Not
long ago, I wrote about the NOAA’s recent issuance of a Notice
of Proposed Rulemaking, which contemplates opening the so-called “Block Island Transit
Zone,” an area of federal
waters described as
Striped
bass fishing, and even the possession of striped bass, has been prohibited in
the EEZ since 1990, a prohibition originally put in place to help rebuild what
was then a striped bass stock that was trying to recover from a catastrophic
collapse a decade before. Although the
stock has long since recovered, the closure has remained as a bulwark against
overfishing.
When that closure was first
put in place, some fishermen complained that it effectively put the often very
productive waters surrounding Block Island off-limits to striped bass angling,
as fishermen couldn’t possess the fish in the federal waters between that island
and the mainland, and thus couldn’t bring their catch home.
In order to allow fishermen to retain bass legally caught in
the state waters surrounding Block Island, the National Marine Fisheries
Service created the Block Island Transit Zone, which allowed anglers to
possess, but not fish for, striped bass while transiting that particular section of the EEZ.
It was another of those examples of no good deed going
unpunished, for instead of being grateful that NMFS created a way to legally
bring Block Island-caught stripers back to mainland ports, some individuals,
primarily those who constitute the Montauk, NY party and charter boat
community, complained that they were only allowed to possess fish in the
Transit Zone, but were still prohibited for fishing for striped bass in federal
waters.
Thus began a long effort to open the Transit Zone to striped
bass fishing.
In
2010, the Montauk Boatman’s and Captains’ Association convinced then-Congressman
Tim Bishop (D-New York), who represented the East End of Long Island, to
introduce a bill that would allow fishing in the Transit Zone. Bishop’s efforts all came to naught, but the
fight to reopen the EEZ to striped bass fishing continued.
Republican Lee Zeldin defeated Rep. Bishop a few years ago,
and continued the effort to open the Transit Zone to striped bass fishing. In a press release supporting one of his own
striped bass bills, Zeldin wrote
“The unique geography of the region creates this small patch
of EEZ between two areas of state-controlled water. Striped bass fishing has been banned in the
EEZ since 1990. Meanwhile, commercial
and recreational fishing for dozens of species are permitted in the EEZ…”
In making that claim, Zeldin clearly suggests that the reason
that the Transit Zone should be open to striped bass fishing is because anglers
on the East End of Long Island are adversely impacted by the “unique geography
of the region” that somehow prevents them from striped bass fishing in waters
that would otherwise be open to them.
The notion that there is something special about the waters north
and west of Block Island made its way into the Advanced Notice of Proposed
Rulemaking as well, which stated that
“The Transit Zone area is unique because it is a small area
of Federal waters (Block Island Sound) substantially bounded by state waters
(Long Island, New York on one side, Block Island, Rhode Island on another, and
the mainland of Connecticut and Rhode Island on a third side.)”
It’s a notion that has long been advanced by the Montauk
for-hire fleet. The Transit Zone issue was discussed at the March 2016 meeting of New York’s Marine Resources
Advisory Council where, according the MRAC bulletin, Capt. Joseph McBride of
the Montauk Boatman’s and Captains’ Association
“said this anomaly (15 miles from New York’s Montauk Point to
Block Island and from Block Island to Point Judith, Rhode Island) only exists
in this geographic area. Not only does
it take away from the Montauk fisherman, it takes away from the State of New
York—150 square miles of geographic areas that we’ve had historically…Most of
the rips from midway to all the way north to what is know as the
Alaskan rips are practically legal anyway…
[emphasis added]”
The MRAC bulletin noted that Capt. McBride later said
“The fish are a public resource for the State of NY and it
doesn’t make sense to have 60% of the geographic area in this state denied to the
citizens of the State. This anomaly needs
to be corrected.”
With those words, Capt. McBride both contradicted himself badly
and made it abundantly clear that the effort to open the Transit Zone to
striped bass fishing has nothing to do with Block Island or “unique”
geography, and everything to do with just being able to catch striped bass in
the EEZ.
