Some say the bigger problem isn’t the new system but the reduced caps on how much groundfish can be caught in 2010. And if a sector reaches a limit on any one species, the boats must stop fishing for all groundfish. Some limits are so low — on pollock and certain kinds of flounder — that fishermen are calling them “choke” species that could quickly leave them tied to the dock.

“We don’t believe we can make money [on groundfish] this year,” says Fox. “If boats start to go broke and processors and unloading facilities start to go broke … it doesn’t matter how this [program] ends because they’ll be gone.”

As he and two workers mend trawl nets spread out on the concrete floor of a building on the state pier, Jon Knight says he worries about the future. His business, Superior Trawl, is one of two of its kind in Point Judith.

“Bottom line is you won’t need two twine shops in Narragansett anymore,” he says. “I’m not sure I’ll survive the summer, honestly.”

Read the complete story at The Providence Journal.