BOSTON - Commercial fishing of an important species of bait fish is going to be shut down in one of its key areas in New England for about six weeks.Interstate regulators say the Atlantic herring fishery in the inshore Gulf of Maine is nearing a quota limit and will be subject to restrictions from Sept. 15 to Oct. 31. That means fishermen will not be allowed to bring the fish to land until that date.
The inshore Gulf of Maine's an area that touches coastal Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine. Herring fishing's a major industry in New England, where the herring industry is centered. Fishermen sometimes catch more than 100 million pounds of the lobster bait fish in a year.
The haul will be less this year due to new restrictions.