We are Gullible - Part One Clyde Jackman on giving "stamps'" to Risley and Penney

This will be a new addition to Sue's Blog. The "We are Gullible" series will deal on a regular basis with political statements that presume - we the people - are gullible.
Example: Siobhan Coady wants to tell us that Stephen Harper breaks promises. (lies)
Ms. Coady was elected under the ABC campaign which articulated that because Stehen Harper breaks promises - vote anything but Conservative.
Therefore we probably expect something more from Siobhan Coady than the obvious.
The first installment is the "news" from Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture, Clyde Jackman.

Energy Efficiency Audit to Assist Fish Harvesting Sector

 "We are Gullible" Part One
 Minister finds way to give "stamps" to John Risley and Ches Penney

First the Minister announces funding as a partner for a three year project - now in its SECOND year. 


Then the Minister joins in a chorus of helping the inshore harvesting fleet survive. Okay can we see the restructuring to see what inshore sector will be left? Are you kidding me - an important part of the future of our fishery rests in reducing fuel costs for the inshore fleet? Minister we have no idea how many fishers will be left or what kind of future they will have - however - we know they might get more efficient engines. 

Then we are told that we need to show the global market that our industry is sustainable and environmentally friendly. I see - what about that little footnote that Canada under its management and the globe under foreign fleets have decimated a global supply of fish - our absent and missing stocks? This is environmentally friendly and sustainable? 


Earl jumps in and tells us that fuel prices are a major burden on our fishing enterprises. Yeah Earl - I think fuel prices are a burden on every industry - but while the union chief is fiddling the enterprises (our people in rural Newfoundland and Labrador) continue to be eliminated because - we have NO FISH. 


So we have a potential to ruin everything that still swims - the offshore oil platforms - no need to look at that or perhaps the floating rust buckets coming in and out of our waters bilging or picking up oil. No we need to concentrate on the carbon footprint of our inshore fleet. 

Don't get me wrong - the inshore fleet - what is left of it should have a card to refill fuel free - part of a compensation package from Ottawa for destroying livelihoods of thousands of people and the cause of immeasurable out-migration. Please do not tell me - that the few harvesters we have left are still paying for gas. 


And where is all this heading - well let me hypothesize. We need to prove that our industry is sustainable and environmentally friendly so Ches Penney and John Risley can get a stamp to put on a box of fish processed in PEI by foreign workers. Certainly a new concept on getting enough stamps.


And somehow today this is more important than NAFO or the continued plundering of our resources and the absolute wipe-out of all the places we want in tourism ads?


In a nutshell the Minister and Boss of the Union believe "we are gullible".

Copy of News Release below: Emphasis added by me...

The Provincial Government is providing $200,000 toward the cost of an energy efficiency audit that will benefit the province’s fish harvesting sector. The audit is being carried out by the Canadian Centre for Fisheries Innovation (CCFI) and the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science of Memorial University over a three-year period. It is estimated that the total cost of the project will be approximately $854,000, including the investment from the Provincial Government. These costs will be shared with the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) and the Research and Development Corporation.
“This project will collect and analyze data in order to make recommendations for improved energy efficiency in the inshore harvesting sector,” said the Honourable Clyde Jackman, Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture. “It will provide innovative research on how to better equip our inshore harvesting sector to address climbing fuel prices. Being energy efficient is a key component of a sustainable industry. As we move into the future, the fishing industry will need to demonstrate to the global marketplace that it is sustainable and environmentally friendly. An important component of this will be to reduce the industry’s carbon footprint.”
This project is a three-year initiative and is now in its second year. Year one involved the selection of vessels from the province’s inshore fleet. Installation of equipment was also started on some of the vessels. The installation work extended into year two with all equipment installed on the vessels followed by sea trials to verify the operational integrity of the equipment. Data is now being collected on-board the vessels and preliminary analysis is underway on consumption of fuel in various operating conditions, including weather and sea states. During the final year of work, data collection will continue and wrap up early in 2012.
The work plan also involves a complete analysis of all data collected during the entire project, testing the vessels under various operating configurations and conditions, and making recommendations for improved efficiency. This will include operations, as well as hull and machinery modifications to achieve optimum operating efficiency for each of the vessels studied.
“A strategic direction for the Canadian Centre for Fisheries Innovation is the reduction in energy costs for the fish harvesting sector,” said Robert Verge, managing director for CCFI. “The centre has collaborated with the Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture and other partners to develop technologies that reduce the energy costs of the sector through options such as new vessel design, bulbous bows for fishing vessels, new twine materials and different geometric designs for trawls. We are enthusiastic about the outcomes of this project and hope that it will clearly indicate to the industry what types of advances are required to make the most sizable cost and carbon output reductions in the fleet. These will be important to the industry’s future sustainability.”
“NSERC works to make Canada a country of innovators and discoverers,” said Dr. Suzanne Fortier, president of NSERC. “This project is finding innovative solutions for the fishing industry. The results will bring improvements in energy efficiency that will benefit the entire sector.”
“By monitoring performance of vessels while they fish, we are not only developing more stable and efficient hull designs; we are also building a valuable library of data that will be available for future research work,” said Neil Carter, project manager for the Fisheries and Marine Institute.
The project team is led by the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science and includes representatives from the Fisheries and Marine Institute of Memorial University, the National Research Council (NRC), the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans and the Fish, Food and Allied Workers (FFAW).
“Increasing the fuel efficiency of fishing vessels is key to improving the province’s inshore fish harvesting sector,” said Dr. John Quaicoe, dean (pro tempore) of Memorial University’s Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science. ”This project is important to the Newfoundland and Labrador fishing industry and Memorial University as it aims to develop a more sustainable industry.”
“Fuel costs are a major burden on our fishing enterprises,” said Earle McCurdy, president of the FFAW. “Enhanced energy efficiency has the potential to reduce costs and improve the bottom line for our fishing fleets, while at the same time improving the environmental sustainability of our fishing industry.”
This project is a continuation of a series of initiatives related to energy efficiency in the province’s fishing industry that has been funded through the Fisheries Technology and New Opportunities Program of the Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture. This program is an important component of the Fishing Industry Renewal Strategy. Of the $6 million allocated to the program since its launch in the spring of 2007, the program has invested approximately $5.8 million in industry-driven projects to date. A total of 128 projects have been funded since the program was created. Investment in the program has leveraged an additional $19.6 million from the industry and its partners. It has generated a total of $25.4 million for fishing industry research and development in the province.