September 17, 2018 — SEAFOOD NEWS — Manomet, a non-profit organization headquartered in Plymouth, Massachusetts, has been awarded $267,440 by the NOAA Saltonstall-Kennedy Grant Program to “expand work to develop a lucrative green crab fishery in New England.”
“Utilizing an invasive species to diversify fisheries resources may ultimately enhance the future resiliency of New England’s coastal communities, and could serve as a unique example of how to mitigate and adapt to the ecological and socioeconomic impacts of climate-drive change,” Manomet Senior Fisheries Scientist Marissa McMahon said in a statement. “We are honored to have been chosen by the Saltonstall-Kennedy program.”
European green crabs were introduced to the U.S. in the early 1800s. The invasive species has been thriving with the warming of the water in the Gulf of Mexico. McMahon is hopeful that Manomet will be able to replicate Italy’s lucrative soft-shell green crab fishery with the funding from NOAA.
This story originally appeared on Seafood News, it is republished here with permission.