PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Rhode Island wants to hear from local shellfish harvesters as it creates a new management plan to protect and encourage what it calls one of the state's key resources.

State environmental agencies — supported by the University of Rhode Island — have scheduled a meeting Monday night at URI's Narragansett Bay Campus to begin the process of crafting a new resource management plan for shellfish.

The plan is intended to promote science-based regulations for the shellfish industry. Regulators say input from shellfish harvesters will help guide the process of creating the new management plan.