State commissioners at a packed meeting in Baton Rouge on Thursday approved a proposal to ease some regulations on Louisiana's controversial menhaden fishing industry while adding additional protections in certain sensitive areas off the coast.

The proposal sets in motion a process that could see the new rules take effect next year.

The state's Wildlife and Fisheries Commission voted 4-3 in favor of the proposal that would reduce the half-mile buffer zone in certain areas off the coast where fishing for menhaden, or pogies, is currently banned. The buffer would be a quarter-mile in those areas under the proposal, while the no-go zone for the menhaden industry would be extended in other particularly sensitive areas.

In total, banned areas for the industry would increase by around 4%. B

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