UMaine to Host Maine Green Crab Summit

Learning more about the invasive European green crab and its effects on Maine’s coastal and marine resources will be the focus of a Dec. 16 conference at the University of Maine.

Maine Sea Grant, Maine Department of Marine Resources (DMR), Maine Coastal Program and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) will hold the Maine Green Crab Summit from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Wells Conference Center on the Orono campus.

The public is welcome to attend the free event that aims to offer an opportunity for researchers, fishermen and coastal community members to share information about green crabs, as well as discuss different approaches for green crab control, future management and research.

“Although these invaders have been here for decades, in recent years they have proliferated to a level that is causing severe impacts on the clam fishery and is having other impacts on coastal ecosystems,” says Paul Anderson, Maine Sea Grant director and marine extension program leader.

During the conference, DMR officials plan to release data from a coast-wide survey the organization conducted in August to gain a better understanding of how severe the European green crab invasion in Maine is.

Researchers from UMaine, DMR, University of Maine at Machias, USGS and the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry’s Maine Coastal Program are among those scheduled to present.

Online registration is required by Dec. 9, and limited funding is available to commercial fishermen to help with travel costs. Lunch will be provided. The summit will also be streamed live online and recorded for those unable to attend.

More information about the summit, including the event’s agenda and details for accessing the webcast, can be found on Maine Sea Grant’s website. A snow date of Dec. 18 has been set.

The Maine Sea Grant college program at UMaine is one of 33 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) programs throughout the coastal and Great Lakes states and is focused on improving Maine’s coastal communities.