July 16, 2019 — Maine elected officials are pushing back with gusto against new federal measures to protect the imperiled North Atlantic right whales because of the impact of the new regulations on the state’s vital lobster industry.
The moves by Maine Gov. Janet Mills, who characterized the whale protection measures as “foolish” and an “absurd federal overreach,” and the state’s congressional delegation ultimately could have repercussions on Massachusetts’ lobster industry.
Or not. No one seems to know right now.
“The actions by Maine were a bit of a surprise, but nothing has been determined yet,” David Pierce, director of the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries, said Monday. “At this point, we don’t know what the federal government is going to do in response. There will be upcoming meetings and discussions, but right now it’s really wait and see.”
On Friday, Mills penned an open letter to the Maine lobster industry in which she said federal regulators have not provided specific evidence that the nation’s largest commercial lobster fleet is a primary threat to the remaining stock of North Atlantic right whales, now estimated at about 410.
“There is a disturbing lack of evidence connecting the Maine lobster industry to recent right whale deaths,” Mills wrote in the letter. “The Maine lobster industry is not the primary problem for right whales.”