PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 25, 2022
A small collective of Maine lobstermen, the Maine Lobster Union in Trenton, is dropping its lawsuit challenging a federally required seasonal closure as the industry waits for regulators to rehash a larger set of rules created last year to protect the endangered North Atlantic right whale. There are two larger civil cases against federal regulators still being considered by a federal judge in Washington, D.C. One is fronted by the Maine Lobstermen’s Association, which argued that the existing set of proposed rules – including the seasonal closure – would stifle their industry. The second was initiated by a trio of environmental groups who said the federal rules aren’t strict enough.