Page 20. MAINE COASTAL NEWS August 2017 M C F N Continued from Page 13. “I know how diffi cult these issues are,
and I tried to tackle them with courage and compassion,” says Bullard. Bullard worked with Congress and state
directors to deliver $32.8 million in disaster assistance to aff ected fi shing families and communities. In close collaboration with the New England Council, Bullard then put quotas and closures in place to protect cod and other depleted fi sh stocks. “We wish John well,” said New England
Council Executive Director Tom Nies. “He is always willing to work with the council to fi nd management solutions and empowers those around him to actively participate in the process, which is one of his key accom- plishments. That may go unnoticed by many, but it is one of the reasons our council has been able to complete so many management actions during his tenure.” Bullard’s leadership in protecting liv-
ing marine resources included removing approximately 30,000 miles of rope from Atlantic coastal waters to reduce whale en- tanglements and expanding critical habitat for North Atlantic right whales in the region by more than 25,000 nautical miles. He also oversaw development of a strategy to restore river herring populations, imposed catch caps on mackerel and herring fi sheries, and removed dams and created fi sh passages to double fi sh runs in key Maine, New Hamp- shire, and Massachusetts rivers. “For me, John is an example of public
service and, more importantly, an example of working with stakeholders to have a positive impact on tough issues,” said Dr. Jon Hare, science and research director at
NOAA’s Northeast Fisheries Science Cen- ter. “I will miss working with him and am thankful for his time as regional administra- tor.”
Bullard strongly supported ground-
breaking actions created to bolster the Mid-Atlantic region’s important recreation- al and commercial fi sheries. In 2016, he approved the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Manage- ment Council’s deep-sea coral amendment that protects 15 deep-sea canyons and a total area of 24 million acres, about the size of Virginia, where fragile, slow-growing corals live. These hotspots of biodiversity provide important habitat, refuge, and prey for fi sh and other marine life. Bullard has also ad- vanced an action to protect small schooling fi sh, also known as forage fi sh, which serve as prey for larger fi sh, marine mammals, and sea birds. This would be the fi rst ever action on the Atlantic coast to designate forage fi sh as important parts of the ecosystem and provide protection for them.
“Throughout his tenure as regional ad-
ministrator, John has been an engaged and dedicated participant in the council process, and he has played an important role in in- creasing focus on the Mid-Atlantic portion of the Greater Atlantic Region,” said Chris Moore, executive director of the Mid-Atlan- tic Council. “His insight and leadership have been especially valuable to the Mid-Atlantic Council during the development of several new initiatives such as the Deep Sea Corals Amendment, the Unmanaged Forage Fish Amendment, and the development of an eco- system approach to fi sheries management.” Bullard also led the charge to modernize
access and sharing of fi shery dependent data in cooperation with the Northeast Fisheries Science Center, the fi shing industry, the councils and the Atlantic Coastal Cooper- ative Statistics Program. He championed electronic monitoring pilot projects on fi shing vessels with partners in the industry and environmental non-government organi- zations to increase coverage and improve the data on which our science is based. “It’s been an honor and pleasure to work
with John. He has been a strong supporter of state/federal cooperation in the manage- ment of our shared marine resources,” said Bob Beal, executive director of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission. “We
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are grateful for his contributions to sustain- able management and wish him the very best.”
“I’m really proud of the work I’ve done
with the GARFO team. They are intelligent, hard-working, and caring professionals, and I rely on them every day to make me smart on the many issues we face,” said Bullard, who has no plans to slow down before he leaves. “There is work left to do before I leave-very important work. Still on my list are the Omnibus Habitat Amendment, the New England Council’s Deep Sea Coral Amendment, some critical dam removals, electronic monitoring, the Carlos Rafael situation, the summer fl ounder crisis, and the continuing groundfi sh challenge, among others.”
However, once Bullard does bid the
agency goodbye, he plans to literally sail into the sunset, provided the weather is warm enough (in January)! The agency will launch a search for Bul-
lard’s replacement within the next several months.
