NEW BEDFORD – An environmental advocacy group says the charges against a New Bedford fishing magnate highlight a need for change on the region’s groundfishing monitoring program.
The Environmental Defense Fund says more oversight is needed in the wake of Carlos Rafael’s guilty pleas to skirting fishing quotas.
Federal authorities say Rafael falsely claimed his vessels caught haddock or pollock, when they had actually caught other species subject to stricter quotas. He then sold the fish for cash, some of which was smuggled overseas.
“Carlos Rafael’s crimes are a stark example of how the current groundfish monitoring program has failed to protect fish and fishermen. There are extensive regulations in place, but no one can have faith that all of the rules are being followed if monitoring is inadequate. These crimes don’t just damage the fishery, they badly hurt fishermen as well,” the organization said in a statement.
“The good news is that NMFS and the New England Fishery Management Council are now committed to a major overhaul of monitoring, with the goals of improving the accuracy of information and increasing accountability. We hope the new monitoring program will be developed in a way that provides critical insurance fishermen to know there is a level playing field, and that it will restore confidence in the government’s science and management decisions.”
Rafael, known as “The Codfather,” was indicted on 27 counts and is scheduled for sentencing in June.
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