May 2, 2022 — Action the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission is set to take this week regarding menhaden allocations at its annual spring meeting could have a significant impact on some members of the fishery based on how they responded to the COVID-19 pandemic two years ago.

On the agenda for the commission’s Atlantic Menhaden Management Board session on Tuesday afternoon is a discussion about whether to adjust or remove 2020 landings data when considering commercial allocations for future years, which are scheduled to take effect next year. The discussion comes after officials in Virginia proposed a change, citing the impact COVID-19 had on the menhaden fishery in the state.

Virginia has, by far, the largest operation within the fishery. In most years, the state accounts for roughly 80 percent or more of commercial landings. However, that number dipped to 75.7 percent in 2020. While that may not seem to be a significant drop, commissions set catch quotas on fish like menhaden based on historical catch data, so a recent dip in the numbers would impact how much operators can harvest in future years.

Ocean Fleet Services Vice President Monty Deihl said the drop was due to menhaden fishing vessels missing out on 59 fishing days due to fishing crews dealing with the coronavirus. And even that number doesn’t truly reflect the situation that Ocean Harvesters, which operates vessels for Omega Protein under the management of Ocean Fleet Services, endured two years ago.

“We had boats that were 15 hours away from our dock, and we hadn’t even started fishing yet,” Deihl recalled. “If a crew member came up with a fever and symptoms, the captain had to turn the boat all the way back around and come back. We couldn’t count that as a COVID day because the boat was away from the dock.”

Compounding the issue for Ocean Harvesters was the fact that each crewmember was needed in order to operate the vessel and harvest menhaden safely.

As a large company with a union workforce, Deihl said Ocean Harvesters had to follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines to the letter. That included quarantining crew members for days until test results came back negative. Smaller operators and family run outfits, Deihl said, had an easier time working in those guidelines and still fish.

Last year was a different story for Ocean Harvesters, thanks to the development of effective COVID-19 vaccines. Deihl said 100 percent of the company’s crew members got their shots.

“COVID was just as bad in the summer of 2021 as it was in 2020 as far as in the communities, but we never lost one single fishing day for COVID,” he said.

It appears fishery officials understand the situation. In a memo earlier this month, the Atlantic Menhaden Plan Development Team (PDT) told the management board that it recommended removing the 2020 data from allocation consideration and adding the 2021 totals, which are expected to be finalized later this year, in its place.

The memo stated that other options are on the table, but the PDT advised that they would either push implementing the new allocations beyond 2023 or rely on old data.

“By adding 2021 to the time series, it would alleviate the concerns the PDT has with only dropping 2020 data by allowing an additional year of data in the analysis that better reflects current fishing activity,” the memo stated.

But there’s still a chance the Atlantic Menhaden Management Board could opt against that recommendation and factor 2020 data into future allocations. Deihl said that could have a tremendous negative impact on jobs.

Ocean Harvesters and Omega Protein operate out of Reedville, Va., a rural community at the neck of the Chesapeake Bay 75 miles east of Richmond. The menhaden plant in the small town employs about 260 workers, and Deihl said a similar number of people work as contractors.

A reduction in allocation by as little as 3 or 4 percent could impact dozens of workers. And while that may not seem significant, Deihl pointed out it could be devastating in a small community like Reedville.

“They already had to fight through COVID, being quarantined and all that,” he said. “When you’ve worked there 20 or 30 years, and your family has worked there for three or four generations, and you lose a job to another state, it just seems extremely unfair.”