Maine Legislator Wants to Restrict Scallop Harvest Despite Dramatic Recovery
SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Associated Press] By Patrick Whittle - March 26, 2015 -
PORTLAND, Maine, A state legislator wants to put a cap on the amount of Maine scallops that fishermen can harvest, even as the rebounding fishery is growing in volume and value a decade after crashing.
The fishery is experiencing a dramatic comeback: The catch bottomed out in 2005 at 33,141 pounds and rebuilt to more than a half-million pounds in 2014, and regulators say early signs are positive for 2015. And the scallops' price at the dock has more than tripled since 2004 to nearly $13 per pound.
Rep. Alley's proposal is the subject of a public hearing in Augusta scheduled for April 1. State Department of Marine Resources Commissioner Patrick Keliher is studying the proposal and will testify at the hearing on the department's position, a spokesman said.
The new restrictions could be helpful because more fishermen have entered the resurgent fishery, said Dana Temple, a Cape Elizabeth scallop dealer and a member of the Marine Resources Department's scallop advisory council.
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