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Lobster Boat Tracking Coming To Protect Whales, Fishery

FILE - In this Aug. 24, 2019, file photo, Adam Daggett stands lookout on the bow as his father, John Daggett, pilots their boat at Cape Porpoise in Kennebunkport, Maine. America's lobster fishing businesses could be subjected to electronic tracking requirements to try to protect rare whales and get a better idea of the population of the valuable crustaceans.
Robert F. Bukaty
/
AP
FILE - In this Aug. 24, 2019, file photo, Adam Daggett stands lookout on the bow as his father, John Daggett, pilots their boat at Cape Porpoise in Kennebunkport, Maine. America's lobster fishing businesses could be subjected to electronic tracking requirements to try to protect rare whales and get a better idea of the population of the valuable crustaceans.

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — America’s lobster fishing businesses could be subjected to electronic tracking requirements to try to protect vulnerable right whales and get a better idea of the population of the valuable crustaceans.

An arm of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, an interstate regulatory authority, said this month it is considering implementing the tracking requirements for lobster boats that have federal permits.

The rules would also apply to boats that harvest Jonah crabs, which are the subject of another important New England fishery.

Regulators say the tracking requirement would provide scientists with better data about the fishery.