Government appears ready to dive into the arena of longline fishing, an unchartered industry for the waters around Bermuda.

In a press event yesterday Environment Minister Neletha Butterfield said: “I’m very confident it’s something we should look into.

“All indications are that this initial pilot programme has been very successful so far.”

The Environment Ministry hired an American longline vessel called Eagle Eye II to fish in the Island’s exclusive 200 mile economic zone. So far there have been three trips with a total of six local fishermen onboard for training purposes.

They have returned with glowing reports and boatloads of catch — mostly swordfish and tuna.

And concerns from environmentalists about collateral damage to other sea based wildlife is less of an issue now because the Eagle Eye II captain tells The Royal Gazette>there was no adverse interaction while at sea.

Captain Scott Drabinowicz said: “There was no interaction with any seabirds, no interaction with any marine reptiles or marine mammals. We saw a couple of porpoises as we were driving around, but that’s it.”

Environmentalists around the world consider the practice of longline fishing extremely harmful to wildlife, and in some cases, endangered species. The fishing lines which are exceptionally long and filled with hooks can sometimes trap other animals in a process known as by-catch.

However, the Eagle Eye II minimises that likelihood with special conservation efforts, which according to Capt. Drabinowicz and his 20 years of experience, worked well.

Local environmentalists say they’ll continue to watch for any negative impacts on wildlife, including sea turtles and sea birds.

The fishing vessel has made three trips off Bermuda thus far and leaves for a fourth and final voyage tomorrow (wed).

The most recent trip brought in a bounty of fish weighing between nine and ten thousand pounds. “We have a gold mine in our waters,” said local fisherman Carlson Spencer, known around the docks as Captain Blondy.

He and fellow fisherman Keith Smith were at sea for ten days. They have almost 100 years of fishing experience between them.

Capt. Blondy said: “This is something I’ve been waiting for over 35 years and I tell Bermuda and the Bermuda Government that this is a dream come true. This is just the tip of the iceberg.

“There’s a future there for the younger generation if they want to tap into it. Trust me, I believe in this, this is a great investment. I back it 100 percent.”

Mr. Smith said: “I had a great time. In fact I’m ready to go again.”

Once all the trips are complete and the data is in, Ministry officials will sit down to decide whether a longline fishing industry is in the country’s best interest. All along, the Environment Minister has said “economic feasibility” will be the measuring stick.

She said yesterday: “This project is also dear to my heart as it perfectly captures my philosophy in life, that if you give a person a fish, they have food for a day, whereas if you teach a person to fish, they have food for a lifetime.”

Some of the caught fish remain the property of the Eagle Eye II while the rest goes to the local fishermen on board.

Capt. Blondy expects to be selling his catch at Burchall Cove in the Shelly Bay area by midweek.