Saving Seafood

After 100 years, and decades of cleanup, shellfishing set to return to Boston Harbor

March 26, 2026 — The Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries has declared parts of Boston Harbor clean enough for recreational shellfishing for the first time in a century. Since many shellfish are filter feeders that pump water through their gills, waterborne contaminants tend to build up in their bodies, making them bellwethers for overall water health. If the shellfish are free of pollutants, it’s a sign the water is cleaner.

Shellfishing will soon be allowed in some areas off the coasts of Winthrop, just northeast of the city, and in Hingham and Hull, two towns on the southern end of the harbor. Residents will have to wait for the towns to create regulations, and shellfishing might still be prohibited during times of low water quality, such as after heavy rains. Still, a region with a legendary reputation for fresh, high-quality seafood has reason to celebrate. (Try an authentic clam chowder recipe.)

“It speaks a lot to all of the hard work that was done to clean up the harbor, to make quality of life [better] for not only the people that live here, but also the marine life,” says Joanne Coletta-Levine, a spokesperson for Schooner’s, a seafood restaurant in Hull.

Cities and states across the country have worked to clean up waterways since 1972, when the Clean Water Act made it illegal to discharge pollution into water without a federal permit. Between 1972 and 2001, the share of U.S. waterways clean enough for fishing increased by more than 10 percentage points, according to a 2018 study in the Quarterly Journal of Economics that analyzed some 50 million water samples.

Read the full article at The Christian Science Monitor

MASSACHUSETTS: More than 100 right whales spotted south of Island

March 23, 2026 — Scientists in the New England Aquarium’s Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life, who conduct aerial surveys to collect data on the presence of marine animals, photographed more than 100 unique North Atlantic right whales over six weeks in waters south of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket.

The aquarium team and another survey team from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) flew six surveys between Feb. 5 and March 18 and photographed more than 115 right whales in that stretch, about a quarter of the current population of 380. Seventy individuals were sighted on March 2 alone, which the aquarium said is the highest number of individual right whales they’ve ever documented; their regular surveys began in 2011.

Many of the right whales, identified by unique marks on their heads called callosities, were deep below the surface, which scientists noted could indicate that food is abundant south of the islands, especially in the Nantucket Shoals area.

Read the full article at The Martha’s Vineyard Times

Lobster rolls approach $50, but Bostonians appear happy to shell out

March 19, 2026 — How much would you pay for a lobster roll? Martha Stewart recently declared that she wouldn’t serve a one that cost $60 at her new restaurant at Foxwoods Resort Casino. But in the swanky Hamptons, chefs are bracing for a spendy summer, predicting prices will approach $50.

Maine lobster landings have declined for the fourth straight year, state fishing regulators said, as the industry struggles with soaring expenses, including inflation, and climate change, which has driven more lobsters north into Canadian waters.

Lobster rolls aren’t quite $50 in Boston, but they’re getting close. That’s put restaurateurs in a precarious position over an iconic menu item tourists and locals demand. In many cases, it’s better to break even than to lose customers.

“I can’t really charge you $100 for a lobster roll, even though, over the last two weeks, maybe I should be charging $70 or $80,” said Row 34’s Jeremy Sewall, whose restaurants are known for creamy lobster rolls.

Kathy Sidell of Saltie Girl has always tried to keep her lobster roll at $42 or under. “On rare occasions when the prices skyrocket, I will raise the price to $44. But it’s such a signature dish for us. I believe we should keep it as reasonable as possible, in spite of at some points breaking even or even losing money,” she said.

Read the full article at The Boston Globe

Construction finishes on a major offshore wind farm, the first during Trump’s tenure

March 16, 2026 — Construction is finished on a major Massachusetts offshore wind farm, the first project to reach this stage during President Donald Trump’s time in office.

Offshore construction was completed Friday night on Vineyard Wind with the installation of the final blades, Craig Gilvarg, a spokesperson for the project, said Saturday.

Trump, who often talks about his hatred of wind power, has said his goal is to not let any “windmills” be built. Vineyard Wind was one of five major East Coast offshore wind projects the Trump administration halted construction on days before Christmas, citing national security concerns. Developers and states sued, and federal judges allowed all five to resume construction, essentially concluding that the government did not show that the national security risk was so imminent that construction must halt.

Another one of the five, Revolution Wind, began sending power for the first time to New England’s electric grid on Friday and will scale up in the weeks ahead until it is fully operational.

MASSACHUSETTS: With the wind at its back, Vineyard Wind crosses the finish line

March 16, 2026 — A crew of Americans and Europeans, assisted by a heavy lift crane and high-tech bolting tools, hoisted and secured the 186th and final blade at Vineyard Wind on Friday, closing the lengthy chapter on the project installation, and cementing the “Forever First” project as the second but now largest commercial-scale offshore wind farm to power American homes.

Though South Fork Wind beat it to full power, Vineyard Wind was the first to go through some of the key regulatory processes. The project, which began with a lease auction in 2015, was marked by high-profile incidents and wound up not once, but twice, subject to a presidential administration that really doesn’t like it.

Read the full article at The New Bedford Light

44th edition of Seafood Expo North America opens in Boston

March 16, 2026 — Seafood Expo North America/Seafood Processing North America opened 15 March in Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.A.

