GLOUCESTER, MA (March 19, 2009) – The Sustainable Fisheries Coalition, a group representing midwater trawl and purse seine fishermen from Maine to New Jersey, is seeking Amicus Curiae, or “Friend of the Court”, status in a lawsuit brought against the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and the US Department of Commerce.
The suit was filed by Earthjustice, an environmental law firm, on behalf of the Midcoast Fishermen’s Association, based in Port Clyde, Maine. The suit alleges that NMFS violated the law in denying a petition to prohibit fishing vessels engaged in midwater trawling for herring from fishing in areas closed to groundfishing.
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