The Fall ME-NH trawl survey conducted by the State of Maine, Department of Marine Resources is scheduled to begin September 23, 2019 in New Hampshire working east to Lubec. The more information we have regarding our fisheries, the better equipped we are to defend these resources and your livelihoods. The ME-NH trawl survey provides valuable information for the management of important commercially harvested species. Failure to complete the proposed tows could jeopardize the use of our data for state and federal lobster and finfish management. To address this, we will be increasing our efforts to move gear within the published tows. If weather does not permit us to work, we expect that lobstermen will not be fishing that day. Therefore, it is our hope that everyone, the trawl survey and lobstermen, will slide the schedule one day forward. Marine Patrol will be on hand as well to assist with tow operations, including moving traps. You can avoid the need for our Marine Patrol to handle gear by clearing an area of gear 1/8th mile on either side of the 1 nautical mile towline for day of the tow. Latitude/Longitude and TD coordinates for tow locations (pair of dots with a line on the chart mark each tow) and schedules can be found at: www.maine.gov/dmr/science-research/projects/trawlsurvey/fl19/schedule.html For more detailed charts, please call Rebecca Peters at the office 207-633-9530, or by cell 207-557-5276, or email Rebecca.J.Peters@maine.gov Tow Schedule and Updates are available via several methods. Boat contact: F/V Robert Michael monitors Channels 16 and 13. Boat cell phone: 207-557-5276 (Chief Scientist, Rebecca Peters). Web: www.maine.gov/dmr/science-research/projects/trawlsurvey/index.html.
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