March 14, 2013 — The following was released by the Cape Cod Commercial Hook Fishermen's Association.
CHATHAM, Mass — March 13, 2013 — Today, John Pappalardo of the Cape Cod Commercial Hook Fishermen's Association testified in front of the Natural Resources Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives about the reauthorization of our nation's primary fishing law, the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act. Pappalardo was invited by Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), the top ranking Democrat on the committee, and joined six other fishing industry representatives from across the country. John shared the perspective of New England's independent, small boat fishermen on how to address many of the issues they are facing and how to improve implementation of the act.
"I am carrying messages I hear every day from fishermen on Cape Cod and around New England," says Pappalardo. "First, they tell me they support annual catch limits, but that we need annual fish population assessments to do this right. That means we need better information that is based on real-time catch information.
"Second, fishermen are asking for better community protections to ensure a small boat fishery for the next generation, and third, they need new market development and price support for healthy fisheries such as dogfish. These are the top three solutions they have identified, and I am making their voices heard with the elected officials that are in charge of improving the law."
"On the occasion of this first hearing, we have to focus on ways we can help struggling New England fishermen build stronger fishing businesses, and John is doing just that," says Rep. William Keating (D-Mass.). "By addressing the importance of transparency in the seafood supply chain, such as the SAFE Seafood bill I co-sponsored, we can work together to get fishermen better prices for their sustainable catches and help them through the current difficulties."
"Each year our fleet counts the scallops with people we trust at SMAST and the Virginia Institute of Marine Science," says scalloper Jesse Rose of Wellfleet, Mass. "It's our data so we believe in it. You won't fix the groundfish crisis until Congress requires better annual fish counts. That's a fact."
"We've got no cod, but we've got plenty of dogfish," says fisherman Tim Linnell of Chatham, Mass. "The problem is, we need a better market–we can't keep a business running on dogfish at 12-cents a pound. I see American farmers getting help with their products all the time. If we had market support and help like that for dogfish, then I'd be back in business."
"The ocean is an ecosystem–you can't squeeze one piece without impacting another," says Kurt Martin, a fisherman from Orleans, Mass. "Cod eat herring, seals eat cod, dogfish eat everything. Managers need to start taking a serious look at the how predators and prey interact with each other. If they don't do this, they'll never be able to manage things right."
View John's written testimony here
Watch John's oral testimony here
Watch entire hearing here (click on March 13)
Visit the website of the CCCHFA here