A press communiqué revealed that several political leaders and fisheries regulators are expected to join industry representatives at the Northeast Fisheries Summit, which is open to the public at the New Bedford Whaling Museum, comes at a time of high tension between regulators and the industry.
The fishing industry is said to have been fighting back against what it views as overly restrictive catch allocations and harsh and arbitrary fisheries law enforcement. The meeting is being co-hosted by Mayor Scott W. Lang’s Ocean and Fisheries Council, the UMass School for Marine Science and Technology and the Massachusetts Marine Fisheries Institute.
Lang said that they all recognize the importance of achieving a sustainable fisheries management plan. He looks forward to an open discussion about how we can ensure a balance of sensible conservation practices with the economic vitality of the fishing industry. There will be discussions on catch shares and sectors, scallops and scallop by-catch, and amending the Magnuson-Stevens Act.
