September 18, 2020 — On Thursday, Oct. 1, the New England Fishery Management Council will take up an issue critical to the survival of dayboat scallop fishermen in the Gulf of Maine.
Among other issues, Amendment 21 to the Scallop FMP addresses how scallops in the Northern Gulf of Maine will be allocated between permit categories, specifically General Category NGOM and trip-boat Limited Access boats.
At issue is the size of the NGOM set-aside — scallops “taken off the top” and made available exclusively to General Category vessels, and the subsequent distribution of scallop catch amongst all permit categories.
As you’d expect, those who own General Category NGOM permits and those who own the trip-boat Limited Access permits are at odds over how large the set-aside should be. Passionate arguments from both sides have complicated what is actually a very clear choice. That choice is to honor the forward-thinking decision the council made back in 2008 when they chose to preserve and protect a diverse scallop fishery in the Gulf of Maine.