One thing that people need to understand is that many Montauk boats never stopped fishing for striped bass in the EEZ, even when such fishing was outlawed. The
story of one such boat, which was stopped and boarded by the Coast Guard, was told in the Block Island Times, which reported that
“A National Marine Fisheries Service agent told Newsday, a
Long Island newspaper, that the agency had a tip that Viking boats were fishing
for bass in federal waters. Two federal
agents and two agents of the New York Department of Environmental Conservation
signed up for an evening trip November 6, 2006, on the 140-foot Viking
Starship.
“Captain [Steven] Forsberg took the vessel out to the Block
Island Sound buoy, about eight miles off Montauk, the agents reported. They watched as fishermen pulled in about 40
bass and verified the location with a global positioning system device…
“Federal and state officers were waiting when the Starship
returned to its dock and questioned the crew, who claimed they had taken the
fishermen within the state limit…
“NOAA charged Viking and Forsberg with illegally taking
patrons to catch bass in federal waters, and charged Forsberg with making false
statements to enforcement agents.”
The reason such vessel would have illegally pursued bass in
the EEZ is clear: There are a lot of fish out there. As
Capt. Paul Forsberg, President of the Viking Fishing Fleet said when he
testified before the House Natural Resources Committee in 2012, in support of
one of Rep. Bishop’s efforts to open the EEZ to striped bass fishing,
“to open the Block Island Transit Zone to recreational
Striped Bass fishing is of huge importance to our business and to the entire
fishing fleet of the east end of Long Island.
The benefit to the economy of Long Island cannot be stressed
enough. We would be able to employ more people
as we would expect to carry many more passengers and sail on more trips. The increase in business would affect all the
boats on Long Island and the positive effects would be felt by the tackle
shops, marinas, hotels, stores, and restaurants. The area known as the EEZ is a known striped bass
fishing zone and people on all boats really want an opportunity to fish there. [emphasis added]”
So there you have it, plain and simple, spelled out in black
and white.
The effort to open the Block Island Transit Zone has nothing
to do with “unique geography” or an “anomaly” that “only exists in this geographic
area” because of Block Island. In fact,
it has nothing to do with Block Island at all.
The effort to open the Transit Zone is nothing more than a
self-serving effort, on the behalf of the Montauk for-hire fleet, to reclaim
their historic ability to fish in the “150 square miles of geographic area”
that is now off limits to them because it lies in the EEZ.
It represents their effort to again fish in a series of offshore
rips that “are practically legal anyway.”
It represents their desire to fatten their wallets by sailing
“on more trips” and carrying “many more passengers” to “a known striped bass
fishing zone” where they can kill even more striped bass than they already do.
In that desire, they are no different than captains sailing
out of a lot of different ports between New Hampshire and North Carolina, who
lost traditional fishing grounds, that they’d like to get back, when the EEZ
closure was first imposed.
There is no logical reason why the Montauk boats should be
treated any differently than boats from any of those other ports.
And therein lies the biggest reason why striped bass harvest should not be allowed in the Transit Zone.
This proposal is the first in a series of actions to open the entire EEZ. As announced during the ASMFC Summer Meeting
ReplyDeletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vg_ZKbI6BEQ&feature=youtu.be
the Secretary of Commerce has already begun exploring lifting the moratorium on fishing in the entire EEZ (46:45 minute mark of the recording).
If this passes it will surely be a precursor to the opening of the entire EEZ.
Agreed. And that's a serious problem because, as this blog points out, there really isn't any significant difference between Montauk and anywhere else, and if the EEZ is opened off Montauk, it won't be long before other areas ask that their waters be opened, too.
DeleteCouldn't agree more. As a charter boat operator in Maryland and Virginia we also could extend our season by a couple of months if we were allowed to fish the EEZ off DELMARVA. But this short sighted approach would be devastating to the Coastal fish population. We are all being asked to take a 17% reduction in Striped Bass quotas for 2020. A hard pill to swallow but necessary. At least the Coastal boats have other things to fish for. Much of the Chesapeake Bay fleet rely on Striped Bass to make a living.
ReplyDelete