Big increases proposed for scup harvest
By RICHARD DEGENER Staff Writer | Posted: Tuesday, August 30, 2011 10:13 pm
LOWER TOWNSHIP — Jeff Reichle remembers when scup were so plentiful that they kept the boats at Lund’s Fisheries working all winter when other fish left the cold waters off New Jersey.
Reichle also remembers when scup, also known as porgy, left the cold waters themselves, victims of overfishing.
Now scup are back. And now the Lund’s Fisheries owner has to redevelop the markets that disappeared years ago.
“We’re really excited being able to produce some quantity again. Hopefully we can get our fresh market back,” Reichle said Tuesday.
The fishing councils that regulate porgy are recommending a 66 percent increase in the commercial harvest for 2012, to 34.43 million pounds. Just as important, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission and the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council want to increase the amount individual boats can bring in during the winter fishery when scup are concentrated off New Jersey.
The limit two years ago was 30,000 pounds over a two-week period. This year it is 30,000 pounds per week. In 2012 it would be 50,000 pounds a trip, which can take from two to four days. All the recommendations from the councils are still subject to approval from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Reichle said with the old trip limits, fishermen over the past decade would mostly harvest scup as a secondary catch while fishing for fluke or squid.
“At 50,000 pounds it’s economically feasible for guys to go scup fishing. Several boats that have not fished for scup for several years will fish for scup this year,” Reichle said.
Greg DiDomenico, who directs the Garden State Seafood Association, said the winter fishery, which runs from Jan. 1 through April 30, is expected to total 45 percent of the 2012 quota. There are two distinct populations of the brownish-yellow fish — one from the north and one from the south — but they come together in the winter months off New Jersey.
DiDomenico said the ports of Cape May and Point Pleasant Beach, which have the types of boats that fish for bottom fish, called draggers, will be the main ones to cash in.
“Our winter fishery has always been very significant in New Jersey. We sort of lost that. Now the benefits of proper management are going to pay off,” DiDomenico said.
The East Coast harvest was at 49 million pounds in 1960 but overfishing reduced it to just 8.2 million pounds by 1989. As the fish became scarce, consumers got used to eating other species. Scup was primarily marketed fresh, as a whole fish in the north and as filets in the south. It was an African-American market originally but more Asians are eating them nowadays.
The first attempt to manage scup was in 1995. Since then, seasonal closures, minimum fish sizes, net restrictions, and quotas have slowly brought the stocks back.
“Now it’s time to get back to scup fishing, and we’re thrilled,” DiDomenico said.
Contact Richard Degener:
609-463-6711 609-463-6711
RDegener@pressofac.com
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Federal grants are helping Yank Marine buy a $1.8 million boat lift for its Upper Township boatyard
By MICHAEL MILLER Staff Writer | Posted: Tuesday, August 30, 2011 10:24 pm
UPPER TOWNSHIP — Every corner of Yank Marine’s sprawling 6-acre boatyard was bustling with activity Tuesday.
In one corner, workers tended to the Hudson River ferry Moira Smith, famous for rescuing passengers during the “Miracle on the Hudson” crash of U.S. Airways Flight 1549 in 2009. After a recent engine fire, the boat needs to be rebuilt from the inside out.
Elsewhere, the twin ferries York and Jersey, owned by Goldman Sachs, awaited routine maintenance. The sleek pontoon boats take company employees from offices between New York and New Jersey.
And on one side, workers painted a U.S. Army landing craft gunmetal gray for Fort Eustis, Va.
To say this boat building and repair company is busy is an understatement, owner John Yank Jr. said.
“We have another contract to re-power nine boats with Caterpillar engines,” he said.
This family-owned business is getting nearly $1 million in federal grants this year to buy a new 300-ton, $1.8 million boat lift for its yard off Mosquito Landing Road. The company plans to move its old lift to its second boatyard in the Dorchester section of Maurice River Township, where the company plans to expand its service for larger boats.
Yank also plans to buy a 600-ton lift for the Dorchester yard next year. The heavier lift is expected to generate between 25 and 35 new jobs in Cumberland County, Yank said.
Owner Bette Jean Yank said the grant is a worthwhile public investment because her business is so important to New Jersey’s commercial-fishing industry.
“If Yank Marine can’t lift them or if they can’t get up the Tuckahoe River because of bridge restrictions, they have to travel as far away as 300 miles for repairs,” she said. “What a waste of time and fuel.”
The boatyard is a crucial element in the fishing industry, said Gregory DiDomenico, spokesman for the Garden State Seafood Association.
“They have a unique spot for fishing boats in Cape May. They have been a big supporter of ours,” he said. “They’re a big part of the coastal economy. There’s no doubt this business has an economic impact on the fishing industry.”
Most years, commercial fishermen make up the majority of the company’s clients. But this year they have been doing more work on private ferries, including about 40 that operate around New York.
The boatyard’s 220-ton lift has four posts on wheels and uses hydraulic slings to lift the watercraft from the Tuckahoe River and maneuver the boats anywhere in the yard. Because space is so tight, the boats sometimes require more than one move.
“You can only get so many vessels in the Tuckahoe yard. It’s like playing musical boats,” she said.
The largest boats are pulled ashore with a winch on specially made rails. But the rail line can accommodate only a single boat.
If boats exceed the weight restrictions, workers at Yank Marine now have to offload gear and equipment.
“It’s more expensive because they have to offload fuel, empty the fresh-water tanks, remove the ice and even remove some of the equipment off the deck just to lighten the vessel to lift it,” Bette Jean Yank said.
The company has a five-year contract to service New Jersey State Marine Police boats in Dorchester.
In the Tuckahoe boatyard’s boathouse, workers are repairing a Sandy Hook pilot boat, which guides cargo ships to port. The heavy-weather vessel features heated handrails designed to help its crew navigate the deck in icy conditions.
Yank’s employees include skilled craftsmen, welders and marine architects. Earlier this year, the company replaced some oak planking on the historic 1928 oyster schooner A.J. Meerwald.
John Yank is also repairing the fishing boat Lady Grace, which he built in Tuckahoe 42 years ago. Yank Marine built the adventure pirate ship Sea Dragon that sets sail on daily family excursions out of Ocean City.
His son, John Yank III, is continuing the family tradition as a boat-builder at his own company, Ocean Rockets, based in Tuckahoe. Ocean Rockets specializes in building speedboats such as Wildwood’s Silver Bullet.
Boat builders are having a tough time amid the recession. But boat-repair shops such as Yank Marine have been busy keeping fleets afloat in a stormy economy, Bette Jean Yank said. The 25-employee business gets work from all across the Mid-Atlantic.
“We work year-round. All of these people make their living with their boats. They need to get them repaired as quickly as possible,” she said.
Contact Michael Miller:
609-463-6712 609-463-6712
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