UNE professor receives $493,000 in NOAA grants to study fisheries
A University of New England marine sciences professor was recently awarded two federal grants totaling more than $493,000 to fund studies aimed at improving the commercial fishing industry and the environment.
The two grants from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will research ways to reduce the deaths of Atlantic cod accidentally caught in lobster traps in the Gulf of Maine and Dusky sharks unintentionally caught during commercial pelagic longline fishing, according to a press release from UNE, which has campuses in Biddeford and Portland.
The recipient of the grants, professor James Sulikowski, said Dusky sharks are one of the most vulnerable shark species in the western North Atlantic Ocean due to the incidental catch, which could have drastic effects on its population.
He said failure to reduce fishing mortality for the sharks could cause more fishing restrictions.
The second grant will fund a study to determine the post-release mortality rate for Atlantic cod that are accidentally caught in lobster traps. Recreational fishing for cod is prohibited, and the commercial quota has been significantly reduced because of significant declines in population in recent decades, according to Sulikowski.
Most Recent
Most Recent
Comments