.”
The hearing titled: “Protecting California’s Whales from Entanglement and Maintaining the Sustainability of the Dungeness Crab Fishery” will be held Wednesday, November 28 from 1 to 5 p.m.at the Aquarium of the Bay – Farallon Room, PIER 39, The Embarcadero & Beach Street San Francisco, California.
The Committee has brought some of the nation’s top experts on the Dungeness crab fishery and those responsible for reducing whale entanglements together for one significant event next Wednesday. The Committee will also begin the investigation into commercial ship strikes and how it’s become a growing concern for California’s whale populations.
The agenda features presentations by agency leaders, scientists, commercial fishing representatives, non-governmental organizations, and environmental advocates.
Deborah Halberstadt, California Natural Resources Agency Deputy Secretary for Oceans and Coastal Policy, and Charlton Bonham, Director of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, headline this year’s list of speakers and presenters.
A final list of presenters will be released early next week.
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- Written by: Mendocino National Forest
The decks are located near Letts Lake, Alder Springs and Lake Pillsbury.
Complete information concerning the timber, the conditions of sale and submission of bids is available to the public from the Mendocino National Forest Supervisors Office, 825 N. Humboldt Ave., Willows and on the forest Web site at the bottom of the resource management Web page: https://www.fs.usda.gov/resources/mendocino/landmanagement/resourcemanagement.
The Forest Service will receive sealed bids in public at the Supervisor’s office in Willows on Wednesday, Dec. 5.
Interested individuals may contact Forester Jason Cushman for more information, 530-828-0230.
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- Written by: California Department of Insurance
To help consumers shop for the most coverage at the best price, the department has a convenient, easy-to-use online price comparison tool available.
The homeowner insurance comparison tool is designed to take some of the guesswork out of shopping for insurance by allowing consumers to quickly and easily make comparisons of rates from both national and local insurance companies.
"Finding the best coverage for your needs starts by being well informed," said Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones. "As the number and severity of wildfires grows and some insurers limit their underwriting, it is important for consumers to shop around for the most coverage they can afford and this online tool provides a wealth of information to help them in that search."
While this tool does not provide actual premium quotes, it does provide each company's average premium and a toll-free number and website address for consumers to ask questions about available discounts or credits and receive an actual premium quote. The tool also includes a link to the specific company's performance based on the consumer complaint study.
Consumers enter their county and nearest city, type and amount of coverage, and age of the home to compare estimated premiums. Homeowners should compare prices for various insurers along with the coverage features, limits, and exclusions.
The department's Consumer Services team is also available toll-free at 800-927-HELP to assist consumers with any questions regarding their claims, coverage, or search for insurance coverage.
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- Written by: California Department of Fish and Wildlife
The delay includes Fish and Game Districts 6, 7, 8 and 9 (Mendocino, Humboldt and Del Norte counties).
The northern Dungeness crab fishery is delayed until 12:01 a.m. on Sunday, Dec.16, pending another round of test results tentatively scheduled for Dec. 1. If these results indicate good quality, the fishery will open and be preceded by a 64-hour gear setting period that would begin no earlier than 8:01 a.m. on Thursday, Dec. 13.
“Last season, the northern Dungeness crab fishery was delayed until Jan. 15, the latest a quality delay can be extended,” said CDFW Environmental Scientist Christy Juhasz. “Results from our recent test are very similar to last year indicating that this delay may be extended past Dec. 16.”
If the next round of quality tests remain low, the CDFW Director has the authority to delay the season an additional 15 days until Dec. 31. Under new legislation, CDFW can continue testing until Jan. 15.
Crab are evaluated to compare meat weight to total crab weight to determine whether they are ready for harvest under testing guidelines established by the Tri-State Dungeness Crab Committee. If results indicate poor crab quality, the CDFW director may delay the fishery under authority of Fish and Game Code Section 8276.2.
The southern Dungeness crab fishery opened on Nov. 15, except for the area from the southern boundary of Bodega Head State Marine Reserve, Sonoma County (38° 18’ N. latitude) north to the Sonoma/Mendocino county line (38° 46.125’ N. latitude) which was delayed due to domoic acid.
Upon a recommendation from health agencies that domoic acid no longer poses a risk to public health, the CDFW director may provide a minimum 72-hours’ notice before the gear-setting period and avoid a gear set date that lands on state and federal holidays.
No vessel may take or land crab in an area closed for a meat quality delay (i.e., Fish and Game districts 6, 7, 8 and 9) or within an area closed for a domoic acid delay. In addition, any vessel that takes, possess onboard, or lands crab from ocean waters outside of a delayed area is prohibited from participating in the crab fishery in a delayed area for 30 days following the opening of those areas. This applies to any delayed areas in Oregon, Washington and California.
For more information, please see CDFW’s Frequently Asked Questions regarding the 2018-19 Dungeness crab commercial season.
For more information on health advisories related to fisheries, please visit: https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/Fishing/Ocean/Health-Advisories .
For more information on Dungeness crab, please visit www.wildlife.ca.gov/crab .