How to make Witch's Brew for 'Alloween!

 Prep some onion and carrot in the fry pan with cider or wine if you must........

 using an old spoon with the handle bent over you can scrape out the pumpkin flesh after slicing off the top.........

and add these to the fried onion etc........

 add a bag of fresh spinach leaves.......

 witch with a little magic disappear........

 you can always toast the pumpkin seeds for fun with a little chilli flakes added for extra bite......

after 20-30 minutes of simmering well in goes the munger........ 

till a creamy consistency is reached (chicken stock makes up the liquid).........

to put the kids off eating their witch's brew, pour in cream from the centre in a spiral and drag a fork across the surface to create a spider's web.......

and illuminate the ghoulish face with a night light.

Coming to Newcastle - Annual Fisheries Negotiations

This is what is on the agenda at the UK Ministerial Stakeholder meeting on the Annual Fisheries Negotiations.

UK Stakeholder Event

12:30 – 17:00 1^st November 2011

Marlborough Suite, Centre for Life, Times Square

Newcastle Upon Tyne NE1 4EP

Agenda:

12:30              Lunch

13.00              Meeting

·         Welcome and introductions

·         Timetable and update on negotiations to date

13:30              Stakeholder led discussion to inform UK Priorities      

·         Pelagic stocks

·         Nephrops

·         Other demersal stocks

·         Other species, including elasmobranches

16:30              Any Other Business

17:00             Meeting closes        

Taking action against bottom trawling and for the future of fish

Is this a fair view of deep sea trawling?

The article below has been posted on the Greenpeace blog - while the ship is at sea following the deep sea trawling fleet off the west coast of Scotland. There is a web cam aboard the Arctic Sunrise that transmits a new image every 30 seconds.

"I’m on board the Greenpeace ship Arctic Sunrise, currently working in the North Atlantic on our Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) campaign. The CFP- the European fisheries agreement- is reviewed every ten years. By lobbying, taking action and bearing witness where ocean life is endangered, Greenpeace wants to make sure that the EU minsters take the necessary measurement to truly protect our seas.

Yesterday we took action against a French bottom trawler, off the coast of Ireland, in the North East Atlantic ocean. Four swimmers placed themselves in front of the Pierre Jacques Matigny, one of the seven deep-sea bottom trawlers owned by Intermarché –Les Mousquetaires, a famous French retailer that owns its own fleet, with banners that read “Stop overfishing.

I talked to the captain of the trawler, who was obviously not happy about what we were doing, and doesn’t recognize that deep-sea species are endangered because of overfishing.
Sailing to these fishing grounds in the North Atlantic is a way of bearing witness to the ecological crime happening in the deep seas. Deep-sea bottom trawling is indeed one of the most destructive fishing practices, targeting fish stocks that are already overexploited, according to the scientists.Bottom trawl nets smash the seabed and takes everything in its way, even the species that are not targeted. Deep-sea bottom trawling comprises 30% to 60% bycatch – or wasted fish; ocean life that is discarded overboard, dead or dying. Deep-sea species are very vulnerable to fishing activities because they have a very long life span and a very low reproduction rates. Even if they are overfished during a short time period, it can take a century for them to recover.

Moreover, deep-sea bottom trawling is an absurd business model that has no future: to reach profitability, it needs to deplete existing fish stocks. Intermarché’s fleet is facing regular economic losses even though it has received 9.7 millions of Euros of public money: which means, your money and my money. The past and current Common Fisheries Policy has financed its own “Frankenstein” by helping the construction of new bottom trawlers. I don’t want to finance the plunder of the ocean.

Greenpeace is calling on to EU governments to put an end to such destructive practices and to overcapacity within the EU fleet. The Common Fisheries Policy is currently under reform, something that happens only every ten years. It’s now our last chance to save the oceans in Europe by ensuring the fish stocks recover, and to stop subsidies of overfishing and destructive fishing.

We want kids in the future to be able to eat fish and that fishermen can continue their job. But without fish, there is no fishing. We want the new Common Fisheries Policy to ensure that sustainable small-scale fisheries continue to exist."

Extract from a post on the Greenpeace blog by Helen Bourges

Read More: Wide open to abuse: the Common Fisheries Policy

Poor forecast starts the week.

 Big fish should make big money, but what fish is this?........

 not much evidence of the cuttle season being underway with the William Stevenson.......

 while there are still signs of a few herring along the shore.......

 and some big squid with the inshore trawlers.........

 the boys aboard the Still Waters would have been pleased to see this guy in the cod end........

 it's high water and a chance for the Harvest Reaper to make her way round to the quayside in order to dry out over the big tide........

 work continues aboard the Dom Bosco.........

 always a sign of windy weather, the gulls invade Newlyn Green en masse.......

while the outfall from the boating pool at Wherry Town has been submerged under a bed of pebbles.

Charlestown time warp.

 Bamber Gascoigne's brother Cyril would no doubt marvel at the price of these beauties.......

 plenty of water flowing over the top of the dock gates at Charlestown.......

 rebuilt courtesy of Visick's from Perranwell Station near Falmouth........

 low water through the gaps at Charlestown......

 where the facilities are pretty basic, ye olde original pissoir pour l'homme.......

 plenty of space on the quay from the few local boats.......

 though these days the port is the home base for Square Sail that run the classic sailing ships featured in som many period dramas and movies........

 all of which can be enjoyed along the Coast Path.......

 along with some pretty traditional tourist menus........

 and something a little more contemporary at the Wreckers Bistro........

  though the menu would seem to suggest there is an option for any visitors with cannibalistic tendencies........

 luckily there's a huge selection of fresh local fish from Mevagissey.........

 what looks like a Dragon racing boat is out to grass.......

 overlooking the old China Clay port........

 is the Shipwreck and Heritage Centre, kids get in for free........

 with Neptune just appeared up the road.......

for any business looking to re-locate to Cornwall there's a whole new development of work units and accommodation available......

just a phone call away.

More environmentally-friendly scallop dredges.

N-Virodredge™ see the web site here:

The N-Virodredge™ is a completely new concept in the harvesting of scallops and the first significant variation over the traditional scallop dredge design which has been in use in European waters over the last 40 years.

The N-Virodredge™ runs along the seabed on two skids which bear the full weight of the dredge. Mounted between the skids are a number of spring tines. These tines move individually as opposed to a traditional dredge in which the teeth are mounted together and move as one. The tines are vertically adjustable for depth of seabed penetration below the level of the skids therefore penetration can be kept to an optimum depth at all times therefore increasing the catching efficiency of the dredge.

Friday evening fishers.

One of the harbour's top early evening fishers keeps an eye out for supper.......

as the big blue cat makes her way towards the gaps.......

on her way to spend the night catching Cornish Sardines passes the big ships in the fleet .......

one of which is about to go up on the slip.......

heading back through the gaps, the punt Cynthia.

Fishy Friday's fish dish - Monk tail fillets and black pudding.

Flour the black pudding with ground pepper in a plastic bag.......

a few minutes of heat.......

grill those monk fish fillets........

fresh spinach from the garden........

almost vanishes in the fry pan.

Thursday is big tide day.

Marine Electrical Services are being kept busy down the quay.......

as the Dom Bosco loses part of her rigging.......

only for it to re-appear aboard the Kastel Paol........

one ex-lifeboat en route........

big tide in Penzance dock has the slip road under two feet of water.......

making it impassable for traffic.......

looks like the harbour is full to the brim in Nelwyn.......

making the Shiralee ride high.