No Local Crab for Thanksgiving

Schwarzenegger looks at site of crash. Credit: Paul Chinn

With toxic oil from the devastating Cosco Busan Oil Spill spreading up and down the Bay Area coast, commercial crabbers voted to delay the November 15th opening of the Dungeness crab season. 

A few days later Governor Schwarzenegger reaffirmed the crabbers vote and issued an order suspending all fishing and crabbing for human consumption in areas affected by the spill.  The ban will remain in place until at least December 1st.

“Our priority must be getting the oil cleaned up as quickly as possible, rescuing all marine life and most importantly protecting the public health,” Schwarzenegger said.

The order will take place immediately, but the Department of Fish and Game will be deciding exactly which areas will be closed.

In a meeting at Fishermen’s Wharf in San Francisco, crabbers acknowledged the legitimate health concerns and potential liability issues of the spill. 

“Fishermen agreed to request the delay until the oil is cleaned up and fishermen can be sure that there will be no effects on the crabs,” said Zeke Grader of the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Association.

Some sport fishing boat operators were less happy with the vote.  They rely on the Dungeness crab season to support them through the winter months, and an indefinite closure will have a devastating impact on their families.

The timing of the spill could not have been worse for local fishermen, as Dungeness crab during Thanksgiving is an important Bay Area tradition and an important market for crab fishermen.  That is why the crab season opens up two weeks earlier in the San Francisco Bay region than in other parts of California.

The Port of San Francisco did hire 22 fishing boats, many of them crab boats that would have been dropping gear tomorrow, to help with the cleanup.

Beyond the Bay

Even if crabs are caught outside the affected waters, there are concerns about bringing them back through the San Francisco Bay.  A major issue is keeping the catch from coming in contact with oiled waters. 

About 90 percent of commercial crabbing boats are "wet tank" vessels that rely on pumping in ocean water to keep their catch alive.  Hence, as ships eventually enter the Bay Area, contaminated water will enter the hold. 

When will San Francisco waters be considered clean and safe enough for consumers? That remains to be seen.