February 23, 2007 [MaineCoastNow.com]

To the editor:

LD 170 is a bill which would allow Maine’s ground fishing fleet to drag for and land (sell) lobsters in Maine caught outside 35 miles of the coast. This ill-conceived bill, which proponents argue will help save the struggling ground fish industry in Maine, takes direct aim at one of the pillars of Maine lobster conservation. Maine lobstermen have historically opposed the landing of lobsters by dragger anywhere in New England, because we understand the tremendous threat that this gear can inflict upon the lobster resource. Dragging for lobster would undermine Maine’s lobster conservation. Maine lobstermen recognize the potential increased effort and targeting of lobster that the dragger fleet would inflict on our resource if LD 170 were to pass.

Proponents of LD 170 make the simple argument that draggers are catching lobsters anyway, so they should be allowed to land them in Maine instead of selling their whole catch in Massachusetts. With other incentives for Maine ground fish boats to go to Massachusetts, such as no sales tax on fuel [More about fuel tax], lower ship berthing fees, higher prices for their fish [More about fish prices], proximity to the fishing grounds [More about proximity to fishing grounds], and a less restrictive interpretation of the v-notch law, along with the ability to sell oversize lobsters, these boats will continue to go to Massachusetts with or without LD 170.

Lobster landings in the other New England states is a small fraction compared to Maine and Canada, where it is illegal to catch and land lobsters by any other method than trap. Lobsters caught by draggers can be an inferior product due to shell damage caused by dragging [More about lobsters harvested in trawl gear]. This is not the image the Maine lobster industry is famous for. Maine and Canada’s strict trap-only fishery has proven to be an effective method of harvesting our resource. Maine’s reputation for quality and sustainability would be significantly damaged by the enactment of this legislation.

LD 170 just won’t work, and it won’t help save the struggling fishing industry or save the Portland Fish Exchange. But it could hurt the $300 million a year Maine lobster industry. The possibility of short-term economic gains for one sector of Maine’s fishing industry does not justify sacrificing the long-term sustainability of another.

Maine lobstermen must go to Augusta and ask our lawmakers to support and protect our sound conservation practices. The Marine Resource Committee will be hearing this bill on Monday, March 5 at 1 p.m. [Note hearing time change to 9:00 a.m.] at the Augusta Civic Center. It is clear that LD 170 will not do anything more than compromise the rules and regulations that make Maine’s lobster industry economically viable and environmentally sustainable.

Bob Baines

Maine Lobstermen’s Association

South Thomaston