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Feature Articles
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Sea Urchins: Meetings, 2002 survey plans in the works
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This article is reprinted with permission of Commercial Fisheries News, the Northeast's fishing newspaper for over 30 years, ©2003 Compass Publications Inc. Commercial Fisheries News is published monthly; annual subscriptions are $21.95. To subscribe or request a sample issue: call (877) 263-4496; fax (207) 367-2490; e-mail (cfoster@fish-news.com); or click on the hot link.
HALLOWELL, ME - The Department of Marine Resources (DMR), Maine Sea Grant, and the Sea Urchin Zone Council (SUZC) will be hosting a sea urchin fishery summit on April 23, 2002, from 9 am-4 pm, at the Holiday Inn in Ellsworth.
The purpose of the meeting is to discuss the future of sea urchin management, brainstorm ideas, and set priorities for the SUZC for the coming year. Several items currently being discussed include managing the two zones more independently, local management of local fisheries (more zones), local involvement and representation in management decision-making, a days-at-sea program, safety issues, research issues, enforcement, and more.
The meeting is open to the public. If you plan to attend, please call (207) 633-9525 to sign up for a free lunch!
At its regular monthly meeting on April 11, 2002, at 5:30 pm at the Town Hall in Orland, the Sea Urchin Zone Council will be finalizing its recommendation on the selection of days for the 2002-2003 urchin season. The meeting is open to the public, and the council welcomes (and needs!) industry advice on the selection of days.
Also at the April 11 meeting, the council will be asking for industry assistance in picking sites for the 2002 sea urchin survey. Last year DMR scientists worked with harvesters to design a survey that used both divers (for shallow sites) and a remotely deployed video camera (for deeper sites) to count and measure urchins at 292 sites from Kittery to Eastport.
The survey took nine weeks using three urchin industry vessels and four urchin industry divers. Anyone who would like to see the results from last year's survey should call the DMR Fishermen's Library at (207) 633-9551 for a copy of the report.
The 2002 survey will be conducted during May, June, and July. If you are interested in being hired as a diver for this year's survey, please call Robert Russell at (207) 633-9524 or e-mail Robert.Russell@state.me.us. A cover letter and resume must be received by April 10, 2002.
If you would like to be hired to provide a vessel for the survey, please call Gilbert Bilodeau at (207) 624-6569 or e-mail Gilbert.Bilodeau@state.me.us for details. Written vessel proposals must be received by April 17, 2002.
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