Lobster-rope Studies Underway to Mitigate Whale Risk

by Laurie Schreiber

Maine Department of Marine Resources Commissioner Patrick Keliher testified in support of the legislation. Fishermen’s Voice file photo.

Studies are underway to test the breaking strength of vertical lobster line and to test a device that could automatically slice line off an entangled whale.

Latest updates on the studies were presented during a session on the lobster fishery’s interactions with endangered North Atlantic right whales, March 1 at the Maine Fishermen’s Forum.

The studies come as the industry and fishery regulators are developing a “take reduction plan” through a federally convened Take Reduction Team (TRT) with requirements of the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) to reduce the risk of serious injury and mortality to the whales; and with the Endangered Species Act (ESA), which will result in a so-called “biological opinion” to determine if the lobster fishery is jeopardizing right whale population.

Ben Brickett, founder of Blue Water Concepts Inc. in Eliot, said he’s developing improvements for his “time tension line cutter,” a device he began developing in 2003 when he was approached by the Atlantic Offshore Lobstermen’s Association due to concerns about right whale entanglements and regulations that were coming up at that time.

The device will sever rope but still maintain vertical line strength, Brickett said. It’s designed to allow normal haulback but to recognize the sustained tension of a whale that becomes entangled in the gear, he said. A hydraulic timer inside the timer can be set based on haulback time. But with sustained tension, it will deploy an internal titanium razor blade to cut the rope, he said.

“The timing regulator was key, cutting at the same time every time,” he explained.

Two studies in 2009 concluded that the device worked as it was supposed to, but there were issues to address. Those included the need for increased time to haul back gear; operational concerns with deck tangles; safety when setting back; safety when jumping the hauler and block; and needing to cut the endline to install the device.

Last year, at the Maine Fishermen’s Forum, several fishermen approached Brickett about improving the device, he said. Since then, he’s addressed the concerns raised by the 2009 studies and made the new prototype custom configurable for load, line, time, and tension, he said.

Looking forward, he said, he plans to build and test additional prototypes and work with Maine fishermen to have them try them out.

“We want to refine this so that, maybe in six months, you can present it to the Take Reduction Team,” he said. “The TRT is only looking at ropeless fishing and weak links. Maybe you want to put this on the TRT agenda.”

The University of Maine is participating with the DMR, Maine Lobstermen’s Association, Massachusetts Lobstermen’s Association, and Atlantic Offshore Lobstermen’s Association on a three-year study of rope strength, said Nathan Willse, a master’s candidate in the University of Maine’s School of Marine Sciences. The goal is to inform the Take Reduction Team’s decision-making process as it develops new regulations.

Questions include: What is the functional breaking strength of vertical lines currently used in the fishery? How much strength is needed in a vertical line to haul safely? How are vertical lines being rigged?

The study is looking at the breaking strength of vertical lines samples from fishermen from Maine to Rhode Island. The goal, said Wilse, is to see how far off line currently in use is from the 1,700-pound threshold. 48 breaks have been conducted so far, on samples of various ages and from a variety of manufacturers, he said. Orion Ropeworks was hired as the third party to perform the test.

Michael Asaro, assistant regional administrator for protected resources with NMFS’ Greater Atlantic Region.

Preliminary results show that the pounds of force needed to break a line are based on rope diameter. In general, he said, 5/16-diameter rope was under 1,700 pounds. Most line in the fishery is 3/8 inch, which breaks at about 2,000 pounds with a knot in it, he said. Next steps include increasing spatial coverage and depth.

Erin Summers, director of the Department of Marine Resources’ protected resources division, explained there are two tracks of federal regulations that will potentially impact fixed gear fisheries.

The Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) covers fishery interactions that result in serious injury and mortality to whales. Rules to mitigate risks are put forward through a take reduction plan. It’s expected that new rules will come out of the next take reduction team meeting in April, Summers said. Stakeholders will have a chance to comment on proposals, which will center on modifications of vertical line in order to limit interactions.

The state of Maine has the opportunity put together a proposal to the take reduction team that’s putting together the plan. The DMR is looking for input from fishermen on ideas they have to make changes to gear but in an economically and operationally safe way, Summer said.

Concurrently, the situation is informed by the Endangered Species Act (ESA), which will result in a so-called “biological opinion.” In general, Summers explained, biological opinions determine if a fishery jeopardizes an endangered species. A “jeopardy” finding results in new regulatory measurers, imposed by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), or the fishery cannot continue to be permitted, she said. The biological opinion is currently being written by NMFS for the lobster fishery and is expected to be released sometime in 2019. It is expected to contain additional measures to reduce jeopardy.

Michael Asaro, assistant regional administrator for protected resources with NMFS’ Greater Atlantic Region, said recent right whale science, from 1990 to 2010, population growth was modest but increasing.

“There were some bad years. But largely the trends went upward,” Asaro said. “That was basically because births always exceeded deaths.”

