Saving Seafood

MARYLAND: Maryland sees near-record oyster reproduction in 2025, officials say

March 10, 2026 — Maryland officials are celebrating what they call one of the strongest years for oyster reproduction in decades, with new data showing a dramatic spike in juvenile oysters across Maryland waters.

Gov. Wes Moore announced Monday that the concentration of new oysters in 2025 was nearly six times higher than the long-term average and ranks as the second-highest level recorded in the 41-year modern history of the state’s annual fall oyster survey.

Reproduction Near 30-Year High

According to preliminary findings from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR), scientists recorded an average of 250 spat — juvenile oysters — per bushel at key monitoring sites. That figure is more than three times higher than the strong reproduction seen in 2023 and far above the long-term average of 42.2 spat per bushel. It marks the highest reproductive success since 1997.

Read the full article at Fox Baltimore

MARYLAND: The aftermath of Potomac River wastewater spilling into the Chesapeake Bay

March 5, 2026 — Maryland Governor Wes Moore, requested federal disaster funding relief for Maryland’s waters after a spill. This incident is impacting watermen and the commercial seafood industry.

This is because of a recent Potomac River interceptor sewage spill incident that involved several million gallons of wastewater spilling into the Potomac, which traveled on into the Chesepeake Bay.

Robert Newberry, the President of the Delmarva Fisheries Association, explains the consensus among many watermen camps around the Eastern Shore. “Ask any watermen, are things better now than they were 3 years ago? What are they going to tell you? Hell no, this is the worst we’ve ever seen it.”

Delegate Wayne Hartman affirms that the Eastern Shore Delegation has kept a close eye on watermen and the regulations that have been imposed.

Read the full article at WMDT

MARYLAND: Gov. Moore sends federal disaster funding request on current state of fishery

March 3, 2026 — The Delmarva Fisheries Association, sharing with WMDT, a letter from Governor Wes Moore that was sent to the U.S. Department of Commerce, Secretary Howard Lutnick.

The letter was an attempt to request an evaluation of the current state of commercial fishery in Maryland waters.

With the snowstorm, ice in the Chesapeake Bay has depressed the market this year. Governor Wes Moore said there had been quote “reduced consumer confidence resulting from misconceptions about the impact of the Potomac interceptor sewage spill on Maryland’s waterways.”

Robert Newberry, the President of the Delmarva Fisheries Association, says the Governor’s request for funding from the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation Management Act (MSA) and Interjurisdictional Fisheries Act (IFA) will take too long to process payment in the current situation, which he claims is dire.

Read the full article at WMDT

MARYLAND: Maryland governor, congressional delegation request disaster designation for oystermen following icy conditions, sewage spill

March 2, 2026 — Maryland officials have formally requested the U.S. federal government issue a fishery resource disaster designation for the state’s commercial oyster fishery, which has struggled in the face of icy weather and a massive sewage spill this season.

The state’s commercial oystermen had already been struggling with an unusually cold winter that produced icy conditions in the Chesapeake Bay, preventing them from getting out on the water and accessing the valuable shellfish underneath for much of the season. The Maryland Department of Natural Resources even used state vessels to break up ice and keep navigation channels open for commercial fishers but found that water was quickly refreezing.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

MARYLAND: Maryland requests disaster declaration for Chesapeake oyster fishery

March 2, 2026 — Maryland requested a federal disaster declaration for the Chesapeake Bay oyster fishery Friday, after a perfect storm of bad weather and headline-grabbing environmental incidents depressed the market.

It’s not that there aren’t enough oysters, state officials say, but that the falling prices are hammering the industry.

In December, the Centers for Disease Control linked a multistate salmonella outbreak to eating raw oysters. Then, January brought a massive snowstorm and a prolonged cold snap, freezing the Chesapeake and keeping watermen off their boats.

That same month, a massive sewage pipe collapsed on the Potomac River, spilling millions of gallons of sewage — and damaging the perception of oysters further, even though testing has shown bacteria within safe levels at a state oyster harvesting area.

Read the full article at Maryland Matters

MARYLAND: Moore signs Chesapeake Bay bill as federal cuts loom large

May 14, 2025 — Gov. Wes Moore (D) signed what he called “the most comprehensive piece of Chesapeake Bay legislation that Maryland has seen in years,” at a time when federal cuts threaten environmental programs for the estuary.

The Chesapeake Bay Legacy Act was signed Tuesday, one of 171 bills signed into law at the fourth and next-to-last bill signing ceremony following the 2025 legislative session.

The wide-ranging Legacy Act allots “up to $900,000 per year” to a new certification program for farmers who use sustainable practices that decrease runoff into the bay, establishes a water quality monitoring program to unify current testing efforts and aims to streamline oyster aquaculture leasing, among other provisions.

“At a time when we see how our federal administration has stepped back from protecting our air and our water, Maryland is stepping up,” Moore said.

The governor also signed an abortion grant program that will help fund abortion services for uninsured and underinsured individuals, and a bill allowing individuals with autism and other nonapparent conditions to add an identifying symbol to their state IDs. That, and Tuesday saw the approval of a new state mineral, chromite, and a new state cocktail, the Orange Crush.

Read the full article at Maryland Matters