It centers on experimental crab traps that could produce a whale-safe catch, while keeping the industry climate ready.
For fisherman Brand Little, the specialized ropes connecting his crab traps are a financial lifeline.
The experimental "pop-up" system is designed to prevent whales from getting entangled, by keeping lines on the ocean floor until a crew launches them by remote control to reel in the traps.
And thanks to a special testing permit, he's been able to fish into the spring crabbing season, which was cut-short several years ago to protect the migrating whales.
"This is a tipping point, and I can't stress this enough. This is a tipping point at getting our spring fishery back. It's been six years. You know, you got to look at where we came from, where we're at and where we're headed," said Brand Little.
RELATED: Bay Area fishermen hopeful for Dungeness crab season after successful testing of new type of traps
That's because of a surprise decision by the California Fish and Game Commission to dramatically expand the number of special pop-up permits for this spring.
Doubling the potential fleet from 20 boats last year, to 40 boats operating from April to June.
Geoff Shester is with the nonprofit Oceana, which helped with the testing program.
He says the new regulations also allow crab fishman to daisy-chain dozens of traps to a single pop-up line, reducing the cost.
"You know, that actually means they don't have to buy nearly as many of those pop up units in the first place," Shester said. "So it's going to reduce the cost of the equipment and also increase the efficiency that they can actually service the gear and catch the crab."
And the stakes are high.
RELATED: Dungeness crab fisherman expand testing of pop-up traps amid CA's continuous early season closures
Nearly three dozen whales have been entangled in fishing gear off the West Cost in 2024 alone.
And the winter crab season is now postponed until at least next month.
Supporters believe that fully adopting the pop-up traps could be critical for helping crab fisherman recoup at least some of the lost revenue from their traditional season.
"It was a seven-and-a-half month fishery, November to June. These whales through a hiccup and stuff and have us delayed until January," said Little.
"And then they're taking us off the water after March. This is the first piece of the equation, right? This is getting that April, May, June fishery back," he said.
Last year, boats operating with the experimental equipment hauled in roughly a million-and-a-half dollars worth of Dungeness crab during the spring season.
MORE: CA's shortened commercial Dungeness crab season closes early to protect whales
Putting a potentially renewed source of whale-safe crab back onto Bay Area dinner tables.
The test program is aimed specifically at the spring season for now.
Fishermen say the pop-up traps are more difficult to use during winter months because of ocean surges that can bury them on the ocean floor.