Great Lakes Fisheries Abstract

**New York Sea Grant Program**

**Strategic Plan 2000-2005**

**Throughout the Strategic Plan, New York Sea Grant uses the terms:**

-   ***Coastal*** to mean both marine (New York Harbor, Long Island
    including bays and inlets and Long Island Sound) and freshwater
    (Lakes Erie and Ontario, Hudson Estuary to the Troy Dam, Niagara and
    St. Lawrence Rivers and Lake Champlain) areas.

-   ***Seafood*** to mean edible freshwater and marine fish, shellfish
    and aquatic plants.

Many of the generic trends have been discussed in a recent National
Ocean Service report (Bookman, et al. 1999). Human population growth,
which is particularly rapid in coastal areas, causes coastal
urbanization with all of its implications for pressures on water
quantity and quality and specialty habitats, such as wetlands. All three
of these concerns, particularly contaminant and fish residues and
habitat degradation, have been found in a NYS Department of
Environmental Conservation survey to be primary citizen concerns in NYS
(Connelly, et al. 1998). Full exploitation of many commercially and/or
recreationally harvested species and the need for community or
ecosystem, as against population, management has led to an increasing
focus on essential habitat as a management tool and to aquaculture as a
tool to supplement wild harvests by raising food directly. Aquaculture
also may contribute significantly to maintaining or sustaining aquatic
populations, although whether this is a wise strategy given the
potential for reducing the variability of the gene pool is
controversial. Nevertheless, it is clear that sustaining harvestable
populations requires general maintenance of healthy populations and
ecosystems. Genetics is also prominent in searches for and development
of products and processes from coastal biota via advances in
biotechnology. Finally, the safety of freshwater fish and seafood is
receiving increasing scrutiny.

Tourism also might be a savior for the Great Lakes region, where
economic recovery, from the early 1990's recession, is at best lagging
badly behind that in much of the rest of the state. But there are
changes in the ecosystem dynamics of Lakes Erie and Ontario, some of
which seem to be having deleterious effects on the world class
fisheries; these will require positive treatments to increase the
tourist base.

# A. ECONOMIC LEADERSHIP ISSUES

GOAL 1. Increase The Competitiveness of Coastal-Dependent Businesses:

A. Rationale

The changing structure of coastal businesses and industries offers
opportunities for NYSG to contribute to the state's economy. The current
service-centered (recreation, tourism, marina, etc.) emphasis now rivals
the commercial trade, transportation, and resource product emphasis
(manufacturing, commercial fishing, and seafood processing) that
dominated coastal business activities for most of the eighteenth,
nineteenth, and twentieth centuries. As more of the New York State
population has moved toward the coasts, the service industry has
developed to meet the needs of the coastal migrants and to respond to
the desires of residents and visitors alike for access to coastal
attractions.

Tourism, including ecotourism and nature-based tourism, is playing a
greater role in the economy of the state and the Great Lakes Region in
particular. As sportfishing activities decline with the fisheries,
chambers of commerce are looking for alternative marketing strategies to
lure tourists and their dollars.

The seafood industry could gain from efforts to develop innovative
marketing strategies. These strategies should aim to make consumers
aware of the many positive nutritional benefits associated with seafood
consumption and proper ways to handle, store and prepare it to maximize
safety and palatability. Objective information will help consumers make
educated decisions about the practices that best meet their individual
health and economic needs and constraints. Because consumers are likely
to utilize a variety of information sources, an educational strategy
that targets information multipliers like Cooperative Extension and
other food and nutrition professionals, the media, industry, consumer,
and sportfishing groups, and retail and food service businesses is
needed to effectively and efficiently reach a broad consumer audience.
Such information could also form the basis of marketing campaigns for
seafood retailers, serving the needs of the consumer and industry at the
same time.

Aquaculture offers opportunities for raising fish food organisms and for
rebuilding or restoring depleted finfish or shellfish stocks. Seafood
sales in the U.S. currently contribute to the trade deficit, because
more than 60 percent of the \$7 billion worth of the fish and shellfish
consumed in the US is imported. The fact that the U.S. exports low value
seafood, e.g., menhaden, and imports high value seafood, e.g., shrimp,
is the main cause of the imbalance. The deficit for NYS is probably even
greater because many of the important specialty seafood processors are
dependent on fish that come from out-of-state fisheries.

