A political leader of the New England fishing industry yesterday urged the House Appropriations Committee to deny the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration the $54 million it seeks to convert America's fisheries to a regulatory system based on tradeable, investor-friendly catch shares.
The consistent profile of the catch share effect is a more efficient and less-labor intensive industry — which, for port economies, translate into job loss and a fear of absentee ownership of the boats and businesses.
Jane Lubchenco, the NOAA chief administrator leading the catch share push, has said there is a need to remove "a sizable fraction" of the boats from the New England fishery to achieve sustainability for the resource and the economy.
"It is very likely," Tina Jackson, told the Appropriations Committee, "that catch shares will collapse not only the industry and the infrastructure supported by it, but will cause massive job losses at a level overlooked by most.
Read the complete story at The Gloucester Daily Times.