University of Massachusetts Dartmouth
EN-10: Community Partnerships

The Massachusetts Marine Fisheries Institute (MFI) was established in 2002 through a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between the Massachusetts Department of Fisheries Wildlife and Environmental Law Enforcement's (later renamed the Department of Fish and Game) Division of Marine Fisheries and the University of Massachusetts Intercampus Graduate School of Marine Science and Technology (later renamed the Intercampus Marine Science Graduate Program). In March 2013, the partnership between the University of Massachusetts and the Commonwealth in fisheries research and education was reaffirmed in a revised MOA that designated the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF) as the lead organization for the Commonwealth and the School for Marine Science and Technology (SMAST) at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth as the lead organization among “University of Massachusetts campuses, divisions, and departments that may contribute to the Institute's mission.”
The administrative structure, as well as policies and procedures of MFI, are consistent with University and Division policies and strategic plans. The MFI benefits from consultation with an Advisory Council “consisting of individuals with expertise appropriate to the MFI mission and appointed from faculty and academic leadership in the University of Massachusetts system and from stakeholder groups with interest in the mission of the MFI.” A list of current Advisory Council members, Co-Chairs, and Executive Committee members is appended to this report (Appendix).
The primary mission of the MFI is to “promote sustainable fisheries through scientific study to advance understanding and through the provision of timely information and guidance to protect, conserve, and manage Massachusetts and New England fisheries and their habitats in a manner that balances the economic, environmental, and cultural interests of the citizens of the Commonwealth.” Goals include the following:
1. develop innovative and practical fisheries management applications contributing to scientific understanding, management, and economic growth and sustainability of our oceans and communities of Massachusetts that border on the ocean;
2. administer and conduct research projects involving faculty, professional researchers, technical staff, and graduate and undergraduate students from the five UMass campuses, multiple disciplines, and several coastal facilities;
3. promote sustainable fisheries by providing timely information, recommendations, and proposals for the conservation and management of Massachusetts marine and coastal resources.

For more information, please visit: https://www.umassd.edu/mfi/

The Mashpee Water Quality Partnership was formed in 2015 between SMAST-UMASS Dartmouth, the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe and the Town of Mashpee, Massachusetts to support long term coastal water quality monitoring, restoration and remediation of Mashpee’s nutrient impaired coastal waters. Over the years Mashpee has seen the effects of coastal eutrophication due to progressive nutrient over-enrichment from increased development in the watershed. This collaboration supports the citizen-based water quality monitoring required to cost effectively assess the current health of these systems and is particularly important to evaluating the relative success of restoration and management efforts in Popponesset and Waquoit Bays. These two embayments in particular represent valuable natural resources of historic importance to the Tribe notably with regards to their history of fishing and shell fishing in these systems. These efforts are aimed at sustaining healthy aquatic environments for both Tribal members and non Tribal residents of this community for this generation and generations to come.

The Atlantic Herring Research Set-Aside (RSA) Program administered through the New England Fishery Management Council and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Northeast Fisheries Science Center continue to support the joint SMAST and Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries project focused on maintaining and expanding bycatch avoidance strategies.

The project aims to sustain, improve, and evaluate portside sampling and river herring incidental catch reduction in the Atlantic herring midwater trawl fishery. Scientists use near-real-time communications to disseminate the reported information fleet-wide, which helps fishermen avoid areas where they are likely to catch river herring erroneously.

Since 2010, SMAST and the Division of Marine Fisheries have worked collaboratively with the midwater trawl fleet to assist in reducing river herring incidental catch. For more information, please visit: https://www.umassd.edu/smast/bycatch/

We work with the Southeast Regional Planning and Economic Development District related to advancing sustainable transportation within the region. This ranges from bike paths, busing and rail development.

Mike Marino, Associate Dean of Operations; SMAST
Jamie Jacquart