MacArthur Fellow Ted Ames Fine Scale Fisheries Management Workshop Genetics/Hatchery/Resettlement Publication

The Gulf of Maine ecosystem is among the most-studied and complex bioregions in the world, however, the abundant groundfishery which once sustained the eastern Gulf of Maine coastal communities remains vastly diminished. Penobscot East believes that we need a reevaluation of the scale at which current fisheries are managed.

Over the last decade there has been increasing research into fish species; their regions, abundance migration and habitats. These data when taken in context provide a strong case for ecologically-appropriate scales of management.

So in April 2009, in York Harbor, Maine, we hosted a major workshop/conference: “Exploring Fine-scale Ecology for Groundfish in the Gulf of Maine and Georges Bank”, bringing together research biologists, oceanographers, fishermen, managers and social scientists to share their findings and issues surrounding spatially explicit management.

This workshop was collaboration with Gulf of Maine Research Institute, Maine Sea Grant, Maine Department of Marine Resources, and University of Maine.  A link to the proceedings can be found here.