But starting in 2010, the population has steadily declined, he continued. In 2016, there were an estimated 451 right whales. Today the estimate is 400 or fewer.

Studies show that 85 percent of the whales have been entangled at least once, and there are about 100 new entanglements per year, Asaro said.

Right whale reproduction has also declined, he said. Fewer calves per year are not replacing those lost to entanglements and ship strikes. According to the latest calf counts, there were seven this winter, zero in 2018, and five in 2017.

“But to be sustainable, we should have 20 calves or more,” he said.

Also, there are far fewer female than male right whales, and more females than males have died.

“That’s a problem because population growth hinges on reproductive females,” he said.

Normally, he said, a right whale produces a calf every three years.

“We’ve seen a pretty significant lengthening of that calving interval,” he said. “Now it’s up to 10 years, which is a cause for concern.”

However, he added, right whales are a long-lived species, perhaps in excess of 100 years. “So they should be able to withstand a 10-year calving interval, changes in their food supply, some entanglement stress, and stress from ship strike mortality” under sustainable conditions, even with a long calving interval, he said. The whales have withstood similar stresses in the past, he said.

But today, he said, new challenges include ecosystem shifts throughout the right whale habitat. That appears to be driving right whales into new habitat in search of food, which brings them into new fishery and ship strike interactions, he said.

“We’ve seen right whales extend their range and travel more into Canadian waters, particularly the Gulf of St. Lawrence,” he said. In addition, whales are spending more time foraging, which means they’re burning more calories to find food.

In addition to deaths from entanglements, studies are focused on entanglements that may be causing sub-lethal stress, he said. Entangled whales use more energy reserves.

Entanglement scars indicate that, although they become entangled, they’re good at breaking free. But they experience stress before they break free or when they’re dragging gear around, he said.

Overall, he said, studies show the population is experiencing reduced fitness due to combined factors.

Under the MMPA, the allowed “take” of the whale is one or less per year, he said.

“So the margin of error is extremely high,” he said.

The current estimate of observed mortality, and not all mortality is observed, is above five per year, said Asaro. That means that observed mortality must be reduced by at least 80 percent. Some estimates say that actual mortality could be up to 20 whales per year, he said.

NMFS works with the TRT to produce “the best decision in an environment of high level of uncertainty,” Asaro said.

Over the past two decades, a number of regulations have been put in place. They include seasonal and dynamic closures, weak links in rope, and trawling up. NMFS plans to ask the TRT at its meeting next month to make recommendations on how those measures should be modified in the future, Asaro said.

In 2018 the TRT had two subgroups, one to study weak rope and gear marking, and the other to study ropeless fishing. The subgroups concluded that there are many feasibility concerns along both tracks, but particularly with the idea of ropeless fishing, he said.

The full TRT met last October. At that time, he said, general themes emerged. That included the idea of reducing the risk of entanglement through new and modified seasonal closures, increasing the visibility of rope to whales, and continuing a vertical line reduction strategy. Ropeless technology is considered a possibility in new closure areas or new fisheries and aquaculture. Limits on new vertical lines and removing or preventing new floating groundlines, are also under consideration, especially in new closure areas and new aquaculture operations.

Also under consideration are ways to reduce the severity of entanglements, by reducing the breaking strength of vertical lines to 1,700 pounds, imposing a rope diameter cap, requiring weak sleeves, and reducing surface system rope configurations.

Proposed measures to inform future risk reduction include improved gear marking, vessel tracking, and lost gear reporting.

The ESA requires NMFS to consult with other federal agencies on actions that might jeopardize endangered species, Asaro explained.

“In this case, we’re consulting with ourselves,” he said. “We’re consulting on the fisheries as they’re currently operating and on changes that might come down the line.”

A biological opinion highlights where protection might be needed to prevent jeopardy, he said.

“We’re in a changing landscape now,” Asaro said. “We want to capture the most accurate representation of how the fishery is interacting with right whales before we make any judgments regarding biological opinion.”

Also underway is an action by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) to reduce the number of vertical lines in the water. According to a Feb. 6 ASMFC press release, the ASFMC’s American Lobster Management Board initiated Draft Addendum XXVIII to Amendment 3 to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for American Lobster. The addendum proposes options to reduce vertical lines from zero percent to 40%, to be achieved by trap limits, gear configuration changes, seasonal closures, and/or the acceleration of currently planned trap reductions. The board noted reductions will consider ongoing state and federal management actions, including trap reductions and trap caps, which have already reduced vertical lines.

“With this proposed action, the board is entering uncertain waters,” DMR Commissioner and ASFMC member Pat Keliher said in the release. “However, as the lead management authority for American lobster, we have a responsibility to ensure the viability of the lobster fishery. Through the active engagement of the states and the lobster industry in our management process, we believe the board is best suited to navigate the growing challenges facing the lobster fishery.”