April 6, 2017 — Fishing regulators are hosting a public hearing tonight, April 5, in Gloucester on a plan to make the Atlantic herring fishery run more smoothly.
The hearing is at 6 p.m. at the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries’ Annisquam River Station, 30 Emerson Ave., and is on the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Herring Draft Addendum I to Amendment 3
Herring are a key fish on the East Coast because they are important bait for lucrative species, especially lobster. Last year’s lobster season was hindered for several weeks by a herring shortage.
Gloucester reigns as the state’s most prolific lobster port, both in terms of landings by weight and number of permitted lobstermen fishing here, followed by Plymouth and Rockport, according to the state Division of Marine Fisheries.