By NEIL HARTNELL 

Tribune Business Editor 

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

FISHERMEN yesterday hailed “fantastic” progress in combating foreign poachers as they bid to match the “record catches” enjoyed by many last year when crawfish season opens on August 1.

Paul Maillis, the National Fisheries Association’s (NFA) secretary, told Tribune Business he was unable to “recall the last time there was a huge Dominican vessel” poaching in Bahamian waters with as he credited the enhanced law enforcement effort with helping to ensure healthy lobster stocks.

“The one thing we can count on is that lobster stocks are very healthy, and the work done to combat out-of-season poaching from the Dominican Republic, in particular, has been fantastic,” he said. “I can’t recall the last time there was a blatant, huge poaching vessel sitting in Bahamian waters catching hundreds of thousands of pounds of Bahamian fisheries product.

“That was the norm for decades. There are still desperate poachers out there, but they have been forced further and further to the outside of our territory, and we are seeing the results with grouper, lobster and other species.” Mr Maillis said the drastic reduction in foreign poaching in Bahamian waters was just one of the reasons Bahamian fishermen are viewing the upcoming crawfish season with optimism.

Asserting that 2024 will be “looking good” if catches match 2023’s, he conceded that last year saw many fishermen receive one of the lowest per pound prices in recent times, but added that the increased volumes had helped to at least partially offset the financial impact.

The NFA secretary said the recent grouper season, which ran from December 1 to February 28, had provided further encouragement as it had proven “record breaking” for some fishermen, while fuel costs seemed to have “stabilised” in comparison to the immediate post-COVID years.

He revealed, though, that the NFA and wider fisheries industry remain concerned over the regulations that will accompany the already-passed Fisheries Act and are now being finalised. Mr Maillis disclosed that there are “some concerning provisions that we hope don’t make the final cut” as he cautioned against imposing too much bureaucracy and red tape on the sector.

“We have to ensure that commercial fisheries can maintain, that we don’t over-bureaucratise the industry, and do sensible regulation,” he explained. “We have new fisheries regulations coming up for the new Fisheries Act and are in consultations with the minister, Jomo Campbell.

“There are some concerning provisions in the regulations that we hope don’t make it to the final cut because they will have a very drastic and negative impact on commercial fishermen and Bahamian fishermen in general.”

Mr Maillis declined to be drawn on the details of the fishermen’s concerns, saying: “I don’t want to get too far into the weeds.

We’ve been raising our concerns in private with the minister and the Department of Marine Resources. There are certain fishing seasons that are of particular concern. We are optimistic that we can come to a positive result on this.”

As for the upcoming crawfish season, which starts in just under a week’s time, Mr Maillis said: “I think there’s a lot of optimism in terms of the lobster stock. Last year there were a number of fishermen who hit record highs. It did not necessarily have to compensate for the low price, as they would have caught that much anyway, but it helped offset lower yields.

“The price wasn’t much higher than $10 per pound, and in some instances for a lot of the season it was $8-$9 per pound. When the catches are really good you can make up for some of the loss with volume.” Mr Maillis said it was impossible to predict the prices that fishermen will get in the upcoming crawfish season,

but acknowledged that 2023 yields were among the lowest seen for some years.

“Hopefully it’s going to be a better price this year, that’s all I can say,” he told this newspaper. “The price has fluctuated over the many decades. It was one of the lowest prices in recent years for sure. I can say that with confidence. In recent years it was one of the lowest.”

Pointing out that the likes of Honduras, Belize and Cuba all compete with The Bahamas on spiny lobster exports, Mr Maillis said the rock lobster produced by the likes of Australia and South Africa has also “come back roaring” post-COVID and increased global supply has impacted the prices achieved by all.

He added that local prices also depend on timing, and when Bahamian fishermen bring their catch to market. If they come back to shore all at once, and flood the crawfish market with product, prices are automatically pushed downwards because of the increased supply.

However, Mr Maillis asserted:“Overall I believe it’s going to be a good season for the vast majority of lobster fishermen. If the lobster catch is anything as good as last year then we’re looking good. It was a great season last year. If it’s that good or close to that good we’d call it a successful year. We don’t have an indication of the price yet, but I think the catch will be a really good catch this year...

“It was a fantastic grouper season this year by all reports. For some fishermen it was record-breaking. I know that in Coral Harbour a lot of grouper trappers had their best year ever. It was really encouraging to hear that and hopefully that helps fishermen for lobster season. It was a really good year for a lot of people.”

Mr Maillis said the main concern, especially for fishermen who specialise in traps as opposed to diving, is whether their traps have been speared and moved before they can get to them. He explained: “The only thing affecting an individual commercial fisherman’s prospects for the year is whether the traps have

been speared beforehand and moved. That plays a huge role.

“If a local Bahamian fishes a condo, according to the law it’s not illegal at this point in time. But, if you are doing that for a living, you are really hurting the person who sets the condo out. It makes it hard for them to stay in business.

“For some folks, lobster condos are all they do, and if condos are not profitable then they’ve travelled a long way for nothing or for less. That is not profitable. It plays a role in how a lot of fishermen view their season. There are areas where traps are going to be substantially exploited by the people who set them, and a lot of areas where they have been speared by others.

Mr Maillis said lobster condos fall victim to poachers, visiting tourists and Bahamian fishermen. He added that spearing most commonly takes place around the islands of Bimini, Abaco and Grand Bahama.