U.S. Senators Olympia J. Snowe (R-Maine) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) announced today that they have secured $2 million in funding in the Commerce Justice State Conference Report to support Maine lobstermen as they prepare to comply with proposed requirements of the Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Plan (ALWTRP). The plan was put in place to protect the endangered North Atlantic right whales and Gulf of Maine humpback whales, and forthcoming updates to the plan will likely phase in implementation of “whale safe” groundline for a large portion of the Maine lobster fishery.
“We are pleased to announce this essential funding for the Groundline Exchange Pilot Program to help the lobster industry comply with the forthcoming requirements to use whale-safe floating fishing line,” said Snowe and Collins. “While the ban on the use of floating line would afford greater protection to whales, it could threaten the economic survival of Maine's independent lobster businesses. These rules could potentially be a reasonable approach to allow Maine’s essential lobster industry and whales to coexist, but we must ensure that our lobstermen have the assistance they need to comply with these new regulations.”
In order to meet the requirements of the proposed whale plan, Maine lobstermen would need to replace their existing floating line with "whale safe" groundline. The Maine Lobstermen's Association estimates that a typical lobsterman fishing 800 traps currently spends an average of $500 to $1,000 annually on rope. The new whale requirements will initially result in a 10 to 20 fold increase, with the cost of converting a full-time lobster business estimated to be $10,000. The lobster industry will need to further absorb the cost of maintaining this whale safe gear in future years. Since the expected life of the whale safe gear is about half that of the rope currently fished, the annual cost of rope will rise to $3,000, an average three fold increase.
The Maine lobster industry is comprised of nearly 6500 "owner-operated" businesses. In 2004, Maine's lobster industry landed over 63 million pounds valued at over $250 million. The lobster industry is the backbone of Maine's fishing industries which, as a whole, are responsible for 26,000 year-round jobs sustaining nearly $1 billion in economic activity.
The Groundline Exchange Pilot Program was proposed by the Gulf of Maine Lobster Foundation (GOMLF) as a way to ensure that Maine lobstermen are able to reasonably comply with the new requirements of ALWTRP. GOMLF, founded by members of the lobster industry, will coordinate a Maine groundline exchange program by enabling lobstermen to purchase "whale-safe" rope in exchange for their existing groundline. There is strong support for this program among the lobster industry, Maine's Department of Marine Resources and the conservation community because it will significantly reduce the risk of large whale entanglement by providing a mechanism for lobstermen to convert to whale safe gear and help offset the enormous expense to the industry.