1. Fisheries Diversification
…in a system of gridlock, monoculture, and an uncertain future climate
Patrick Shepard
Fisheries and Seafood Associate
Penobscot East Resource Center
December 2, 2016

2. What we’ll cover today…
Fisheries regulations are complicated
Trans-jurisdictional fisheries are messy
Maine is stuck in the lobster fishery
Diversification is pretty near impossible
The federal system is a colossal mess
But there’s still hope for locally managed fisheries
(HINT)

3. Access to the means of production
Fisheries = permission to fish, to use
a public resource. True for both
wild fisheries and aquaculture.
Federal permits
State and town licenses
Aquaculture leases
Agriculture = farmland
Considerable overlap between jurisdictions
Show the 3-mile boundary
State lobster regs extend out past 3 miles
Federal regulations affect how some state fishermen operate

4. “Stuck” in State Waters
2012: licensed lobstermen
Only 2% (101 individuals) had federal permits for species other than lobster.
Only 16% (811 individuals) had federal lobster permits
In most federal fisheries, access is limited or closed
Permits are transferrable, and any time you put a dollar value on the rights to rights to fish, permit values skyrocket
Some groundfish permits sell for over a million dollars
Federal fisheries become prohibitively expensive
Rules governing permit transfers

5. “Stuck” in the lobster fishery
67% of lobster fishermen hold no other licenses
WHY??

6. Evolution of fishing regulations = complex license system
In the late 70’s there were 5 different licenses
Regulations put in place since then have splintered those 5 licenses into over 25 different categories of licenses
So with all those different categories, that must mean even more opportunities for access right?
Not so fast
***Most of these fisheries are closed. No new licenses are being issued by the state.
And they’re non-transferrable, so you can’t just buy a license from someone else like you can in the federal fishery
***The lobster fishery is limited access so once a fisherman completes an apprenticeship program, they’re on a waiting list until someone retires or dies
***So let’s take a look at one open access fishery that’s starting to rebound and support more and more fishermen
Stoll et al 2016

7. Commercial Harvester License
Whelk
Halibut
Periwinkle
Tuna
IVR Herring
Whiting
Before I talk about the regs in the halibut fishery, I’d like you to meet a fisherman who participates in that fishery…

8. Meet Josh Miller… Tenants Harbor, ME
Long family history in a diversity of fisheries
Has traditionally participated in lobster, scallop, halibut, shrimp…
Bought his father’s federal groundfish permit in 2014
The purchase of his father’s groundfish permit all but shut him out of the state halibut fishery. Here’s how…

9. State licenses and federal permits
TWO DIFFERENT JURISDICTIONS
State Halibut Regulations
Requires halibut endorsement on commercial harvester license – FREE
2 month season in the spring
Hook only, 450 hook limit
25 tags
State waters only
Federal Groundfish Regulations
Halibut is part of the groundfish FMP
Federal permits require a higher level of reporting
VMS + ASM = $$$$$$
Federal groundfish regulations limit vessels to 1 halibut per trip
**VESSELS HOLDING BOTH TYPES OF PERMITS MUST BE BOUND TO MOST RESTRICTIVE REGULATIONS
***ONCE FEDERAL PERMITS ARE BUNDLED, YOU CAN’T SPLIT THEM APART

10. Addressing Federal Access
Permit Bank:
Permits – right to be in the fishery
Quota – right to catch fish
Northeast Coastal Communities Sector
28 fishermen sharing similar values
Using the sector as a vehicle for policy change
Sentinel Survey
Tracking fish populations in a rebuilding system

11. Addressing State Access
We’re lucky here in Maine: We value owner- operator fisheries with non-transferrable licenses.
Here’s what YOU can do:
Sign up for our E-blast at
Look for an announcement this winter about a scallop bill creating an owner- operator requirement, addressing access into the fishery.
CALL your state legislator in SUPPORT of the bill.

12. Questions?