CENTRAL MAINE • February 27, 2024
Where there is overlap of fishing gear and whale habitat use, there is risk of entanglement. The Department of Marine Resources can make meaningful progress on preventing entanglement. Recent funding sources include:
• $6.9 million for Maine testing of alternative fishing gear that removes vertical fishing line from the water column;
• $100,000 donation from Nature Conservancy of Maine towards an alternative gear lending library;
• $17+ million from the federal omnibus funding bill to place 26 passive acoustic monitors in the Gulf of Maine and increase routine aerial monitoring;
• A new Lobster Innovation Fund, providing stipends to fishermen for testing alternative fishing gear.
The agency can provide a rational, science-informed path forward that works for both fishermen and whales. ~ Bill McWeeny, Brooksville, Maine Coalition for North Atlantic Right Whales