One of New England’s last open-access commercial fisheries could be closed to new participants as regulators look at new ways to manage the region’s shrimp fishery, a restriction that some fishermen fear will harm their ability to make ends meet in the winter.
New shrimping rules have been proposed for the Gulf of Maine that include options for the coming season such as quotas and restrictions on where and when the small, sweet shrimp can be caught. But the proposal also includes a rule that could — possibly as soon as 2013 — bar or restrict fishermen who don’t have a history of fishing for shrimp.
The plan is being drawn up following shrimp seasons that were abruptly cut short because fishermen caught too much shrimp too fast. The new plan aims to give more flexibility in managing the fishery.
Many fishermen say limiting the number of fishing boats is probably the best way to maintain shrimp populations while allowing fishermen to turn a profit. One of them is Maggie Raymond, executive director of Associated Fisheries of Maine, who owns two groundfishing boats that aren’t used for shrimping.
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