February 2, 2016—U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney, D-2nd District told a congressional subcommittee Tuesday that a proposal to transfer control of 155 square miles of federally controlled ocean to Rhode Island and New York jurisdiction would bankrupt Connecticut lobstermen, including those from Stonington and other southeastern Connecticut towns.
“This is damaging people’s livelihood and I think we have to be a lot more careful in terms of how we as a Congress treat federal jurisdiction and people’s rights … .” he told the Subcommittee on Water, Power and Oceans of the Committee on Natural Resources.
If the plan passes, Courtney said Connecticut lobstermen would be shut out of fishing in Rhode Island waters because they are not residents while in New York they would have to try and obtain a non-resident permit through a costly auction process.
Courtney told the subcommittee that there was no consultation with the Stonington-based Southern New England Fishermen and Lobstermen’s Association about the plan and there was no biological analysis to back up the change.
Courtney explained to the subcommittee the economic importance of Long Island Sound and the balancing act needed to protect its fragile ecosystem.
He said he has worked closely in the past with New York Rep. Lee Zeldin, who introduced the bill before the subcommittee, which is aimed at striped bass management, on issues such as the restoration of Long Island Sound and the preservation of Plum Island.
But in this case, he said Connecticut was not represented in the development of the plan, despite the impact on its fishermen.