A New Bedford fishing magnate who pleaded guilty to multiple charges is expected to report to prison Monday to begin his sentence. Carlos Rafael — also known as “The Codfather” — will serve about four years on charges of smuggling, falsifying documents and evading fishing quotas. He’ll also have to serve three years’ probation and pay fines of up to $200,000. link 10:03
NILS STOLPE: The New England groundfish debacle (Part IV): Is cutting back harvest really the answer?
While it’s a fact that’s hardly ever acknowledged, the assumption in fisheries management is that if the population of a stock of fish isn’t at some arbitrary level, it’s because of too much fishing. Hence the term “overfished.” Hence the mandated knee jerk reaction of the fisheries managers to not enough fish; cut back on fishing. What of other factors? They don’t count. It’s all about fishing, because fishing is all that the managers can control; it’s their Maslow’s Hammer. When it comes to the oceans it seems as if it’s about all that the industry connected mega-foundations that support the anti-fishing ENGOs with hundreds of millions of dollars a year in “donations” are interested in controlling. Read the article here
