|
[Standard-Times] By Dan McDonald - February 21, 2011 -
The U.S. House of Representatives passed an amendment early Saturday that would prevent NOAA from spending money to promote and institute new limited-access fishing programs such as catch shares on the East Coast, a development that commercial fishing advocates have labeled as 'very significant.'
The move to strip money from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration passed by a 259-159 margin around 1:45 a.m. Saturday, with 51 Democrats and 208 Republicans voting in favor of the measure, which was sponsored by U.S. Rep. Walter Jones, R-North Carolina.
Bob Vanasse, head of the fisheries public relations campaign Saving Seafood, called the vote on the Jones Amendment 'a major salvo' fired at federal fishing regulators.
'Basically, the message was, 'We've had it and we're going to use the power of the purse to have you reconsider your policies,' ' Vanasse said.
Jim Kendall, president of New Bedford Seafood Consulting, said the amendment could prevent NOAA from spending 'another $50 million to advocate and promote catch shares.'
'A lot of the money is used to essentially disseminate propaganda,' Kendall said. 'They've been forcing catch shares down the throats of various fisheries.'
Last May, federal regulators introduced the New England groundfishing industry to a new fishing management system, replacing a days-at-sea model with 'catch shares' and 'sector management.'
The system requires boat owners to join cooperatives and manage their share allocations, or 'catch shares,' as they best see fit within the law.
The new system has been met with opposition and controversy.
Catch shares, said Kendall, 'do nothing to further the conservation of the resource.'
U.S. Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., a proponent of the amendment, said the vote conveyed to NOAA 'that you don't have to shut down the fishing industry to sustain the fish.'
The amendment, said Frank, does not prevent NOAA from using a provision in the Magnuson-Stevens Act that allows for transferable quotas. That provision, however, requires a referendum, Frank said.
The amendment will now go before the U.S. Senate.
Frank said the Senate is expected to make a decision regarding the amendment within the next month, and Kendall said he expects the Senate to pass the amendment.
New Bedford Mayor Scott W. Lang called the House vote 'extremely significant.'
Lang said he spoke with Rep. Jones last Thursday and the North Carolina Republican told him he was hoping to assemble a sizable coalition in support of the amendment to, if nothing else, attract some attention to the issue of fishing regulations.
'When I saw they had a majority, that made me sit up and take notice,' Lang said. 'The coalition that Jones and Frank have put together is very significant and could lead to reform and transparency.'
Referencing the majority in favor of the amendment, Frank said, 'The rigidity of NOAA has gotten us more support.'
The amendment covers the fisheries under the jurisdiction of South Atlantic, Mid-Atlantic, New England or Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Councils, but does not affect Alaska or the West Coast, according to Vanasse's organization.
Attempts to reach NOAA for comment Saturday were not successful.
Copyright © 2011 South Coast Media Group, a subsidiary of Dow Jones Local Media Group. All Rights Reserved.
|