Aquaculture developed through work of shellfishermen on Long Island and
finfish aquaculturists in upstate New York, but New York has been
comparatively slow to establish a well identified a coastal aquaculture
industry Without a doubt there are impediments to aquaculture in NY
(climate, disease, water bottom ownership, a poorly defined industry,
lack of state support, etc.). This is especially true in the urban areas
(high land and effluent cleanup costs) but demand for high quality
seafood products continues to increase while wild harvest of fishery
resources continue to decline in the northeast. It would be a plus for
the NYS economy for the NY aquaculture industry to find a unique niche.

The seafood industry in New York State contributes at least \$1 billion
to the economy of the state and provides employment for at least 25,000
New Yorkers, not including restaurant sales. However, the seafood
industry in New York and the rest of the Northeastern U.S. is not
stable. Profitability often depends on the ability of seafood fishermen,
wholesalers and retailers alike to anticipate changes in regulations and
the marketplace, and to adapt with strategies that will continue to fill
market needs and maintain profits. The business more and more rewards
entrepreneurs and penalizes traditionalists.

The industry needs help in gaining lead times on some of these changes.
This includes information about changes in government regulations and
about changes in harvest sizes and/or rates instituted to sustain
harvestable populations. In addition, the industry would benefit from
development of new products and/or markets, distribution of information
about new products as they become available, and marketing campaigns
that balance the needs of the industry and of the consumer.

B. Objectives

a\. Assist water-dependent businesses in improving management, operation
programs, marketing strategies and responses to regulations and
management policies to enhance business efficiency, effectiveness, cost
competitiveness, and profitability.

b\. Design and evaluate approaches to enhance tourism and eco-tourism
opportunities that help develop and/or promote
environmentally-sustainable economically-stable tourism markets.

c\. Identify, assess and encourage the use of innovative techniques and
technologies to prevent, control or reduce the environmental impact of
marina operations, boating and other coastal-dependent businesses in a
cost-effective manner.

f\. Help develop and initiate, in partnership with industry groups and
federal, state, and local regulatory authorities, effective consumer
education strategies that support wise growth and development of the
seafood industry.

g\. Develop technical information on aquaculture organisms, systems and
techniques to support rehabilitation or sustainability of aquatic
populations and creation of economically sound business opportunities by
overcoming current technological, marketing, regulatory or policy
barriers to aquaculture development.

h\. Develop innovative, cost-effective technologies for processing
seafood and bringing new products to market.

GOAL 2. Facilitate Sustainable Use of Economically Important Coastal
Fisheries:

A. Rationale

Maintenance of sustainable fisheries in New York State, in the marine
and Hudson River systems as well as the Great Lakes, is important to the
state's economy. Results of a statewide freshwater angler survey
conducted in 1996 by NYSDEC indicated that 35% of the anglers surveyed
fished on New York waters of the Great Lakes for a total of 4.1 million
days during that year. Comparisons of 1996 to 1988 estimates in 1996
constant dollars indicate a 50% decline in economic revenues. Although
substantial controversy exists about the validity of the absolute values
of these estimates as well as the relative values of the estimates for
commercial and sport fishing, it is clear that New York state's economy
benefits greatly from the Great Lakes fisheries. Because of the decline
in economic value of the fisheries, their future sustainability is the
predominant concern of the angling and charterboat communities on Lakes
Ontario and Erie. Measures of sportfishing success reflect world-class
fisheries in both lakes, but there have been recent indications that
declines in food for the fish along with increasing impacts from zebra
mussel introduction have produced increased pressure on the forage base
and the food web. While catch rates, a measure of fishing quality, for
salmonines have remained good on both Lake Ontario and Lake Erie, there
has been a marked decline in angling effort from the peaks in the late
1980\'s, early 1990\'s.

