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Commercial Fisheries News
Volume 33 Number 12
August 2006
Groundfish boats comply with new safety rule
KENNEBUNK, ME – With few exceptions, most groundfish fishermen managed to comply with the new National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) rule effective May 1 that requires all vessels taking federal fisheries observers to have a current US Coast Guard Commercial Fishing Vessel Safety Examination (CFVSE) decal.
“Fisheries Sampling Branch records indicate 182 vessels were selected for observer coverage in May of 2006. Of these, 162 vessels had a current CFVSE decal. This equates to a decal compliance rate of 89 percent,” said NMFS Northeast Office of Law Enforcement Special Agent Tom Gaffney in early July.
A current decal is one that was obtained within the past two years. Additionally, the rule requires observers to perform a visual inspection of the emergency equipment known as a “pre-trip vessel safety checklist” before boarding vessels.
The NMFS Northeast region adopted the new rule last year to ensure the safety of federal fisheries observers and notified permit holders of the requirement by letter in October of 2005.
“Several tragic events over the past few years have dramatically increased public and private awareness of safety at sea,” said David Potter, chief of the Fisheries Sampling Branch at the NMFS Northeast Fisheries Science Center in Woods Hole, MA.
Of the 20 vessels selected to carry observers in May that didn’t have the decal, 13 had obtained one by the end of the month, Gaffney said.
“For the 13 vessels that did obtain a CFVSE decal, the average time period between selection and obtaining a decal was four days,” he said.
Violator gets NOVA
Gaffney added that two of the seven vessels that didn’t have a decal allegedly fished in violation of the new rule, and the owner of one of those is facing significant penalties for the alleged violation.
On July 7, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of General Council announced that it had issued a Notice of Violation and Assessment (NOVA) that included an $82,500 civil penalty and 136-day permit sanction to Robert Eleniefsky of Carver, MA, owner of the 44' Four Kids.
After being selected to carry an observer, NMFS notified Eleniefsky that the Four Kids did not meet safety requirements and prohibited the vessel from fishing until the requirements were met.
NMFS special agents boarded the Four Kids on May 5 when it returned to Woods Hole after a two-day trip. In addition to the civil penalty and permit sanction, the boarding also resulted in a catch seizure with a total value of more than $2,765.
MSD exception
Part of the standard CFVSE decal criteria includes a requirement that vessels have an operating Marine Sanitation Device (MSD). However, for the purposes of carrying an observer, NMFS is willing to waive that requirement under certain circumstances, according to Gaffney.
“The decision was made to allow for a CFVSE decal waiver for vessels that do not have MSD due to the fact that the lack of a MSD is not a safety issue,” Gaffney said.
The owner of a vessel that does not have an acceptable MSD should request a waiver from the Fisheries Sampling Branch. Fax the Coast Guard dockside inspection results showing that the only deficiency was the MSD to David Potter at (508) 495-2103.
Potter will send the owner/operator a waiver letter. The process should only take one business day.
However, Gaffney added that NMFS does not condone the lack of a MSD on any vessel that is required to have one under Coast Guard rules and regulations.
Only one waiver has been issued for lack of an MSD as of early July, he said.
Increased safety
According to Ted Harrington of the Coast Guard First District Marine Safety Office, the new requirement has triggered a significant jump in the number of vessels that have undergone the dockside safety inspection.
Between Jan. 1 and May 1, 2005, the Coast Guard conducted approximately 316 fishing vessel exams, he said.
“This year, we conducted over 715 exams in the same time period,” Harrington said. “To date, the Coast Guard has conducted more safety exams than we did all of last year or any of the previous three years.”
Rosanne Mizzoni
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