The acronyms are enough to make your head spin. LEEDS. VESL. eVTR. The array of electronic reporting systems for federal and state lobstermen can give the average person a serious headache. For the lobstermen who must use these systems, however, the difficulties they encounter may make the difference between being able to fish or not.
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Starting in January 2023, all Maine lobstermen began reporting their lobstering trips each month so that Maine could comply with Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) lobster management plan regulations. Prior to that date, only 10% of lobstermen, randomly selected each season, had to report.
Anticipating the reporting requirement, the Department of Marine Resources (DMR) contracted with software firm Bluefin Data LLC to design software — the VESL mobile reporting application, suitable for iOS and Android systems — specifically for Maine lobstermen. In addition, state-only lobstermen can report on a computer through the department’s own LEEDS system, used to renew fishing licenses online.
As Maine lobstermen were navigating the state’s reporting requirements, the Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office (GARFO) rolled out its federal electronic vessel trip reporting requirement and software applications in April this year. In addition to Maine’s VESL program, lobstermen fishing in federal waters can use GARFO’s Fish Online program, which only works on the Web via computer and is not Internet Explorer compatible, or its eTrips Online or eTrips Mobile programs for reporting.
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“Prior to April 1, GARFO was not fully compliant with Addendum 26 (of ASMFC’s lobster fishery management plan),” explained Rob Watts, head of DMR’s Landings Program. “When they made the changes to become compliant, there wasn’t enough support provided for the roll out. There was insufficient outreach to harvesters by GARFO, causing many of the harvesters to call DMR very confused with what was now required. To further complicate matters, what data DMR was being required to collect was still being modified after April 1, so our [software] developers had to scramble.”
The state and federal vessel trip reporting requirements were intended to collect the same data from different segments of the lobster fleet required by the ASMFC lobster management plan. Where DMR set out to create a lobster specific app, VESL, GARFO simply added lobster to its long list of fisheries already reporting trip data into the federal system.
DMR Commissioner Patrick Keliher, who serves on the ASMFC, does not hide his displeasure with GARFO’s recent changes to the VESL software. “Things were progressing nicely until we had to make these changes. People were comfortable and had trust in the VESL system,” he said. “Now there are duplicate fields. Some ask for ring and mesh size, which is for groundfishing or scalloping. It’s GARFO’s ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach.”
It has been a challenge for lobstermen. “Forget VESL,” said a Downeast lobsterman who fishes in federal and state waters and wished to remain anonymous. “I use FishOnline.” He has encountered frustrating problems using all the reporting programs. “It used to be last year that I would write down stuff and people would report it for you. Not anymore.”
He also noted that reporting has proved to be an added burden for local buying stations. “You come in and they must enter the VTR number, which changes every day. It’s 14 digits long.” The Vessel Trip Report (VTR) number is the lobsterman’s permit number, the year, month, day and time. “I hear from other guys with federal permits, older guys, that they are thinking of just getting done even though having a federal permit with the boat makes the boat worth more. They are saying it just ain’t worth it.”
Keliher is aware of lobstermen’s frustrations. “So much has been pushed on lobstermen in the last six years, this is just one more thing,” he said.
He noted another problem that reflects GARFO’s lack of understanding of a lobsterman’s point of view. “With VESL now you get to the end of putting in your information and hit ‘submit.’ Then a new page shows up that says something like ‘you are now entering the federal system’. Well, lobstermen say ‘what’s this? I don’t want to go to the federal system’ and leave,” he said, losing all the data they have entered.
The problem there, said Watts, is that the VESL program is required to certify the individual reporting. If an individual is a lobsterman operating in federal waters using VESL, the VESL app directs them to GARFO’s Fish Online page. Once the lobsterman gets there, GARFO issues the electronic token [specific to that individual] that goes back to VESL. “GARFO created a new log-in page for this that is different from the original Fish Online page but it doesn’t update immediately, which has added to the confusion,” he said.
Helping lobstermen, some of whom may not have smart phones, good Internet connections, or feel comfortable on computers at all, is a priority within DMR. Extensive, step-by-step materials on the DMR website explain how to set up accounts, how to troubleshoot problems, and who to speak to when hitting bumps. Landings program staff are available to talk through the process and help unsnarl some of the problems.
Keliher and DMR staff met with GARFO in late August to discuss the situation. “The Landings program staff have bent over backwards to help people and will continue to do so,” Keliher emphasized. “I ask [lobstermen] for patience. We are there to help fix this. The more you use it, the easier it will be.”
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