The 45 percent reduction starting in 2010 will take a toll on the fishing fleet and lobstermen finances.
New England fishery managers voted Tuesday in favor of deep cuts in the amount of herring that can be caught next year, as a precaution to protect the small but important fish.
The 45 percent reduction from the 2009 catch limit is sure to take a toll on the herring fleet and on the lobster industry, which relies on an abundant supply of the silvery fish to bait millions of traps.
The council voted Tuesday during a meeting in Newport, R.I., to limit the overall herring catch to 109,000 metric tons for the next three years, down from a 194,000-ton limit this year, Stockwell said. It voted to limit the area along the Maine coast to 26,546 metric tons next year, he said.