May 16, 2013 — Gloucester Mayor Carolyn Kirk, responding to economic hardship in the New England groundfishery resulting from severe cuts in allowable catch levels, has released the Gloucester "Bridge Plan", a collaborative effort between the city and industry stakeholders aimed at providing fishermen and fishery-related businesses economic relief from the current crisis. The plan calls for providing transitional assistance for fishermen and shoreside businesses, expanding the use of fishing boats as research vessels, investing in transitioning to higher-value fisheries, and reviewing current fisheries management practices. The ultimate goal of the plan is to preserve the fleet and "retool the industry through investments in sustainable, innovative businesses and practices going forward."
The project compliments efforts made by the Massachusetts Congressional delegation to both obtain immediate economic relief for fishing communities and create long-term sustainable solutions for the fishery.
The full release is reproduced below.
The Gloucester “Bridge Plan”: A Response to the New England Groundfisheries Crisis
On May 1st, the federal government imposed drastic reductions in allowable catch for several key groundfish stocks, including a 77% cut in high value Cod landings from the Gulf of Maine. These cuts threaten the economic viability and survival of not only the fishing fleets, but also of the processors, shoreside services, and fresh fish markets of the region as well. Multiple stakeholders in Gloucester have come together, under the leadership of Mayor Carolyn Kirk, to formulate a comprehensive transition or “bridge” plan to navigate through this crisis.
The goals of the plan are both to preserve the core assets of the fleets and the ports during the groundfish recovery period and to use this crisis as an opportunity to retool the industry through investments in sustainable, innovative businesses and practices going forward. The New England groundfisheries was declared a federal disaster area in the fall of 2012. Proposed federal and state contributions to implementation of the “bridge plan” include the following:
Transition Assistance to Fishermen and Crew
Transition assistance is needed for fishermen to meet immediate financial demands while their boats are idled at the docks, including unemployment insurance, mortgage protection, SBA programs to restructure debt, dockage and fuel relief, and other measures available to declared disaster areas.
Transition Assistance to Shoreside Businesses
Fishing fleets rely on support services of the region’s ports, including marine railways, engine repair, ice production, and marine supplies. Transition assistance is needed to stabilize these companies during the recovery period.
Redeployment of Fishing Boats as Research Vessels
Chartering of fishing boats as research vessels will accomplish three goals: a dramatic enhancement in the quality and amount of data used in running stock assessment models; a redeployment source of income for fishermen during the recovery period; and the opportunity to enhance geographically-dispersed data collection for numerous other ocean research programs.
Investment in a Sustainable, Innovative Fishery
New England fleets and ports, with a long history of adaptation and innovation, have the opportunity to invest in a shift from a high-volume, low-value fisheries to a high-value, low-volume fisheries with a lighter ecosystem footprint. Examples of current proposals include retrofitting of fishing boats for high-quality and flexible, multiple-species harvesting and fuel-efficiency; partnerships of fishermen and processors in live-fish markets, freeze-dried and other value-added products; expansion of local fresh catch programs to include institutional customers; processing of chitin and other products from lobster, crab, and clamshell waste and invasive green crabs; poly-culture of shellfish, kelp, seaweed and fish habitat restoration; hatchery stock enhancements; green chemistry solutions from the ocean biomass; and others.
Collaborative Review of Fisheries Management
Fishing fleets and ports are buffeted by short-term shifts in allowable catches and other management measures. A multiple-stakeholder, collaborative effort to propose better management approaches is needed to support sustainable fisheries and ecosystems, fishing fleets, ports, and access by consumers to healthy local fish and other seafood products.
About the City of Gloucester
America's oldest seaport, the City of Gloucester is known throughout the world as an authentic, working waterfront community, a place of spectacular natural beauty, and home to a diverse population of about 30,000 residents. An important center for the fishing industry, Gloucester also is proud of its rich art heritage as one of the premier art colonies in the United States. The City is a destination for thousands of visitors who visit the harbor and its beaches during the summertime. In recent years, Gloucester has diversified its traditional maritime economy, adding leading small research institutions such as the UMass Amherst Large Pelagics Research Laboratory and the Ocean Alliance to the array of state and federal agencies working in the city, and with investments in robotics and new product development from the fishery.
Contact: Office of Mayor Carolyn Kirk, 978-281-9700
Read a release from the Office of the Mayor here