August 29, 2019 — Pete Dolan is the captain of the Ms. Manya, a commercial scallop boat. He’s ready to set sail on a week-long trip — and ideally, when he and his crew return, they will have caught a hefty 18,000 pounds of scallops. Business is booming in the state’s fishing industry, and Dolan claims federal regulations are to thank.
Before those regulations were put in place in the early 1980s, Dolan and his crew would have to spend more time on trips because anyone could go out and catch scallops, which meant supplies were low. But, sustainability efforts from NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, have created a more favorable scenario.
“We monitor what is landed, and the fishing industry reports what they land. The fishing dealers report what they purchased, and the agency that I work for makes sure there’s not too much fish coming in and there’s not enough that are left in the sea for future generations,” said NOAA port agent Joanne Pellegrino.