Tag Archives: Coonamessett Farm Foundation

Atlantic sea scallops at lowest biomass in over 20 years and what that means for New Bedford

A Scallop Survey Report presented at the NEFMC meeting Tuesday showed the Atlantic Sea scallop fishery is facing its lowest biomass in over 20 years. Throughout the NEFMC jurisdiction, the survey estimated a biomass decrease of almost 30%. The Georges Bank region saw the largest drop, around 36%. Tyler Miranda, a scalloper Captain and owner who came to prominence during the recent scallop license allocation debate, said that though it is of concern, the announcement does not worry him too much. “Obviously I worry, but what I’ve come to realize about the scallop industry is it fluctuates year to year,” Justin Mello said he felt similarly. “I’m only gonna go into the areas they allow us to, that’s why they call it fishing and not catching.” >click to read< 14:20

2019-2020 Sea Scallop Research Set-Aside Awards Announced

Northeast Fisheries Science Center and the New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC) have selected 13 projects for awards through the Sea Scallop Research Set-Aside (RSA) Program. The awards are expected to generate more than $14 million; $2.8 million to fund research, and $11.4 million to compensate industry partners who harvest set-aside quota.,,, Among the research projects that will be supported this year are automated image annotation for optical scallop surveys, testing different scallop dredges for efficiency and performance, and development of a high-resolution model to assess the potential impact of offshore wind resource facilities on the regional fishery industry.>click to read<16:42

2018-2019 Monkfish Research Set-Aside (RSA) Program

Three new cooperative research projects announced today will improve understanding of monkfish biology and how to reduce catch of skates in monkfish gillnet gear. The projects are possible because of an innovative program established by the New England and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Councils, and managed by NOAA Fisheries in the region. Under it, monkfish fishing days are set-aside each year and revenue generated from the sale of those days are used to pay for research projects. Award recipients for the 2018-2019 Monkfish Research Set-Aside (RSA) Program include the Coonamessett Farm Foundation, Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County, and the University of New England. >click to read<10:08

S-K Fund: Salem profs win $296K for Cape Ann project to developing to mussel aqua-farm

Two Salem State University marine researchers will receive just over $296,000 in Saltonstall-Kennedy grant funds to expand their project aimed at developing offshore commercial shellfish aquaculture, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced Thursday. The project by SSU marine biology professor Mark R. Fregeau and SSU colleague Edward Maney Jr. is the only North Shore-based project included among the 38 projects nationally that will receive a slice of the $9 million NOAA is doling out in the 2018 Saltonstall-Kennedy funding cycle. >click to read<19:49

Bycatch Reduction Engineering Program – 2017 Awards

NOAA Fisheries has awarded more than $2.3 million to partners around the country to support innovative bycatch reduction research projects through its . Bycatch of various species–fish, marine mammals, or turtles–can have significant biological, economic, and social impacts. Preventing and reducing bycatch is a shared goal of fisheries managers, the fishing industry, and the environmental community. click here to read the notice 14:10

Sustaining Sea Scallops

SUSTAINING SEA SCALLOPS is a 35-minute documentary on the history and resurgence of the Atlantic sea scallop fishery, seen through the eyes of fishermen and researchers. In 1999, facing fisheries closures and bankruptcy, the scallop industry began funding a unique research program to minimize impacts on the marine environment. Fifteen years later, the Atlantic sea scallop is hailed as one of the most sustainable and lucrative fisheries in the world. From New Bedford, Massachusetts to Seaford, Virginia, fishermen and researchers tell a rare tale of renewal, offering cooperative research as a new model for sustaining healthy fisheries and fishing communities. A Connecticut fishermen describes tough times when trawl fishing went bust, and what changed once scallops started to rebound. Researchers at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth, and Virginia Institute of Marine Science explain how gear innovations and better surveys ensure scallop future harvests while reducing needless harm to other species and habitat. At the heart of it all, a former NOAA Fisheries captain-turned-farmer works to increase fishermen’s access to these technologies through his non-profit research organization, the Coonamessett Farm Foundation. Watch the video here 09:52

Saltonstall-Kennedy Grant Program – 900K for UMass Dartmouth fisheries research

smastThe National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has recommended a dozen Massachusetts-based marine research programs receive funding this year including more than $900,000 for UMass Dartmouth to conduct four projects whose aim is to  improve the cost-effectiveness and capacity of programs to observe fish. Other Massachusetts research projects recommended for funding include: $497,060 for the Coonamessett Farm Foundation,  $774,640 for four New England Aquarium  Read the rest here 19:35

This is not good, friends. Not good at all. Parasites in Yellowtail Flounder Could be Preventing Population Rebound

Yellowtail liver with Ichthyophonus granulomas. Photo courtesy of Dr. Roxanna Smolowitz.

Yellowtail liver with Ichthyophonus granulomas. Photo courtesy of Dr. Roxanna Smolowitz.

logoScientists at the Coonamessett Farm Foundation (CCF) in Massachusetts  are researching the effects of a fish-killing parasite recently  observed in Georges Bank yellowtail flounder populations. The organism, Ichthyophonus, progressively invades its host’s vital  organs, destroying their liver, kidneys, and heart. It generally  afflicts older fish in a stock, which are also the most important for  repopulation. continued