January 20, 2022 — Maine lobstermen objected Tuesday to a proposal from interstate fishing managers that would require offshore lobstermen to have electronic trackers on their boats.
An arm of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission is considering implementing the tracking requirements on federally-permitted lobster and Jonah crab fishermen in order to collect data on where and how they fish. At a public hearing on Tuesday, commission officials laid out the proposal and heard concerns from lobstermen across the northeast.
The managers hope the data will help with fish stock assessments, interactions with protected species such as right whales, enforcement and ocean planning.
Lobstermen currently don’t have to report where they fish but competition for space could become more prevalent as other uses, such as aquaculture, marine protected areas and offshore energy, emerge. Officials said this data could help regulators understand how new uses could affect the fishery, something that’s currently challenging because they don’t know where fishermen drop their traps.