Some of my friends and relatives in Northeast NB are not very happy that the lobster season has been cut short due to right whales being in the area.
The season is only 2 months and they cut off the last 2 weeks. They were having a season of excellent catches up to now.
For those of us that don't know...in economic terms, what does 2 weeks mean to them?
For the boat owners, I'm guessing a loss in the vicinity of about $50k or more.
The crew (usually 2) obviously lose 2 weeks pay, but also probably a significant portion of the usual "bonus" often paid at the end of a good season.
The factory workers, of which there are more than fishermen, also lose 2 weeks pay.
More significant to the crew and factory workers is because the work is so seasonal out there most rely on employment insurance for the off-season and might not have enough time in to collect.
Now, a bit more information, lobster catches have been way up in that area of the last few years, 10 years ago it looked like the fishery was failing, they were getting 1/4 the catch they get now.
Because of this influx of income, a lot of guys spent a lot of money on boats, gear, trucks, etc. and now have big payments. A boat motor costs over $60k, my cousin had to replace his last year, it adds up quick.
There is also the issue that AFAIK the whales are out in deeper water and not near the actual lobster fishing ground, but the area is marked off in arbitrary squares and that's how they are closing the areas, not by depth or distance offshore which would make more sense. At this time of year almost all of the gear is well within 10km from shore in less than 50ft of water.
