Grants Awarded For Local Fishing Studies

WOODS HOLE – $650,000 in the form of two grants is being awarded in an attempt to support the local fishing industry.

The money is going to the Woods Hole Sea Grant program and is coming from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

“The United States is the world’s leading seafood consumer, yet our marine aquaculture production trails other seafood producing countries. These newly funded projects compliment Woods Hole Sea Grant’s efforts to support our regional aquaculture industry and the safe production and consumption of shellfish,” said Sea Grant Director Matthew Charette

One project, “Increasing Northeast U.S. Marine Aquaculture Production by Pre-permitting Federal Ocean Space,” aims to simplify the process and reduce the cost of obtaining permits to farm marine species in U.S. waters.

This aspect of the effort will conduct reviews of the fisheries, protected species, and the shipping industry focusing on selected offshore areas in advance to reduce the regulatory burden on aquaculture growers.

According to a 2016 United nations Food and Aquaculture Organization report, the U.S. ranks 17^th in total aquaculture behind China, Indonesia, India, Vietnam, the Phillipines, Bangladesh, the Republic of Korea, Norway, Chile, Egypt, Japan and a host of other countries.