Amid crab crunch, legislators push for state of emergency

Virginia lawmakers are urging Gov. Timothy M. Kaine to declare a state of emergency because of waning crab stocks in the Chesapeake Bay and to petition the federal government for disaster relief for affected watermen and seafood merchants.

Forty legislators on Wednesday signed a letter to Kaine applauding his efforts at trying to restore blue crabs with strict catch limits. But, they said, the economic impact of such a crackdown on hundreds of watermen and the state's once-renowned crab industry also must be addressed.

A declaration of emergency, the legislators wrote, "will demonstrate to the federal government the magnitude of the issue that is facing our communities."

Kaine's secretary of natural resources, L. Preston Bryant, responded Wednesday that the administration is studying its options and hopes to announce an aid plan in the coming days.

"We very much appreciate the concerns expressed," Bryant said in an e-mail. He added that his staff and others are scouting for available state and federal assistance.

Kaine and Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley last week announced that they want to cut harvests of female crabs by 34 percent this year in an attempt to jump-start a recovery.

In response, the Virginia Marine Resources Commission adopted a slate of restrictions Tuesday, including an end to the winter dredge fishery, which for more than 100 years has captured females hibernating in the lower Bay during winter months.

That move alone will put more than 50 dredgers and their crews out of work for at least four months, including some on Tangier Island, a commercial fishing hub in the middle of the Bay.

The commission also voted to close the crabbing season a month early this fall, and for watermen to use fewer pots to catch crabs.

After adding up the approved limits, commission member Ernie Bowden, a commercial fisherman by trade, said Tuesday, "I can't envision people making a living off that. " He voted against the cutbacks.

In their letter Wednesday, the 40 lawmakers asked Kaine to petition the U.S. Commerce Department for Commercial Fishery Disaster Assistance financial relief under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act.

U.S. Rep. Robert Wittman, a Virginia Republican whose district includes many coastal fishing towns, asked Kaine to do the same thing last week in a separate letter.

"I am concerned about the disproportionate burden watermen will surely face through heightened restrictions in order to restore the blue crab," Wittman wrote.

The federal relief process involves several steps, the first of which is a governor declaring a state of emergency and petitioning the Commerce Department for help.

The department then analyzes the fishery problem, and the commerce secretary decides whether it warrants assistance. If it does, the secretary requests funds from Congress, which may or may not appropriate money.

Congress approved $128 million in 2006 and $85 million more in 2007 for fishery relief in Gulf Coast states after damage caused by hurricanes Katrina and Rita, said Monica Allen, a spokeswoman for the National Marine Fisheries Service.

Also in 2006, Allen said, Congress set aside $60.4 million for California and Oregon wat ermen hit hard by drought and poor stocks of salmon.

"There is no pot of money here," Allen said. "We can ask for help, but Congress must act."

John Bull, a spokesman for the Virginia Marine Resources Commission, said staffers have been discussing aid packages for weeks.

No decisions have been made, Bull said, though the commission is interested "not in a handout but in a hand-up." For example, he said, one idea is a jobs program in which affected watermen would be paid to help conduct scientific studies or support restoration efforts.

The problem, Bull and others said, is money.

State departmental budgets have already been approved for the rest of 2008, and they are tight, given forecasted deficits and a weak economy.

"We welcome any financial aid that can help our working watermen during these difficult times," Bull said, "but we're just not sure it's possible."

Staff writer Warren Fiske contributed to this report.

Scott Harper, (757) 446-2340, scott.harper@pilotonline.com