Necessary Action or Vindictive Attack on Fishery by NMFS?
You decide which it is.
NMFS served this notice on the auction that the Gloucester fishing fleet relies on to market their fish and return the best market value for their catch to the boats. You know, that economic consideration thing again.
National Marine Fisheries Service vs. Gloucester Seafood Auction
Action: Notice of “violations” on the part of the Gloucester Seafood Auction; notice issued by National Marine Fisheries Service.
Notification: Letter to Auction, dated Friday, Feb 13.
Penalty: Notice of fines totaling $355,200, plus a 120-day shutdown.
Number of Allegation Counts: 59, dating to 2004.
Hearings Prior to Order: None.
120 day closure to the market that the entire fishing fleet uses? For what, you might ask? Did they do something yesterday or over the last week that would bring this about, making the fact that the timing, just as the fishing fleet is winning some arguments in the courts and gathering support in Congress, can be argued to be coincidental?
No, not at all. This vindictive closure is based on alleged violations going back 5 years. Violations that haven’t even generated a previous hearing but are suddenly so important that a 120 day closure during a time when the NMFS has unsuccessfully tried two other methods to shut down the areas fishery but has been rebuffed in the courts.
Desperate people take desperate measures. Apparently the NMFS desire to shut down the New England fishery is far more desperate than anyone had suspected. Somebody appears to have control issues that they maybe should be addressing privately rather than dragging an entire industry and its customers through the mud over.
I’m sure there are a lot of good therapists in New England.
Information from this article and others in the Gloucester Daily Times was used to write this post.