The latest edition of the event, produced by Diversified, opened for its 44th edition, running from 15 to 17 March. According to the organizer the three-day event covers 247,915 net square feet, hosting 1,215 exhibiting companies representing 50 countries at the Thomas M. Menino Convention and Exhibition Center. [Editor’s note: Diversified also owns and operates SeafoodSource.]

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

RHODE ISLAND: Recent fishermen’s deaths hit home in Point Judith

March 13, 2026 — This winter has been an especially difficult season for the fishermen of New England, with the death of a Stonington man and two recent boat sinkings.

On Jan. 25, late at night, Thomas Williams’ body was found in the water near the town dock in Stonington. Williams was a well known captain of the F/V Heritage and a long-time local fisherman out of Stonington and Point Judith.

Last Wednesday, New Bedford, Mass., police rescued a man from freezing water, according to 7 News Boston. The man fell between two fishing vessels, where he became trapped and unable to get out. Five officers were able to pull him safely out of the water after he was found holding onto dock lines.

A day later, the commercial fishing vessel Yankee Rose sank off Cape Cod, according to the Associated Press. The U.S. Coast Guard was able to pull one person out of the water, but the second crew member is still missing.

As a third-generation fisherman, Williams was a staple of the Rhode Island community for over 25 years. He was known as one of the best fishermen in Rhode Island, according to Fred Mattera, a retired local fisherman and president of the Commercial Fisheries Research Foundation.

Read the full article at The Independent

MASSACHUSETTS: Gloucester benefit concert planned to support families of Lily Jean crew

March 12, 2026 — The Gloucester, Mass., waterfront will come together this spring to honor the crew of the F/V Lily Jean and raise support for the families affected by the vessel’s loss earlier this year.

A full-day benefit concert titled “A Day of Music and Stories” is scheduled for May 17, from noon to 9 p.m. at The Cut in Gloucester. The event will feature live music, storytelling, and community remembrance centered around the city’s commercial fishing community.

Organizers say the goal is simple: bring people together and turn grief into tangible support for the families left behind. According to the event organizers, 100 percent of funds raised through ticket sales, sponsorship, a silent auction, and raffle donations will go directly to the Lily Jean Fund, administered by the Gloucester Fishing Community Preservation Fund, a registered nonprofit.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

Two New Bedford-area fishermen mourned as Coast Guard investigates capsizing

March 11, 2026 — In the last few days, Sherry Holcomb has gotten a few packages. Sunglasses, a pair of flashlights, and a Q-tip holder embossed with a skull. They were ordered by her late husband — a mostly retired commercial fisherman — before he died at sea last week.

She’s also gotten visitors — announced and unannounced — there to help her navigate what comes next, ask questions or offer up a lasagna.

But she hasn’t gotten many answers.

Why did the fishing vessel that Truett “Gene” Holcomb was captaining last week capsize just three miles off of Provincetown? How could that happen when the water was like “glass,” as Holcomb told Sherry in a phone call late Thursday morning — the last time they spoke?

By 11:58 a.m. that day, the U.S. Coast Guard received a report from two witnesses of a capsized vessel. It was the Yankee Rose, the boat Holcomb had recently called from. The 46-foot dragger is painted forest green, but what Coast Guard rescuers saw on scene was her rusted keel.

The federal agency dispatched rescue boats, along with a Jayhawk helicopter and fixed-wing plane.

By about 12:30 p.m., responders from the Coast Guard and Massachusetts Environmental Police recovered a man from the water, 37-year-old Angel Nieves of New Bedford. They brought him to the pier to Provincetown Fire Rescue, where they determined resuscitation was not possible, according to the Cape and Islands District Attorney’s Office.

By around 3:45 p.m., the vessel sank.

And by 1:27 p.m. the next day, the Coast Guard called off the search for Holcomb, who might have been in the wheelhouse when the vessel capsized. His body has not been recovered as of Tuesday.

The Coast Guard and the Massachusetts Environmental Police are investigating the accident.

“Screamin’ Gene,” as Holcomb was known by fellow fisherman, had escaped possible death last month, just days before the capsizing. He found Nieves unconscious on the Yankee Rose from apparent carbon monoxide exposure on Feb. 26 and called 911, according to Nieves’ fiancée, Danielle Jeffrey. The fumes were so strong that they sent six first responders to the hospital for evaluation.

Read the full article at The New Bedford Light

MASSACHUSSETTS: Vineyard Wind’s last turbine blades shipped from New Bedford

March 11, 2026 — The last shipment of turbine blades for the $4.5 billion Vineyard Wind 1 project left New Bedford Marine Commerce Terminal on March 10.

Mayor Jon Mitchell said, “The deployment of the final major components of the  Vineyard Wind project represents the closing argument of the case we have been making for years: that New Bedford is well-suited to be a center of the offshore wind industry. No matter when the next projects are ready to proceed, we and our many partners have shown that the industry can successfully compete and operate projects from here while working cooperatively with the fishing industry.”

Gordon Carr, New Bedford Port Authority executive director, said, “Today’s final shipment of Vineyard Wind turbine blades from the Port of New Bedford represents an important milestone, not only for this project, but for the role our port has played in this process over the last few years. New Bedford Harbor has shown it can be a critical marshalling and logistics center for large projects while continuing to support our world-class fishing industry.”

Read the full article at the Standard-Times