January 22, 2001

Suit Challenges Feds under 1972 Clean Water Act

Portland, OR.-- Calling upon the USEPA to reverse 28 years of failure to comply with the Clean Water Act, a national coalition of environmental, conservation and industry organizations is seeking controls on pollution discharges from ships. In a letter sent earlier this month, the coalition demanded that EPA respond to a two-year old petition to regulate ships' ballast water discharges under the Clean Water Act. In the January 1999 petition, these groups asserted that under the Act, EPA must regulate ships’ ballast discharges in order to reduce the amount of exotic species invasions these discharges have caused. In their letter to EPA, the groups informed EPA that legal action would be initiated if EPA did not issue a formal response to the petition by January 31st.

The Great Lakes Sport Fishing Council a signatory to the petition.

"After impatiently waiting for EPA to respond to our petition, we have finally given up and sent them a letter which says in a nutshell that we are going to sue them for inaction on our petition" stated lead petitioner Northwest Environmental Advocates' Executive Director, Nina Bell to the GLSFC.

Regionally, the GLSFC has been frustrated with lobbying activities by members of the Lake Carriers Association and other commercial shippers who have worked overtime to hamper legislative efforts at the state level. Many Great Lakes Regional States have initiated legislation to control biological pollution by commercial shippers only to have their efforts hampered by these same shippers. Their response is the feds are better prepared to enact legislation to regulate ballast water discharges under the Constitution's Commerce clause, and the many individual laws proposed by the states would be unworkable. This position has been pursued by the shippers groups from the top down, knowing USEPA has been reluctant to act under the Clean Water Act.

Leading the charge in opposition to regional legislative proposals has been George Ryan, president of the Lake Carriers Association and one of the most vocal opponents to any state initiatives. Ironically, Ryan is a commissioner on the Great Lakes Commission representing Ohio, and has used his position and that of the Commission's outreach efforts including their monthly newsletter "Advisor" and their web sites to promote his lobbying efforts.

Bell goes on to say "It is critical that EPA take legal action now to stop the flood of exotic species which are threatening native fish and wildlife, and costing government and private business millions of dollars each year to control". At issue are the discharges of ballast water from ships. Used to stabilize ships, ballast water is the largest source of non-native, or "exotic," species in U.S. coastal waters. Ballast water is discharged into bays, estuaries, and the Great Lakes when cargo for export is loaded.

"Over 21 billion gallons of contaminated ballast water is released into U.S. waters each year," said Linda Sheehan, Director of the Pacific Region Office for the Center for Marine Conservation. "Ballast water is the major source of new species that are introduced into San Francisco Bay. On average we're seeing one new species in the Bay every 14 weeks." Studies in the Chesapeake and Mobile Bays have found cholera in ships' ballast water. "Exotic species invasions are having a devastating impact on native species, commercial fishing, and shellfishing, as well as clogging water intake pipes for power plants and drinking water treatment facilities," she continued.

"EPA's exemption for ballast water discharges is plainly inconsistent with the Clean Water Act, " said Craig Johnston, an attorney representing the petitioners. "Despite the serious economic and ecological threats exotic species pose, EPA's exemption has left ballast water completely unregulated throughout virtually all of the U.S. Federal courts prohibit agencies from dreaming up exemptions out of thin air," he added.

"A recent study of the federal government’s existing, voluntary ballast water requirements shows that they are essentially being ignored," concluded Ms. Sheehan. "More is needed to protect the health of our waters and the people and economies that depend on them."
If EPA grants the petition, states would be required to issue Clean Water Act discharge permits to ships. Permits would prohibit pollution discharges that could cause violations of water quality standards, including exotic species, oil, and toxic contaminants.

Petitioners include:
Northwest Environmental Advocates
Center for Marine Conservation
Great Lakes Sport Fishing Council (IL)
Asso. of California Water Agencies (CA) (represents over 90% of California’s water suppliers)
San Francisco BayKeeper (CA)
Chippewa-Ottawa Treaty Fishery Management Authority (MI)
People for Puget Sound (WA)
Great Lakes United (NY)
Dogwood Alliance (SC)
Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermens Associations (CA)
Coastal Waters Project (ME)
Friends of the San Juans (WA)
Quoddy Spill Prevention Group (ME)
DeltaKeeper (Sacramento, CA)
Ted Lempert, California Assembly Member

London, Nov 21 - Three Lake Erie Commercial Fishermen from Wheatley were fined $12,000 for not reporting accurately their harvest of fish. Steve Getty, Terry Taylor and Jerry Hatt, all of Wheatley, were each fined $4000 after pleading guilty in Chatham Provincial Offences Court. Each plead guilty to failing to report their fishing effort accurately on their Daily Catch Reports, contrary to Section 36(2) of the Ontario Fishing Regulations.

An investigation found that on May 16, 1999 the three fishermen landed 7116 kg (16,000 lbs) of yellow perch, of which 1354 kg. was later determined to be spoiled fish. The investigation determined that, based on the condition of the fish, the nets had been in the water for at least four days, not the four to forty-eight hours that had been reported by the fishermen on their Daily Catch Reports.

