THE CONNECTICUT SHELLFISH INITIATIVE: A FIVE-YEAR PROGRESS REPORT

The Connecticut Shellfish Initiative is a multifaceted effort to grow commercial and recreational shellfisheries, revitalize natural shellfish beds and increase public awareness about the economic, environmental and cultural importance of bivalve shellfish. A stakeholder-based process that included industry, regulatory agencies, environmental advocacy groups, academia, coastal community residents and others produced the Connecticut Shellfish Initiative Vision Plan (2018) https://shellfish.uconn.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/62/2016/10/execsumm.pdf. The vision statement, goals, recommended actions and performance measures comprise the plan. The State Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Aquaculture and Connecticut Sea Grant share the responsibility of tracking progress.

Over the last five years, numerous individuals and organizations have used the Vision Plan to justify research, outreach, management and policy projects and proposals. Their collective work has resulted in accomplishments and impacts including but not limited to the following:

• Research to place environmental and economic values on harvested shellfish
• Research to better understand aspects of climate change on cultured oysters
• Research on shell substrate and broodstock planting strategies on natural oyster beds
• Research to document the economic importance of the recreational shellfish sector
• Research to understand eating habits and how to get more seafood into residents’ diets
• Regulatory guidance document for marine aquaculture
• Regulatory guidance on direct marketing of shellfish
• Planning and regulatory guidance for shellfish restoration
• Sanitation guidance for shell recycling and facilitation of shell recycling partnerships
• Independent review of state aquaculture laws
• Improved GIS mapping capacity
• Increased staffing at state regulatory office
• New and retained shellfish businesses
• Restored natural shellfish bed acreage

Another key benefit of the CSI is the strong relationships formed or improved through the process of discussing important issues, finding commonalities and working together to propose innovation solutions. The CSI also provided a framework for rapid relief for the shellfish aquaculture sector following the losses associated with COVID-19. The value of the relationships among stakeholders cannot be overstated.