Gulf of Maine cod, the lifeblood of the inshore fishing fleet centered around Gloucester, appears to have undergone a dramatic and inexplicable decline in recent years, according to an authoritative marine scientist on the NOAA Science Center team.
Steven Cadrin, a member of the regional fishery management council's Scientific and Statistical Committee team, told the Times Thursday that the assessment of Gulf of Maine cod, which is preliminary and subject to peer reviewing, points to a finding that even a complete ban on landings would not allow the iconic stock to rebuild fully by the April 2014 deadline in the management plan.
"The stock can't meet the rebuilding deadline with no fishing," said Cadrin, an associate professor of oceanography at University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth's School of Marine Science and Technology.
The time needed for completing the assessment, getting it peer reviewed, and then processing the results to reach a recommended adjustment in the rebuilding plan will push the issue into 2012 — an election year — and may set off a potentially fierce battle in an ongoing struggle between conservation and community preservation interests.
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