November 18, 2014 — "Long term trends in environmental conditions are not favorable for northern shrimp. This suggests a need to conserve spawners to help compensate for what may continue to be an unfavorable environment."
On Nov. 5, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Northern Shrimp Section met in Portland and, after a scientific presentation, voted unanimously to close the shrimp fishery for another year. The handful of fishermen and processors in the room pleaded for a short season—anything to keep boats on the water.
However, the results of the annual survey and stock assessment showed the second lowest biomass on record (the lowest was in 2013). The scientific Technical Committee left the shrimp section with a strong message: "Long term trends in environmental conditions are not favorable for northern shrimp. This suggests a need to conserve spawners to help compensate for what may continue to be an unfavorable environment."
Managers had no choice but to keep boats tied up for another season.
Since the moratorium last season, shrimp have been called the "canary in the coal mine for climate change" in New England fisheries. But the canary analogy, which simply tells the miners to get out or die, may be too simple. Rather, the decline in shrimp seems to be akin to Rachel Carson's cry for action as she explored the causes of declining bird populations in the late 1950s. The loss of shrimp this season isn't just a warning: it is an opportunity to identify a responsive path forward for fisheries management.
Climate change is the elephant in the room when it comes to fisheries management. The Gulf of Maine is warming faster than 99 percent of the world's oceans, and warmer waters are making it harder for some species to live here.
Read the full story from The Working Waterfront