Canada and the United States have historically had a strong relationship, but it’s become rocky ground lately as Canadian fishermen engage in protests over Maine lobster.

New Brunswick fishermen have been blockading lobster processing plants that accept Maine lobster, forcing some to close and making truckers with loads full of Maine lobster turn around for home without making their deliveries.

The whole uproar is about money, of course, and the international nature of the dispute is going to make it difficult to resolve. The warm spring has led to a glut of lobster this summer in Maine and the Canadian Maritimes, with catches so large that supply is up way over demand, pushing prices to a 20-year low.

Now the Canadians, whose lobstering season in some regions has been delayed until Monday, are blaming inexpensive Maine lobsters for driving down prices in Canada, too. And they’re so angry about it that they’ve caused a shutdown of processing plants, which in turn has sparked a flurry of concern here in Maine, where we don’t have enough processing facilities to handle our own catch.

On Thursday, a New Brunswick Court granted a 10-day injunction to keep the protesters under control, enforcing a maximum of six picketers at each processing plant who must be 200 feet from the facility at all times. Funny that while these lobstermen have been making a ruckus about their own pocketbooks, they forgot to think about how their actions would impact the processing facilities and their employees. It’s clearly gotten out of hand.

In an attempt to quell the furor, lobster processors in New Brunswick agreed last Friday to pay a minimum of $2.50 per pound for processed lobster and $3 per pound for live market lobster, according to an Associated Press report, but the lobster fishermen’s union rejected the proposal, saying they need $4 per pound just to break even.

The Canadian fishermen aren’t alone in their desperation over this issue. In Marine Resources Commissioner Patrick Keliher’s announcement about the Maine lobster fishery problems in early July, he notes that the department has heard rumors of fishermen planning to enforce a “closed season” rule amongst themselves ”“ and punishing anyone who didn’t go along with it by cutting their trap lines. That’s illegal, of course, and we hope some appropriate government action is taken well before people resort to sabotaging their peers.

Keliher’s only suggestion is to increase efforts in “marketing and management strategies,” but in the short term, that’s not going to be enough.

It’s a complicated situation, and the two countries’ different approaches to fisheries management only make it more difficult. There’s no season for lobster fishing in Maine ”“ it’s open year-round ”“ and in Canada, the season is staggered, depending on the zone.

In the long run, it is in both countries’ best interests to maintain the relationship of lobster processing and exporting. Canada exports 80 percent of its lobster catch to the U.S., according to a 2007 industry report, and if word gets out that their processing plants are boycotting our product, it’s likely that their product won’t be so welcome here anymore. In turn, the U.S. depends on Canada, where government subsidies and health care coverage help keep costs down, to process 80 percent of its catch.

Gov. Paul LePage is pushing for more processing capacity within the state, as we only have three facilities now compared to Canada’s two dozen, which is an approach with which we agree, to the extent that it can be feasible. The import processing protests would not be an issue if we didn’t have to cross the border to produce most of the end product of one of our hallmark industries. Finding enough Maine workers who are willing to do the manual labor of lobster processing could be a challenge, but other agricultural industries bring in laborers to do the harvesting work, so it’s not unprecedented. As well, we have three successful processing plants now, so there’s no saying that more could not succeed, particularly with some sort of support from the Statehouse.

Maine lobster is a known brand that’s worth protecting and promoting, and we’re doing some of that now. There are restrictions on the size of lobster that can be harvested, to help maintain a healthy fishery, and part of the licensing fee on commercial dealers goes toward the efforts of the Maine Lobster Promotion Council, which is building a name worldwide for this unique, local product.

No minimum price is set for lobster in Maine, however, and maybe that’s a possibility the Department of Marine Resources could consider. A minimum price has been set for Maine milk since 1935 to address price wars, among other issues, according to the department, and it seems to be working well. Of course, milk is a staple in most family diets, while lobster is a delicacy. But even if price isn’t regulated, some regulation of the supply seems to be necessary to adjust for demand. Rock-bottom prices that won’t even cover the cost of diesel fuel aren’t doing anyone any good, no matter how much consumers enjoy cheap lobster.

The Maine Department Marine Resources announced in early July that it decided to refuse requests from Maine fishermen to close the fisheries due to economic concerns. According to an announcement from Commissioner Keliher, the department’s “statutory authorities ”¦ do not allow us to shut down the fishery for economic reasons.”

It’s too bad that since the department is only given authority over environmental matters, there seems to be no entity to step up and decide that fishing should be temporarily halted to prevent further overloading of the market with excessive supply and driving down prices. That would be an easy fix, however controversial.

Hopefully, the two governments can come to an understanding, with the realization that our lobster industries are intertwined, and in the bigger picture, we’re all in this economic struggle together.

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Today’s editorial was written by Managing Editor Kristen Schulze Muszynski, representing the majority opinion of the Journal Tribune Editorial Board. Questions? Comments? Contact Kristen by calling 282-1535, Ext. 322, or via email at kristenm@journaltribune.com.