Marine Dept, SHAB pushing for scalloper apprentice program

PHOTO BY ROB BENCHLEY Caleb Kardell, 25, a recreational scalloper and diver, plans to go commercial scalloping next season. The downturn in the economy might see an uptick in the number of young people who plan to make their living on the water. T wenty-five-year-old Caleb Kardell will start scalloping commercially for the first time when the 2009/2010 season opens on Nov. 1.

A Nantucket native with a wife and two young sons, Kardell is a carpenter who plans to dive for scallops along with his building partner to make extra cash during the winter.

"I'm kind of stuck in a Nantucket rut where I'm doing the same thing year after year and while carpentry is fantastic, I love the idea of a change of pace and an alternative in my daily work," said Kardell. "Not only that, [but] the way things are going, I think it's a wise idea, too." Kardell will likely be one of the few new scallopers who begin fishing next season without having been trained through the Marine & Coastal Resources Department's proposed apprentice program.

The Shellfish & Harbor Advisory Board voted last week to recommend that the Board of Selectmen adopt regulations requiring new scallopers to fish with experienced fishermen for 40 days before being allowed to go out by themselves. Apprentices could harvest two bushels per day during their training period.

The proposed program is aimed at teaching the freshmen scallopers how to properly identify adult from seed scallops, on-the-water safety and etiquette.

Before the board voted on this program, its members discussed its purpose and necessity.

"I think the apprenticeship program is to get people to learn etiquette and not tramping over people's toes," said SHAB member Marina Finch. "My feeling is we're going to see a lot of new licenses this year, [but) is it our job to help them or protect the fishery?"

SHAB member Bill Blount believes it is both.

"You don't want to prohibit, you want an open fishery as much as possible," he said. "I think we're better off having new blood coming into the fishery rather than the older fishermen that are in it now."

Kardell bought his license before SHAB's recommendation and is exempt from this regulation should it become reality.

Yet, Kardell is the first of many novice scallopers that SHAB and the Marine Department anticipate will enter the scallop fishery as a result of the recession and expectations of better season this fall.

Although the town cannot stop anyone who buys a commercial scalloping license by the March 31 deadline from going fishing on Nov. 1, with the apprentice program it can make sure these inexperienced scallopers know what they are doing.

The sexton for the First Congregational Church, an experienced diver and recreational scalloper, Kardell is confident in his safe diving skills and his ability to tell adult scallops from seed.

"As far as seed goes and closures, I try to get enough information from the Marine Department as they'll give me and I definitely don't intend to rape and pillage," he said. "As far as getting scallops when they're plentiful, it seems to me that diving is a very sensible alternative. You're not affecting the underwater environment and you can also use a much smaller boat."

SHAB is planning for the Board of Selectmen to hold a public hearing on the proposed amendment before the sale of licenses and the commercial season ends on March 31.

SHAB also hopes that the 40-day mentoring period, which includes all of November and part of December, would deter "creamers," scallopers who fish the easiest and most abundant portion of the season, from entering the fishery.

"It's not just seed we're trying to identify," said Blount "It's boat handling, safety and just trying to keep from getting killed. It's a dangerous profession." I