September 19th, 2016 — The following was released by Coonamessett Farm Foundation:
On Wednesday, September 21st at 5:30 pm there will be a reception followed by a showing of the short movie “Sustaining Sea Scallops”. The reception will begin at the end of the New England Fishery Management Council’s meeting that day at the DoubleTree Hilton in Danvers, MA and is hosted by the Fisheries Survival Fund. The Fisheries Survival Fund (“FSF”) is an organization whose participants include the bulk of the full-time, limited access scallop fleet located from Virginia to Massachusetts.
The sea scallop fishery is one of the most lucrative wild-harvest fisheries in the United States. But just 15 short years ago this key fishery was facing closures and on the verge of bankruptcy. SUSTAINING SEA SCALLOPS chronicles the dramatic rebound of the Atlantic sea scallop fishery highlighting the unique partnership that supports this sustainable fishery.
This 35-minute documentary follows fishermen and researchers from New Bedford, Massachusetts to Seaford, Virginia, as they collaborate on studies of gear design, deep sea habitats, and threatened sea turtles. Capturing in-depth footage of the offshore and onshore processes involved in the scalloping industry.
Including unprecedented footage of the marine environment using new underwater technologies that provides a breathtaking mosaic of sea scallops on the ocean floor and a close-up of a loggerhead sea turtle feeding on scallops.
With input from researchers at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth, Virginia Institute of Marine Science, and Coonamessett Farm Foundation the film explores a new method of fisheries management that focuses on gear innovations and improved survey strategies to maintain a healthy fishery.
A rare tale of renewal, SUSTAINING SEA SCALLOPS, illuminates a message of hope for other beleaguered fisheries offering cooperative research as a new model for sustainable fisheries.