Have you ever seen a jellyfish while you were fishing or swimming? OK. Have you ever seen a jellyfish over six and a half feet across, and weighing up to 450 pounds? How about several thousand of them at once, drifting like a massive, toxic flotilla into your fishing net?
This is what Japanese fishing operations have been dealing with in recent months: legions of Nomura’s jellyfish (Nemopilema nomurai) have been floating out of their usual terrain in Korean and Chinese waters, possibly being pushed from the Yangtze delta by currents produced by unusually heavy rains in the region, and in to the nets of fishermen. Another hypothesis is that global climate change and heating ocean temperatures are creating optimal breeding conditions, thus leading to the jellyfish reproducing in unprecedented numbers. The jellyfish are very poisonous - in some rare cases even causing human fatalities - but more commonly are responsible for poisoning hauls of fish with their toxins while clogging nets.
There does seem to be a plus side, however: some fishing fleets have transformed the nuisance into cash by using the giant jellies as bait or fertilizer; some have even tried drying, shredding, and salting them into a novelty snack.
Even more optimistic are the findings of the Riken Discovery Research Institute, which has discovered that the Nomura’s jellyfish contain a large quantity of a compound called mucin, a glycoprotein that could have a number of medical applications for humans.
Tuesday marked the twentieth anniversary of the Exxon Valdez oil spill in Prince William Sound, an ecological and economic disaster of historic proportions, resulting in untold damage to wildlife, regional ecosystems, local industries, and generations of people who subsisted on natural resources in the area.
Around 10.9 million gallons of crude oil were spilled into the Sound, making it the largest such accident in U.S. history. An estimated 250,000 seabirds were killed, along with at least 3,000 sea otters, 300 harbor seals, 250 bald eagles, 22 killer whales, and untold numbers of fish populations, both at the spill site and throughout the Northwestern Pacific region, as toxins spread through the food chain. Over 1100 miles of coastline were affected. Millions of dollars were also lost by the local economy, which depended in part on tourism, and recreational as well as commercial fishing.
While some captains and crews managed to recoup some of their losses during fishing season that year and years following by leasing their boats or time to clean-up operations, the majority of the Alaskan fishing fleet experienced a major set-back in economic stability and a blow to their future resources, as well. It wasn’t until August of 2008 that Exxon agreed to pay 75% of the $507.5 million dollars in damages they were ordered to pay. Many fishing families never recovered, and most took a major hit to their plans for retirement.
Seattle’s Fisherman’s Terminal has long been both an active center of seafood trade and a symbol of the industry for many in the Pacific Northwest. Recently, members of the local fleet were asked to lend a hand in keeping the historic site in better condition.
Family, friends, and fellow fishermen gathered on Sunday for the 81st annual “Blessing of the Fleet,” a tradition established by the late Rev. O. L. Haavik of the Ballard First Lutheran Church. Nearly 100 people congregated at the Fisherman’s Terminal in Seattle, including a number of elected public officials, sharing stories and hopes for the safety of their numbers and loved ones. As popularized by the Discovery Channel television hit, “The Deadliest Catch,” commercial fishing continues to be one of the most dangerous occupations in the world, with some industries suffering nearly 100% injury rates to crewmembers, and higher mortality rates than nearly any other profession.
Many of those gathered at the Terminal know this all too well: the Seattle-based Alaska Ranger went down last year, taking five of its crew with it. There are few professional fishermen or women who haven’t lost close friends, family, or crewmates to the elements. These statistics are made doubly grim by the economic hit the industry is taking from the recession. So-called “luxury” seafoods, like halibut and some kinds of crab, are in less demand, and so may bring lower prices for those who risk their lives to catch them.
Still, many continue to be optimistic, and enjoy the sense of camaraderie that participation in the industry brings. And many are optimistic for them, like Reverend Tom Tocher, who led the ceremony on Sunday. “Say to the waves, ‘Peace. Be still,” he prayed for those in attendance. “You hold the hearts of people in the hollow of your hand.”
The benediction was bestowed upon Seattle fisherman Kurt Hansen’s vessel, the F/V Middleton, on behalf of the entire Pacific fleet.
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