New Rules Could be Coming to Shuttered Maine Shrimp Fishery

(AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Interstate regulators are holding a pair of meetings to determine how to manage New England’s depleted shrimp fishery in the future.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission has been considering new ways to manage Northern shrimp, which have declined as waters have warmed. The fishery is currently shut down.

Regulators are looking at ways to manage the fishery when and if it reopens. They are considering options such as state-by-state quotas, mandating different types of gear and adding new reporting methods.

The ASMFC’s shrimp advisory panel is meeting on Thursday to make recommendations. The shrimp section is expected to vote on March 16 on whether to send a draft of proposed rules out for public comment.

The shrimp were a popular regional winter seafood item before the shutdown.