Caught in a Net of Federal Fishing Fines

The Privatization of U.S. Fisheries Through Catch Share Programs

By Fish INC.

When people think of fishing, they probably imagine an independent sea captain and his crew braving the elements in a small vessel to bring a fresh catch to shore and to our plates. But the current focus of U.S. policy for managing our fisheries, called catch shares, is destroying the way of life of our nation’s fishermen and coastal communities. This time-honored trade is being replaced by a privatized system that often leaves the future of our nation’s fish, one of our most precious natural resources, in the hands of a small number of larger operations, whose primary goal is often immediate profit rather than sustainable use and long-term conservation.

The United States lost most of its family farms to the large industrialized agriculture model. Catch shares create similar conditions on our seas by transferring the wealth of our fish populations from the public trust into private hands, by allocating a percentage quota of the total amount of fish that can be caught in a year and allowing these quota to be leased, bought and sold. When catch shares are given to fishermen, those who receive the largest initial distribution of shares — or have the most capital to buy and lease shares — often gain control over the entire fishery. Smaller-scale traditional fishermen are pushed out of the fishery while larger companies, which often use fishing practices that stress ocean ecosystems, take over.

Proponents of catch shares claim they are the best solution to profitably, safely and sustainably manage our fisheries. In this report, Food & Water Watch examines these claims and finds them all wanting.

Catch shares cause economic devastation.

Catch shares only increase profits for some fishermen by cutting hundreds of others out of the fishery entirely. Widespread job loss and reduced wages drag coastal communities that are already struggling in this economy into dire economic situations.
Meanwhile, a privileged few are able to profit from exclusive access to a public resource.

Catch shares fail to sustain the health of our fisheries.

Catch shares are only a way to distribute fish among fishermen and have no built-in sustainability measures — overfishing is controlled separately by setting limits on the total number of fish that can be caught. In fact, catch shares inherently contain incentives to use more damaging gear, discard unwanted fish and dismiss adaptive ecosystem-based fishing strategies.

Catch shares fail to achieve legal standards for fishery management.

The federal law governing our nation’s fisheries, the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Management Act, specifies that fishery management must support the long-term economic health of fishing communities, but catch shares are responsible around the
world for destroying the economic health of coastal ports. Further, an international court found that catch shares violated human rights by creating a privileged class of fishermen in a privatized industry.

Catch shares aren’t fair.

Our nation and our oceans deserve better than a system that results in an unfair giveaway of public resources to private entities. Fishermen, rather than being cut out of the fishery, should be a key part of the management process. Smart fishery
management can be fair and equitable, maintain public control of the resource, minimize damage to the environment, and promote a better life for our nation’s fishermen and coastal and fishing communities, and a better product for consumers.
_________________
Captain Keith
Cell: 843-907-0064
www.NorthMyrtleBeachFishingCharters.com
www.southchathamtackle.com
www.BarefootFishing.net
www.fishfindertackle.com

Posted: Mon Feb 20, 2012 11:14 am Post subject: Dear Friend

Help me protect coastal communities

Dear Friend,

I just took action and hope you can too. Coastal fishing communities are in danger of being destroyed through a privatization scheme that could put many small-scale fishermen out of business. Tell Secretary of Commerce that privatization leads to consolidation - not conservation.

Take action here:
http://action.foodandwaterwatch.org/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=4366
_________________
Captain Keith
Cell: 843-907-0064
www.NorthMyrtleBeachFishingCharters.com
www.southchathamtackle.com
www.BarefootFishing.net
www.fishfindertackle.com

Posted: Mon Feb 20, 2012 11:14 am Post subject:

About Fair Fish

We need your help now to make fair fishery management a reality in the U.S.
The fish in ocean waters* surrounding the U.S. belong to all of us equally and are part of the ocean commons; a living public trust asset passed from one generation to the next. This means that everyone in the U.S. has the privilege to enjoy our fish – whether you fish for them, swim with them, or just like to know they are out there.

Most of us have heard that there aren’t as many fish in our oceans to share as there once were. With continued demand for seafood, our government is trying to figure out how to conserve and manage the fish that we do have – fairly. Unfortunately, the latest proposed way to regulate our fish, called “catch shares” but more accurately referred to as “catch-and-trade schemes,” is essentially an outdated privatization approach. The government sets a limit on how many fish can be taken at a time, then tells each fisherman how much of that limit he/she is personally allowed to catch, if any.

If privatized catch-and-trade systems become our primary fishery management tool, the results will be similar to when family-run agriculture became massive industrial agribusiness: traditional fishermen – and their crews – will be forced out of work, economies of related communities will crumble, there will be increased risk of ecological harm to our oceans and consumers will likely end up with more industrially produced seafood on their plates.

There is an alternate vision: FAIR FISH.

Fair Fish means a more sustainable and local wild fish economy, where the public will maintain control of it own fish resources
An allocation process will favor smaller-scale, more environmentally friendly, community-based fishermen
These fishermen will grow the value of their catch by supplying the market with local quality seafood; and
Revenue generated from the use of our fish will help to fund better fishery management and habitat restoration to keep our natural resources productive for the long-term.

