Domestic Observer Jobs
The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) requires domestic observers at all shoreside processing facilities and on all offshore processors and factory trawlers over 125 feet.
Factory trawlers and offshore processors less than 125 feet long must have observers on board 30 percent of the time.
Domestic observers are needed to collect fish-catch data which is analyzed to help government fishery managers estimate fish populations and catch numbers needed to set the next season's catch limits. A domestic observer's duties include collecting, recording, and reporting data about fish size and weight, catch volumes, and by-catch (fish, birds, and marine mammals not intended for capture).
Contractors in Washington and Alaska interview and hire domestic observers, giving preference to college graduates with degrees in biology and some coursework in marine biology or a related field; one of our contacts even recommended coursework in statistics. Interested applicants usually submit a resume and college transcripts. These are forwarded to the National Marine Fisheries Service in Seattle, which determines if the applicant is qualified to be an observer. Qualified applicants then complete a three-week course conducted by the NMFS in Seattle, which teaches everything from how to deal with government regulations and data reporting forms to lab work and species identification. At the end of the course you're given a test on what you've learned and the NMFS certifies you as an official observer.
Assignments vary tremendously. You might work on a 40-foot seiner or a 400 -foot floating processor. Domestic observer Diane Wright describes her last work assignment:
"Last trip I was on a pot boat fishing for cod. There were only two rooms with three bunks in each cabin. I like the smaller boats, though, because it feels like a family atmosphere and I feel like part of a team. As a domestic observer I wasn't expected to participate in any of the fishing or cooking, but I usually helped out anyway and cooked my own food most of the time, which on a larger boat I almost never do. I don't have to keep the same long hours as the fishermen, but some boats do require a little more deck time, especially longliners and pot boats like this one."
Working as a government employee on a small private fishing vessel requires a certain amount of tact, as Diane relates:
"This job is as much a people job as it is a science job. You're working in very close proximity to other people twenty-four hours a day, and if you can't handle personal relationships it can make you feel isolated and miserable. You have to learn diplomacy and have some people skills if you want to have a good time. Generally, most of the fishermen are pretty nice and accommodating. There are always a few pain-in-the-necks, but I've also made a lot of friendships on board."
Maximum time allowed for an observer on a ship before returning for debriefing in Seattle is three months. Many observers go out for several assignments, and a lot of them are graduate students who can make a lot of money in a short amount of time without any expenses at all. Most observers make between $120 and $185 per day and don't have to pay for food or housing while at sea, so opportunities to spend money are extremely limited. As one observer put it:
Domestic observer contractors act as liaisons between the fishing industry and the government: they make their own domestic observer arrangements with fishing vessels, but employees are still certified and trained by NMFS personnel.
There had been talk of changes in the program that would allow NMFS a greater role in contractual agreements with the fishing vessels, but after a trial period in 1995, the plan was repealed and the current system was reinstated.
The North Pacific Fisheries Observer Training Center (http://www.uaa.alaska.edu/ctc/programs/otc/) is operated through the Community and Technical College, University of Alaska Anchorage, funded by the Alaska Sea Grant College Program, University of Alaska Fairbanks. The website offers very good information about the observer program.
Contractors authorized to recruit domestic observers for the National Marine Fisheries Service's domestic observer program include:
Alaska
Massachusetts
A.I.S. Fisheries Observer Program
National Marine Fisheries Service
NE Fisheries Science Center
166 Water Street
Woods Hole, MA 02543
Phone: (508) 495-2261
Fax: (508) 495-2258
Website: www.aisobservers.com
Email: info@aisobservers.com
Washington
For more information on domestic observers, contact:
National Marine Fisheries Service
Federal Building
709 W 9th Street
P.O. Box 21668
Juneau, AK 99802-1668
Phone: (907) 586-7221
www.fakr.noaa.gov
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