The Maine Department of Marine Resources will hold a public hearing in Scarborough Wednesday on proposed fishing restrictions aimed at rebuilding the state's sea scallop population.

As proposed, the scallop fishing season would be limited to 52 days, or four days each week in December, January and February. The previous season had 136 days.

The proposed rules also include a daily possession limit of 200 pounds of scallop meats and closures of Casco Bay and five other areas to any scallop harvesting for the next three seasons.

There are more than 1,000 licensed scallop fishermen in the state, including southern Maine fishermen. State officials say the restrictions are needed to end a population crash along much of the coast, while fishermen say the catch is critical to sustain them during the winters.

Maine's scallop landings have dropped 87 percent between 1987 and 2007, from 1.24 million pounds to 158,000 pounds.

The southern Maine public hearing will be held Wednesday at 6 p.m. in the Scarborough High School cafeteria. The high school is located behind the Municipal Building at 259 Route 1.