Next year could be a critical year for commercial fishermen in New England.
That’s because regulators said last week at a meeting in Portsmouth, that they may institute sharp cuts in catch limits on a number of groundfish species, like cod and haddock.
John Williamson is a consultant in marine fisheries, with a long history of working with and in the fishing industry. He tells All Things Considered host Brady Carlson about what we know and don't know about the fish populations, how the proposed cuts could affect the fishing industry, and the appointment of a new Northeast administrator for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which develops policy on fishing issues.
Links: NHPR's Sam Evans-Brown recommended a number of articles as background reading on fishing issues:
Gulf of Maine Research Institute: Gulf of Maine Cod Face Tumultuous Times
WGBH: What really happened to Gulf of Maine cod
Environmental Defense Fund: Charting a Course for Gulf of Maine Cod, Part 1
TalkingFish.org: How Investing in Our Fisheries Pays Off