Galilee fishermen have called the vessels, most which approach the state’s maximum 165-foot commercial fishing vessel limit, too large and incompatible with the operations of the local fleet.

“I have people calling me telling me, ‘Rich, it’s getting out of hand with the pair-trawlers,’” said Rich Fuka, president of the R.I. Commercial Fishermen’s Alliance.

For years, out-of-state trawlers have targeted Rhode Island waters for Atlantic herring, which funnel into Rhode Island every winter via the Nantucket Sound. This year, warm weather and relatively high water temperatures have kept the herring schools here for longer periods of time.

Read the complete story from The South County Independent