Bottomfishing ban proposed.

Byline: LARRY BACON The Register-Guard

PORTLAND - A federal fishery management panel took the unprecedented action Friday of recommending a ban on commercial bottomfishing in thousands of square miles of ocean along the West Coast starting in 2003.

The recommendation is simply the latest blow to an industry already staggering from previous restrictions that scientists say are necessary to protect a handful of severely overfished species.

"The death of 1,000 cuts" is how Pete Leipzig characterized the latest action. Leipzig is executive director of the Eureka, Calif.-based Fishermen's Marketing Association, which represents many of the 500 active trawlers in the three West Coast states.

Analysts estimated that the proposed restrictions would cut $39 million from the $155 million in economic benefits generated by bottomfish catches along the coast.

Bottomfish include dozens of species - sole, red snapper and various kinds of rockfish are familiar to consumers. Four troubled species are driving the new restrictions: boccacio and three kinds of rockfish - yelloweye, canary and darkblotched - that often are scooped up in the nets of fishermen who are targeting other bottomfish species.

Friday's action by the Pacific Fishery Management Council came in the wake of falling quotas and trip limits that have decreased commercial Oregon bottomfish landings by more than 60 percent since 1993.

The council's recommendations must be approved by the U.S. secretary of commerce.

They would close to trawlers more than 5,000 square miles of continental shelf waters off Northern California, Oregon and Washington for at least part of the year. That includes a smaller part of the continental shelf, which would be closed year-round.

Fishermen already are dealing with similar restrictions because of an emergency package of limits recommended by the council and implemented by the National Marine Fisheries Service earlier this month.

As part of the latest recommendations, vessels violating the restrictions could face fines, and multiple violations could lead to loss of fishing permits.

The council has ordered development work on a tracking program that would require vessels to carry transmitters and allow state and federal enforcement officers to track their locations by satellite. The cost of the system has been estimated as high as $7.5 million. How it would be funded has yet to be determined.

Fishing industry representatives at Friday's meeting said the proposed restrictions would send some boats further offshore to fish in deeper unrestricted waters. Others are expected to spend more time fishing in near-shore waters, perhaps in the same areas as sport boats.

Some trawlers face increased costs for fuel or heavier gear to fish in deeper water. And Leipzig said many West Coast fishermen are trying to decide if spending more money to catch such a limited number of fish is worth it.

"You can't sell your business," he said. "Who will buy a business you can't run?"

Bud Femling, a Sequim, Wash., trawler, said fishermen who don't have their boats and permits paid for just won't be able to make it financially with the new regulations. "There are going to be lots of guys who are going to go down," he said.

He and other fishermen said the decreased fishing opportunities and inability to provide a steady supply of fish for their buyers mean a loss of markets and a tougher time hiring deckhands.

"If they have a year-round job, these guys are making more money working at McDonald's than working on boats," Femling said.

Tom Morrison, an Astoria trawler, was one of several fishermen at the meeting who believe the regulations are based on faulty information about species abundance, even though biologists advising the council said they have the latest and best data available.

Morrison said ocean conditions have improved in recent years, and productivity is the best he's seen in 30 years.

But state and federal regulators say even though some species are abundant, catches must be limited by law to protect the fish in trouble.

Work continues by those in the industry and regulatory agencies on new kinds of gear that will do a better job of allowing fishermen to catch their target fish and keep the depleted species out of their nets.

"There is some sign of hope," Brookings trawler Brad Pettinger said. "It isn't all doom and gloom."

CAPTION(S):

The yelloweye rockfish is one of four troubled species driving the proposed new restrictions on bottomfishing along the West Coast.