SCARBROUGH, Maine — February 1, 2013 — The current licensing system and marketing to increase demand for lobsters were hot topics discussed at a public forum with local lobstermen.
Scarborough Town Hall chambers were filled with lobstermen on Jan. 23, some of them with their spouses, who were interested in talking about the future of the lobster industry.
The Maine Department of Marine Resources initiated the discussion that was the 10th of 16 the department has planned.
“I am here to listen,” said Patrick Keliher, commissioner for the Maine Department of Marine Resources. “We want to discuss short-term and long-term strategies.”
Keliher said the gathering was not a hearing and not a regulatory meeting.
“This is an open conversation about specific issues. Nothing has a bill or regulation attached to it. Nothing we talk about today would impact you in this coming season,” Keliher said.
Keliher said he was prompted to organize the discussions after he received numerous calls last summer with requests for him to slow down the fishery and do something about the dwindling boat price. Boat price is the price per pound for lobster paid to fishermen.
“My authority lies in resource protection propagation and health as it relates to resources. I should not have authority to impact markets,” Keliher said, adding that boat prices for lobster have been dropping since 2008 and hit an all-time low last summer.
Read the full story at the Scarborough Leader