February 13, 2014 — They’ve been in the ocean here since the late 1800s, but there is a growing concern about the continued invasion of green crabs and their impact on the region’s clamming industry.
About 40 state officials, clammers and town officials from across the region — representing Gloucester, Essex, Rowley and Newburyport — gathered at Ipswich Town Hall earlier this week to devise solutions for combating the invasive species, with thoughts ranging from included seeking state grants, discussing ways to control the species’ population and finding a market for the crabs.
“Green crab will eat about anything, especially juvenile shellfish,” said Scott LaPreste, Ipswich’s shellfish constable. “It is our biggest shellfish issue right now,” he said.
LaPreste said Ipswich is responsible for about 30 percent of the state’s clamming industry and typically brings in between $5 million and $10 million per year. Concerns about diminishing clam numbers exist across the East Coast, especially in Maine, he said. There has been about a 30 percent decline statewide in the past 14 years, according to state officials.
LaPreste said there is only a small market for green crabs for bait, though there are talks about finding a better way to market the crabs for other uses. He said there have been no consistent efforts to control the green crabs since the 1960s or ’70s, and milder ocean temperatures are seen as reasons for a possible increase in the crabs.
Read the full story from the Gloucester Daily Times