PORTLAND (AP) — Fishing regulators are looking to hire Maine fishermen to help study New England’s imperiled cold water shrimp population.
The interstate Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission and the Maine Department of Marine Resources say they plan to hire five shrimp trapping vessels to collect samples of Northern shrimp.
The fishermen will also be allowed to bring 500 pounds of shrimp per week to shore and sell them. The project will begin on Jan. 30, 2017, and last for eight consecutive weeks.
Scientists say warming oceans have negatively impacted the shrimp’s ability to thrive off of the New England coast. Regulators shut the fishery down in 2013. They were formerly a popular winter seafood item in Maine and beyond.
The shrimp were formerly harvested by fishermen from Maine, Massachusetts and New Hampshire.
The Times Record Sustaining Sponsor
We believe a community must be informed to thrive. bowdoin.edu
Comments are not available on this story. Read more about why we allow commenting on some stories and not on others.
We believe it's important to offer commenting on certain stories as a benefit to our readers. At its best, our comments sections can be a productive platform for readers to engage with our journalism, offer thoughts on coverage and issues, and drive conversation in a respectful, solutions-based way. It's a form of open discourse that can be useful to our community, public officials, journalists and others.
We do not enable comments on everything — exceptions include most crime stories, and coverage involving personal tragedy or sensitive issues that invite personal attacks instead of thoughtful discussion.
You can read more here about our commenting policy and terms of use. More information is also found on our FAQs.
Show less