Posted on 03/08/2003 9:56:26 AM PST by Fractal Trader
The unusually paltry hauls that lobsterman Michael Marchetti began pulling from New England waters about three years ago were, he hoped, just temporary, a lingering effect of an oil spill that polluted southern New England waters in the mid-1990s.
But his catch only got worse.
Today, Marchetti and every lobsterman who fishes off southern Massachusetts and Rhode Island face an unexplained collapse of lobster stocks. A mysterious shell disease, warmer waters and overfishing are commonly cited causes for the nearly 50 percent drop in lobster landings in two years, but it's all still theory.
The only certainty, Marchetti said, is that tough times are ahead.
``Everybody's going to get spanked, everybody's going to get hurt,'' said Marchetti, who fishes off Point Judith, R.I.
Bill Adler, head of the Massachusetts Lobstermen's Association, said regulators are looking to cut landings by as much as 75 percent, forcing fishermen to bear the brunt of the crisis, though everyone agrees it isn't all their fault.
``What bothers me is they're saying, 'We've got to do something, so let's take the fishermen out and shoot them,''' he said.
Late last month, the Atlantic State Marine Fisheries Commission, which governs the lobster catch in waters from Maine to Florida, approved a 1/16th-inch increase in the minimum size of lobsters fishermen are allowed to keep.
But more drastic steps are needed, said Marchetti, a member of a lobstermen's panel that will propose additional restrictions to the ASMFC by August.
``It's too scary to contemplate,'' Marchetti said. ``Now we've got to spend the summer figuring out how to cut our toes off our feet.''
The affected waters, called Area 2, include Buzzards Bay, off Martha's Vineyard and the Rhode Island coast. Adler and Marchetti, head of the Rhode Island Lobsterman's Association, estimate the area is used by several hundred boats from both states combined.
Between 1999 and 2001, the most recent years for which statistics are available, the catch in Area 2 fell from roughly 8.2 million pounds to about 4.3 million pounds, according to an ASMFC report.
The drop is particularly acute in Buzzards Bay, where landings dropped from just over 400,000 pounds in 1998 to about 110,000 in 2001.
Unlike in other fisheries, there's no dispute between lobstermen and scientists about the need to tighten regulations because the numbers are so grim. There's also no consensus on an explanation, said Carrie Selberg, ASMFC fishery management plan coordinator for lobsters.
``We think there are possibly many factors,'' Selberg said.
Lobstermen know overfishing is a key issue, Adler said. But with stocks falling despite fewer lobstermen and tighter rules, it's clearly not the only problem, he said.
A shell disease that's spread among Area 2 lobsters over the last five years is a prime suspect, though scientists have yet to link the disease to lobster deaths.
The disease leaves shells pitted and cracked, and basically impossible to sell, though the meat is still good. Lobstermen are concerned it is also weakening lobsters, making them vulnerable to predators, and affecting reproduction because it may cause female lobsters to shed diseased shells before their eggs hatch.
Selberg said increasing water temperature is being investigated as a cause, but ``we haven't produced information yet saying we have concrete evidence the temperature is rising.''
The affected area is close to another lobster trouble spot in Long Island Sound, where a massive die-off of lobsters began in 1999, but there's no evidence of any connection, Selberg said. Pollution and the recovery of lobster predators, such as striped bass, are also possible factors, Adler said.
Marchetti said his main concern is finding out what's happening to the lobsters.
``I really want to see dollars put into finding out why,'' he said.
Very sad indeed but it poses a very important question:
Would "Plummenting Lobsters" make a good name for a rock band?
A gratuitous "global warming" theory is floated at the lead the the story, although later in the story it is discounted as the problem. But no ideology on display here, no, not at all!
If the resurgence of striped bass is the cause, then it's only a case of natural balance being reasserted. For instance, in other areas where goundfish (i.e., cod) have been terribly overfished, the lobster supply has grown (due to the absence of predators).
It would. I always thought "Five Goons in a Car" would be another.
Not bad, not bad at all, antoher good question is:
Would "Struggling Lobstermen" also make a good name for a rock band?
Sure would, as would "The Mysterious Shell Disease". This story is a veritable gold mine. Hey, how about "The Veritable Gold Mines"?
The live feed isn't working at the moment, but they do have some archived shots along with some great links.
Steamers are relatively cheap around here and once in a while, I get about 10-15 pounds of them and between my sons and I, we finish them all!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.