BOSTON — State lawmakers and Attorney General Martha Coakley pledged Wednesday to continue putting pressure on the federal government to revise catch share limits imposed on the fishing industry, and give fishermen relief from the severe fines levied by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Coakley told lawmakers serving on a subcommittee on catch shares and fisheries management that she plans to “stay involved in this fight.”
The attorney general said there was a better way for the federal government to accomplish environmental goals without affecting the fishing industry so negatively. Last week, members of the Massachusetts congressional delegation ripped NOAA officials for regulations they described as overzealous and verge on making small fishing businesses in the state extinct.
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