I think we have to look at this in terms of the mortality of fish. At the end of the day, it comes down to the mortality and how much mortality there is. Technology can be a great friend, but it can also be a big enemy. We have become so good at fishing. With auto-trawling or whatever the technology it is, we've become extremely good. We can overcome nature. We can overwhelm nature. We really need to fish better than we used to fish.
Is auto-trawling today more benign than auto-trawling many years ago? The reality is that, if you're fishing spawning concentrations, the fish don't have a chance. They do not have a chance. Dr. Harris had some really good analogies. What happens is that the fish congregate. They congregate when they're spawning. They congregate to spawn. They have a big feeding period with capelin, and then they go. When they spawn, they congregate. They're very vulnerable. The auto-trawl catch per unit of effort can continue to be level. You can be fishing and then suddenly it drops off. That's the kind of thing that happens in the fishery.
When I was the deputy minister of fisheries, I remember the day I got a call from the largest fish company. He said they were closing down the plant at Port Union the next week, because the trawlers were coming in without any catch—nothing. There was nothing in the trawl. We had reached the point where everything was great until it wasn't. It wasn't just a nice tapering. It was an abrupt fall, because the technology was so good.
We shouldn't be fishing spawning concentrations. It's not fair. It's like shooting moose from a helicopter.