2017 Recreational Rules for Summer Flounder and Scup
NOAA Fisheries has approved the fi nal
2017 minimum fi sh size, possession limits, and fi shing season rules for the summer fl ounder (fl uke) and scup (porgies) recre- ational fi sheries. States have already put
their rules in place for the season. We are continuing “conservation equiv-
alency” for the summer fl ounder fi shery. Conservation equivalency means that we have waived the federal recreational bag limit, minimum fi sh size, and fi shing season, and vessel owners are subject only to regula- tions in their state. Please contact your state for information on summer fl ounder rules. We are aware that the Atlantic States
Marine Fisheries Commission has found that New Jersey is out of compliance with Addendum XXVIII to the Summer Floun- der, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Interstate Fishery Management Plan. The Commis- sion has requested the Secretary review the non-compliance determination. If the Secre- tary fi nds New Jersey out of compliance, a moratorium on summer fl ounder fi shing in New Jersey state waters will be implement- ed within 6 months. This determination is occurring through a separate process and we will have a fi nal decision on this issue in early July. We are also maintaining the year-round
open season for recreational scup. The minimum fi sh size is still 9 inches, and the per trip possession limit is still 50 scup per person. Please keep in mind that, if these federal minimum size, possession limit, and/ or season diff er from the regulations for the state in which you will be landing, you must follow the more restrictive rules.
Publisher's Note Continued from Page 4.
they are and what they do. I certainly have been blessed over the years to know the people that make this industry what it is. As most know, who have followed
this paper over the years, I have had four vehicles, two Jeeps and two GMC pickups. One Jeep went about 150,000 miles and the other a whopping 607,000 miles. As the pa- per’s circulation grew there was a need for a bigger vehicle and I switched to a pickup, the fi rst of which went 372,000 miles before its transmission gave out. Taking what was available on the lot I came home with a 2007 GMC that has now gone 393,000+ miles and still does not have a problem. Knowing that she is on borrowed time, and not wanting to take whatever was available on the lot and have a vehicle with a little more amenities, I now also have a 2014 GMC. So over thirty years, I have gone more than 1.5 million miles. At an average speed of 45 mph that means I have spent 33,333 hours or just over 1,300 hours a year traveling the coast. What I do not want to know is how much this has cost over the years. I have put in over 88,000 gallons of fuel and then add on repairs and others costs. My carbon foot print is way too big. Also the last several years I have been spending more time on the road doing distribution and research at various libraries in Massachusetts and New Hampshire and that has meant about 40 nights in a hotel. I am not sure about my style of writing,
but I do know that over the years the edit- ing has gotten better. I once told someone that England has actually sent people from Scotland Yard over here to apprehend me for murdering their language. The problem is you cannot proof your own material and one should not be putting the paper together last minute. Having a serious interest in maritime
history and doing research I saw what should be saved for posterity sake. It is all about documenting an event or the people and then saving it. Ever since the beginning I did interviews and saved the tapes, now digital recordings. I shot lots of photographs fi rst in black and white, then colour print fi lm and
now digital, again all saved. Not sure but I think there is more than 100,000 images. Printed material, such as brochures and press releases, were also all saved. Ann [The Wife] calls me a hoarder and
yes, it is true, but it is clean collectables. Over the years I have collected other photo- graphs, many on tugs and Great Lakes ships; ship papers and of course a few books. My feeling is that if items go into a private col- lection they may never been seen again. The books are for reference, but the photographs I hope to get up online with information attached for all to see. Ann is an important part of my life and
she helps out when she can, mostly at boat shows, but she thinks saving lives is more important than boats! However, where would I be without Rachel? She joined me in 2000 and does things that I could or would not make time for. Also when she is not working on “MCN” she helps input my research data and she has done a lot on that front. “MCN” would certainly not be what it is today without her assistance as well as my research. Over the years we have pressed at a
number of places. The fi rst was at the Re- publican Journal in Belfast; then we went to Biddeford, which would later transfer to Canada, then to Massachusetts, back to the Kennebec Journal in Augusta and for the last seven or more years at the Times Record in Biddeford. The Times Record has been great to deal with and they do a fi ne job making sure “MCN” looks good. It is also important to give back to the
industry and over the years I have been in- volved with numerous organizations. Today, I am involved in Maine Built Boats, Maine Lobster Boat Racing Association and almost every Friday I do research for the Penobscot Marine Museum in Searsport. Of course the museums are important as they are the care- takers of our history so become a member if you are not one. “MCN,” along with the items collect-
ed from doing it, is important historically. However it is the other maritime research
Continued on Page 23.
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