Rethinking MSC and West Coast Fisheries: Brad Pettinger Makes an Important Point
SEAFOODNEWS.COM [News Analysis] By John Sackton June 29, 2017
Last week we published an article attacking the role MSC plays in West Coast Groundfish, and many people told us we went too far. Susan Chambers and I agree.
When we saw the MSC press release highlighting the strides made in West Coast groundfish conservation, it came at the same time we were wrestling with the problem of low catch rates and the general difficulty of harvesters catching a substantial share of their allocations under current NMFS rules.
Unfortunately, I hastily conflated this problem with the MSC, and that was wrong. The MSC has been a very positive factor in West Coast Groundfish.
In his rightly angry response, Brad Pettinger, head of the Oregon Trawl Commission, made an important point:
Prior to the fishery being certified in 2014..
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