MAINE PUBLIC • March 13, 2023
Maine lobstermen are suing the California-based Monterey Bay Aquarium over its decision to strip U-S lobster fisheries of their sustainability certification. The aquarium's Seafood Watch program "red-listed" lobster last fall, arguing that the fisheries pose a threat to the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale. The new rating means that the aquarium is urging businesses and consumers to avoid buying lobster. In a lawsuit filed Monday in federal district court, Maine lobstermen argue that the aquarium has ignored the scientific data on right whale entanglements and that it made defamatory statements causing them economic harm.