Additional concerns have risen with respect to smallmouth bass fisheries
in Lake Ontario. Over the last twenty years, populations of the
fish-eating bird, the double-crested cormorant, have rebounded
throughout the Great Lakes. Historically, wherever cormorants and other
avian piscivores are abundant, controversy exists with man over the
widespread perceptions that these birds compete directly with
recreational and commercial fishing interests. With uncertainty for the
future of Lake Ontario's sportfishery growing among recreational
anglers, the cormorant issue has become increasingly volatile.

B. Objectives

a\. Develop new or use existing tools to evaluate the effects of recent
ecosystem changes on current and future sport and commercial finfish and
shellfish fisheries and to identify harvesting and management policy
responses to overcome barriers to sustainability.

b\. Identify and evaluate modifications that will maintain or restore
fisheries health by reducing inadvertent fishing mortality in
recreational fisheries, bycatch in commercial fisheries and overall gear
effects on habitats.

c\. Develop information on how to control effort, how to identify
sustainable effort, and how sanctuaries can contribute to fisheries
sustainability.

d\. Identify factors influencing disease prevalence in fish and
shellfish and how to identify them, assess their impacts and manage them
to reduce pathologies.

e\. Develop capabilities to predict socio-economic responses of coastal
communities to changes in fishery resources or accessibility.

f\. Examine the effects of various physiological and behavioral
processes on the dynamics of fished populations and their predators.

g\. Develop a process understanding of population, system and
community-level changes in ecologically or economically important living
coastal resources.

h\. Develop models that link hydrodynamics and water quality to fish or
shellfish biomass and production.

**B. COASTAL ECOSYSTEM HEALTH AND PUBLIC SAFETY**

GOAL 3. Improve the Quality and Safety of New York State's Commercial
and Sport-Caught Seafood Products:

A. Rationale

The seafood industry in New York is important to the economy, culture,
and traditions of the Empire State. According to an industry profile
developed by New York's Seafood Council and New York Sea Grant in 1995
and revised in 1999, the seafood industry in New York contributes at
least \$1 billion to the economy of the state and provides employment
for at least 25,000 New Yorkers. The industry is comprised of many
diverse but inter-related sectors including: fish and shellfish
harvesters, docks, processors, wholesalers, distributors, importers,
exporters, retail, and food service businesses. Industry estimates,
based on licenses or permits issued by the state in 1998, indicate that
there are approximately 5,300 individuals or businesses involved in the
commercial harvesting of fish and shellfish that contribute
approximately \$300 million in economic activity. Also, there are over
2,100 shoreside processing, wholesale/distribution or retail businesses
that contribute over \$800 million to the state's economy. Restaurant
sales and employment are not included in the above estimates. This is an
important gap because the majority of New York's large consumer
population lives in coastal areas and seafood products are an important
part of the diet and food traditions of New York residents. Although
specific seafood consumption statistics for New York are not readily
available, a 1992 estimate, based on U.S. Department of Labor
Statistics, indicated that the average annual household expenditures for
seafood eaten at home in New York City were among the highest in the
nation and approximately 75 percent higher than the national average. On
a national scale consumption of seafood in restaurants is about 10 times
that consumed at home. Thus, the economic citations above may be gross
underestimates.

Although a number of large seafood firms are located in New York, the
majority of these businesses are small to medium sized companies that
employ from 2 to 25 people and have limited financial and technical
resources. This makes it difficult or impossible for the industry to
sponsor extensive research or technical development activities or
conduct marketing campaigns.

Against this background, NYSG efforts are likely to be very effective.
The seafood industry in New York and the rest of the Northeastern U.S.
is facing a number of significant challenges and transitions. Steadily
declining stocks of many traditional fish species, the increasing number
and complexity of government regulations, rising product and overhead
costs, and other factors related to highly dynamic domestic and
international markets are having a significant impact on seafood
businesses. To remain profitable, seafood businesses from fishermen to
retailers need to anticipate, understand, and adapt to changing market
conditions and regulations.

