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Fishing groups push to postpone
protections for endangered right whale to 2035
[July 29, 2025]
By PATRICK WHITTLE
PORTLAND,
Maine (AP) — A Maine congressman and several commercial fishing groups
are getting behind a push to delay rules designed to protect a vanishing
species of whale for 10 years.
The North
Atlantic right whale numbers only about 370 and has declined over the
last 15 years. They have been the subject of proposed federal fishing
laws that are backed by conservation groups because the whales are
threatened by lethal entanglement in commercial fishing gear.
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A North Atlantic right whale feeds on the surface of Cape Cod bay off
the coast of Plymouth, Mass., on March 28, 2018. (AP Photo/Michael
Dwyer, File) |
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The
federal government is in the midst of a pause on federal right
whale rules until 2028. Democratic Rep. Jared Golden of Maine
and a coalition of fishing organizations said in letters to
congressional officials that they want to extend that moratorium
out to 2035.
Golden, who played a role in the initial moratorium, said
extending the pause would give the government the time it needs
to craft regulations that reflect science. He also said it would
protect Maine's lifesblood lobster fishing industry, which is
one of the fishing sectors that would have to comply with rules
intended to protect right whales.
“Maine’s lobster fishery has most recently been valued at more
than half a billion dollars — and that’s just the value of the
catch. It also supports tens of thousands of jobs. It is an
iconic part of our state’s economy, heritage and appeal to
visitors,” Golden said in a July 22 letter to a subcommittee of
the House Natural Resources Committee.
The extension of the moratorium was originally proposed by
Alaska Republican Nick Begich. It's one of several changes to
the federal Marine Mammal Protection Act proposed by Begich, who
like Golden represents a state with a large commercial fishing
industry.
The changes have drawn condemnation from environmental
organizations and praise from commercial fishing groups. A group
of fishing organizations including the Maine Lobstermen's
Association said in a July 21 letter to the subcommittee that
“heavy regulation comes at a heavy cost.”
The whales were once numerous off the East Coast, but they were
decimated during the era of commercial whaling and have been
slow to recover. They are also threatened by collisions with
large ships.
The population of the whales fell about 25% from 2010 to 2020.
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