Lobster, urchin fishery gear conflicts increasing

Gear conflicts between lobster fishermen and sea urchin draggers appear to be increasing this year in the Lubec area, with some lobster fishermen urging that the urchin season should begin later in the year after traps are taken up.

Lobster fisherman Scott Emery of Eastport says the problem has been ongoing for a number of years, with lobster fishermen losing traps to the draggers, which he believes are destroying lobsters, too. "At $60 a trap you can't afford to lose too many." He notes that one year he lost about 30 traps off the Eastport breakwater at one time. "That's a lot of gear to lose in one stretch."

He says one can't leave lobster gear in Cobscook Bay above Shackford's Head, and this year in the Lubec Narrows the urchin fishermen began dragging while there were still lobster traps there. "They just don't give a damn. They tow right through it," says Emery, who has now brought his traps ashore. "They wouldn't give them a break to haul their traps."

Another lobster fisherman, Dale Griffin of Whiting, says a dozen urchin fishermen "were dragging right down through" the traps near West Quoddy Head. He got back what he could but ended up losing four or five traps. "Some lost a lot more gear," he notes, adding that he took his traps out of the area. "You either got to move them or lose them," he says. "It's too bad to lose them traps for $70 a pop."

Both Emery and Griffin believe the urchin season should begin later, either in the middle of November or the first of December, when the scallop season opens. They note that fishermen are catching lobsters in this area later in the fall the past few years.

Urchin fisherman Milton Chute of Lubec says draggers "try to avoid them all you can," since they could face a fine for molesting traps. He comments, "I don't believe anybody would do it on purpose."

Chute notes that it's "a bad year for egging," so fishermen have started dragging in the Narrows earlier. "They wait for them to move their traps first," he says.

If the season started later, he notes that the urchin fishermen would end up fishing more during the bad winter weather. Fishing the early urchin season last year, he missed only two of the 45 days that fishermen are allowed to drag. If he had fished the late season he would have missed many more days. He also points out that fishermen receive a higher price for urchins in the fall.

Chute believes that the urchin fishery will not be around for many more years. He notes that this year he has taken in $5,000 less during the first three weeks than he did last year and estimates he may end up taking in $20,000 to $30,000 less by the end of the season. His last day out he had only five totes of urchins. "That's not good."

The Maine Marine Patrol has received two complaints from lobster fishermen about sea urchin draggers interfering with their gear off West Quoddy Head this season, according to Lt. Alan Talbot. Although the lobster fishermen who complained felt that the Marine Patrol had not been patrolling in the area, Talbot notes that the local warden aboard the Sentinel boarded 15 draggers the day before the complaint was made.

Last year, there also were some complaints about gear conflicts in the Lubec Narrows, but Talbot notes that the Marine Patrol has to prove a dragger intentionally got into the lobster gear. "It's very difficult to prove," he says, adding, "We wouldn't shy away from prosecuting if we thought we could prove it."

Urchin fishermen argue that they have only 45 days to fish, while lobster fishermen can fish 365 days. "They have to share the bottom," says Talbot. "They're each trying to make a portion of their living."

Talbot notes that there are always conflicts between mobile and fixed gear fishermen. In previous years, gear conflicts occurred between scallop draggers and lobster fishermen, until the opening of the scallop season was moved to December 1.

Department of Marine Resources Deputy Commissioner David Etnier says there is no consideration at present by the DMR to consider moving the start of the urchin season later, in order to avoid the gear conflicts. The season is set around the highest market demand, which is in September and around Christmas. Etnier says, "The two fisheries have to work around each other. There's bound to be some conflict there."