ASSOCIATED PRESS • August 1, 2023
Regulators voted Tuesday to consider raising the amount of a valuable baby eel that can be harvested from Maine’s waterways, though conservationists say the eel populations are declining and need better protection. Maine’s rivers and streams are home to the country’s only significant commercial-scale baby American eel fishing industry. American eels are also a species of concern for conservationists. The International Union for Conservation of Nature considers them to be endangered.