Undersea monument plan advocates hear fishermen’s concerns! But,,,,,,,,

blumy and peterU.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and Peter Auster, retired University of Connecticut marine science professor and currently the senior research scientist at the Mystic Aquarium, made their case for declaring the New England Coral Canyons and Seamounts as a Marine National Monument during a program Tuesday evening at the aquarium. “This would be the first marine monument in the Atlantic,” said Blumenthal, who is leading the entire Connecticut congressional delegation in advocating for the designation. Blumenthal, saying he is “sensitive to the economic interests of our fishing industry,” But commercial fishing groups say the designation would cut off their access to productive areas for red crab, swordfish, tuna and offshore lobster harvests, among other species. “Those areas have been used for hundreds of years,” said Joe Gilbert, owner of Empire Fisheries,,, “We feel disenfranchised at this point,” Gilbert said. Read the story here 05:56

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