Ayotte: 'NOAA Is Not Balancing Its Own' Fishing Standards

Submitted by the office of U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte 

With New Hampshire fishermen having seen a 78 percent cut in their fishing quotas for Gulf of Maine cod, U.S. Senator Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) pressed Thursday for answers about what steps the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) plans to take to help sustain the state’s fishing industry in the future – especially given the agency’s past refusal to approve interim measures that set catch limits at levels that would allow the industry survive.

At a Commerce Committee hearing Thursday focusing on the nomination of Dr. Kathryn Sullivan to serve as the next NOAA administrator, Ayotte noted that NOAA guidelines stipulate that the agency must take into account the impact of federal catch share limits on fishing communities when it sets quotas – and she emphasized that NOAA needs to do a better job of adhering to its own standard.

“I can’t think of a business that can go with a 78 percent cut on their quotas,” said Ayotte, who earlier this week announced her support of a lawsuit New Hampshire recently joined that challenges both the basis for and the scope of onerous catch limits. “I hope that we can find a resolution that allows our noble fishermen and women to continue fishing in New Hampshire and throughout New England.”

Ayotte highlighted the urgency of the situation by explaining to Dr. Sullivan that the number of active fishing boats in the state has gone from 26 in 2010, to 14 this year, with only four out fishing this past summer. 

“I’ve seen the devastation [of federal catch share levels] to our fishermen. And one of the concerns I have is that NOAA is not balancing its own standards,” said Ayotte. “If you look at the national standards, you have ‘National Standard 1’ that focuses on conservation of our fish stocks. But you also have ‘National Standard 8,’ which focuses on making sure that we are taking into account the importance of fishing communities and providing for the sustained participation of such communities. I don’t see how you can cut someone’s quota 78 percent and not grant interim measures, how that is really a fair balance of those two standards.” 

By law, according to the National Standards of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, NOAA is directed to sustain both fish stocks and fishing communities. Under National Standard 8: “Conservation and management measures shall, consistent with the conservation requirements of this Act (including the prevention of overfishing and rebuilding of overfished stocks), take into account the importance of fishery resources to fishing communities in order to (A) provide for the sustained participation of such communities, and (B) to the extent practicable, minimize adverse economic impacts on such communities.”

In January, the Commerce Department rejected a request by Ayotte and fellow members of the New England congressional delegation to approve interim measures for Gulf of Maine cod and haddock that would have set the 2013 Annual Catch Limits at levels that would allow the industry to survive. As a result, the New England Fisheries Management Council was forced to approve unprecedented cuts that decreased the overall quota for Gulf of Maine cod by 78 percent for the years 2013 to 2015.

Ayotte invited Dr. Sullivan to New Hampshire to meet “these people who have worked incredibly hard, who are being put out of business, so you can put a face to the individuals and families who are being affected right now by the catch shares rule and the way that it’s being implemented.” Sullivan said she would look forward to such an opportunity.

Senator Ayotte also questioned Dr. Sullivan about NOAA’s efforts to improve the science behind measuring fish stocks to ensure accurate measurements.

As a member of the Commerce Committee, Senator Ayotte has repeatedly pushed back against what she has described as flawed catch share policies that put New Hampshire's small boat fishermen at a disadvantage. In January, she introduced the Saving Fishing Jobs Act of 2013, which aims to level the playing field for independent small fishermen by scrapping one-size-fits-all federal catch share programs if they result in significant job loss within a fishery, and putting management control back in the hands of fishermen, who have a vested interest in maintaining fish stocks.