August 2, 2019 — Recently my crewman came into the wheelhouse with a complaint. I am a commercial fisherman and we were on our third consecutive day of carrying at-sea monitors, which we are required to do in 2019 on at least 31% of trips. This is like having your own state policeman ride with you to work to make sure you do not exceed the speed limit. They watch you to make sure you do not throw over any fish that are part of your quota. Because the government wants their monies worth, they have them weigh everything you bring on board.
My crewman’s complaint was about the number of fish and shellfish being killed that would have been returned alive to the ocean on unobserved trips.
My crewman did not come from a fishing background. He was a restaurant chef. In restaurants you do not waste anything. Unsold fresh catch becomes tomorrow’s fish chowder. In fisheries we waste lots of fish, and after a while become hardened to government regulations that require the practice.