Under Governor Hogan’s administration, however, the tide seems to have shifted in favor of opening up more grounds to commercial oyster harvest. Also, officials have indicated their preference to use natural shell from sites like Man O’War Shoal in restoration projects. In an online statement explaining their reasoning the agency wrote: “...it became clear that options for accessing cost-effective substrate for industry bottom were exhausted. Therefore, DNR determined that the purpose and need for Man O’War shell could be clearly documented and proceeded to update the permit application. DNR has now updated and resubmitted the Man O’War Shoal dredging permit.”
It has been suggested that the dearth of natural shell has contributed to delays in constructing the remaining oyster reefs as called for in the original plan. As a result, it is expected DNR and watermen’s group may use this argument as justification for mining Man O’ War.
Robert Newberry, chairman of the Delmarva Fisheries Association, believes the time has come to dredge these grounds. “The acquiring of oyster shell from Man O’ War Shoal is very important to both of the user groups (watermen and recreational anglers). The shell will be used to both reconstruct and rehabilitate oyster bars throughout the Chesapeake Bay. The new aquaculture-based industry will also benefit from this shell,” he said. “There may be other areas to acquire shell, but the time is at hand now for this project. We don’t have five years to wait. The Chesapeake Bay needs this excellent shell now.”
Maryland Saltwater Sportfishing Association’s executive director Dave Smith disagrees. “The department for some reason can’t leave this location alone. What they need to do is spend some time and money to identify alternate shell deposits in the Bay, if in fact they still think dredging up old shell will get us to where we need to be,” Smith said. “The MSSA would suggest that alternate materials such as concrete or fossil shell from other coastal states would be more beneficial.”
David Sikorski, government relations chairman for the Coastal Conservation Association of Maryland, said sport anglers already pay more than their fair share to DNR, and shouldn’t have to foot the bill for “destroying a favorite recreational fishing spot” such as Man O’War Shoal.
“Maryland does not have any way of controlling the fresh oyster shell that is harvested each year right now, and we already failed at dredging and moving fossil shell around the Bay,” he added. “What makes anyone think that we will get it right this time around?”
The chair of the state’s artificial reef committee, Capt. Monty Hawkins, wrote to his state Senator Jim Mathias to voice his concerns over the plan. “If Man O’War Shoal is dredged, we’ll have the impact of dredged silts as they are dug from the Bay floor, and silt impacts again when deployed,” Hawkins wrote. “Then, when all is said done, we’ll also have additional failed reef restorations.”
At this stage it is unclear how this will all play out. The process to grant permission to dredge takes time. And, conservationists wonder, does the state’s decision to dredge Man O’ War shoal also signal a shift in how it will conduct overall oyster restoration? What is crystal clear is that the state’s Fishery Service once again has its work cut out to navigate the various opinions and recommendations of stakeholders, and do what’s best to help rebuild oysters.
Want to weigh in?
Send your comments to:
Abbie Hopkins
ATTN: CENAB-OPR-M
Baltimore District, Corps of Engineers
P.O. Box 1715, Baltimore, MD 21203-1715
Phone: (410) 962-6080
Email: [email protected]
Tuesday, March 8, 2016 - 08:45
When it comes to oyster restoration in Maryland’s part of the Chesapeake, very few issues generate such strong opinions as whether or not to mine the fossil shell from the upper Bay’s Man O’War Shoal. So last month, just before the holidays, when Maryland’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR) announced they reapplied to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for permits to dredge this historic reef, it was no surprise commercial watermen welcomed the news while recreational fishermen and conservation groups began to rally against the plan.
First some background: in July of 2009, DNR asked the Army Corps for permission to dredge Man O’War Shoal to use the fossilized shells to build oyster reefs. The Corps recommended the agency find alternate substrate, such as fossilized shell trucked in from out of state or concrete reef balls, so DNR tabled plans to dredge the popular fishing spot.
The next year, the O’Malley Administration set in motion its ambitious plan to double the number of oyster sanctuaries and ramp up aquaculture efforts, hoping to usher in “the dawn of a new day for oysters in Maryland,” according to William Eichbaum, chairman of the state’s oyster advisory commission at that time. Some oystermen had a different view; they saw the sun setting on their ability to harvest on wild grounds since the master oyster plan placed in sanctuary roughly 24 percent of the state’s historic oyster bars. In the past five years, at its Horn Point facility in the Choptank River, the state has produced about two billion juvenile oysters to seed restoration reefs, at a cost of tens of millions of dollars.
Under Governor Hogan’s administration, however, the tide seems to have shifted in favor of opening up more grounds to commercial oyster harvest. Also, officials have indicated their preference to use natural shell from sites like Man O’War Shoal in restoration projects. In an online statement explaining their reasoning the agency wrote: “...it became clear that options for accessing cost-effective substrate for industry bottom were exhausted. Therefore, DNR determined that the purpose and need for Man O’War shell could be clearly documented and proceeded to update the permit application. DNR has now updated and resubmitted the Man O’War Shoal dredging permit.”
It has been suggested that the dearth of natural shell has contributed to delays in constructing the remaining oyster reefs as called for in the original plan. As a result, it is expected DNR and watermen’s group may use this argument as justification for mining Man O’ War.