Take Action

We need your help now to make fair fishery management a reality in the U.S.

Help stop a big business take over of our fish!

http://action.foodandwaterwatch.org/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=4366

* In the U.S., coastal states manage the waters and most of the wildlife in them from the shore out to about 3 miles. The federal government is responsible for ocean areas (and wildlife in them from 3 to 200 miles from shore. This is known as the exclusive economic zone, in which activities like fishing can be limited to the United States. (Off Texas and the west coast of Florida, state waters extend out to about 9 miles.)
_________________
Captain Keith
Cell: 843-907-0064
www.NorthMyrtleBeachFishingCharters.com
www.southchathamtackle.com
www.BarefootFishing.net
www.fishfindertackle.com

Posted: Mon Feb 20, 2012 11:15 am Post subject:

Good Morning,

I know that many you are inundated from different sides to the story about implementing “Catch Shares” into our nations fisheries. I have personally been in the fishing industry for 42 years and I have not seen or heard of one instance of a successful “Catch Shares Program”!

This is not a new idea it has actually been around for many years but just termed differently such as ITQ’s (individual transferable quota’s) which a majority of fishing populations everywhere have never been in favor of.

I believe that the environmental NGO’s saw this opportunity as a tool to help them with gaining control our nations oceans and fisheries by cleverly supporting a shift of the balance of power within the fishing industry away from the many smaller “Mom and Pop Style”operations to only a few larger corporate participants, which will leave these lucky few wealthier and in control and will eliminate the rest.

“Catch Shares” are very destructive and will turn fishing from a public resource into a socialized and private entity.

I would ask that before you take a position on this sensitive topic to please take the time to read and educate yourselves on what catch shares actually are and what they have done to existing fishing communities around the world in the past.

Here is a link below to a few short articles;

http://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/fish/fair-fish/

Thank You,

Captain Mark Brown
Mount Pleasant, SC
_________________
Captain Keith
Cell: 843-907-0064
www.NorthMyrtleBeachFishingCharters.com
www.southchathamtackle.com
www.BarefootFishing.net
www.fishfindertackle.com

Posted: Mon Feb 20, 2012 11:15 am Post subject:

The Privatization of U.S. Fisheries Through Catch Share Programs

By Fish INC.

When people think of fishing, they probably imagine an independent sea captain and his crew braving the elements in a small vessel to bring a fresh catch to shore and to our plates. But the current focus of U.S. policy for managing our fisheries, called catch shares, is destroying the way of life of our nation’s fishermen and coastal communities. This time-honored trade is being replaced by a privatized system that often leaves the future of our nation’s fish, one of our most precious natural resources, in the hands of a small number of larger operations, whose primary goal is often immediate profit rather than sustainable use and long-term conservation.

The United States lost most of its family farms to the large industrialized agriculture model. Catch shares create similar conditions on our seas by transferring the wealth of our fish populations from the public trust into private hands, by allocating a percentage quota of the total amount of fish that can be caught in a year and allowing these quota to be leased, bought and sold. When catch shares are given to fishermen, those who receive the largest initial distribution of shares — or have the most capital to buy and lease shares — often gain control over the entire fishery. Smaller-scale traditional fishermen are pushed out of the fishery while larger companies, which often use fishing practices that stress ocean ecosystems, take over.

Proponents of catch shares claim they are the best solution to profitably, safely and sustainably manage our fisheries. In this report, Food & Water Watch examines these claims and finds them all wanting.

Catch shares cause economic devastation.

Catch shares only increase profits for some fishermen by cutting hundreds of others out of the fishery entirely. Widespread job loss and reduced wages drag coastal communities that are already struggling in this economy into dire economic situations.
Meanwhile, a privileged few are able to profit from exclusive access to a public resource.

Catch shares fail to sustain the health of our fisheries.

Catch shares are only a way to distribute fish among fishermen and have no built-in sustainability measures — overfishing is controlled separately by setting limits on the total number of fish that can be caught. In fact, catch shares inherently contain incentives to use more damaging gear, discard unwanted fish and dismiss adaptive ecosystem-based fishing strategies.

Catch shares fail to achieve legal standards for fishery management.

The federal law governing our nation’s fisheries, the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Management Act, specifies that fishery management must support the long-term economic health of fishing communities, but catch shares are responsible around the
world for destroying the economic health of coastal ports. Further, an international court found that catch shares violated human rights by creating a privileged class of fishermen in a privatized industry.

Catch shares aren’t fair.

Our nation and our oceans deserve better than a system that results in an unfair giveaway of public resources to private entities. Fishermen, rather than being cut out of the fishery, should be a key part of the management process. Smart fishery
management can be fair and equitable, maintain public control of the resource, minimize damage to the environment, and promote a better life for our nation’s fishermen and coastal and fishing communities, and a better product for consumers.
_________________
Captain Keith
Cell: 843-907-0064
www.NorthMyrtleBeachFishingCharters.com
www.southchathamtackle.com
www.BarefootFishing.net
www.fishfindertackle.com

	South Carolina Offshore Fishing Forum Index -> On The Hill	All times are GMT - 4 Hours
Page 1 of 1