Despite all the bad news facing Maine’s seafood industry, the silver lining will be industry-led initiatives to sustain it, said Department of Marine Resources Commissioner Pat Keliher during a casual meeting with local fishermen at the Boothbay Town Office Tuesday night.

State Rep. Bruce MacDonald (District 61) introduced Keliher.

The purpose of the meeting was to address questions about the lobster industry, elver fishing, licensing, the shrimp fishing season and a host of other issues.

Sarah Cotnoir, Deirdre Gilbert and Jerry Stockwell from the Department of Marine Resources participated in the meeting, as well as about 15 people who arrived to talk with the commissioner.

“I can’t give anybody here an elver license,” Keliher said, starting off the meeting before questions were asked. This prompted the reply, “well, there goes half your audience,” which generated some laughter.

This exchange led Keliher and participants into a discussion about why new elver licenses have not been issued, with the exception of licenses issued to members of the Passamaquoddy tribe. Elvers, also known as glass eels, are the young of the American eel. This year, they sold for more than $2,000 per pound.

Stockwell, the director of external affairs at the department, said new licenses would not benefit anyone if there is no season next year. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration are currently working on a coastal stock assessment to determine whether the American eel should be listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act.

Keliher said there is not enough information to make that determination at this point.

“It’s really up in the air,” he said of next year’s season. He added that other states along the eastern seaboard want to shut down elver fishing in Maine completely, primarily due to costs associated with catching people who are fishing illegally.

Historically high prices have caused a surge of illegal fishing in Maine. Keliher said his department is working with the Fish and Wildlife Service and other agencies in a collaborative effort to stem illegal fishing. For example, he said they wrote more than 30 summonses for illegal fishing in one fish way this year.

Keliher said he opposes listing elvers as an endangered species, because the “all or nothing” measure would have negative impacts on the industry. Keliher said he does not see a shortage of elvers, and researchers should instead focus on studying the adult eel population. He estimates the elver industry this year is worth more than double last year’s total revenue.

Even with pressure from southern states to shut the fishery down, Keliher said the department will have a “handful” of licenses available next year, offered through a lottery. Those with a dip net license this year would qualify for a fyke net license next year, which in turn would open up available licenses for dip net use. He said the public should find out whether the American Eel will be listed under the Endangered Species Act by October.

While a limited number of elver fishermen are benefitting from the strong demand and high prices, the shrimp fishery is looking bleak. Keliher said stock assessments show a 30 percent decrease from last year’s catch and Maine shrimp is an overfished fishery.

Actions taken now will not turn the fishery around immediately, but Keliher said survey work and scientific research will act as an investment for the future.

As part of a solution to improve shrimp fishing conditions, he suggested there should be state by state fishing and gear quotas. Certain weeks could be allotted to trap hauling and dragging. Keliher stressed it was important for those working in the industry to become involved.

There will be a number of public hearings on revamping the shrimp industry, to address issues such as unutilized licenses and inaccuracy in dealers’ catch reports. Missing, late and updated reports on the amounts dealers bring in have resulted in the department creating stricter rules; Keliher said weekly reports must be reported to the department by Friday or dealers face certain restrictions.

He said buy-in from fishermen and others in the industry will be an essential part of the fishery study to develop accountability measures and to prevent overfishing while sustaining industry.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission will hold a meeting about shrimp fishing at the Holiday Inn by the Bay in Portland on Thursday, May 24.

Lobster, bait fish and aquaculture

Meeting participants also focused a significant portion of the discussion on the lobster fishing industry; this discussion segued into the condition of bait fisheries, such as river herring and menhaden. Keliher also touched on a participant’s question about aquaculture.

He said a significant number of applications for aquaculture operations in the state show increased interest and future potential. However, concerns over natural habitats, pollution, beaches, shorefront property and other issues need to be addressed and considered before applications can be approved. Keliher said the department is very supportive of aquaculture but needs to be more user-friendly.

Blue-back herring and alewives, anadromous fish collectively known as river herring, are an important species for fishermen, lobstermen and conservationists alike. Currently, the fish are being considered for listing as threatened under the Endangered Species Act.

“Do you have any good news at all?” said local fisherman Robbie Begin, which elicited some laughter from the crowd.

Keliher said he opposes the listing and there are rivers in Maine, such as the Sabasticook that show significant numbers of migrating alewives.

Construction of dams and decades of industrial river pollution resulted in steep declines in the migration of these fish. In the 1970s, the Clean Water Act helped to restore rivers and the department, in collaboration with the other agencies and individual groups has worked to bring back healthy fish populations.

People working to restore fish passage over dams in Woolwich and Damariscotta Mills have said monitoring resulting from allowing limited harvests helps the fish population much more than a listing would. Keliher said state-wide efforts to conserve the fishery have been strong.

Fishermen are concerned about the limitations on the lobster industry, even though conservation efforts are strong. Boothbay Harbor lobsterman Mike Brewer said he would like to see the state allow lobster licenses to be transferable. Current law restricts licenses to those who have held licenses the previous year and to those younger generations of hopeful fishermen who have completed an apprentice program.

This year into next will see more meetings and developments in addressing a number of issues in the lobster industry, including latency. Some fishermen are buying the license so they will be able to renew the next year, yet are not out fishing.

“The governor believes in open access,” Keliher said. “But we also have to have limited entry for a sustainable fishery.”

If licenses could be sold, the fear is that prices would dramatically increase. Keliher again emphasized collaboration and input from those who work in the industry to find solutions. He said there will be several meetings on the issues facing the lobster industry in the coming months.

Marketing the Maine lobster

Significant declines in price prompted a state-wide effort to improve and sustain the lobster industry in Maine. That effort is still under way. Keliher said the Lobster Advisory Council has been tasked with marketing the Maine lobster. His impression is there is not enough money or public input.

Marketing professional John Suave, who Keliher said was instrumental in developing a plan for Maine blueberries, has been asked to help in this effort. Keliher said there needs to be a strong focus on supply and demand.

One fisherman, referring to the relationship between fishermen and dealers, said he felt like a “money factory” and that the money is going out of state. Processors in Canada are reaping the benefits, he said. “We need to process in Maine.”

Keliher agreed; however, he added the issue is larger than the dealers and processors here. The state needs to focus on placing value in lobster and expanding capacity.

Meetings

ASMFC Northern Shrimp Section, May 24 (1-4 p.m.)

New England Fisheries

Management Council,

June 19-21

Both meetings at:

Holiday Inn by the Bay

88 Spring Street, Portland

For more information, visit: www.asmfc.org