NMFS Approves New England Council Habitat Amendments; Will Provide Boost to Scallops up to 60 Million lbs
SEAFOODNEWS.COM by John Sackton January 10, 2018
NMFS has given formal approval to the New England Council’s Fish habitat amendment that makes major changes in rules regarding closed areas in New England.
The most immediate impact is on scallops, where NMFS approved the opening of closed area 1 and the Nantucket Lightship area. The concept here was that an abundance of scallops in these areas would lead to rapid harvesting, and a lower swept area by scallop dredges than if vessels were trying to gain their allocations outside the closed areas.
Also research has shown that these were not significant areas for fish spawning. The approval means that the options for scallop harvest will be at the maximum level considered by the council, which projects about 60 million pounds of scallop landings for the 2018-19 season.
NMFS rejected the opening of closed area II on Georges Bank, which is also a major scallop producer.
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