Today, at a meeting in Portland, Maine, the New England Fisheries Management Council will likely embark on a historic rewriting of the way our region’s traditional fish stocks will be managed.
Although it has a clunky moniker — "sector allocation" — its guiding principle is simple: Give groups of fishermen a percentage of the annual fish quota and let them manage it for themselves.
It’s an approach to New England fishery management with strong Cape roots. Although 15 sectors representing fishermen from Maine to Rhode Island have asked for approval under the new plan, two are already in place on the Cape.