Leigh Commercial Fishermen's Association
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SEPTEMBER 10' Spring is here and another quota year draws to an end. Roll on summer and hopefully more settled weather, especially for all of you fishermen out on the water. It has certainly felt like a very long miserable winter. We had our AGM in June and election of our Executive Committee for the 2010/2011 year. President: Darrin Fabricius Just a reminder that the executive committee usually meet the last Friday of the month, with the exception of December. All members are welcome to attend any meeting.
Dave Mcintosh being presented with a table that has "a fishermen's draw of spare parts". This was presented upon his retirement as president from LCFA. The table was bought at the Shipwreck Auction at the last NZFCF conference in nelson. It was made by Brian Kiddie's father , of Tauranga, a retired fisherman.
Rule Change Our “Association” membership has traditionally consisted of owner-operators that land fish to Leigh Fisheries Ltd only. This has made us unique from other port associations in that we are not exclusive to one port. Leigh Fisheries Ltd and the Leigh Commercial Fishermen’s Association have been paying the NZ Federation of Commercial Fishermen membership fees on behalf of our members for several years. This will continue for our owner operators that land fish to Leigh Fisheries Ltd. Our rule change enables the association to open up membership to fishermen that do not land fish to Leigh Fisheries Ltd. or quota owners that may lease quota/ace to Leigh Fisheries Ltd. The criteria is that any potential member must make an application to the executive committee and pay a membership fee which includes the fee to join the NZ Federation of Commercial
ILM Scholarships A reminder that Leigh Fisheries Ltd, Mahurangi Technical Institute and the Leigh Commercial Fishermen’s Association sponsor two ILM scholarships each year. For details and an application form please use the contact details at the beginning of the newsletter. The next ILM course begins 01/11/10 in Warkworth. The courses fill up fast so if you have crew that are interested in doing it then book asap. There is an application form that must be filled out for the scholarship prior to the course commencing and in time for the executive committee to approve the application at a meeting. The next course will probably not be until February 2011. Mahurangi Technical Institute offers other maritime courses such as SCTW 95 Basic Training. They also may be able to offer a funded ILM course through their Distance Learning but this has not been confirmed in writing. Through their Distance Learning they are offering some modules to help prepare crew that are not quite ready to do their ILM but want to start working towards it. This is a funded course and may open the door for the funded ILM. The actual ILM course is not by distance learning but must be attended at MTI. SITO SITO may also able to help with some costs for training. For the ILM they cannot actually pay the course fees but they are able to help with accommodation and travel expenses. They can also help with First Aid course costs. Paint and Sundries Mark Aitken looks after paint and sundries for our members. There is a very good discount available to our members and it is Crew Applications We have many enquiries regarding crew positions. We now send out an application form to be completed. If you require any crew we may have an applicant that is suitable for your Fuel at the Leigh Wharf It has almost been a year since we took over the running of the fuel facility at the Leigh Wharf and we must again thank Ron Perry for all his efforts to keep the fuel flowing. We know that it has been a huge commitment on Ron’s part and very frustrating and maddening for him to say the least. It looks like it may finally be sorted. So we’ll keep our fingers crossed that it is for everyone’s sake and in particular, Ron. Maintenance Wharf in Leigh Harbour Ron Perry has been at it again. The maintenance wharf at Leigh required some upgrading to bring it up to the Rodney District Council’s standard and to match the original plans before the council is absorbed into the super- city. Ron volunteered his services and got on with the job. We now have railings and a self closing gate. Although we may question the need for these additions, it is a far better option than losing the facilities altogether. We can only hope that they don’t now require railings and self-closing gates on the wharf itself. Seabird Safe Awards In August the association was recognized as a finalist in the Seabird Safe Award for its efforts and achievements over many years to address the seabird by-catch issue. The Southern Seabird Solutions Trust organized the award and it was presented by Phil Heatley at parliament to Geordie Murman and Dave Moore who accepted on behalf of the association. Marine Park Proposal The proposal for a Marine Park that would see commercial fishing banned in an 1800sq km triangle between Whangarei Heads, Cape Brett and the Poor Knights has again been presented to the Northland Regional Council. This proposal was first presented in 2005. The facts and figures that have been presented to the council are grossly inaccurate with no evidence to back them up. At the present time it does not appear that this proposal has been given any serious consideration but we will have to be vigilant , to make sure that it does not gain any further momentum. It would only take someone from DoC or Forest and Bird etc to start pushing for it and we could risk losing access to fishing grounds yet again.
FOR SEPTEMBER 09' NEWS CLICK HERE
FOR OCTOBER 08' NEWS CLICK HERE
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