March 11, 2025 — Late last month, the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, mandated that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration get rid of 31 of its rental offices and facilities, including three in New England, The Public’s Radio has learned.
Former NOAA scientists say they especially fear the ramifications of losing a building on the list in East Falmouth, Mass., which has long housed the entire Northeast Coast’s fisheries observer program and is tasked with tracking the number and habits of fish from Cape Hatteras, N.C., to the Gulf of Maine, and helping ensure fishers are not catching too many fish or illegal species.
Several workers from that program were already terminated in mass firings on Feb. 27, and scientists say losing the East Falmouth building would cause further disruptions, potentially resulting in massive declines in fish populations in the region and declines in enforcement of the Marine Mammal Protection Act.