Maine’s shellfish fisheries the focus of three webinars and radio programs
Shellfish Focus Day is typically held the first day of the annual Maine Fishermen’s Forum. The event is a rare opportunity for shellfish harvesters, shellfish wardens, municipal officials, nonprofit groups, researchers and others to meet and talk about issues facing the shellfish industry and how to conduct applied shellfish research and other projects to strengthen the fishery.
After the cancellation of the in-person forum, a diverse group of volunteers have put together three webinars and radio programs that will focus on important topics in Maine’s shellfish industry, including shellfish conservation projects, the value of multiple forms of knowledge about intertidal fisheries, and opportunities and issues in shellfish markets and supply chains.
The first program, “Shellfish harvesting for the future: A conversation featuring stories and lessons learned in town shellfish conservation projects,” will be offered at 4 p.m. Feb. 22 via Zoom. Preregistration is not necessary. For more information or to request a reasonable accommodation, email bridie.mcgreavy@maine.edu.
A recording of this event will be broadcast 4 p.m. Feb. 26 on WERU’s Coastal Conversations.
The next two programs will be in March and April.
The Feb. 22 event will feature a conversation among shellfish harvesters, shellfish wardens, municipal officials, marine resource committee members and organizations that collaborate with towns on their efforts to conserve and restore wild shellfish populations and intertidal mudflats. Topics will focus on efforts to grow clam seed, using equipment like upwellers and lobster pounds, connections to water quality issues, and how people are working together to restore shellfish and mudflats. Through informal conversation and stories, people working on shellfish restoration projects from across the coast will tell stories and share information about what they have learned along the way.
The panelists for this first event are all working on projects to grow shellfish and restore intertidal mudflats in southern and Down East Maine, including David Wilson, chair, Marine Resources Committee, Harpswell; Scott Moody Jr., vice chair, Marine Resources Committee, Harpswell; Dan Devereaux, coastal resource manager, Brunswick; Mike Pinkham, shellfish warden, Gouldsboro; Sarah Hooper, education specialist, Schoodic Institute; and Bill Zoellick, education research director emeritus, Schoodic Institute. Hosts will be Bridie McGreavy, University of Maine Department of Communication and Journalism and the Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions, and Natalie Springuel, Maine Sea Grant.