The University of Rhode Island’s Commercial Fisheries Research Foundation will receive $6.5 million in federal grants to research challenges facing the local commercial fishing industry and to reduce the threat to North Atlantic right whales from fishing equipment.
U.S. Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., announced the funding, which involves two awards from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, on Wednesday.
“The Commercial Fisheries Research Foundation deserves great credit for bringing together a broad range of stakeholders to develop practical solutions facing the fishing industry,” Reed said in a statement. “This federal funding will support Rhode Island’s fishing industry, a vital component of the local economy, by ensuring that fishermen have the research and tools to weather the current economic storm and flourish over the long term.”
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