Ben Martens, Maine Coast Fishermen's Association Executive Director, said fishermen have adhered and adapted to a lot in the last decade.

They have had to face more and more stringent catch limits, as well as a quickly disappearing groundfishing fleet.

Now, Martens said, they face a new problem.

The fish simply aren’t there.

“At the very basic levels, the industry is in a lot of trouble,” Martens said. “We are looking at very severe cuts in several key species.”

That includes a prospective 70 percent cut in cod limits for 2013.

"At the very basic levels, the industry is in a lot of trouble." Ben Martens, Maine Coast Fishermen's Association Executive Director

The Maine Coast Fishermen's Association follows the Maine groundfish industry closely, and works with fishermen on the ever-changing landscape of commercial groundfishing.

The groundfish industry’s trouble led the United States Department of Commerce to declare the Gulf of Maine to be in a state of emergency on September 12.

The Department of Commerce also declared the Gulf of Mexico, the Bering Sea and the Gulf of Alaska to be disaster areas, meaning Congress could appropriate up to $100 million to help areas plagued by fish species that are quickly disappearing, Martens said.

“Congress appropriated funds, so now it’s in their court,” he said.

One of the ways Congress could use money is by potentially buying back permits from fishermen.

The buy-out would pay fishermen for their permits if they agreed to stop fishing for groundfish. With fewer fishermen, more groundfish would be able to flourish, Martens said.

But, that plan is not without enormous drawbacks, he added.

Small boats, which along with mid-size crafts make up the bulk of the Maine fleet, operate as small businesses. At a time when job opportunities are going the way of the groundfish, losing fishermen would be hurtful to the local economy, Martens said.

“If they take a number of these fishermen off who rely on the industry, it might take some of the pressure off the fish stocks,” he said. “But, it could also potentially look like a consolidation of our fleet.

“We’ve lost well over 70 percent of our fleet since 1996, and that’s pretty scary.”

The Maine fleet now numbers just 44 boats that fish for groundfish, such as cod.

While the number of fish might increase, the effect of even fewer boats could be disastrous for local economies that rely on the industry. The buy-back program could alleviate the problem but it would need to be administered thoughtfully, especially considering the hit the Maine fleet has taken in the past, Martens said.

But, the problem still remains.

Where are the fish?

Factors such as climate change, pollution and a changing environment are being considered for the drop, but further research would need to be done, Martens said.

Martens said that previous estimates to the number of cod in the Gulf of Maine might have caused the recent drop-off in catch totals. 

“There just weren’t as many fish as we thought there were,” he said. “The numbers might not have been right for cod, and we don’t know why.”

Ben Bulkeley can be reached at 633-4620 or bbulkeley@boothbayregister.com. Follow him on Twitter: @BBRegisterBen.