Maine lobstermen are quick to point out how careful they are to protect the state's signature sea creature.

And, while fishermen do sometimes exaggerate, they're not lying.
With the obvious exception of the lobsters that end up wearing rubber bands, the animals are treated pretty well.

Most trapped lobsters get dropped back into the ocean because they are too small, or too big, or are carrying eggs, or recently carried eggs.

Lobstermen know which ones recently carried eggs, by the way, because of the v-shaped notches that they clip out of the tails of breeding females.

You just can't do that with fish.

Now, however, the state's lobstermen are getting a chance to prove their conservation claims by having Maine lobster officially counted among the world's most eco-friendly seafoods.

With consumers around the world paying attention to the environmental impacts of every meal, industry leaders say they should do it fast.

Representatives of lobster industry and the Baldacci administration are hoping to win Marine Stewardship Council certification for the Maine lobster.

The distinction, a well-known seal of approval in the seafood business, would make the delicacy more appealing to the growing number of people who want to eat green, and we're not talking about tomalley.

It also would keep lobster on the shopping list of eco-conscious chefs and in the tanks of key retailers such as Wal-Mart, which has said it will soon only carry wild-caught seafood that's certified as sustainable.

A consultant's report submitted this week says Maine lobster could indeed qualify for the certification, as long as the fishery overcomes a few weaknesses.

Chief among the needed improvements are proving that the Maine industry is doing enough to protect whales from getting entangled in lobster gear, and spelling out what conservation steps would be taken if the lobster population declines.

The whale issue is a tricky one because Maine and its lobster industry are resisting a federal requirement that traps be connected by sinking ropes instead of ropes made to float above the seafloor.

Although floating rope is considered a risk to passing whales, many Maine lobstermen rely on floating rope to prevent snags on the state's rocky ocean floor.

The threat to whales is a primary reason Maine lobster is not classified as a "best choice" by Seafood Watch, a popular sustainable seafood list posted by the Monterey Bay Aquarium. (It is listed as a "good alternative," however.)

Massachusetts lobstermen have already gone along with the ban on floating rope and, in a marketing move aimed squarely at the Maine mystique, now use green "whale-safe" bands on the claws of their lobsters.

Maine's lobstermen, who also would have to accept more paperwork requirements, will have a chance to chime in on the certification plan in a series of three meetings along the Maine coast next month.

One-upping the guys in Massachusetts will be incentive enough for some.
If not, protecting a $250 million share of the increasingly green seafood market could be.

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