Sadly, Getty is president of the Ontario Commercial Fishers Association and apparently is setting standards and guidelines for others in Ontario's commercial fishing industry to follow.

Failed to Report Catch Of Perch

A Leamington, Ontario commercial fisherman was fined $4,000 , on September 28 after pleading guilty to two charges involving inaccurate reporting and improper packing of his yellow perch catch.

John Causarano was charged under Ontario Fisheries Regulations for failing to report accurately his catch of yellow perch on July 11, 2000 and not packing his catch of perch according to the conditions set out on his commercial fishing licence.

Causarano, captain of the commercial fishing vessel FAN-C III, reported landing 12 packers of yellow perch weighing a total of 600 kilograms (1350 lbs.) One of the conditions of a commercial fishing licence states that a packer of yellow perch must not weigh more than 55 kilograms. A subsequent investigation determined that Causarano had caught 16 packers of perch with a total weight of 905 kilograms and an average packer weight of 56.3 kilograms. The 305 kilograms (686 lbs.) of unreported yellow perch had a value of $2,013.

Too much work, not enough manpower, too Embarrassing

Ontario's Commercial fishermen will no longer be policing their own activities. Either it was too much work, or not enough manpower, or proving to be too embarrassing for the Ontario Commercial Fisheries' Association, the Ministry and others.

It appears there was too much criminal activity going on by their own their own members to adequately police the "Port Observer Program". They must have gotten word the Ministry was planning to take back the responsibility of enforcement and checking catches because of the illegal activities being found by the Ministry's enforcement officers - under reporting, failure to report, leaving nets in too long, and a disdain for and trashing the resources.

The Port Observer Program had long been perceived by the angling community as one of the most ludicrous management decisions by the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, and an embarrassment to their resource managers, enforcement officers and the Canadian Commissioners on the Great Lake Fishery Commission and others. The decision to end the program was reported by the Commercial's Association with these terse words: "The members of the Lake Erie commercial fishing industry unanimously adopted a resolution which relinquished the duties and responsibilities associated with the long established Cooperative Port Observer Program.

Tom Mayher, Chair North Coast Sport Fishing Council

An Ontario biologist writes that any changes to reduce the recreational angler catch or seasons will not improve Lake Erie management or conservation. In fact, they would be counterproductive because anglers are clearly the best partners in fisheries improvement that the MNR has.

Recreational anglers have demonstrated that they give back more to the resource than they take. It is believed that the current walleye population could be as low as 25 or 30 million. About 98% of walleyes caught in Canadian waters are caught by Commercial Fishermen. 72% of the Lake Erie walleyes were allocated to the Ontario Netters in 1999. Over all the netters harvest between 65% to 72% of all the walleyes each year.

The Total Allowable Catch is set so high that it hasn't been reached in the past I 0 years. This means that the netters can go all out and catch as many walleyes as they possibly can. Decreased walleye abundance in the 90's led to a decrease in sport fishing effort and a Commercial effort that has greatly increased. In 1998 they set a record 32,600 miles of gill nets and still couldn't catch their quota. The proportion of the total walleye population that has been allocated to the fisheries was much higher in the 90's than in the 80's. The TAC is set too high and we are killing too many walleyes. We are losing ground as is proven by a big drop in the number of walleyes in the lake today.

The Lake Erie Commission has announced a need to immediately begin discussions to protect walleye spawners and to reduce the harvest of immature walleyes in 2001.

A Pennsylvania Fish Commissioner wrote to Ontario Ministry of Fisheries and suggested that Ontario restrict the use of gill nets and explore options to other less lethal, less discriminate capture for the commercial fisheries allowing for the release of non target fish. He pointed out that gill nets have been banned on the south shore of the lake.

Two options that we might consider are a Co-op walleye-stocking program that includes the bordering states and Ontario. Secondly, the Commercial netters sell our fish, therefore a portion of that money should be put into replacing our Natural Resource----something like the loggers do in planting trees to replace the ones they cut down.

One hundred million walleye inhabited Lake Erie less than ten years ago. Today the population is estimated to be about twenty-five million. The sports fishermen have heard rumors for years that commercials were bi-catching 8lb plus walleyes, slicing them and deep-sixing them in the lake. They apparently didn't want these undesirable, low-income walleye included in their total allowable catch. It is common knowledge the commercials target 2½ to 3lb walleye for their premium market value. The percentage of Erie-harvested walleye by commercials tells us that they are unequaled in their profession in fish harvesting capabilities.

Now comes new evidence that the LakeErie commercials have been targeting 8 to 10 inch spike walleye for years. There apparently must be a lucrative sales market somewhere. The commercials admit that 73% of their August 2000 catch of walleye were yearlings. It appears that the Erie commercials are harvesting, targeting or destroying this fishery from the high, low and middle end of the resource. Couple these factors with the ecological changes in the lake, and we can see the total collapse of the fishery on the horizon. As a sports fisherman, are you going to stand by and allow this wanton destruction of this treasured resource to continue?

We must unite as sports fishermen lake wide and express our views loud and clear. The unethical commercial exploitation of our fisheries resource must cease.