Shrimp catch limit raised 10%
Presented with a petition with more than 1,500 signatures urging a higher shrimp catch limit this season, regulators decided to increase the limit by 10%. Fishermen, however, said the increase isn’t enough.
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Northern Shrimp Section yesterday voted to raise the allowable catch in the Gulf of Maine from 2,000 to 2,211 metric tons, according to the Portland Press Herald. More than 150 people turned out for the group’s meeting in South Portland yesterday, including shrimp fishermen and processers who said this season’s limit would hurt their livelihoods, and that the limit was based on flawed science. A group of industry members gathered 1,581 signatures on a petition to raise the limit and also brought independent scientists to yesterday’s meeting to question the methodology behind this year’s limit, which is about one-third of 2011’s limit.
Regulators rejected increasing the limit to 3,000 metric tons, however. John Norton, owner of Cozy Harbor Seafood in Portland, said the increase is not enough to meet market demand, according to the paper.
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