{"id":1635740,"date":"2022-09-07T18:05:49","date_gmt":"2022-09-07T22:05:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1635740"},"modified":"2022-09-07T18:07:02","modified_gmt":"2022-09-07T22:07:02","slug":"fishers-restaurateurs-even-a-u-s-senator-up-in-arms-after-maine-lobsters-placed-on-environmentalist-red-list","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/fishers-restaurateurs-even-a-u-s-senator-up-in-arms-after-maine-lobsters-placed-on-environmentalist-red-list\/","title":{"rendered":"Fishers, Restaurateurs, Even A U.S. Senator Up In Arms After Maine Lobsters Placed On Environmentalist \u2018Red List\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">34<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ffishers-restaurateurs-even-a-u-s-senator-up-in-arms-after-maine-lobsters-placed-on-environmentalist-red-list%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1635740&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>An environmental watchlist angered fishers, and even state political leaders when it \u201cred listed\u201d Maine lobsters.<\/p>\n<p>Seafood Watch, an environmental watchlist maintained by the Monterey Bay Aquarium in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/topic\/california\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">California<\/a>, placed American lobsters caught in the Gulf of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/topic\/maine\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Maine<\/a> and the Georges Bank, as well as others caught in the seas off of northwestern Canada, on its \u201cred list\u201d of seafoods to avoid buying. Seafood Watch claimed that lobster fishing equipment is harming the critically endangered population of North Atlantic right whales, which get tangled in the fishing gear.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAmerican lobster caught in the U.S. Atlantic (Gulf of Maine and Georges Bank fishery) with pots is an Avoid,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.seafoodwatch.org\/recommendation\/lobster\/american-lobster-19701?species=127\">Seafood Watch<\/a> said. \u201cThis fishery poses a risk to overfished or at-risk species, including endangered North Atlantic right whales. Entanglement in fishing gear is the leading cause of serious injury and death to North Atlantic right whales.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The list went on to claim that \u201ccurrent management measures do not go far enough to mitigate entanglement risks and promote recovery of the species. [Lobster] Pots typically have fewer impacts on habitat, but the cumulative effects of large-scale fishing are likely underestimated. Some measures to protect the ecosystem have been implemented, but stronger policies are needed to protect American lobster\u2019s role in the food web.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Lobster pots are fishing gears that are set on the seafloor or in underwater using vertical lines, usually attached to a buoy. According to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pressherald.com\/2022\/09\/06\/seafood-sustainability-group-red-lists-lobster\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Portland Press-Herald<\/a>, fishers use pots or similar gears for catching 14 different species, including the Jonah crab and Gulf of Maine flounder, which have also been \u201cred-listed.\u201d Right whales have been known to get caught in the lines, causing serious injury and even death. The Press-Herald reports that less than 340 North Atlantic right whales are alive today.<\/p>\n<p>The Seafood Watch project partners with a number of major restaurants, distributors, and grocery stores; it currently maintains major partnerships with food services distributor Aramark, Bon Appetit magazine, The Cheesecake Factory restaurant chain, and Whole Foods grocery stores. Buyers for these companies use the Seafood Watch listings to influence purchasing decisions and menu selections, often avoiding red-listed seafood, the Press-Herald reported.<\/p>\n<p>Industry groups and restaurateurs blasted the decision.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLobster is one of the most sustainable fisheries in the world due to the effective stewardship practices handed down through generations of lobstermen,\u201d Maine Lobsterman\u2019s Association executive director Patrice McCarron told the Press-Herald. \u201cThese include strict protections for both the lobster resource and right whales.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A spokesman for the Red Lobster restaurant chain said that the specific cause of the whale deaths remains uncertain, but deaths from Maine fisheries have declined significanlty. \u201cThus, we find it misleading to suggest to consumers that avoiding Maine lobster would benefit whale preservation efforts,\u201d Red Lobster told the Press-Herald.<\/p>\n<p>The move also caught the ire of political leaders in Maine.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cToday\u2019s decision by Seafood Watch to \u2018Red List\u2019 Maine lobster is simply absurd and flies in the face of common sense,\u201d Senator <a href=\"https:\/\/www.king.senate.gov\/newsroom\/press-releases\/statement-from-senator-king-on-absurd-seafood-watch-designation\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Angus King<\/a>\u00a0(I-ME) said in a statement Tuesday. \u201cThe Maine lobster industry \u2013 one of our state\u2019s most important economic drivers and a source of pride \u2013 has long been committed to environmentally conscious, sustainable fishing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere hasn\u2019t been a whale entanglement attributed to Maine lobster gear since 2004 and no documented right whale death has ever been attributed to Maine lobster gear,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cConsumers and businesses must see through this list and recognize that lobstermen are partners in conservation and sustainability and that the delicious Maine lobster can and should continue to be enjoyed,\u201d Governor <a href=\"https:\/\/www.maine.gov\/governor\/mills\/news\/governor-mills-slams-seafood-watchs-attack-maine-lobster-industry-2022-09-06\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Janet Mills<\/a>\u00a0(D-ME) added.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>An environmental watchlist angered fishers, and even state political leaders when it \u201cred listed\u201d Maine lobsters. Seafood Watch, an environmental watchlist maintained by the Monterey Bay Aquarium in California, placed American lobsters caught in the Gulf of Maine and the Georges Bank, as well as others caught in the seas off of northwestern Canada, on &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":498053,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1635740","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1635740","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1635740"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1635740\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/498053"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1635740"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1635740"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1635740"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}