PORTLAND, Maine — A Maine fishing management board has signed off on a plan to cut back the number of scallop fishing days along the state's southern coast.
A proposal called to cut back the number of scalloping days in the southern scalloping zone from 70 to 60. A state advisory council charged with ruling on the proposal voted unanimously in its favor Tuesday.
The midcoast and eastern Maine zone will have 70 scalloping days like last year. The far eastern zone, which includes scallop-rich Cobscook Bay, remains at 50 days.
The upcoming scallop fishing season begins in early December and ends in mid-April. Maine scallops were worth almost $7.5 million last year, the most since 1993. The price to the consumer is typically $8 to $10 per pound more than other scallops.
