Lobster catches hit lowest level since 2009 as fishermen grapple with climate change and whale regulations

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — America’s lobster fishing business is in trouble, battling challenges including a changing ocean environment and new rules designed to protect the rare whales.

Maine fishermen’s catch to decline by more than 5% in 2023 the year beforeA total of 93.7 million pounds of lobster were caught, the lowest figure since 2009, according to data released Friday by the Maine Department of Marine Resources. Dave Cousens, a fisherman on Creehaven Island and former president of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association, said the figure tracks with the up and down year lobster fishermen have experienced.

Cousens said the cost of feed and fuel decreased somewhat, but the catch volume did not match other recent years. Maine lobster volumes have fallen from a high of 132.6 million pounds in 2016, although the figure for the year 2023 was still much higher than what most fishermen produced in 2000. Total catch in 2023 was the second consecutive year of decline.

Cousens said fishermen who participate in Maine’s lifeblood lobster industry are unsure about what the future holds, as lobsters are increasingly moving north as the waters warm.

“We have gone down steadily from 132 million. We’re going back downhill,” Cousens said. “There’s no doubt that climate change is affecting it.”

Massachusetts fishermen, Rhode Island And other Northeastern states also harvest lobsters with traps from the cold waters of the Atlantic Ocean, but in normal years about 80% come to dock in Maine.

The price of dock lobster has fluctuated up and down in recent years, but has remained fairly consistent for consumers. The price at the docks rose to more than $6.70 per pound in 2021 and fell to less than $4 per pound in 2022. Last year, it was a little less than $5 per pound, and the total catch was valued at more than $460 million. According to data released on Friday, the dock. This is the third highest figure in the last four years.

“The prices Maine lobstermen received last year are a reflection of the continued strong demand for this iconic seafood,” said Maine Marine Resources Commissioner Patrick Kelliher.

The fishermen of the state have been a long legal battle Dispute with the federal government over regulations designed to protect whales, which are vulnerable to entanglement in fishing gear. Fishermen argue the proposed rules are so strict they could put them out of business, but conservationists say they are necessary to save the whales, of which there are fewer than 360 left in the world. A right whale was found dead near Massachusetts this winter Signs of engagement in main gear,

The way climate change is affecting the industry is a subject of ongoing scientific study. Southern New England lobster industry has collapsed as oceans warm and Maine sinks 2022 second hottest year on record,

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