PORTLAND (AP) — Federal regulators are meeting in Rhode Island to consider long term restrictions for the Gulf of Maine’s depleted cod fishery.
The New England Fishery Management Council is meeting Tuesday and could stretch into Wednesday. The meeting is about a week after the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced the emergency closure of commercial and recreational cod fishing in parts of the Gulf. The emergency restrictions include a 200-pound limit on how much a vessel can catch during one trip.
The emergency measures hold until May 12. The management council is charged with setting parameters for the 2015 fishing year, which begins May 1.
The council’s Scientific and Statistical Committee says an acceptable catch for cod next year is 386 metric tons. The current acceptable biological catch is 1550 metric tons.
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