The Middlesex County Economic Development Authority was recently awarded $99,840 in Growth and Opportunity (GO Virginia) Funds in Region 6 for the “River to Table – Blue Catfish Study.”
The grant funding will be used to conduct a study to provide an initial summary of the state of the blue catfish industry. This includes harvesters, processors, and wholesale/retail sale in the Middle Peninsula and Northern Neck regions.
“The GO Virginia Region 6 Council recognizes our unique position to address the overpopulation of blue catfish in our waterways, and exploring the economic benefits that blue catfish could bring to the Northern Neck, Middle Peninsula, and other regions of the commonwealth,” stated John Anzivino, chairman of the Region 6 Council. “We also recognize the imperative need to partner with other regional and statewide stakeholders to create a coordinated action plan to promote an economy around blue catfish. Brining the current population of blue catfish under control is also key to protecting our existing commercial fishing and aquaculture industries.”
Blue catfish are an invasive species to the Chesapeake Bay and the bay’s estuary system, including the Rappahannock, Potomac and James Rivers. The species was introduced into Virginia Rivers in the 1970s for the purpose of sportfishing. The population has since grown exponentially with no natural predators and is affecting populations of blue crabs, striped bass, and other native species that have economic and historical significance.
There have been several efforts by the commonwealth to address the blue catfish crisis, including a workgroup run by the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) and an Agriculture and Forestry Industries Development Fund (AFID) grant which had previously been awarded to Sea Farms in Gloucester. The Middlesex EDA will engage both the VDACS workgroup as well as representatives from the Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP), Virginia Tech, the Rivers Region Entrepreneurship Council, and the Virginia Institute of Marine Science.
Match for the grant in the amount of $62,590 is being provided from the Economic Development Authority (EDA) in Middlesex, Essex, Gloucester, King George, Lancaster, and Mathews County…
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