According to the NYTimes, "The New England Fishery Management Council on Thursday approved the region’s first cap on the amount of river herring that can be caught by industrial trawlers."
River herring numbers are low, down 90% in the last twenty years, according to River Herring Rescue. Obstacles to herring spawning, including a lack of fish ladders,are being targeted by RHR.
"With a return of strong herring runs, entire stocks of important game fish will be healthier. The health of many species depends directly upon a healthy marine food web, and river herring are one vital source of nourishment for other fish, marine and river mammals such as river otters and seals, and fish-eating birds like herons and egrets, amphibians, and reptiles. Recreational fishing for striped bass alone would greatly benefit, as would local shorefront business and fishing charter operations."