It’s still dark on Nova Scotia’s South Shore, the water indistinguishable from the land below, as we peer down at it from a Canadian Air Force CC-130 Hercules. The white lights shining below us look to be the familiar glow of porch lights, streetlights, and car headlights as seen from the air.

This is the watch—a critical, high-stakes coordination between regional maritime authorities and the local fleets during lobster dumping day. In an industry where seconds count, the margin for error is non-existent.