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Commission discusses Cape Cod Bay whiting area and fixed-gear free zone; staff to analyze participation
Summary
Commissioners debated whether the Cape Cod Bay whiting small-mesh trawl area and an associated fixed‑gear‑free zone remain necessary given anecdotal reports of little current trawl activity; DMF staff will assemble data and report at an upcoming industry roundtable and the MLA weekend.
Commissioners and DMF staff discussed the Cape Cod Bay whiting area, a state‑ and federal‑waters small‑mesh trawl zone established to restore a historical whiting fishery, and an existing fixed‑gear‑free subarea that requires removal of lobster gear during the whiting season.
Why it matters: The fixed‑gear free zone was intended to reduce conflicts after lobster-trap proliferation limited trawl access; commissioners asked whether current effort justifies continuing the closure and requested data to quantify present fishing activity.
Jared reviewed the history: the green area on the map is an upper-Cape whiting area open Sept. 1–Nov. 20 for small-mesh trawling, approved by the New England Fishery Management Council and NOAA Fisheries when federal restrictions were eased for low groundfish bycatch. A red hashed area within that zone is a fixed‑gear‑free zone that required lobster gear removal to permit trawling. DMF and council action was intended to restore historical access for Provincetown and Gloucester trawlers.
Commissioner Suki Sawyer asked why the fixed‑gear‑free zone remains in place when she hears reports that little whiting fishing currently occurs there. Bill Amaru and others responded that fleet attrition and ghost gear on the bottom have reduced fishing activity despite some continued participation by a few vessels. DMF staff and commissioners agreed to assemble data on current effort and gear presence and to revisit the issue at the commission’s industry roundtable and the MLA weekend.
No regulatory changes were proposed at the meeting; DMF staff said they will provide participation and gear‑presence data to the commission for further discussion.
