[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 142 (Tuesday, October 4, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: October 4, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                NEW ENGLAND FISHERMEN FACE RESTRICTIONS

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                         HON. MARTIN T. MEEHAN

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, October 4, 1994

  Mr. MEEHAN. Mr. Speaker, I submit a recent article in the esteemed 
and distinguished Enterprise Sun, a daily newspaper that serves with 
great credit and distinction the communities of Marlborough and Hudson 
in my congressional district, on the serious problems facing our New 
England fishermen.
  The Enterprise Sun describes what is taking place all over the world 
in the fishing industry, largely the result of overfishing, and 
suggests the possible substitution of other fish species for New 
England's beloved haddock and cod, pending the replenishment of scarce 
fish off Georges Bank.
  Mr. Speaker, I see what is happening in Canada as an omen of the 
trying times ahead for our New England fishermen and their families. 
Boat seizures, confrontations at sea, even gunfire, smaller and smaller 
fish hauls, a growing number of bankruptcies--all these are problems 
facing us today, not tomorrow, and that is why I urge my colleagues to 
consider and enact needed legislation to bring relief to our sorely 
beset New England fishing industry.
  The magnitude of the problem is well evidenced by what is happening 
in Canada. Canadian catches of cod in 5 years, 1988 to 1993, dwindled 
by an astonishing 90 percent. This big drop, a result of overfishing 
and a shift in climate cooling of local fishing waters, has resulted in 
a Canadian embargo on cod fishing. This ban has just about devastated 
Newfoundland, one of Canada's poorest provinces and one that is greatly 
dependent upon the fishing and canning industry.
  The future, indeed, looks bleak for some 30,000 fishing industry 
workers in Newfoundland affected by Canada's moratorium on cod fishing. 
Even the more optimistic in the industry doubt that the cod will come 
back in any great numbers in this century.
  It is quite understandable that our New England fishermen are not at 
all happy with Federal proposals to close down Georges Bank, long the 
favorite fishing ground for maritime nations with its almost endless 
supplies of cod and haddock, or so it seemed. Government subsidies and 
easy financing, here and abroad, have encouraged bigger, better, and 
more hungry fishing fleets to the point that there are more than a 
million trawlers roaming the world's oceans for fish.
  Mr. Speaker, it is also quite understandable that quotas also make 
fishermen unhappy, but quotas are around and will continue to increase 
drastically with so many fishing boats closing in on dwindling and 
disappearing fish stocks. Our fishermen have cause for concern with 
what is happening in Canada and what happened in Alaska after quotas 
were set on halibut. With 5,000 or so fishing boats going after 
halibut, it now takes only 36 hours to catch the fish limit in Alaska. 
A much smaller fishing fleet just 20 years ago worked four months 
before reaching today's halibut limit.

  The material from the Enterprise Sun follows:

       There is growing uncertainty in the fishing industry with 
     ever more gloomy reports and studies showing that the oceans 
     of the world have just about been fished out to their limits. 
     Now there are intensifying Federal pressures to close down 
     Georges Bank or at least limit catches of cod, haddock and 
     flounder in the once-rich fishing ground until stocks are 
     replenished.
       Bigger boats, highly technical and sophisticated gear to 
     locate and net fish, and ever growing fishing fleets equipped 
     with icing and freezing ships, the so-called fish factories 
     at sea--all these have contributed to the decline of marine 
     life, resulting in growing confrontations at sea, including 
     gunfire, between fishing nations.
       The decline in the world's fish stocks indicate that 
     stricter limits on fishing, far beyond the tentative American 
     and Canadian steps now under discussion, are inevitable. 
     Already, the decline in fishing hauls has meant rising 
     wholesale prices.
       Prices for fresh North Atlantic haddock and cod have been 
     on the rise for months. The trend is likely to continue 
     indefinitely as limits on catches are forced on the industry. 
     In the meantime, supermarkets are trying to hold their 
     customers, price-wise, with imports of frozen haddock and cod 
     from Norway and Iceland. That's why you're seeing more 
     ``previously frozen'' or ``thawed for your convenience'' 
     signs lately at your supermarket fish counter.
       Over the years, fish prices have kept pace with the 
     increased consumption of fish. George Berkowitz, owner of 
     Legal Sea Foods, in his cookbook recalls the beginning of his 
     business in 1969 when haddock was selling at 15 cents a pound 
     wholesale.
       Back in those days, I was working in Washington and our 
     family had to manage on frozen cod and haddock. During 
     regular visits home to Marlborough, my mother-in-law, bless 
     her, would greet us with whole baked haddock for our first 
     evening meal, even though she was never particularly fond of 
     fish. I also have fond memories of the late Al Wellen, fish 
     and meat expert and noted Frico and Rotary chef, going out of 
     his way, against store policy, to put aside a whole haddock 
     for me to take back to Washington on ice. For good reason, 
     Al's employer had decided that there was more money in 
     haddock fillets than in the whole fish. I can understand 
     why--whole haddock was then 29 cents a pound retail.
       Today, inexpensive fish is a thing of the past. It's quite 
     possible here in New England, with its special fondness for 
     haddock and cod, that there will be new and strange species 
     of fish to replace these dinner favorites. Pollock, hake and 
     cusk, now mostly ignored, soon may be more in demand with 
     appropriate price increases.
       Farm-raised fish products, such as salmon, trout, catfish 
     and mussels are showing steady market growth. Promotional 
     hype could soon make some new species sufficiently popular to 
     excite New England palates. Monkfish, once a throwaway fish, 
     is a good example of how tastes can be changed by the right 
     promotion.

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