Robert Newberry, chairman of the Delmarva Fisheries Association, believes the time has come to dredge these grounds. “The acquiring of oyster shell from Man O’ War Shoal is very important to both of the user groups (watermen and recreational anglers). The shell will be used to both reconstruct and rehabilitate oyster bars throughout the Chesapeake Bay. The new aquaculture-based industry will also benefit from this shell,” he said. “There may be other areas to acquire shell, but the time is at hand now for this project. We don’t have five years to wait. The Chesapeake Bay needs this excellent shell now.”
Maryland Saltwater Sportfishing Association’s executive director Dave Smith disagrees. “The department for some reason can’t leave this location alone. What they need to do is spend some time and money to identify alternate shell deposits in the Bay, if in fact they still think dredging up old shell will get us to where we need to be,” Smith said. “The MSSA would suggest that alternate materials such as concrete or fossil shell from other coastal states would be more beneficial.”
David Sikorski, government relations chairman for the Coastal Conservation Association of Maryland, said sport anglers already pay more than their fair share to DNR, and shouldn’t have to foot the bill for “destroying a favorite recreational fishing spot” such as Man O’War Shoal.
“Maryland does not have any way of controlling the fresh oyster shell that is harvested each year right now, and we already failed at dredging and moving fossil shell around the Bay,” he added. “What makes anyone think that we will get it right this time around?”
The chair of the state’s artificial reef committee, Capt. Monty Hawkins, wrote to his state Senator Jim Mathias to voice his concerns over the plan. “If Man O’War Shoal is dredged, we’ll have the impact of dredged silts as they are dug from the Bay floor, and silt impacts again when deployed,” Hawkins wrote. “Then, when all is said done, we’ll also have additional failed reef restorations.”
At this stage it is unclear how this will all play out. The process to grant permission to dredge takes time. And, conservationists wonder, does the state’s decision to dredge Man O’ War shoal also signal a shift in how it will conduct overall oyster restoration? What is crystal clear is that the state’s Fishery Service once again has its work cut out to navigate the various opinions and recommendations of stakeholders, and do what’s best to help rebuild oysters.
Want to weigh in?
Send your comments to:
Abbie Hopkins
ATTN: CENAB-OPR-M
Baltimore District, Corps of Engineers
P.O. Box 1715, Baltimore, MD 21203-1715
Phone: (410) 962-6080
Email: [email protected]
Under Governor Hogan’s administration, however, the tide seems to have shifted in favor of opening up more grounds to commercial oyster harvest. Also, officials have indicated their preference to use natural shell from sites like Man O’War Shoal in restoration projects. In an online statement explaining their reasoning the agency wrote: “...it became clear that options for accessing cost-effective substrate for industry bottom were exhausted. Therefore, DNR determined that the purpose and need for Man O’War shell could be clearly documented and proceeded to update the permit application. DNR has now updated and resubmitted the Man O’War Shoal dredging permit.”
It has been suggested that the dearth of natural shell has contributed to delays in constructing the remaining oyster reefs as called for in the original plan. As a result, it is expected DNR and watermen’s group may use this argument as justification for mining Man O’ War.
Robert Newberry, chairman of the Delmarva Fisheries Association, believes the time has come to dredge these grounds. “The acquiring of oyster shell from Man O’ War Shoal is very important to both of the user groups (watermen and recreational anglers). The shell will be used to both reconstruct and rehabilitate oyster bars throughout the Chesapeake Bay. The new aquaculture-based industry will also benefit from this shell,” he said. “There may be other areas to acquire shell, but the time is at hand now for this project. We don’t have five years to wait. The Chesapeake Bay needs this excellent shell now.”
Maryland Saltwater Sportfishing Association’s executive director Dave Smith disagrees. “The department for some reason can’t leave this location alone. What they need to do is spend some time and money to identify alternate shell deposits in the Bay, if in fact they still think dredging up old shell will get us to where we need to be,” Smith said. “The MSSA would suggest that alternate materials such as concrete or fossil shell from other coastal states would be more beneficial.”
David Sikorski, government relations chairman for the Coastal Conservation Association of Maryland, said sport anglers already pay more than their fair share to DNR, and shouldn’t have to foot the bill for “destroying a favorite recreational fishing spot” such as Man O’War Shoal.
“Maryland does not have any way of controlling the fresh oyster shell that is harvested each year right now, and we already failed at dredging and moving fossil shell around the Bay,” he added. “What makes anyone think that we will get it right this time around?”
The chair of the state’s artificial reef committee, Capt. Monty Hawkins, wrote to his state Senator Jim Mathias to voice his concerns over the plan. “If Man O’War Shoal is dredged, we’ll have the impact of dredged silts as they are dug from the Bay floor, and silt impacts again when deployed,” Hawkins wrote. “Then, when all is said done, we’ll also have additional failed reef restorations.”
At this stage it is unclear how this will all play out. The process to grant permission to dredge takes time. And, conservationists wonder, does the state’s decision to dredge Man O’ War shoal also signal a shift in how it will conduct overall oyster restoration? What is crystal clear is that the state’s Fishery Service once again has its work cut out to navigate the various opinions and recommendations of stakeholders, and do what’s best to help rebuild oysters.
Want to weigh in?
Send your comments to:
Abbie Hopkins
ATTN: CENAB-OPR-M
Baltimore District, Corps of Engineers
P.O. Box 1715, Baltimore, MD 21203-1715
Phone: (410) 962-6080
Email: [email protected]