Wednesday, January 21, 2015
Working to Preserve the Fishing Industry
On Friday, January 16th, I participated in a joint meeting with
Gloucester’s City Council and the city’s Fisheries Commission to discuss the
current state and the future of the fishing industry. The meeting, which was
held in Kyrouz Auditorium at City Hall, included fishermen; shoreside business
operators; and city, state, and federal officials. It was a diverse crowd of
stakeholders that provided a tremendous amount of expertise and experience in
assessing Gloucester’s fisheries.
The meeting was broken into two segments that focused on short term
fixes to preserve the existing infrastructure, and long term fixes to ensure
the inshore fleet and shoreside businesses thrive. Essentially, we all agreed
at some level that the science in assessing the fish stock is flawed. NOAA
Regional Administrator John Bullard also stated that NOAA needs to work better
with fish stakeholders in communicating information regarding the industry.
During the meeting I reported on our accomplishments over the past year and the progress of other measures. They include:
Accomplishments:
·
The
passage of a Seafood Marketing Bill;
·
Ch. 91
flexibility for Cape Pond Ice; and
·
Budget/economic
development bill money for waterfront properties and CDC’s.
Working on:
·
Comprehensive
and collaborative science effort;
·
Access to
capital to rebuild wharves, piers, and infrastructure;
·
Tax relief for fishing vessels/gear; and
·
Lobster processing flexibility.
It is my hope, that as a group, we continue to work together to fight
for an industry that has meant so much to the identity of Gloucester and the
State of Massachusetts.
To read a more in-depth summary of the meeting, please click here to view a Gloucester Daily times report.
