December 23, 2014 — Penny Pritzker, the U.S. Secretary of Commerce, is expected to appoint a new member to the New England Fishery Management Council before the council’s January meeting.
We would urge the secretary to appoint New Bedford scalloper Charlie Quinn to the post, filling the seat vacated by Tom Dempsey.
Quinn has been scalloping for decades, dragging with his own boat since the age of 18, and has seen the scallop fishery under bad management, good management and great management.
The secretary has two other candidates to consider, but Quinn’s experience and intellect make him the right fit for the council, which is responsible for conservation and management of fishery resources off the coasts of Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut.
Quinn was in Washington, D.C., Monday as the process moves forward. Parts of his resume suggest the appointment should be obvious. He would be the only scalloper on the council, which covers the major New England fishing ports of Portland, Point Judith and Gloucester, in addition to the biggest money port in the U.S., New Bedford, which derives most of its landings from scallops.
Read the full opinion piece from The New Bedford Standard-Times