June 1, 2013 — Fighting the ocean, the weather and the fish to make a living is very hard work. But further ferocious storms and battles are brewing concerning the creatures of the deep, this time in court.
Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley on Thursday filed suit against the National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration over new, tighter catch limits on certain fish species.
“The federal government has failed in its responsibility in considering the devastating impact of their regulations on our fishing families,” she declared.
Well, while it’s impossible to get inside the heads of federal regulators to determine to what extent they empathize with the New England fleet, Ms. Coakley has acted properly here. Absent legal action, it is unlikely we will learn the details that underpin the latest NOAA regulations.
No one disputes that stocks of cod — long an anchor for the economies of New England and maritime Canada — collapsed in 1992, following decades of overfishing.
At issue now is whether the NOAA’s new limits, which are significantly stricter than the already difficult limits that prevailed last year, can be justified.
Read the full opinion piece at the Telegram and Gazette