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Mark Oswell, NOAA
Fisheries Office for Law Enforcement, National Media and Constituent Affairs
Office
Cruising west past Lime Kiln Lighthouse along the southern shore of San Juan Island, Special Agent John Bowyer scans the horizon for “the boats.” As Patrol Boat-6 bounces around another corner, several dozen white dots bob across the sheer water in the distance. “We’ve found the pod!” The pod, being a large group of Orca whales hunting salmon in these rich Washington waters. The white dots are the whale watch boats, fishing boats and pleasure craft that move in to catch a glimpse of these four-ton creatures.
Today, Bowyer and Officer Myron Hawkins of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife are patrolling the area to ensure boaters follow the guidelines set forth under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. Yesterday, Bowyer, agents from U.S. Customs and U.S. Immigration officers boarded a Canadian fishing vessel before it began its off-load of albacore tuna.
Just down the coast in California, Enforcement Officer Rick Hawkins is educating a group of school children about the harbor seals at the La Jolla Children’s pool.
Three thousand miles to the east, off the coast of Virginia, Special Agents Logan Gregory and Steve Niemi are spending the day pulling poundnets, checking to see if the holes in the nets are the proper size, and to ensure no endangered sea turtles are entangled in the netting.
Who are these agents and officers? Within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), there is a small force of special agents and enforcement officers whose primary mission is to protect and conserve our nation’s living marine resources. With only 164 sworn personnel, NOAA Fisheries Office for Law Enforcement (OLE) provides these dedicated men and women with some very unique opportunities. Spanning from Pago Pago, American Samoa, to Ellsworth, Maine, these agents and officers work from six divisional offices and 57 field offices scattered across the country. OLE’s sworn personnel maintain active and diverse schedules as they cover 3.4 million square miles of open ocean that comprise the United States Exclusive Economic Zone and over 22,200 miles of coastline.
Tasked with specified authority to enforce over 100 legislative acts under 32 statutes, as well as numerous treaties related to the conservation and protection of marine resources and other matters of concern to NOAA, these special agents and enforcement officers serve to protect our marine resources, while providing for commercial use of our oceans. The OLE also plays a key role in the enforcement of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora as they relate to marine wildlife.
In a typical week these federal law enforcement agents and officers may be tasked to investigate the harassment of a marine mammal, money laundering from illegally caught fish, poaching by foreign vessels in the U.S. waters, fishing in closed areas or suspicious dead sea turtles washing ashore.
In 2003, these agents and officers produced 3,218 cases, spending over 2,000 hours conducting dockside inspections and conducted over 2,500 hours of surface, at-sea and aerial patrols. These federal agents and officers conduct complex civil and criminal investigations relating to the protection of our nation’s living marine resources, not only in the U.S., but also around the world. They intercept illegal imported seafood and other marine products taken or possessed in violation of U.S. or foreign marine protection laws; they also enforce international agreements and treaties relating to marine environments.
Violations of the various acts can result in millions of dollars in civil and criminal penalties and fines, prison sentences, impoundment of personal property and fishing vessels, and loss of federal commercial fishing permits. In 2003, special agents investigated Carlos Seafood, Inc. for entering 24,750 pounds of frozen lobster contaminated with salmonella into U.S. commerce and for other fisheries violations. In the end, the company was sentenced with a $355,000 fine and five years probation; and its owner was sentenced to three years probation and community service.
Another recent and complex OLE investigation resulted in a $620,000 civil penalty being assessed against an individual, a foreign company, and a fishing captain for 26 counts of possessing shark fins on board an American fishing vessel without the corresponding shark carcasses. This remains the highest civil penalty ever issued under the Shark Fin Prohibition Act.
In order to conduct its mission, the OLE employs a variety of enforcement measures including patrols, inspections, a satellite-based vessel monitoring system (VMS), community involvement in preventive enforcement and partnerships with local, state, tribal, and other federal agencies, as well as with non-governmental groups.
The OLE maintains 23 patrol vessels to conduct both overt and covert monitoring of sport-fishing vessels, charter boats, wildlife tour operators and commercial fishing vessels across the country. The U.S. Coast Guard, state environmental agencies, tribal law enforcement and the Civil Air Patrol provide the bulk of at-sea patrols in support of the OLE’s mission. “Patrol vessels allow us to have more contact with the fishing industry and also to make quicker enforcement of laws,” said Special Agent Charles Raterman of OLE’s Southeast Division.
Education and outreach is another major component of ensuring the public is informed about the regulations, laws and guidelines that govern our marine resources. OLE agents and officers spend several hours each month visiting schools, attending local events, conducting training sessions and visiting the docks to educate commercial and recreational fishermen about the regulations governing their fishing activities.
In 1988, the OLE initiated use of the Vessel Monitoring System (VMS). This electronic system enables the OLE to track vessels fishing in U.S. and international waters through satellites and transponders. Currently there are over 1,700 active VMS units operating in over a dozen fisheries from New England to Alaska. In October 2003, the OLE received the prestigious Government Computer News award for a unique new vessel monitoring system. While technology enables the OLE to “see” potential violations at-sea, key partnerships have become an ever-increasing priority for the OLE in order to stop, apprehend, and eventually penalize violators.
An increase in the level and effectiveness of patrols has been achieved by implementing numerous joint enforcement agreements with most coastal states.
Fisheries law enforcement in the United States is truly a cooperative effort. The OLE receives a lot of support from other agencies and provides assistance to other agencies on a regular basis.
Special agents and enforcement officers provide operational support, patrol vessel support, testimonial support and training to a variety of agencies and departments. On Sept 11, 2001, twenty-seven special agents from the OLE were immediately engaged in the investigation and emergency operations following the terrorist activities in Boston, New York and Washington, DC. Agents were assigned various tasks associated with the investigation, emergency operations, and security details in the northeast. Agents as far away as California, assisted the U.S. Border Patrol with operations. “Our agents responded with great professionalism to support other federal agencies on that tragic day,” said OLE Director Dale J. Jones.
Later that year, 21 OLE special agents served a six-month tour as air marshals to augment the Federal Aviation Administration’s federal air marshal program. By bringing people together, advanced technologies, key partnerships, and community support, the OLE continues to effectively protect and conserve our nation’s living marine resources. This was proven in July 2003, when the OLE received its first reaccreditation by CALEA.
Whether boarding commercial vessels off the coast of Massachusetts, patrolling through one of NOAA’s sanctuaries, presenting new regulations to a recreational fishermen’s club, or seizing illegal sea turtle parts in Hawaii, special agents and enforcement officers of the OLE are constantly patrolling, inspecting, educating and observing coasts and ocean waters to ensure our nation’s living marine resources, endangered species and coastal habitats are protected and preserved for this and future generations.
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