The NOAA Fisheries Milford Lab has a strong history of working with industry members to solve issues related to shellfish aquaculture. Meanwhile, Sea Grant has built strong networks throughout the east coast using extension to drive advancements between research, industry, and regulators in the shellfish aquaculture industry. Through the Sea Grant Regional Aquaculture Liaison, there has been a concerted effort over the last year to create better connections between the NMFS aquaculture program and the Sea Grant aquaculture extension network to leverage new partnerships and new funding sources to promote research for sustainable shellfish aquaculture. One project that has come from this effort is an investigation into the slow growth and poor survivorship of hard clams in certain areas of NJ.
The Milford Lab is collaborating with growers, and state regulators in NJ to provide more information to understand the decreasing productivity of Hard Clams in Little Egg Harbor and nearby estuaries. Sampling has begun this past summer collecting water temperature and hard clam condition index. Funding secured from the Northeast SARE program will allow for an expansion of sampling to a second site, collection of additional environmental parameters, and shell age analysis of aquacultured and wild clams. This data combined with existing historical data will lead to better understanding of the growth dynamics of hard clams in New Jersey, and may provide lessons for other regions in the Northeast experiencing hard clam declines.