On The Water: Tackling 'Ghost Fishing' In The Long Island Sound

LONG ISLAND SOUND, NY — The Long Island Sound was once the home of the third largest lobster fishery in the U.S.; by the early 2000s, the fishery had nearly completely collapsed and "ghost fishing" continues to hinder the slim hopes of a rebound.

Lobster traps rely on bait to entice the sought-after crustaceans into an inescapable cage, but when left unattended for years or even decades, a vicious cycle of sea-life becoming caught in the lobster pots and then in turn becoming bait that attracts other sea life can continue unabated. Those trying to restore the health of the Sound refer to the unintentionally automated, perpetual fishing phenomenon as "ghost fishing" and it's a big problem.

As many as 1 million abandoned lobster pots remain on the bottom of the Long Island Sound. Some of the traps were accidentally lost over decades of lobstering, but others were left in the water when the Sound’s $12 million lobster industry crashed in 1999.

Cornell Cooperative Extension (CCE) of Suffolk County has removed 19,000 derelict pots from the New York waters of the Sound since 2011. The group has found that 91 percent still function.

Now, the New York organization is going lend its expertise to an effort to make similar strides in Connecticut waters.

“For over 10 years, we have been working on this specific issue of marine debris,” CCE Director Vanessa Lockel said. “These projects would not be successful without the partnerships we have forged along the way. These partnerships continue to be the backbone of the project's success, starting with the engagement of the commercial fishing industry and state regulatory agencies, and then including local municipalities, metal recyclers, and waste to energy companies. Combining our resources with partners in Connecticut, we can share the lessons we have learned and develop new cross-Sound projects and collaborations.”

The cross-border efforts will be well-funded thanks in part to $569,000 in new federal funding to support the project.

“This federal investment in the Sound will remove derelict traps for marine life to create a healthier ecosystem for the species that remain there," Sen. Richard Blumenthal said in a statement praising the new initiative. "The Long Island Sound is a beloved natural treasure. I am proud that this federal funding will continue the ongoing work toward preserving its ecological vitality."

The $569,000 will supports the creation of a coalition, led by The Maritime Aquarium, of environmental agencies, lobstermen and scientists that will team up to remove an initial 3,000 lobster traps off the Sound floor in two years. This work – along with the decade of similar efforts in New York waters by the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County — will establish the framework of best practices and lay the groundwork for an ongoing program to hopefully end the Sound’s harmful "ghost fishing" for good.

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