Changes in fisheries management and food safety regulations are also
being developed and implemented at a rapid rate. In December of 1997, a
new U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulation began requiring all
processors, wholesalers, suppliers, and distributors to develop and
implement a new Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) plan for
their individual operations to control food safety hazards. Training and
technical support were necessary for seafood businesses to successfully
integrate HACCP into their operations. A survey of seafood businesses in
NY indicated that over 80 percent of the firms would not have been able
to comply with the new FDA regulation without the training course
coordinated by Sea Grant. By the end of 1999 over 1,000 individuals had
participated in training courses conducted by New York Sea Grant in
collaboration with federal and state regulatory agencies and the seafood
industry. But HACCP procedures likely will change and evolve as new
information on specific seafood safety hazards becomes available.
Research information on the identification, occurrence, toxic action,
and control of pathogens and toxins and plant sanitation that compromise
seafood safety will be important in that evolution. Continuing training
programs using new and innovative formats and delivery mechanisms will
be needed to help the industry utilize this information and incorporate
it into their operations.

B. Objectives

a\. Coordinate efforts by the seafood industry and federal, state and
local regulatory authorities to enhance the safety of seafood products
and to successfully complete the transition to a state-of-the-art food
safety control system (e.g., HACCP).

b\. Develop, test, and deliver new and innovative educational and
training programs on seafood safety hazards and improved sanitation
practices for consumers, the seafood industry and regulatory community
as part of the national Seafood Education and HACCP (or other
stateof-the-art system) Alliance.

c\. Identify the risks of contaminant burdens, pathogens and chemicals
for seafood safety, develop cost-effective analytical techniques, and
determine strategies for minimizing, eliminating or remediating
potential impacts.

d\. Develop techniques to maintain or increase seafood quality during
the period from catch to consumption.

GOAL 5. Assess and Enhance Coastal Water Quality:

A. Rationale

Since the early 1970s, the US Environmental Protection Agency via the
National Pollution Discharge Elimination System regulations and the NYS
Department of Environmental Conservation via the State Pollution
Elimination Discharge System regulations have provided the basis for
massive clean-ups of point source discharges into New York's coastal
water bodies. Demonstrations of the successes of these activities
include healthy spawning runs of striped bass and sturgeon up the Hudson
River, return of shipworms to New York Harbor, openings of many bays and
estuaries to sport and commercial harvesting, and burgeoning populations
of predatory water birds on the Great Lakes.

GOAL 6. Protect or Enhance Coastal Habitats:

A. Rationale

Habitat issues are important economically from one end of New York State
to the other. It is important to maintain the function of existing
coastal habitats and to rehabilitate degraded ones, even if doing so can
be a complex task. Habitat also has become a key issue in coastal
fisheries management. ... Finally, habitat issues also are critical for
sustainability of Great Lakes' resources. According to the 1999 State of
the Lakes Report, prepared by the USEPA and Environment Canada,
"Wetlands are important ecologically, socially, and economically, and
are one of the most productive ecosystems in the world. Wetland plant
and animal communities are not only adapted to life on the edge of the
terrestrial and aquatic zones, they depend on it and on lake level
fluctuations for their continued survival." Many of the cities and
villages along Lakes Erie or Ontario have been located near freshwater
estuaries where streams or rivers enter the lakes, putting these
important habitats right at the crux of development.

B. Objectives

a\. Educate community groups, professionals and agencies about the
benefits of and techniques for improving the quality (structure or
ecosystem function) of threatened, degraded or compromised coastal
habitats (e.g., Areas of Concern).

b\. Develop and promulgate educational programs that estimate human
carrying capacity and manage human access to coastal areas.

c\. Use small grants programs, endowments and public involvement to
provide support for

coastal habitat restoration.

d\. Develop or refine techniques to determine the ecological value of
coastal habitats, to examine the effect of human activities on habitat
quality and/or habitat fragmentation, to determine if or when habitats
have been degraded, and to identify and evaluate the effectiveness of
remediation techniques to restore those habitats.

GOAL 7. Control the Spread and Mitigate the Impact of Nonindigenous
Species (NIS) and Aquatic Nuisance Species (ANS) in New York\'s Coastal
Waters:

A. Rationale

U.S Secretary of the Interior, Bruce Babbitt, told attendees at a
January 1999 Sea Grant

Conference on Marine Bioinvasions that "Marine bioinvasions have large
consequences for our food supply, our economy, our fishing industry and
human health." In addition, distribution of brood stock for global
aquaculture and of exotic species (and their parasites) by the aquarium
industry both contribute an additional source of NIS/ANS.