Tag Archives: Whale protection rules

Maine lawmakers call for more hearings on whale rules

Members of Maine’s congressional delegation are asking the federal government to hold more hearings on whale protection rules to gauge the impact on the state’s commercial fishing industry. In a letter to the National Marine Fisheries Service, Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine and Angus King, I-Maine, said the federal agency’s decision to hold only one public hearing last week on the new regulations “unacceptable” and called for more engagement with the lobster industry. The lawmakers wrote that the 90% risk reduction target fisheries regulators are pursuing over the next two years to protect critically endangered North Atlantic right whales would be a “death knell” for lobstermen. >click to read< 19:06

Maine’s politicians seek delay on whale protection rules

In a letter to Commerce Secretary Gina Riamondo, Gov. Mills and other officials urge federal fisheries regulators to extend the May 1 deadline to comply with the new regulations, which are aimed at protecting critically endangered north Atlantic right whales by setting a seasonal closure and requiring modifications to gear. They are requesting a July 1 deadline.  The state’s commercial fishing industry is working “in good faith” to comply with the new rules but are facing supply chain issues and other complications with less than six weeks to go until implementation of the new rules. >click to read< 17:40

Zone B waits to present recommendation

Even though a deadline to present a state plan designed to minimize potential harm to right whales is fast approaching, members of the Zone B Lobster Management Council asked Department of Marine Resources officials to check numbers for the area 6-12 miles offshore before agreeing to a plan specific to that fishing zone. “The timeline is short,” said DMR Commissioner Pat Keliher,,, While most members of the Zone B council seemed in favor of the subcommittee’s recommendations, there was some hesitation.   “I support thisit would work for me,” said Howland. “I’d hate to railroad it if there are some concerns. This is better than it could be, but it doesn’t sound like it’s ideal for some guys.”,, “There’s a side of me that feels like this is getting stuffed down my throat,” said council member James Hanscom after asking if the decision could be tabled.  >click to read< 08:09

6 to 9 p.m. tonight in Gloucester at GARFO headquarters, Forum focuses on whale protection rules

The eight-community traveling road show to gather public comment on new protections for the imperiled North Atlantic right whales hits the city Tuesday evening and is expected to draw a big crowd at NOAA’s Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office in Blackburn Industrial Park. The Gloucester session, set to run from 6 to 9 p.m. at the GARFO headquarters at 55 Great Republic Drive, is the seventh of the eight scoping meetings and the first of two in Massachusetts.The other is scheduled for the next night in Bourne. >click to read< 11:35

Whale Protection Rules: Maine Lobstermen Divided Over Whether to Sue – Wait’ll the Cod Protection Rules Kick In!

Maine lobstermen are considering taking the federal government to court over regulations designed to protect endangered North Atlantic right whales. The Maine Lobstering Union has filed a notice of intent to sue the National Marine Fisheries Service over new and existing rules requiring the modification of lobster gear. Read the rest here 18:58

National Marine Fisheries Service whale protection rules will snare lobstermen

Earlier this month, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) published a Draft Environmental Impact Statement for proposed amendments to the federal Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Plan. The draft runs to substantially more than 500 pages, plus exhibits and appendices. continued@fenceviewer