Fishermen look to co-op 



(Continued fi-om page 1 ) 

 interview. And as the John Duke chugged by a 

 dozen other boats. Capt. Tillett's face showed dis- 

 gust at the price he was getting for shrimp — about 

 half as much as at the same time last year. 



Low prices and soaring expenses threatened to 

 sink some shrimpers. Capt. Joe McGowan of Engel- 

 hard spent all winter making a 104 foot long Navy 

 rescue boat into a trawler named the Rendezvous. 

 But after only a few weeks of shrimping, Capt. 

 McGowan couidn't clear enough to keep his thirsty 

 two-engine Rendezvous running. All he could do 

 was pay the $15 per day fee to store his boat and 

 wait for the price of shrimp to rise. 



Shrimpers disagreed with reports that 1974 

 marked a bumper year for the shrimp crop. "We're 

 only catching a handful more than we did last 

 year." Capt. Tillett said. "Soon as we came out at 

 the end of July, there were alot of shrimp. But after 

 about two weeks into the season, the catch dropped 

 back to about normal," the skipper said. 



A variety of reasons were given for the sudden 

 drop from last year's banner shrimp prices. Among 

 them were a market glutted with this year's 

 bumper crop which hit while freezers remained 

 full of last year's catch and the small size of the 

 shrimp in this year's landings. 



Low prices and high costs caught many shrimp- 

 ers in a cost-price squeeze that may hurt more in 

 the future than today. According to James A. 

 McGee, UNC Sea Grant advisory agent from East 

 C rolina University, many shrimpers were being 

 forced to use all their income just to meet day-to- 

 aay expenses. "Once a vessel wears out, they're 

 back to zero," he said. 



For this season, many of the shrimpers had to 

 settle for what marketplace dealers were willing 

 to pay. But Capt. Tillett and about 200 other north- 

 eastern North Carolina commercial fishermen 

 have taken action they hope will mean bigger 

 profits in the future. With help from the UNC Sea 

 Grant Program, the N.C. Rural Development 

 Fund and the Coastal Plains Regional Commis- 

 sion, the fishermen organized a cooperative. 



By being a member of the Sound and Sea Fisher- 

 men's Association, as the cooperative is called, a 

 fisherman can pool his money with that of others to 

 buy nets, fuels and other supplies at cheaper bulk 

 rates. More importantly, the association is trying 

 to help fishermen become their own dealers. 



Here is an example of how the Association hopes 

 to help members sell their catch directly to the 

 wholesale market: 



Capt. Tillett and his sons, Billy Carl, 23, and 

 Craig, 13, and deckhand, Richard Scarborough, 

 19, dump nets bulging with shrimp, fish and crabs 

 onto deck, sort the shrimp and bring their catch to 

 Engelhard. 



There, the fishermen's association owns a hand- 



Capt. Moon Tillett (left) of Wanchese saw the price 

 of shrimp plunge to 1948 levels this year. At the 

 same time, costs for fuel, food and other essentials 

 had doubled from last year, leaving he and hun- 

 dreds of other fishermen caught in a severe cost- 

 price squeeze. His son, Craig, 13 (right) is a mem- 

 ber of his father's crew. Craig intends to follow in 

 Dad's footsteps and be a fisherman too. 



ling plant for shrimp which is managed by 

 Charles Equils. Capt. Tillett's shrimp are unloaded 

 onto the dock and dumped onto a large table where 

 women and young people crowd around, racing 

 to see who can flip off shrimp heads the fastest. 



Headed shrimp are dumped into a vat of water 

 for washing. A conveyor belt carries the shrimp 

 into the next room where a machine sends them 

 down a chute, separating the shrimp by size. Next 

 they are packed in ice in 50 pound cardboard boxes 

 and stored in a large freezer. 



The shrimp brought into Engelhard are sold by 

 telephone and shipped away — to markets in North 

 Carolina and points north. Each box is labeled 

 with the name of the shrimper who caught its con- 

 tents. When sales are made, the association keeps 

 a small percentage of the sale for handling. The 

 fisherman who caught the shrimp gets the rest. 



The Sound and Sea Fishermen's Association 

 also leases handling plants in Hatteras, Ocracoke 

 and Wanchese, a collecting point for finfish. 



Before the Association was formed, individual 

 fishermen were forced to take what dealers offered. 

 There was no way they could both catch and market 

 their catch. Members believe that once the Asso- 

 ciation has some marketing experience, they will, 

 at least, be able to call a few shots in the market- 

 place. 



But no matter how the market treats him, if he's 

 able, you can bet that Capt. Tillett will be out there 

 somewhere in the Sound, studying the horizon he's 

 known for a lifetime. 



You should know . . . 



New oil dumping regulations, effective 

 July 1. 



The Federal Water Pollution Control 

 Act prohibits the discharge of oil or oily 

 waste into or upon U.S. navigable waters. 

 Violators are subject to a $5,000 fine. 



Under the regulations, vessels of less 

 than 100 gross tons are required to devise 

 some fixed or portable means of discharg- 

 ing any oily bilge slops or oily ballast to a 

 shoreside receptacle. 



Effective July 1, 1974, all owners of 

 U.S. vessels 26 feet or longer must place a 

 placard in the vessel's machinery spaces or 

 at the bilge and ballast control station 

 which states: 



DISCHARGE OF OIL PROHIBITED 



The Federal Water Pollution Act pro- 

 hibits the discharge of oil or oily waste 

 into or upon the navigable waters and 

 contiguous zone of the United States if 

 such discharge causes a film or sheen 

 upon, or discoloration of, the surface of 

 the water, or causes a sludge or emulsion 

 beneath the surface of the water. Viola- 

 tors are subject to a penalty of $5,000. 



Commercial fishermen may obtain copies 

 of the placard from: National Marine 

 Fisheries Service, Div. of Extension, P. O. 

 Box 1246, Gloucester, Ma. 01930. 



Inspection Urged 



The U.S. Coast Guard, in cooperation 

 with the Broadwater Boat Company, Mayo, 

 Md., has issued a warning to owners of 

 wooden 25, 27, 29 and 31 foot Broadwater 

 boats. The warning urges owners to inspect 

 the hulls of their boats for cracking, bulges, 

 hollows, loose screws or layers of wood 

 coming apart approximately nine feet 

 below the bow or at the location of the 

 forward support when the boat is cradled 

 for winter storage and maintenance. 



Owners of Broadwater boats who detect 

 indications of damage are urged to contact 

 Broadwater boats and the Coast Guard 

 with a description of the damage and the 

 location of the boat or where it may be 

 inspected. 



Vessel Financing 



Details pertaining to revised fishing 

 vessel financing regulations recently an- 

 nounced by the National Oceanic and 

 Atmospheric Administration were pub- 

 lished in the Federal Register on May 17. 

 Further information, of potential interest 

 to those working in the fishing industry 

 and those who finance fishing vessels, can 

 be obtained from the Financial Assistance 

 Division, National Marine Fisheries Ser- 

 vice, National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

 Administration, Washington, D. C. 20235. 



University of North Carolina 

 Sea Grant Program 

 1235 Burlington Laboratories 

 North Carolina State University 

 Raleigh, North Carolina 27607 * 



Librarian 



State of Morth Carolina Library 



109 East Jones Street 



Raleigh, N. C. 27631 



