It was tough day for the Working Waterfront Festival with the smell of fish filled the humid, salty air as the deck crew of the commercial fishing trawler moved aside. The researchers separated fish by type, and, in some instances, size, on a large sorting table. As fish flopped and twisted, gasping for air in the unfamiliar and unnatural environment, the trawler crew and the orange-covered crew methodically went about their business.
The officials representing the federal, state and local governments watched the fish being measured and examined. It is said that most of the fish catches would be thrown back to their natural habitat and survive. A small number would be kept. The fish had been scooped up in a single, short trawl and the species included flounder, sea bass, porgies, skate and sea robin.
By working in such a way the Darana R would have been in violation of the law for where and when it was fishing without license and for a net with holes much too small for legal commercial fishing. Working as a research vessel, the Darana R is exempt from most fishing regulation. Although a typical trawler-type vessel, the Darana R has some very slight modifications to perform research.
Ruhle is not just skipper of the Darana R but also president of the Commercial Fishermen of America, which uses as its tagline “Feeding Families for 400 Years.” He said that they need a united national position on fish policy. He pointed out that the research VIMS is doing, like SMAST, is critical “to help save the fishing industry.
