PORTLAND — The New England Fishery Management Council is asking the federal government to consider allowing fishermen to catch more haddock in the Gulf of Maine this year.
The council voted Wednesday to ask the National Marine Fisheries Service to raise the haddock catch limit for the 2014 fishing year. The fishing year began May 1 and ends April 30, 2015. The catch limit is currently close to 700,000 pounds.
The council’s proposal passed by a vote of 15-1.
The request is contingent on a July assessment of the haddock fish stock. A spokeswoman for the fishery council says the higher limit would apply to commercial and recreational fishing.
The fishery council is an intergovernmental body that represents federal and state entities.
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