April 2, 2013 — The Passamaquoddy Tribe's violation of state law by selling more than its allotted number of elver fishing licenses is jeopardizing Maine's fisheries, economy and families, Marine Resources Commissioner Patrick Keliher said Tuesday.
"The Passamaquoddy Tribe has indeed put the entire elver fishery at risk for Maine fishermen, but not due to the number of pounds of elvers they are landing," Keliher said in a news release Tuesday.
He said a management plan established by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission limits Maine to a designated number of licenses and pieces of gear, and the commission can shut down fisheries in non-compliant states — as Maine is now.
Under the management plan, Maine is limited to 744 licenses and 1,242 pieces of gear, Keliher said. The state has issued about 400 licenses for the lucrative baby eels this year and allocated 150 to the Passamaquoddies. But they have refused to abide by the limit, saying they have sold 525 licenses.
That "puts the state out of compliance with the license limitation, regardless of the actual pounds landed," Keliher said.
He said officials must enforce state law to avoid possible closure of Maine's second-most valuable fishery, behind lobster, which would hurt hundreds of Maine families and the economy.
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