With support and optimism for our scallop fleet
This letter to the editor appeared in the March 16, 2023 edition of the Nantucket Inquirer and Mirror. This is in response to an article that was published on March 9, 2023 that you can read HERE.
Scalloping is not an old man’s game.
Nantucket shellfishing, specifically bay scalloping, is based in tradition, one that we take seriously at the Nantucket Shellfish Association. We are committed to protecting the health of our harbors and supporting our shellfisheries. We are grateful for the knowledge and history of our longer standing fishermen, but to be clear, scalloping is not just an “old man’s game”.
In many instances, commercial scalloping is a family affair. We have a long legacy of fishermen learning from their fathers, husbands and wives fishing together, grandkids standing on milk crates to help reach the culling board. Many of them take over the business in time, like the handful of father/son fishing duos we have today.
This year, while more than 80 licenses were sold, that is not an accurate depiction of the fleet. A fair number of them are annual renewals, and in reality, about 40 scallopers actively fish through the season. And in my opinion, that is where there is much room for optimism. While about a quarter of the active scallopers are indeed over 60 years old, there are also about a dozen in their 20’s and 30’s, some fishing with mentors and some now running their own boats. This year we also saw a recent high of ten apprentice licenses issued, clearly illustrating an uptick in interest in our bay scallop fishery.
Rather than lamenting the age of a select group of scallopers, we should be supporting and celebrating the current and next generation who are working so hard together to preserve a core tradition of our beloved island. And, while our fleet is certainly getting smaller, we are seeing first-hand how our fishermen are working hard to adapt. At the Nantucket Shellfish Association, we work closely with them through the Fishermen’s Council where they are able to apply for funding from our Community Infrastructure Grant.
While scalloping on Nantucket faces new challenges, our answer should not to lean back and throw our hands up. Instead, we need to lean in, championing our fishermen who wake up and work hard every single day.
Thank you,
Samantha Denette
Executive Director, Nantucket Shellfish Association
