WASHINGTON (Saving Seafood) Sept. 26, 2012 — In a letter delivered today to the New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC), New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell urged the Council to “forestall or mitigate” upcoming cuts in the Annual Catch Limits (ACL) for the Northeast Multispecies Groundfish Fishery, and to consider implementing measures mitigating the effects of reduced ACLs. Based on estimates released this August by NOAA and the Council, ACLs in the fishery are estimated to face reductions between 45 and 73 percent.
In his letter, Mayor Mitchell asked, “that you [the NEFMC] keep the economic and social ramifications at the forefront of your discussions, and that you consider whether proposed measures that curb fishing are justified by science.” In particular, the letter states that there is, “growing lack of confidence” in the results of regional stock assessments, especially Gulf of Maine cod and yellowtail flounder. Mitchell specifically referenced a number of discrepancies surrounding these stock assessments, including that improper gear type and vessels had been used to conduct assessments, and that there were uncertainties in chosen stock assessment models and unexplained inconsistencies in stock assessment results. He notes that these issues have undermined confidence in the assessments among members of the scientific and fishing communities. In light of these uncertainties and the far-reaching consequences of possible ACL cuts, the Mayor encouraged the Council to act with caution when considering management decisions.
The mayor said he was pleased that at its August 24, 2012 meeting, the Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) “discussed the concerns with the Georges Bank yellowtail flounder model and decided to recommend a range of catch options up of to 1,150 metric tons (the FY 2012 catch limit).” He stated that by “including this upper range of 1,150 metric tons for FY 2013, the SSC recognized the prudence of proceeding cautiously in the face of uncertainty in the underlying model and the impact of its decisions on fishing communities.”
The letter also informed the Council of the potentially dire economic consequences of the projected steep ACL cuts. Groundfish are responsible for $20 million in revenue for the Port of New Bedford, and one species of groundfish, yellowtail flounder, is important as bycatch to the scallop fishery, which brings in $400 million in revenue annually. Noting the recent fisheries disaster declaration by the Department of Commerce for the Northeast Multispecies Fishery, Mayor Mitchell writes, “even if Congress appropriates $100 million in aid for the New England groundfish fishery, the forecasted cuts would undoubtedly deal a devastating economic blow to New Bedford and permanently eliminate hundreds, if not thousands of jobs.” He reminded the Council of the social dislocation projected ACL cuts would cause, writing, “if the fisheries in New Bedford are shut down, they will not come back.”
Read the letter from Mayor Mitchell to the NEFMC here