Tag Archives: Scituate town pier
Scituate’s tribute to fishermen should be wake-up call of industry’s troubles
It is often said, “All politics is local;” a phrase that is often associated with former Speaker of the House from Massachusetts Tip O’Neil. The phrase is appropriate for the re-dedication of the Scituate town pier on Friday, June 24. The event, hosted by the Town of Scituate and The Scituate Harbor Cultural District, not only recognized the extensive renewal of the pier and the public servants that shepherded the project through the political funding process, but importantly also recognized the fishing families that make their living by operating the small fishing businesses that remain in Scituate. Sadly, there are only three groundfish boats in Scituate these days. As Mirarchi explained, the law that protected the industry from foreign vessels has become the biggest challenge to the fishing industry. “In reality, fishermen are challenged more by an inflexible regulatory system than by a scarcity of fish,” he said. “We have transitioned from a no-holds-barred regime prior to 1976 to a cap and trade system where every pound of catch is counted and is deducted from an annual allocation.” In other words, overregulation is killing the local fishing industry. Read the article here 16:10
