Meet Sea Grant Sustainable Fisheries Experts

Sea run fish – fish that migrate between fresh and saltwater – hold meaning to many New England communities as food, as income, as history and as a key part of a functioning ecosystem. But many unknowns about these fish remain. Across New England, Sea Grant researchers are working to understand how these populations are changing, what habitats are most important to them and how to restore once vibrant runs of sea run fish. 

The National Sea Grant Office announced funding for the Recirculating Aquaculture Salmon Network (RAS-N) in 2019. While that three-year grant is now winding down, the collaborative network it helped build is not going away. Rather, it is entering an exciting new phase with $10 million in funding from a U.S. Department Agriculture program designed to enhance sustainability in agriculture.

Sea Grant announces $2 million in support of the Sea Grant American Lobster Initiative to address scientific and stakeholder needs associated with this important fishery. This is Sea Grant’s third year of research and extension funding to address critical gaps in knowledge about how American lobster is being impacted by environmental change in the Gulf of Maine, Georges Bank and southern New England.
 

NOAA Sea Grant and the Ocean Acidification Program awarded more than $2.4 million to support projects that will address the impacts of multiple stressors on and increase resilience in shellfish aquaculture through research and industry partnerships. These projects will expand collaborations between researchers and the shellfish aquaculture industry throughout all aspects of the scientific process.

Just offshore of New Castle, New Hampshire, Sea Grant researchers are teaming up with local fishermen and farmers to create a new model for sustainable, small-scale finfish aquaculture: The AquaFort.