WASHINGTON - Maine's groundfishing industry will be paying close attention next week when the U.S. House of Representatives considers key changes to the law governing fisheries management in federal waters.
Supporters of a Republican-backed bill to re-authorize the Magnuson-Stevens Act say it would give regulators more flexibility in rebuilding fish stocks. But one groundfishing group says the measure would set back efforts to rebuild the severely depleted cod population in the Gulf of Maine.
Cod have been disappearing in the waters off New England for decades. In 2009, fishermen off Maine's coast caught more than 500 metric tons of the fish. By last year, that total had dropped to less than 130 metric tons. Ben Martens runs the Maine Coast Fishermen's Association.
"At the end of the day, it's a resource problem. We need more fish in the ocean," says Ben Martens, who runs the Maine Coast Fishermen's Association.
In an effort to save cod stocks, the species is now being managed under a 10-year rebuilding plan. The quota for this year's catch in the Gulf of Maine was reduced by 75 percent - from 1,550 metric tons to just under 400 metric tons.
Right now, struggling stocks in the U.S. are labeled as over-fished. The bill being considered in Congress would draw a distinction between depletion and over-fishing. It would also eliminate 10-year mandatory rebuilding plans for struggling species - such as cod - in favor of phased-in, three-year plans.
Ben Martens says the bill might bring some short-term relief to hard hit fishing communities in Maine. "In the long term, it's going to undercut some of our rebuilding, our idea of a better future, which is more fish in the ocean, more viable fishing communities, more diverse fishing businesses in the state of Maine."
Congress is set to consider the measure to reauthorize the Magnuson-Stevens Act early next week. President Obama has vowed to veto the bill.
A spokesman for Democratic Congresswoman Chellie Pingree, who represents Maine's 1st District, says she also can not the measure in its current form. In a statement, meantime, Maine's 2nd District Congressman Bruce Poliquin, a Republican, says he'll continue to listen to constituents on the issue and will monitor the bill as it heads to the House floor.