December 23, 2013 — The following was released by the Maine Department of Marine Resources:
A Brewer meeting originally scheduled for December 9 by the Maine Department of Marine Resources to seek stakeholder input on a plan to reduce the harvest of elvers by 25-40% from the 2013 harvest for the 2014 fishing season, has been re-scheduled for January 2. The meeting will take place from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM at Jeff’s Catering, 15 Littlefield Way in Brewer.
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission has postponed action on Draft Addendum IV until its 2014 Spring Meeting so that it can update the landings data and continue to develop options for the 2015 fishing season.
In the interim, the Maine Department of Marine Resources (DMR) has agreed to reduce the harvest for the coming season. Landings in 2013 totaled 18,253 pounds.
This is the second of two meetings seeking industry input on a plan to reduce the harvest; the first was held in Augusta on December 11.