148 



by Canadian authorities or fishermen; and (3) boarding U.S. fishing vessels to en- 

 sure compliance with all U.S. laws with emphasis on fishing vessel safety regula- 

 tions. 



I am pleased to report that over the past five fishing seasons, including the one 

 just concluded, Coast Guard enforcement efforts have produced a continuous and 

 substantial improvement in all three elements, with significant benefits to both our 

 living marine resources and U.S. fishermen. 



With respect to preventing fishing incursions by Canadian fishing vessels into un- 

 disputed U.S. waters, several years ago we began a covert, seizure-based enforce- 

 ment program which resulted in five seizures of Canadian fishing vessels from 1989 

 through 1991. We believe that the firm seizure posture of several years ago con- 

 vinced the Canadian fishermen that the economic losses potentially resulting from 

 being caught fishing in U.S. waters far outweighed any possible gains. In 1992, we 

 instituted a high-visibility, multi-vessel enforcement presence along the A-B Line. 

 This approach nas been successful in deterring poaching; for example, we seized 

 only one Canadian vessel in 1992 and none this year. This current approach em- 

 ploys two 110' patrol boats during the height of the Dixon Entrance fishing season 

 versus the one patrol boat used previously and adds additional helicopter surveil- 

 lance support. During the Dixon Entrance Patrol, all three of Group Ketchikan's 

 110' patrol boats stage out of Coast Guard Base Ketchikan, with two boats patrol- 

 ling the A-B Line at any given time. The constant presence of Coast Guard patrol 

 boats along the A-B Line and in the disputed area seems to have convinced the Ca- 

 nadian fishermen that there is a very high probability of our detecting any fishing 

 incursions into U.S. waters. Where they previously pressed up against, if not across, 

 the line, they now typically leave a mile or more of "buffer between their fishing 

 activity and the line. 



Over the past several years, we have continually improved our interagency rap- 

 port with our Canadian enforcement counterparts. In 1991, the U.SVCanada Fish- 

 eries Enforcement Agreement entered into force. Undertaken to resolve fisheries 

 problems along the Gulf of Maine maritime boundary, this agreement facilitates en- 

 forcement in other boundary areas and promotes both compliance by fishermen and 

 coordination among fisheries law enforcement authorities from both countries. We 

 have conducted highly informative annual preseason meetings among all the U.S. 

 and Canadian agencies having an interest in the Dixon Entrance fisheries, including 

 the State Department, National Marine Fisheries Service, DFO, and the Royal Ca- 

 nadian Mounted Police (RCMP). Our positive rapport with the Canadian agencies 

 has allowed us periodic access to updated Canadian assessments of pressures on the 

 A-B Line likely to result from the various Canadian fisheries in Dixon Entrance. 

 This has allowed us to better position our patrol boats for maximum effectiveness. 

 In addition, DFO and the RCMP have increased their patrols in the disputed area 

 in an effort both to warn their own fishermen not to fish north of the A-B Line and 

 to discourage U.S. fishermen from fishing in the disputed area. This has contributed 

 to Canadian compliance while presenting a challenge of a different sort to U.S. fish- 

 ermen and to our patrol boats. 



Despite a generally cooperative and friendly attitude on the part of the Canadian 

 DFO personnel, the unyielding position of their government and the attendant polit- 

 ical and public pressures on their agency apparently constrain them to continue 

 their efforts to discourage U.S. fishermen from fishing in the disputed area. Several 

 times a season they manage to persuade a U.S. fisherman to cease fishing and to 

 proceed north of the A-B Line. Two such incidents this year were the only negatives 

 in a virtually "perfect" season in which we detected no Canadian fishing north of 

 the A-B Line and in which relations among fishermen and enforcement agencies on 

 both sides of the boundary were the best in recent memory. In order to counter the 

 efforts of the Canadian DFO to discourage our fisherman from exercising their right 

 to fish in the disputed area, our Coast Guard patrol boats patrol in the disputed 

 area, lending confidence to U.S. fishermen by our presence. In response to questions 

 from U.S. fishermen or reports of adverse DFO activity, both our patrol boats and 

 our Group operations center issue VHF-FM radio broadcasts apprising U.S. fisher- 

 men of their right to fish in the disputed area. We make it clear that we will dis- 

 f>atch a patrol boat to assist any U.S. vessel which is being harassed by Canadian 

 ishermen or pressured by Canadian enforcement authorities to cease fishing in the 

 disputed area. We also remind local U.S. fishermen's organizations of their mem- 

 bers' rights in the disputed area, both at the beginning of the fishing season and 

 whenever acquiescence with the Canadian demands suggests that some fishermen 

 may still be uninformed. Although we would like to see these incidents totally elimi- 

 nated, we ace pleased that their numbers have been diminishing. 



The increased respect for the A-B Line among Canadian fishermen in recent years 

 has enabled our patrol boats to spend additional time boarding U.S. fishing vessels 



