Craig Pendleton of the Northwest Atlantic Marine Alliance said, “There are guys working on ideas and we need to pull them together and give them a voice under the DMR. You (George Lapointe) need to do this.” Ted Ames, fisherman, researcher and fisheries advocate said, “We need to get control over the system to make linkages that the National Marine Fisheries Service is not making…The alewives are beginning to come back and the cod are coming to feed on them. We’ve tried [to establish the importance of these kinds of inter-related biological facts], but we don’t carry the weight. I think Craig [Pendleton] is right George, you need to lead this effort.” The management’s policies and outcomes were the focus of the criticism, but the management structure came under fire as well. John Norton of Cozy Harbor Seafoods in Portland said, “This management regime has created a large number of jobs for managers and scientists, thereby creating a power pack that wants to continue doing what they are doing.” Referring to what other states have done Norton said, “The fishing industry in Massachusetts is better at fisheries politics and playing hardball.” Maggie Hunter offered a similar opinion when she said, “We are fighting the wrong fight. Massachusetts [fishermen] are good at protecting themselves.” “As long as we continue to play the game as it has been played, we [Maine] are going to lose,” Norton said. “As long as we look to these, ‘how many fish in the sea solutions’, we are going to see the industry shrink in Maine.” Critical of individuals believing they have to push their own needs where small boat interests conflict with big boat interests, Norton suggested “finding a way to say there is fish enough for everyone.” Ted Ames, who has done research on groundfish breeding said, “If we can do something with the coastal shelf [protecting and improving conditions where ground fish breed 25 miles offshore] we will have more fish.” Impact on the stocks though effort, days at sea, total allowable catch, closures and gear types were not dominant topics. However, a fisherman concerned about bycatch complained about trawlers. “Until we get rid of the mid-water trawlers we are not going to get the stocks back,” he said. “It is just stupid. They are called mid-water trawlers, but in fact they are fishing off the bottom. You’ve got to stop it as soon as possible.” The group regularly got back to changes seen in the groundfish stocks. Jim Odin, fisherman and council member, in discussing the health of the ground fish stocks said, “Something else is going on we’re not looking at. We’re going further offshore. Moreover, the fish are not growing. They are all smaller.” Craig Pendleton added , addressing Commissioner Lapointe, “When fishermen regularly tell you there are not enough fish, you have to listen.” Bob Tetrault, commenting on this said, “Fish have gone deep and there are theories on this. It is not all fishing pressure.” When the discussion got back to management policies that were described as misguided, Jim Odin noted, “New England is the only place in the country that forces you to throw fish overboard.” Pendleton responded that there is “no reward for conservation” in the current management plan. The impact of the management policies on the groundfish industry were illustrated by Ames when he pointed out that the groundfish industry is shrinking. “What used to be hugeis now less than clams,” Ames said. “It’s become a small industry; 100 to 150 vessels in a state with 10,000 fishermen. That really says something.” Discussions of the state of fish stocks and how management policy needs to change led Jim Odin to say, “We need to press for a multi-species complex. Force NMFS to accept this.” Ames responded by saying, “If you are managing a multi-stock complex, you need to look at the spawning areas because that is where the action is. You need to figure out how to take fish and to grow fish.” Asked where he was going from here George Lapointe said, “I think a lot has been said. We have tweaked this [management plan] to death. We need to come up with a new one.” When it was suggested that fishermen should manage the fishery without NMFS, Lapointe said, “We are not realistically going to derail Magnuson that has been in the works for 7 years. We have the summer and early fall to get something done. We need to work together for something, not against things.” Tetrault told Lapointe, “you need to take the lead, gather the thoughts of groups and individuals.” In response to comments and questions about how fishermen can participate in making the management system more like what they believe it should be, Lapointe said, “Call Bill Hogarth’s office, call Pat Kurkels office, and call Congressman Michaud’s Augusta office.” Lapointe referred to Senator Dennis Damon who was at the meeting. Senator Damon said, “I think it is important to educate legislators. It is important that you all get to know your legislators and call, write and see them. Let them know that you know who they are. The Working Waterfront bill passed because groups of people got behind it.” Organizing to make the changes the fishermen want was regularly brought up as a means of securing a more credible management plan. More meetings with fishermen will be scheduled in the coming months. |
