Trapped! Connecticut Lobstermen Facing Uncertain Future

In his novel The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald referred to Long Island Sound as: "The most domesticated body of salt water in the Western Hemisphere." Domesticated or not, it has become more and more difficult in the past few years for many lobster fishermen to make a living out of this "great wet barnyard" that provides Connecticut with its shoreline. The body of water that once sustained hundreds of Connecticut lobstermen now boasts only a handful, and those remaining few may also soon be gone, as a program designed to save the industry could become a casualty of tough fiscal times.

Once full of the large crustaceans, Long Island Sound's lobster industry has been reeling since a "die-off" in the late 1990's claimed much of the species' population.

While there are different theories about just why the lobsters are disappearing, including concerns over pollution and pesticides used to combat West Nile Virus, fisheries biologist Colleen Giannini said climate change could be the most likely culprit. "There isn't one smoking gun, but the component that comes up again and again is warmer waters," she said, "Long Island Sound is at the very southern end of a cold-water species."

Fewer lobsters have left the state's lobster fishing industry reeling.

"At one time we had 360 licensed fishermen in Connecticut," said Branford lobsterman Nick Crismale, "Now, I'm not sure we have 15 active."

Crismale has hundreds of traps piled-up at the Branford River Lobster Company, which sells Connecticut-caught lobsters to the public.

He says that those who have chosen to remain in the business have done so largely because of the V-Notch program; a conservation measure designed to replenish the stock of lobsters on Long Island Sound, while helping lobstermen stay profitable.

Under the program, when an egg-bearing female lobster is caught, she is "notched" in the tail so as to indicate her importance to conservation (and thereby inability to be legally caught), and then released back to the sea. Lobstermen are compensated at market price for every lobster notched. The program is also designed to educate students about marine conservation, by allowing for student participation on fishing boats notching the lobsters.

"It was to help a beleaguered industry," said Giannini, "The stock in Long Island Sound, and all of Southern New England, has been depleted. We are at record low levels."

Connecticut's lobstermen have been enthusiastic about the program. "The first year was a huge success, they notched over 103% of the target," said Giannini.

The program could be in danger of losing its funding, however. A memo released by Governor Jodi Rell's office on April 20th says the state is facing a budget shortfall of $7.95 billion for the next two fiscal years. Tough budgetary times have meant cuts to many state programs, and the V-Notch program has not been spared.

"All we have right now is the original $1 Million appropriation, and funds on that are getting low," said Giannini.

The lack of funding has coincided with a decline in actual V-Notching. Giannani said that since beginning the second year of the program in November, only 15% of the target has been notched. "It's not likely that without additional funding they will reach the year two target," she said.

The alternative to V-Notching is changing the "gage" size, which limits the number of lobsters that can be caught by setting a larger minimum size. This has been done in the past, and is intended to allow more lobsters to reach maturity. "We have to increase their size limit," said Toni Kerns of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, "They will lose harvest due to that size increase, but that may be just around what they lost if they were v-notching." Kerns said that lobstermen in Maine have been successfully v-notching for years on a voluntary basis.

Crismale, however, is less optimistic. "Their answer to everything is more regulation," he said, "without this program, the industry will probably go out."

If Connecticut's lobster industry disappears, Giannini said it would not be the first. "New Jersey once had a viable fishery, but that's gone now," she said.

Giannini said the issue of v-notch funding is currently under consideration by the appropriations committee, where an additional $300,000 is proposed to be added before or after the start of the next fiscal year in July. "There will be some very hard conversations this summer and fall," she said.

"The program has been a total success," said Crismale, "it makes no sense to get rid of something that is so valuable not only to this industry, but also resource conservation and education."

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Notched Lobster Image: AP Photo/Bob Child