Democratic Maine Congresswoman Chellie Pingree is urging fisheries regulators to stick with the current system of sector management, or catch-shares, despite pressure from a number of New England fishermen and politicians to re-examine the issue. Her comments come as a delegation of about 40 fishermen and their supporters led by New Bedford Mayor Scott Lang, is meeting with lawmakers in Washington to make the case for higher catch limits than those currently allowed by sector management.
Chellie Pingree says the sector-based system has led to a successful reduction in by-catch as well as an increase in revenue.
"The sector system has worked well in Maine," she says. "Revenues are up, and I think our fishermen are playing by the rules, so we oppose any changes to this. Frankly, this is forward management of the fisheries, this is thinking ahead, it works well for the fishermen in the long run and it's very good for the fish stocks as well."
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