DARTMOUTH, Mass. — October 17, 2012 — Frustrated by doubts surrounding the accuracy of fish stock assessments conducted by NOAA and with the groundfish industry in crisis, UMass Dartmouth's School for Marine Science and Technology plans to launch an independent survey of groundfish stocks.
"(NOAA Fisheries) is saying they don't have time to review the assessments that are on the table," said SMAST professor Brian Rothschild. "But this is really high stakes and we need to do something before May 1."
The new fishing year, with cuts of 50-70 percent projected for key stocks, begins May 1. Such drastic cuts threaten to force many independent fishermen out of business.
The urgency of the situation cannot be overstated, according to Scituate fisherman Frank Mirarchi. "We're going to see a wholesale collapse of fishing communities in the Gulf of Maine in 2013 (if something isn't done)" Mirarchi said. "The system we have is not delivering results." He was among those attending a meeting of Rep. Bill Keating's Federal Fishing Advisory Board at the UMass School of Law on Tuesday.
Plans for the survey were unveiled at the session. Rothschild said he was hoping the survey would become a collaborative effort with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration but that appears unlikely now.
"We asked the National Marine Fisheries Service to participate with us but we don't have a positive answer," Rothschild said. "If we have to, we'll go ahead and do it ourselves."
"There is so much variability in conventional stock assessments that an alternative survey is necessary," said SMAST researcher Pingguo He. The planned survey will use a TUV, or towed underwater vehicle, capable of counting the number of flatfish and monkfish it encounters on the sea bed using acoustic imaging technology.
The TUV belongs to the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries, which acquired it from the manufacturer in Denmark, according to DMF director Paul Diodati. "It's a very good piece of equipment and the only one in the North Atlantic," He said.
To survey groundfish stocks such as cod and haddock, scientists will use a camera mounted on a net that will be open at both ends to allow the fish to pass through unharmed. High resolution photos and parallel lasers will allow scientists to identify species and measure the size of each fish.
Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard Times