Monterey, California, used to be an epicenter in the West Coast commercial fishing industry. These days, it’s still a working port, but many visitors know more about Steinbeck than Market Squid deliveries. And the city’s waterfront is full of restaurants serving shrimp and tilapia imported from China. And it’s not the only place doing so. Many [...]
At first, Pennisi was just trying to make nets lighter. It began when the California government passed regulations requiring fishermen to use small foot rope nets when trawling in shallow water. Foot ropes make up bottom edge of a trawl net. Because small foot rope nets take up less space, they are supposed to disturb less [...]
When the Monterey Bay Aquarium was first getting underway, local fisherman Giuseppe “Joey” Pennisi helped catch some of the octopus and ling cod to put in the tanks. But then, he says, his relationship with the aquarium soured with the launch of the Seafood Watch program. Many of the species he caught were on the “red” [...]
MONTEREY >> “Big Blue Live,” the live multimedia television event, is doing more than exposing millions of viewers to the mostly clandestine world of the sea life that inhabits the Monterey Bay. The ground-breaking PBS/BBC project, which premiered Sunday in the UK, has galvanized local individuals, businesses, scientists, schools and organizations who are collaborating with the [...]
Monterey >> The icy standoff between fishermen and environmentalists over trawling may thaw a bit thanks to new and more targeted research on its effects. James Lindholm, a professor of marine science and policy at CSU Monterey Bay, partnered with commercial fishermen and conservationists to study the effects of bottom trawling near Morro Bay.
How to fix America's troubled fisheries is a question of passionate debate around the country. when West Coast fishermen were given greater control over their business, a remarkable thing happened: The fishery started to recover . Solutions senior writer Rod Griffin reports from California, where fishermen have joined EDF to help chart a more sustainable future. [...]
Giuseppe Pennisi used to be skeptical of environmental organizations. But now the old-school Monterey Bay trawl fisherman is on his way to becoming a conservationist. Trawling is notorious for disrupting crucial habitat as the gear drags across the sea floor. Pennisi has partnered with the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) to design special trawl equipment that reduces [...]