and 120 million potinds, depending on the 

 effectiveness of the mesh regulation ^ich 

 delays the age of first capture. This 

 means that no matter what the level of ef- 

 fort, in terms of days fished, the annual 

 catch will remain the same, and any fish- 

 ing effort in excess of that required to 

 take this annuail amount will be uneconomic, 

 high-cost fishing. Thus, not only is any 

 fleet expansion not justified, but the pre- 

 sent effort of the Boston fleet co\ild be 

 cut substantially without impairing svp- 

 plies, and more profitable operations 

 would result. 



The ocean perch fishery in the Gulf 

 of Maine has stabilized at a level of about 

 9,000 pounds per day fished, and is cjypable 

 of supporting a fishery for medium and sireH 

 trawlers. The large trawlers, however, 

 must go to the more distant grounds, >*iere 

 productivity levels are higher, in order to 

 ins\ire heavy landings. These distant banks- 

 the G\ilf of St. Lawrence, the Nova Scotia 

 Banks, and the Grand B^nk - are also in the 

 process of stabilization. It can be ex- 

 pected that when they do stabilize, they 

 will do so at a level of some 20,000 pounds 

 per dsy fished, ^ich will be high enough 

 to support a large trawler fishery. On 

 these banks, however, the New England 

 trawlers face competition with those of 

 Canada and, more recently of Russian facto- 

 ry ships. Thus, too intensive a fishery 

 could lead to lower levels of productivity 

 and consequent higher-cost operations. 



Without an expansion in the market for 

 cod, particularly in fresh form, no in- 

 crease in New England cod landings can be 

 expected. Cod s\Q)ports a medium-sized 

 trawler fishery which fishes primarily for 

 the species and accounts for about hsdf the 

 annual landings. The remainder is landed 

 by large trawlers fishing primarily for 

 haddock and ocean perch. 



Pollock, c\jsk and white hake are 

 groundfish taken incidentally to the had- 

 dock and ocean perch fisheries. The com- 

 bined landings of the three are minor com- 

 pared to those of the two major groundfish 

 species and will remain so since the market 



for them is a restricted one. Red hake has 

 been, and will continue to be, one of the 

 major species of the industrial fishery of 

 southern New England. 



The whiting fishery has, in recent 

 years, grown in importence in New England. 

 This is due chiefly to the opening up of a 

 market in the Midwest amd to the increased 

 use of whiting in the industrial fishery. 

 Whether the recent substantial catches can 

 be sustained depends upon biological s\ir- 

 veys to determine if commercial quantities 

 are available in offshore areas other than 

 those currently being exploited, 



3, Costs And Eamingb 



The New England groundfish "industry," 

 is, in reality, a group of industries, each 

 built v^Don a particular species. The had- 

 dock industry is centered in Boston; the 

 ocean perch industry' is centered in 

 Gloucester and the Maine ports of Portland 

 and Rockland. 12 tt/ For this reason, it is 

 necessary to analyze each industry sepa- 

 rately. 



The production units of the Boston 

 haddock fleet - the trawlers - differ in 

 almost every essential respect: size, 

 horsepower, gear,ari particularly mana- 

 gerial skill. These differences work to 

 determine the profitability or lack of it 

 for these vessels, but their effects are 

 complex, interdependent, and mutually re- 

 lated. Thus, the general proposition "the 

 larger the vessel, the greater the likeli- 

 hood of its being profitable" is subject 

 to the exception of many Boston large- 

 trawlers which are, in fact, very unprofit- 

 able. 



The Boston trawlers examined generally 

 face the prospects of falling receipts. 

 Though expenditures have auLso been gener- 

 ally decreasing, they are more rigid than 

 receipts and hence have decreased at a 

 slower rate. The biggest item of cost - 

 labor - is fixed rigidly at 60 percent of 

 vessel receipts less certain joint expenses. 

 The "broker" arrangement, by which the 

 crew is guaranteed $12 per man per day 



For exan^le. 



12V This is true also in New England fisheries other than groundfish 

 the scallop industry is centered in New Bedford, and the industrial fishery is the main 

 industry of Southern New England ports. 



90 



