Page 5 - Fiddler Crab News Today

A lot of cars into our incredible national park. my daughter as a board member o the national park trust and yesterday they had an annual meeting and announced really good news. here is the chairman of the board bill brown now. >> we work with the national park service to acquire critically important either inside or adjacent to national parks. >> the new land, new parklands in wisconsin, minnesota, and ne mexico since 83 the national park trust has preserved 30,000 acres and 31 states and they ...

Plants here to completely go dark for the season. only three are operational right now with enough workers and this causing a chain reaction throughout the entire state of maryland from the restaurants to the grocery stores who rely on this crabbing industry. i spoke with some of the main benefactors and owners in the industry to hear about the impacts it is having on businesses and the community at large. take a listen to what they told me. >> our production is down about a third due to not bei...

Stugling to survive the pand. some processing plants have had to close kaudsing a shortage in grocery stores and restaurants who rely on the industry. joining me now is amanda golden, with a welcome. so as i understand it, there is a shortage of crab meat because there is a shortage of workers. people would want to work but it is bigger than that. >> reporter: it is bigger than that, alex. what should be a booming memorial day weekend kickoff for this industry is not the case as the maryland cra...

The pandemic has made an already bad situation much worse. >> we are closed. they are calling for crabmeat and we dont have any. >> it is new and uncomfortable for dot, as uncomfortable as wearing a mask in the crisp air of the chesapeake bay. across the creek, theres also great on ease. this is the land of plentiful fishing, oysters, where 50% of the nation supply of blue crabs are harvested. >> it has slowed everything down. our sales arent what they were before. due to the restaurants being c...

Take anymore. >> migrant laborers will do this work but that visa system in place long before the trump administration cap seasonal workers to 66,000 nationwide, and the trump administration is resisting any changes to the cap while the covid pandemic is ongoing. >> youll find communities like this all around the bay that are suffering right now because the cap has been met and we are not staffed. we dont open. >> president trump signed an executive order protecting the american seafood ministry...

Of harris seafood company in graysonville says usually during oyster season hes processing hundreds of bushels a day. now virtually nothing. >> all we have is just a couple little 8-ounce cups to go to some retail locations. >> reporter: after restaurants were forced to close their dining rooms, demand for seafood dropped dramatically. >> right now the climate in the seafood business is absolutely horrific. ever since the announcements that eat. eat-in restaurants were shut down. we really took ...

Fishing. the markets are slowed. and almost to a stand still for that. and now we are worried about the crabs. >> reporter: worried about crabs not a good thing for marylanders to hear. with social distancing, crab feasts would be out as well. >> its not good. i mean, virtually we are shut down. >> reporter: crabbers like chucky white arent even sure they will set traps. if there is little or no demand, there would be no way to make up the costs. >> you have money out in gear. and equipment. and...

>> reporter: while the algae bloom happens almost annually, this is the longest outbreak in nearly a decade killing turtles, manties and sea life. >> we picked up 16 turtles in the last 24 hours. doesnt feel like there is an end in sight. >> reporter: the red tide hitting beaches from tampa to naples. its an algae that can grow out of control and produce dangerous toxins. also poisoning floridas water, blue green algae, choking fresh water canals and waterways inland. its caused by pesticides an...

This is probably the worst ive ever seen. >> reporter: 100-plus miles of coastline from naples to sarasota ravaged by whats called the red tide. residents and tourists hitting the beaches, suffering, too. this family cutting short their vacation in sarasota. >> it was horrendous. there were hundreds of dead fish in the water, on the shoreline. it smelled. >> reporter: the red tide is a naturally occurring event, but mankind is making it worse. runoff from large farms and businesses feed the alga...

Beach. we have impacts of climate change and sea level rise happening here, but this is pretty close. its obviously beautiful, its teeming with life. its a place of inspiration. its as close as you can find to paradise, i think, these days. coming up, candid, courageous. >> i sent myself down a downward spiral. i had to get something under control. >> olympic champion michael phelps on his secret struggle up. >> ive never, ever heard you say the things youre saying right now. on the move all d...