Fishing regulators have voted to expand closed areas in the Northeast Atlantic, after the areas showed an abundance of small, juvenile scallops.

The New England Fisheries Management Council took the action Thursday during a meeting in Newport.

Seafood consultant and former Council member Jim Kendall of New Bedford believes scallopers can live with the plan.

Kendall says while the closings may be an immediate burden to scallopers, the payoff will come in 2017 and years after when the closed areas are reopened and grown scallops are harvested.

The Council on Thursday also voted to increase crew sizes on scallop boats from seven to eight to allow for training of new crew members.

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