MAINE PUBLIC • December 17, 2020
Massachusetts regulators are proposing a periodic ban on lobster-fishing gear in state waters, to stem the decline of the endangered North Atlantic right whale. The ban would last from February though May, when right whales in recent years have congregated off Cape Cod. Earlier this year, a federal judge ruled that the Bay State was violating the Endangered Species Act by issuing lobster licenses and putting whales at risk of becoming entangled. A similar lawsuit filed against Maine’s Department of Marine Resources was stayed last month, pending the outcome of another lawsuit that could lead to new federal rules for the entire Northeast lobster fishery.