Additional restrictions on cod fishing off of New England debates in Massachusetts

Federal regulators are debating emergency restrictions to the Gulf of Maine's cod fishery.

The New England Fishery Management Council is considering the restrictions at its meeting in Hyannis, Massachusetts, on Thursday. The three-day meeting began on Tuesday and concludes Thursday.

The council's Groundfish Oversight Committee last month recommended a number of changes to the fishery. One restriction would limit fishing by private recreational and charter boats. The committee also recommends new prohibitions on some commercial groundfishing vessels and requests a review of the extent of cod bycatch in the lobster fishery.

Regulators say the amount of cod spawning in the Gulf is estimated at only 3 to 4 percent of its target level.