As federal regulators and regional fisheries managers continue to
debate how much time commercial fishermen can spend fishing, the need
for a different approach becomes more obvious. That approach should
include a strict overall catch limit coupled with a quota system to
divide up that catch. This would let fishermen get back on the water
when it was economical and safe.
The
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration last week proposed an
emergency rule to further limit days at sea, the time fishermen can be
on the ocean catching fish. The proposed rule would cut groundfishing
revenue by about a third, the administration calculated. Larger vessels
would be hurt more than smaller ones.
An
immediate reduction is necessary, the agency said, because the number
of fish is still dropping in New England waters. According to the
latest NOAA assessment, the cod population had fallen by 20 percent
between 2001 and 2004. The agency also said the yellowtail flounder
population had been overestimated by 77 percent.
At
a meeting in Portland last month, the New England Fisheries Management
Council dealt with this problem by agreeing to an 8 percent reduction
in days at sea. In 2004, the council reduced allowable days at sea from
88 to 53.
The
council's plan comes too late for the fishing season which begins May
1, according to NOAA, which issued the emergency rule on Friday and was
accepting public comment on it until Monday. Clearly, this is not
enough time for serious consideration of alternatives. It also
highlights the problems with constant tinkering with a calendar and a
map rather than limiting what can be caught.
Limiting
the catch makes more sense. Coupling it with a quota system gives
fishermen more freedom to decide when to fish, based on prices for
different fish species and weather conditions. Quotas are working well
in fisheries in other parts of the country and world, but there is
strong resistance to them in New England.
Quotas
and catch limits are included in an updated version of the
Magnuson-Stevens Act, national fishing rules that are now being revised
by Congress. The next step is to set up a system of quotas to divide up
the allowable catch among fishermen, with consideration given to
community cooperatives and small vessels.
The
bill currently requires a two-thirds vote among fishermen in New
England to enact quotas here. Although a high hurdle, lawmakers and
fishermen should realize that existing rules aren't working and that a
new approach is needed.
