July 1, 2023 — The New England Fishery Management Council has approved a “problem statement” to guide its work on revisiting the Inshore Midwater Trawl Restricted Area that was overturned by a March 2022 court decision.
The council’s Amendment 8 to the Atlantic Herring Fishery Management Plan included an exclusion zone that effectively pushed midwater operators farther offshore. The council voted during its June 27-29 meeting at Freeport, Maine to make it a “priority to take another look at the area and address issues raised by the court.”