This proposed IFQ plan that is facing the halibut charter fleet in the real near future will not only affect the owners of the charters but has a real impact on existing future of how most of the small businesses in most of the coastal towns operate.
This has the potential to have a huge impact on our future. If the proposed IFQ program was put into effect, Homer's economy would be devastated.
I wrote a letter recently to the chamber asking them to vote to oppose the IFQ program.
Here are a few things I found out in my research preparing the letter.
In the chamber's listing of the fishing charters that are members there are 63 businesses. I came up with 23 charter businesses that would be affected if the IFQ plan was put into law. I contacted 19 of the 23 and asked each when they started and how many clients they fished last year.
They fished with 8,670 clients in 2004. I wasn't able to contact everyone but the number if averaged out would be well over 10,000 clients.
There are a lot of new operators out there that are not with the chamber. Of these, I contacted three, and their number of clients was 1,850.
The arguments for and against the IFQ program are many. Many argue that if we want to stay in business, to buy the IFQ.
Well after a lot of research I came up with the cost. If you average out the numbers I had you come up with an average of 456 clients per charter. If you had to buy at today's low cost, if you could find a seller in the commercial fleet, the cost for 456 clients equaled $228,000 just for the IFQs.
Now are they going to be able to find that in the commercial fleet? Or will we just buy out an existing charter company?
That would not replace the boat the fleet just lost.
The additional cost of IFQs would drive out many of these businesses.
Just in Homer alone we have a chance of losing many tourists that many have worked at in making this the town they want to come to for their vacation.
This is just a small sample of the problems this IFQ program will present.
Once again a big thank you to the board for its brave stance for Homer's future.
David Greiner is a charter boat fisherman who started his business, Kachemak King Sportfishing, in 1997. He has lived here since 1990.
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