WCSH-TV6 • October 24, 2022
Maine lobstermen may get a temporary break on new rules aimed to protect endangered North Atlantic right whales. But it will be up to a federal judge in Washington, D.C. to decide. The lobster industry, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the Center for Biological Diversity are involved in federal court negotiations over imposing new and tougher restrictions on fishing. The National Marine Fisheries Service, which is part of NOAA, said it needed two years, while the CBD suggested just six months—a prospect that has had lobstermen extremely worried about sudden, dramatic cutbacks in how they can fish. But on Monday, the Maine Lobstermen’s Association said the environmental group has changed its position and has indicated to the court it will accept the two-year time frame requested by NMFS.