August 17, 2020 — Commercial fishermen have long had their gripes about the government-trained observers required by regulators to monitor their catch.
When the pandemic began sweeping across the nation in March, federal officials halted their work, which involves long hours at sea, often in close quarters with fishermen. But with many captains and deckhands still hauling in their prey, observers resumed their duties in early May in nearly every major port around the country — except those in the Northeast.
The region’s mighty fleet has since received seven exemptions from observer requirements, which the federal government subsidizes at an annual cost of more than $50 million to prevent overfishing.
Now, with observers resuming their work this weekend in ports from North Carolina to Maine, fishermen and their representatives are urging the agency to halt the program again, saying it could have an adverse impact on an industry that lands about $2 billion worth of seafood a year.