Page 28 - ATODAY

A28 SCIENCE
Tuesday 13 december 2016

Overfished halibut under scrutiny as Maine’s catch increases

PATRICK WHITTLE they oversee halibut. Part ment beyond acknowl-
Associated Press of the issue is that if fisher- edging that the agency
BRUNSWICK, Maine (AP) men exceed their quota for is reviewing the council’s
— Federal fishing regula- the fish, it can trigger restric- request, and taking it seri-
tors say they are looking to tions on fishing that impact ously. Some conservation-
change the way they man- fishermen who operate ist groups have tried to
age Atlantic halibut in the in federal waters. About dissuade consumers from
wake of a surge in catch of 40 percent of the halibut buying Atlantic halibut.
the fish. catch for the 2015 fishing The National Oceanic and
The government lists Atlan- year was taken in state wa- Atmospheric Administration
tic halibut as “overfished” ters, mostly in Maine. lists it as a “species of con-
and conservationists want Ben Martens, executive di- cern,” meaning there are
to protect it. But many rector of the Maine Coast “concerns regarding status
fishermen say the catch is Fishermen’s Association, and threats,” but also insuf-
up because the stock has said Maine should consider ficient information about
been rebuilt over recent limiting the amount of hali- whether a listing under the
years. but fishing in state waters. federal Endangered Spe-
East Coast fishermen Otherwise, federal fisher- cies Act is warranted.Atlan-
caught more than 215,000 men will be negatively af- tic halibut is fished commer-
pounds of Atlantic halibut fected by the surge in state cially off New England, with
in 2015 in the most produc- catch, he said. the majority of the catch
tive year of fishing for the Martens also said better coming ashore in Maine
flatfish since 1972. Catch of data also is needed be- and Massachusetts. The fish
the fish in nearshore Maine cause many fishermen be- is of high economic value,
waters is helping drive the lieve the stock has rebuilt frequently serving as an en-
increase, regulators say. significantly in recent years, tree item in the $30 range,
The regulatory New Eng- and that’s why catch is up. and its price per pound at
land Fishery Manage- Atlantic halibut steaks are displayed for sale at a seafood mar- “The story is that this is a re- the dock has doubled for
ment Council decided last ket, Friday, Dec, 9, 2016, in Portland, Maine. building success,” he said. fishermen in the last ten
month to review manage- Associated Press “In New England, we don’t years.
ment of halibut, which is regulation changes could Plante, a spokeswoman for know what to do with suc- The much larger Pacific
popular with diners and take isn’t yet known. the council, said. cesses.” halibut fishery, which is
chefs for its thick, meaty “We’ve identified that this The council has also asked A spokesman for the Maine based around Alaska, gen-
steaks. Exactly what form is an issue, and this will be that Maine’s state fishing Department of Marine Re- erates more than 20 million
a priority for 2017,” Janice managers adjust the way sources declined to com- pounds of fish per year.q