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Commercial Fisheries News
Volume 36 Number 10
June 2009
Maine MPOs check lobster gear for sink rope
HALLOWELL, ME The Maine Department of Marine Resources (DMR) Bureau of Marine Patrol is finding that a good number of Maine lobstermen who fish outside of the large whale “exemption line” are in full compliance with the new April 5 requirement to use sink rope groundlines instead of float rope.
According to bureau Chief Col. Joe Fessenden, marine patrol officers (MPOs) are now working to check gear before it’s actually set.
“We don’t want to see people putting gear into the water that’s not in compliance, so we’re checking people as they go out to set gear,” he said. “If they’re not in compliance, we’re turning them around to go back and fix it.”
Fessenden said MPOs also are checking traps already on bottom, but since the majority of Maine lobstermen are just beginning to set gear for the season, the primary focus is to work with boats as they leave the dock.
MPOs began talking with lobstermen in early March at the Maine Fishermen’s Forum about their intent to turn around boats with noncompliant gear.
“So this is not a new thing,” said Fessenden.
The DMR was continuing to do outreach and education about the new sink rope rule, but, Fessenden said, “Most people know what’s required by now.”
He did say, however, that some lobstermen still had questions about certain boundary points in the exemption line, which the bureau was working to resolve.
Is it sink rope?
Some lobstermen have questioned whether marine patrol officers could really tell whether groundlines were made of float rope or sink rope.
According to Fessenden, they can. Poly float rope is very light and actually “floats” when put in the water, while sink rope is much heavier and “sinks.”
But, if it gets to the point where an MPO might have to make a case in court, Fessenden said the officer would take an 18” sample of line and send it to the proper federal authorities for testing to confirm its sinking or floating status.
As of May 19, the Bureau of Marine Patrol had not issued any summonses for sink rope violations and was still giving noncompliant lobstermen a chance to properly convert their gear.
“At this point, we’re not getting into gear seizures,” said Fessenden.
Making the transition
Maine has a joint enforcement agreement with the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), so federal agents are allowed and welcome to ride on Maine Marine Patrol vessels.
Nonetheless, Fessenden confirmed that no joint enforcement actions had yet taken place to check for sink rope, and NMFS had allowed Maine to work with its own industry members to come into compliance during this early transition period.
Fessenden made it clear, however, that people do, truly, need to come into compliance.
“We’re obligated to enforce the rule,” he said.
Patrice McCarron, executive director of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association (MLA), said the MLA supported DMR on this point.
“The DMR is doing the right thing,” she said.
According to McCarron, the MLA never thought the sink rope requirement was the best way to protect whales.
“We fought that rule tooth and nail,” she said. “But once we reached a point where we were sure the rule was going into place, we knew we had to comply.”
Fairness factor
Both the DMR and the MLA have heard from numerous lobstermen who have made the financial sacrifice to convert to sink line and are frustrated with their neighbors who have not come into compliance.
Some noncompliant lobstermen say they simply don’t have the money to buy the new rope, a reality that DMR and the MLA were extremely sympathetic to.
But, McCarron said, “Everyone is hurting, and fair is fair. Everyone has to be held to the same standard.”
She also noted that many people received financial help switching over to sink rope through the Gulf of Maine Lobster Foundation’s groundline exchange program.
“There’s been over $2 million put out through the Bottom Line Project to buy back float rope,” she said.
Record your problems
Most of the feedback McCarron said she’s been getting is from people who actually are fishing with the new sink rope.
“They’re really struggling to make the rope work,” she said.
In a large-scale undertaking to document sink rope problems, the Gulf of Maine Lobster Foundation will be mailing out survey forms in early June so lobstermen on a voluntary basis can record their sink rope problems, which could range from lost traps and chafing to safety hazards and other incidents.
After a period of time, the foundation will collect the logs and pull together a comprehensive economic and safety impact report to document issues associated with the sink rope requirement.
Janice M. Plante
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