NOAA recommends UMaine fisheries projects for funding, Mainebiz reports
Mainebiz reported the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has recommended over $1.5 million in Saltonstall-Kennedy Grant Program funding for six fisheries research projects in Maine, including two at the University of Maine. The goal of the Saltonstall-Kennedy program is to fund projects that address the needs of fishing communities, optimize economic benefits by building and maintaining sustainable fisheries and increase other opportunities to keep working waterfronts viable, according to the article. The recommended UMaine funding includes $299,623 for evaluating the life history and stock structure of yellowfin tuna in the northwest Atlantic Ocean, and $275,308 for assessing the potential for sustainability of fishing-dependent communities in coastal Maine in the face of environmental and socioeconomic change. Final funding approval is pending, the article states. U.S Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-Maine, characterized the projects as “key to the future of the Gulf of Maine and the thousands of Mainers who make their living from it.” “Climate change and other factors are rapidly altering our oceans, the fisheries they support, and the communities that rely on them,” she said in a news release. “We need the best scientific information possible to respond to those changes, sustainably manage our resources, and find ways to move our coastal economy forward.” WVII (Channel 7) also reported on Pingree’s comments.